Philips Reveals 346B1C 34-Inch 100 Hz Curved UltraWide Monitor with USB-C Docking
by Anton Shilov on October 17, 2019 9:00 AM EST
Philips has introduced its new 346B1C ultrawide curved monitor, which is designed for business and professional users looking for a large display offering USB Type-C docking. The Philips 346B1 is one of the industry’s first productivity-focused curved displays that features a 21:9 aspect ratio, as well as a 100 Hz maximum refresh rate, a built-in Gigabit Ethernet, and even VESA Adaptive Sync (i.e. Freesync).
The Philips 346B1C is powered by a 34-inch VA panel with a 3440×1440 resolution, 300 nits brightness, a 3000:1 contrast ratio, a 5 ms GtG response time, a 100 Hz maximum refresh rate, and 178°/178° viewing angles. While the LCD was designed primarily with productivity applications in mind and can display 16.7 million colors, it does cover 119% of the sRGB, 90% of the Adobe RGB, as well as 100% of the NTSC color spaces. Furthermore, the monitor is factory calibrated with a Delta <2 accuracy for the sRGB gamut.
One of the main selling features of the Philips 346B1C is its connectivity. The monitor has one DisplayPort 1.2 input, one HDMI 2.0 port, and one USB 3.2 Type-C input. The latters supports up to 90 W Power Delivery, making it suitable for powering even higher-end 15-inch notebooks. In addition, the monitor offers a built-in Gigabit Ethernet port, a quad-port USB 3.2 hub, and a headphone output. Last but not least, the display has an integrated KVM switch that enables to control two PCs using one display, one mouse, and one keyboard. One thing to note is that when the LCD uses a USB-C connection, it can only support 3440×1440 @ 100 Hz when the upstream USB connection feeding the USB hub is set to 2.0, presumably as the full bandwidth mode requires all 4 high-speed lanes from the USB-C connection.
Traditionally for productivity monitors, the Philips 346B1C comes with a stand that can adjust height, tilt, and swivel. Furthermore, it has VESA mount holes.
| Philips's Curved Display with USB-C Dock & KVM | |
| 346B1C | |
| Panel | 34" VA |
| Native Resolution | 3440 × 1440 |
| Brightness | 300 cd/m² |
| Contrast | 3000:1 |
| Maximum Refresh Rate | 100 Hz |
| Response Time | 5 ms GtG |
| Viewing Angles | 178°/178° horizontal/vertical |
| Curvature | 1500R |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.233 mm |
| Pixel Density | 110 ppi |
| Anti-Glare Coating | Anti-Glare, 2H, Haze 25% |
| Inputs | 1 × DisplayPort 1.2 1 × HDMI 2.0 1 ×USB Type-C (with up to 90W PD) |
| USB Hub | 4-port USB 3.0 hub |
| Stand | Height: +/- ? mm Tilt: -? to +?° Swivel: 180° |
| Audio | headphone output |
| GbE | integrated |
| KVM | integrated |
| Launch Price | UK: £539 |
The Philips 346B1C will be available next month. In the UK, the product will cost £539, so expect MSRP in the USA at a sub-$600 level.
Related Reading:
- HP’s E344c: A 34-Inch Curved Ultra-Wide Productivity Monitor
- Philips Brilliance 329P9H: A 4K IPS Monitor with USB-C Dock, GbE
- Philips Brilliance 499P9H Ultra-Wide 49-Inch Monitor Now Available
- Philips 328P6VU Professional 4K Display: DisplayHDR 600, USB-C, GbE
- Philips Unveils 43-Inch 4K Gaming LCD with DisplayHDR 1000, DCI-P3, FreeSync
Source: Philips
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Death666Angel - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Cool, thanks for the info! :Dstephenbrooks - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I do wonder how fullscreen (video, games, apps) works with this aspect ratio. With two 1080p monitors I sometimes have fullscreen video on the left while continuing to work on the right. I think this is a common setup for streamers too (game on one screen, desktop on other). Maybe I should just stick with 2x1080p.RSAUser - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I used to, if same pixel density and monitor size, can be worth. If you're using 3 screens or use one where you can make it vertical instead, no.I managed for about three months before swapping back, but if you're just dealing with e.g. Secretary or creative like graphic design or video editing, probably nice.
cygnus1 - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
My two monitors at work are both the same size and resolution as this new monitor. They're Dell's. And they're amazing. Definitely better than the 4 other 16x9 monitors they replaced. They're also over $600 each, still. So this one for $479 at Amazon seems like a great deal to me. I've already pre-ordered one for home because I haven't seen one with this spec/feature list for that price yet. Can't wait to ditch the 16x9's at home.CallumS - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Yep, I have 32", 40", and a 43" UHD monitors at different locations. From a productivity perspective, I find a single UHD monitor far better than any multi-monitor setup I've seen and tried (which is many). The vertical height, total usable working area, and flexibility I have found far better and easier than any other combination I've used.From a sizing perspective, my order of preference would be: 40", 32", 43". I find the 40" to be the ideal balance between pixel density and sheer size and space for a normal desk. The 43" is great but can sometimes seem a bit too big. The 32" I also really like a lot but I find that other people find the pixel density too high for general usage without Windows scaling which I will always steer clear of unless absolutely necessary (particularly when using laptops with both external projectors and external displays).
rrinker - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I need to borrow one of these ultrawide type displays and try it - I'm so used to dual or even triple 16:9 displays that it's hard to use anything else, even when I have the same screen real estate. I didn't want to take up a ton of space on my workbench, so I used a single higher resolution monitor, and while I can have two windows side by side with nearly the same size as two regular displays, it's still a complete shift in how I work, and I tend to end up single tasking on that system. I do have the display on an arm so it doesn't use desk space, so something with a VESA mount is definitely a requirement. I don't need super high resolution - too many things STILL don't work right with scaling in Windows 10. For my eyes, the equivalent of a 26 or 27" monitor in vertical height at 1080 is an ideal readable size (I have eye issues). 14" laptop at 1080 100% scaled is too small. 27" at 4K would be damn near invisible. 1080 is fine for what I need the machine to do. Dunno if such an animal exists - 3840x1080, however wide that needs to be, but as tall as a 27" 16:9 display. That would be my idea attempt to replace dual displays with a single one..EliteRetard - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-49-Inch-Curved-Moni...Samsung CHG90
lilkwarrior - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
We've already had monitors like this w/ better I/O (Thunderbolt 3) for like 2+ years now. Kind of eccentric this is getting fanfare at all.DOA not having HDMI 2.1, HDR (HLG + Dolby Vision HDR ideal), & Thunderbolt 3 for a 2019 monitor.
EliteRetard - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I think it's primarily price, the last 3440x1440 at 100Hz was like $1400 and even now goes on sale for like $600-700. If you don't need other fancy features and just want a high speed ultrawide this looks like the cheapest way to get it (as long as it's reliable and image is good).GreenReaper - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
The thing is, you don't need any of those to hit this resolution and refresh rate.As for Thunderbolt 3, I'd really want a direct connection to peripherals needing it.
Will what this monitor provide now be enough for what you want to do with it in the future? If not, maybe you want to pay more. But many won't. Personally I'd be matching this up with a system that's likely to end up leaning on Freesync (down to 48Hz), so I doubt it'd be that big of an deal.
From a Chinese company - but headquartered in Hong Kong. Maybe buy it before the tanks roll in?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TPV_Technology