Philips 346B1C Review

The Philips 346B1C is a curved ultra wide PC monitor with a 21:9 ratio.  This means its going to take up a lot of desk space but it’s a promising alternative to having two wide screen monitors positioned next to each other.  The latter approach requires a break in the image where the two screens meet, an ultra wide form factor avoids this problem.

With a 34″ 3440 x 1440 display Philips market this screen for work over play, but it’s worth noting that it does support an impressive 100mhz refresh rate which is going to look smooth if you do use this for some wide screen game play.

Build Quality

The 346B1C gives off a clean professional vibe, as might be expected given the target market.  The stand is a straightforward rectangular base, providing a steady platform without encroaching too far into your desk. The stand has a good range of adjustments, this isn’t always the case on some of the larger ultra wide monitors. It can tilt (5° forwards, 30° backwards), swivel (180° left and right) and you also get a healthy 180mm height adjustment.   Rotation into portrait mode is unsurprisingly not possible, it doesn’t really make sense on a curved ultra wide display!  If you can’t get on with the included stand, you can always hook it up with a 100 x 100mm VESA compatible arm.

Connectivity comes in the form of HDMI 2.0 and Display Port 1.2a sockets.  In addition it also comes with USB C , RJ45 LAN port and a 3.5mm headphone socket. That USB C port is capable of 90W charging which will keep a modern laptop charged no problems. If needed, there are two 5W speakers for inbuilt stereo sound, they actually give a beefier sound than most integrated speakers.

Performance

The Philips covers around 90 per cent of the Adobe RGB gamut, which is good going but professional photographers, or video editors may want more.  This model can satisfy content creators in other ways, a 3440 x 1440 35″ curved ultra wide display is perfect for having multiple apps and documents open at once.

The monitor comes supplied with a factory calibration report that is individual to each screen.  Out of the box the monitor should provide a vibrant well balanced image.

100hz refresh and adaptive sync support is a welcome addition for anyone who likes to run a few games on the side.  This isn’t a gaming monitor as such but these features make it more suitable than competitors.  If you do turn your hand to the odd game or two then the 100hz refresh rate will allow for more frames per second and a smoother ride.  The adaptive sync helps eliminate screen tearing during fast paced action games.