HP X34

Great value ultrawide for gamers 

- GUY COCKER

ASK A GAMER to describe their ideal gaming monitor, and they’re likely to say “4K”. The problem, of course, is that driving a 4K monitor requires a high-end graphics card that can add a significant amount to your budget. For most, a realistic sweet spot is a 1440p monitor that can be driven by a more modest GPU.

HP’s X34 appears to hit this sweet spot while offering lots of additional features for a reasonable price. The headline feature is its 34-inch ultrawide display with a large amount of screen real estate. It also has a high 165Hz refresh rate, supports AMD’s FreeSync Premium (and unofficially Nvidia G-SYNC), and has a 1ms response time. All great things to have on a monitor under $500.

The X34 makes a good first impression, with thin bezels along the side and top, and a small centralized base. Mounted on the included stand, the monitor is height adjustable and tiltable. It can’t be rotated 90 degrees, but can be mounted on a standard VESA 100mm x 100mm bracket.