At CES 2017, both Acer and ASUS simultaneously announced two 4K G-SYNC HDR displays. Featuring ultra-fast 144Hz refresh rates, peak brightness of 1000 nits, full-array backlight, wide color gamut, and minimal input latency, these were the first HDR gaming monitors to be revealed. Although those two monitors aren't even available yet - they are slated for release later this summer - both Acer and ASUS have just announced two new 35-inch curved G-SYNC HDR monitors at Computex 2017.

The new Acer Predator X35 and ASUS ROG Swift PG35VQ are twins in many respects, since they both feature a custom AU Optronics G-SYNC HDR panel that was co-developed with NVIDIA. This 35-inch panel not only has a 3440x1440 resolution, 1800R curvature, and an ultrawide 21:9 aspect ratio, but its refresh rate runs at a blistering 200Hz. The WQHD panel sports a peak brightness of 1000 nits, and a full-array backlight with 512 individually-controllable LED zones. The HDR format in question is HDR10, since that is the standard being adopted for PC gaming. The monitors apparently support the cinema-standard DCI-P3 color gamut - to what percentage is unknown - made possible by improving the backlighting with a Quantum Dot Enhancement Film (QDEF). There is no information on response times, but there are claims of "almost zero input latency".

The two monitors will feature DisplayPort 1.4 inputs, which is an absolutely necessity to handle the up to 29.7Gbps bandwidth that this panel will require. By comparison, HDMI 2.0 is limited to a mere 18Gbps, and thus would be limited to 120Hz.

While we have no unique information about the Acer model, the ASUS display will have integrated RGB LED lighting in the form of an ROG logo that shines down onto the desk and a rear ROG logo that features RGB LEDs and that can be synchronized with other Aura Sync-enabled PC components and peripherals.

The Acer Predator X35 and ASUS ROG Swift PG35VQ are scheduled to be released sometime in Q4 2017.

Acer Predator X35 G-Sync HDR Monitor

ASUS ROG Swift PG35VQ G-Sync HDR Monitor

Source: NVIDIA

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  • WrathPC - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link

    I think thats a good idea, but, we probably wont be lucky enough to get Acer to shine lights directly into our eyes due to the odd few who will try and sue for eye damage and blinding. Shame, would have been awesome. Like screw ULMB, just shine a laser into our eyes instead
  • maximumGPU - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link

    I know it's been debated a lot, but i still can't make up my mind. ultrawide 1440p or 16:9 4K..
    at least I've got a few months of pondering (and penny-pinching) until these monitors hit the market!
  • ATWindsor - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link

    The 16:9 definitively. The ultrawides are way to wide.
  • Hxx - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link

    as a proud owner of an Acer x34 i have to say i love this thing. I am definitely going to be picking up the Acer variant. Asus will likely cost more and I am really not loving the stand...I wish they would ditch that cylinder looking thing it has no place on that monitor and go with something not as "gamery" .
  • WrathPC - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link

    So a brand new monitor with a VA panel for gamers? VA having and average of 15ms response time with most grey scale transitions of 20ms to 50ms response times yet they claim 4ms? I hust dont understand.. or maybe I do, VA is cheaper and eaisier for them to develop BUT still charge premium price. A TN panel with with better developed blacks from the 512 point back lighting with ULMB would destroy this VA junk.
  • mobutu - Saturday, June 3, 2017 - link

    it's the same panel in both monitors and it is IPS-type panel from AU Optronics.
  • stangflyer - Monday, July 24, 2017 - link

    This is a VA panel not IPS. At least 4 places are saying VA-

    Asus have recently showcased a very interesting new model in their popular ROG Swift gaming range at this years Computex event. The ROG Swift PG35VQ is a 35-inch UWQHD (3440 x 1440 resolution) curved gaming monitor with High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology. It features a VA-type panel from AU Optronics (AMVA) with a 200Hz refresh rate for stunning and smooth gaming experiences, while the HDR technology delivers a peak luminance of up to 1000cd/m² for brighter images that allow gamers to see even the darkest darks.
  • Glenwing - Wednesday, January 10, 2018 - link

    I know this is a somewhat old post, but just a note about the bandwidth numbers; you aren't accounting for blanking intervals, which are still needed in real systems. If you account for that, HDMI 2.0 maxes at 100 Hz at 3440 × 1440, not 120 Hz (well, somewhere inbetween, but 100 would be the highest "common" refresh rate).

    Additionally, I gather your calculation for the 29.7 Gbit/s is:
    3440 × 1440 × 30 × 200.
    I don't know you are using 30 bit/px to include HDR in the calculation, or if you were using 24 bit/px color but multiplying by 1.25 to compensate for the 8b/10b encoding used by HDMI (and forgot about HDR). Either way, you only did one of those, and you need to do both if you want to compare it to the 18 Gbit/s bandwidth of HDMI to see if it fits.

    The 18 Gbit/s bandwidth of HDMI 2.0 isn't all used for data, only 80% of it (14.4 Gbit/s) is used for video data. That means your calculation needs to fit within 14.4 Gbit/s bandwidth to be within HDMI's capabilities, not 18.0 Gbit/s. Or alternatively you can do it from the other way and multiply your calculation by 1.25 to account for this, then you can compare that to 18. Either way, 3440 × 1440 @ 120 Hz with CVT-RB blanking factored in requires more bandwidth than HDMI 2.0 has, even if you don't include HDR.

    As for the maximum figure for the monitors, if we use CVT-RB blanking intervals and HDR, the requirement is around 33.5 Gbit/s of actual data rate, if you factor in 8b/10b encoding overhead it's around 41.9 Gbit/s. This is actually well outside the maximum of DP 1.4 (25.92 Gbit/s datarate or 32.4 Gbit/s bandwidth), so DSC must be making an appearance in these monitors.

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