Stefan Mileschin

Having entered the market for gaming displays not so long ago, MSI is certainly not afraid of experimenting with various technologies in a bid to address niches that are not yet crowded with competitors. At CES, the company demonstrated its aggressively curved Optix MAG342CQR monitor that also boasts a 144 Hz variable refresh rate as well as quantum dot backlighting enhancements for accurate colors and a wider color gamut.

The MSI Optix MAG342CQR display uses a 34.5-inch Super PVA panel featuring a 3440x1440 resolution, a 21:9 aspect ratio, a 1 ms response time, and maximum refresh rate of 144 Hz. The key characteristic of this panel is its aggressive curvature of a 1000R radius, which MSI promotes as being the most optimal curvature, matching the curvature of the human eye.

The Optix MAG342CQR comes with a LED backlighting enhanced with quantum dots that improve color accuracy and ensures that the monitor can accurately display 1.07 billion colors. At the moment, MSI does not disclose which color gamuts will be supported by the display, but we are almost certainly talking about the sRGB and DCI-P3 spaces.

Traditionally for contemporary gaming displays, the MSI Optix MAG342CQR support VESA’s Adaptive-Sync variable refresh rate technology, so it is logical to expect the monitor to gain AMD’s FreeSync and NVIDIA’s G-Sync Compatible certifications by the time of its commercial launch later this year.

One of the interesting things to note about MSI’s Optix MAG342CQR is that it is based on a Super PVA panel made by Samsung Display, according to TFT Central. Samsung itself introduced its own lineup of ultra-curved displays featuring a 1000R curvature at CES, but its family does not include a 21:9 34-inch LCD just yet, so MSI currently has the world’s only 34-inch monitor with a 1000R curvature.

MSI plans to ship its Optix MAG342CQR sometimes in Q2 or Q3 this year, but does not have a firm launch date just yet.

https://www.anandtech.com/show/15431...ch-144hz-1000r