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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cygnus1 - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I like this combo of features quite a bit and it looks like it's already listed for pre-order at Amazon for $479. I like that price quite a bit too.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Y5ZZW3Y/ref=o...
BloodyBunnySlippers - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Yeah, as someone who works from home and swaps between his work laptop and a personal PC, this sounds really nice.cygnus1 - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Agreed. I went ahead and pre-ordered one. I've definitely never done that with a monitor, I've always done tons of research before buying in the past. Hopefully this one is good, but if not I'm not too worried because of Amazon's return policy.darklight69 - Wednesday, October 23, 2019 - link
I concur except for one thing - 300 nits max brightness. I use my laptop (2017 15" MacBook Pro) for everything and take it to work. At work I've got an Elgato hub supplies full 87W power and that hooks to a second screen via Display Port. So was looking for at least a QHD (would've preferred 4k IPS, but hey, can't have it all) monitor that can double up for gaming at home while also providing FULL USB-C PD of 87W. And wanted a minimum 100Hz refresh.Its amazing how few monitors out there meet that spec. This does, but seems a bit low on the brightness so I'm going to check it out in store before I buy it.
EliteRetard - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Initial specs sound good for the price, but can DP1.2/HDMI 2 (both ~18gbps) handle 8-10bit 100Hz at this resolution with 4:4:4 chroma? I tried one of the first gen LG 3440x1440 75Hz versions, with DP and HDMI, and it could NOT support the claimed refresh without serious issues (flashing black screen).I'm also curious if manufacturers have solved the severe light bleed commonly found on curved screens. Screen/color uniformity is a huge factor for me.
Spunjji - Friday, October 18, 2019 - link
They can indeed. This display's resolution and refresh rate need 14.86Gbps at 8bit - not sure why anyone would be outputting 10bit to it as it doesn't appear to be HDR certified, but even that's okay at 17.83Gbps.commonmind - Tuesday, October 22, 2019 - link
The feature set is very similar to the Samsung SJ791, which I own and is a great display. That said, the CJ791 hovers around the $800 mark, which means it's a bit pricier (but can be found right now if you don't want to wait).Atari2600 - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
Does anyone have an ultrawide and (a 32" 16:9 UHD or 40" 16:9 4k)?Do they find these almost as equally productive or less so?
Death666Angel - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
I don't, unfortunately. But I had debated some upgrade paths, like you seem to, in my head in the pasts.I had a 27" 1440p and then added a simple 19" 5:4 monitor a bit later. That was perfect for 3 part work, the 27" had a document on the left and right and then 19" a whole screen document (could be video, photos, PDF, website etc.). I then debated about going to get another 27" but thought that was too much real estate horizontally. Then slowly these ultra wife came into play, 1440p with either 3440 or 5120 (exactly double 2560). The 3440 one would be a good fit for 3 documents like my first setup (so you'd need some program to be able to easily dock applications to the various section of a screen). The 5120 would be exactly two normal 27" 1440p monitors. Great for immersive gaming, but probably too much horizontal real estate for my use case. Those 3440x1440 monitors have better high refresh rate support compared to most UHD displays. But they cost a pretty penny more compared to most entry level UHD displays. So you get more gaming features, less resolution and a wider screen where you would normally need a second display to the side. It is definitely a neater setup than mine (that 19" monitor looks kinda weird to most people). But I decided against it in the end and got a 32" freesync enabled Samsung UHD monitor. That extra vertical resolution and higher pixel density is nice (I run it at 125%, my 1440p 27" monitor was also 125%, maybe these 3440x1440 could be run at 100% which would help some things). But for the money they cost, I always thought they were more geared towards racing sim gaming and the like and cost accordingly (gamer tax) and not really that amazing for work and other tasks.
Now, one of those 5k 21:9 displays on the other hand.... :D
Sttm - Thursday, October 17, 2019 - link
If you are running Windows 10, Microsoft has a new PowerToys program that lets you create snappable zones on your screen. I use a 3440x1440 monitor, and I use PowerToys to enable easy snapped side by side document viewing in the middle of the screen.