38-inch monitors stretch over 96 centimeters diagonally. The comparison reveals which of these giants are suitable for gaming and the office.
Whether for gamers or in the home office: Ultrawide monitors are adorning more and more desks. Ultrawide means nothing more than a 21 by 9 format. Most people are familiar with this from the cinema. It is useful at work as well as at play. In the office, multiple windows such as browser, Outlook
Gamers, on the other hand, see even more of their gaming environment. This is an advantage in some online games such as “Fortnite” or “Dota 2” because opponents can be seen who remain hidden on a 16-to-9 screen. Which monitor makes whom happy depends, of course, on how it is used. In the office, you don’t need high refresh rates and when gaming, a monitor usually doesn’t need a USB-C connection, which is why the comparison contains three screens for the office and three for gamers.
38 inch monitors for the home office
A 38-inch monitor does not need a fast response time or a high refresh rate for the home office. Here, 60 Hertz (Hz) at five milliseconds (ms) is completely sufficient. More important are the connection options and sufficient brightness if the monitor is positioned unfavorably to the window.
An integrated USB hub and a USB-C connection with charging function and image signal transmission are nice. Both save cable clutter on the desk. If you also want to edit photos or videos, the screen should display colors faithfully. A height-adjustable stand is also important in order to set the screen ergonomically correct.
With the EW3880R, Benq wanted to bring a hybrid for videos, games and office work onto the market. The manufacturer manages this to a limited extent. The screen does not make PC gamers happy. The reason for this lies buried in its response time of four milliseconds at a refresh rate of 60 Hz. However, if you want to connect a Playstation 5 or Xbox Series X, you can consider the monitor.
Attention: Neither console offers ultrawide support. Games are either displayed in 16-to-9 format with thick black bars on the left and right. Or the monitor stretches the image to 21 by 9 to fill in the edges, which looks ugly.
Both consoles theoretically offer a refresh rate of 120 Hertz, but in order to achieve this, the resolution has to be reduced in some games. This monitor is therefore by no means perfect for console gamers, and if so, then only for gamers who like to immerse themselves in role-playing games such as “Assassin’s Creed” or “The Witcher” and who prefer a high resolution to a high refresh rate. Incidentally, this is 3840 x 1600 pixels with a pure screen area of 37.5 inches (95.25 cm).
What makes the monitor special is its good speakers, according to the manufacturer. Benq has given the screen a 2.1 sound system and an 8-watt subwoofer. The EW3880R is suitable for office work for several reasons. Of course, it can be adjusted in height (120 millimeters), swiveled and tilted on the stand provided. Benq also uses an IPS panel for its monitor.
The design usually offers the most accurate color representation and the viewer can see what the monitor is showing from almost every angle. According to the manufacturer, the monitor covers 95 percent of the DCI-P3 color space. A very decent value that enables ambitious hobby photographers to edit photos or videos on the screen. Nevertheless, professionals use a monitor that maps the color space even better. Nice: The monitor comes with a remote control that you can use to set different sound and picture modes.
Its connection options are also convincing: in addition to two USB-A sockets for mouse and keyboard, the EW3880R offers two HDMI, one DisplayPort and one USB-C input, which transmits image and audio signals and supplies the laptop with power (60 watts) .
Compared to the Benq monitor, the Dell UltraSharp 38 impresses with even more connection options. It is one of the few monitors to have an Ethernet port, i.e. a connection for wired Internet. Perfect if the home office is in an old building with thick walls that tend to cause problems for wireless internet. There are also two HDMI ports as well as a DisplayPort and a USB-C socket. A connected laptop transmits its image signal to the monitor via the USB-C socket. Of course, the USB-C socket also supplies the laptop with power at up to 90 watts.
Dell and Benq monitors have a resolution of 3840 x 1600 pixels and a size of 37.5 inches. The refresh rate of 60 Hertz is the same for both models. However, the Dell monitor is twice as slow as its competitor with a response time of eight milliseconds. Dell does without an integrated subwoofer. Two 9-watt speakers are responsible for the sound. Dell has integrated three USB-A sockets into its UltraSharp 38 for cables, a mouse and other USB devices. A particularly practical function of the monitor is its integrated KVM switch.
KVM stands for Keyboard, Video, Mouse. A monitor with a KVM switch (also called a switch) allows you to connect multiple computers to the screen and work on them with the same mouse and keyboard. You can connect a Mac and a Windows PC to the Dell UltraSharp 38 and display the images from both computers at the same time, allowing you to work on both computers. By the way: According to the manufacturer, the Dell UltraSharp 38 also covers 95 percent of the DCI-P3 color space. And, of course, the monitor can be adjusted in height, rotated and tilted on the stand provided.
The LG Electronics 38WP85C-W is the last monitor in the bunch of office screens and it also has a special feature that makes it unique. It is a light sensor that detects the light in the room and automatically reduces the brightness of the monitor when it is dark to protect the viewer’s eyes. Apple users are already familiar with this function from newer iMacs.
What unites the LG Electronics 38WP85C-W with its predecessors is of course its resolution of 3840 x 1600 pixels at a refresh rate of 60 Hertz. Its response time is five milliseconds. LG also uses IPS for the panel. And how could it be otherwise: the LG monitor also covers 95 percent of the DCI-P3 color space. At nine watts of power, its two integrated speakers are slightly more powerful than those of the Dell screen. However, the LG screen does not have a subwoofer.
Its connection options leave little to be desired: LG has given its 38-inch model two HDMI and USB-A sockets as well as one DisplayPort and one USB-C socket. Of course, the USB-C connection also charges laptops and is the most powerful in comparison with 96 watts. However, the monitor offers neither a KVM switch nor an Ethernet socket. As with the two office monitors before it, the LG model can also be adjusted in height, rotated and tilted on the stand provided.
Tip: With this voucher you save at Saturn. Of course, the electronics store also has ultrawide monitors on offer.
38 inch monitors for gamers
Gamers place different demands on their monitor. A USB hub may be nice, but when in doubt, gamers prefer a high refresh rate. It should be at least 144 Hz. In addition, the reaction time is important. The rule here is: the less, the better. The highest possible color fidelity is desirable, but only a must if videos or photos are to be edited on the screen. Otherwise, gamers take a look at the panel type, i.e. the construction of the monitor.
However, the manufacturers offer little choice for 38-inch monitors. With the popular resolution of 3840 x 1600 pixels, interested parties only get in-plane switching monitors (IPS). If you prefer Vertical Alingment (VA), you have to buy a size smaller or accept compromises in resolution. And even then, the choice is small.
VA and IPS differ in how the individual pixels are illuminated. IPS was a little slower in response time a few years ago, but offered the best viewing angles and colors. VA counters this with strong contrast values. In the meantime, however, the two construction methods are so close together technologically that the differences are marginal (IPS vs. VA), which is why most manufacturers are probably pushing the further development of their IPS panels. The only exception is Samsung. However, the South Koreans don’t have a 38-incher on offer.
Warning: As mentioned above, console gamers should know that neither PlayStation 5 nor Xbox Series X offer ultrawide support. On a 21-to-9 monitor, either thick black bars gape left and right, or the image is distorted to fill in the edges.
Gamers who have an Nvidia graphics card installed in their computer should be interested in the LG 38GL950G-B because LG equips it with Nvidia G-Sync technology. It helps to reduce image distortions – so-called screen tearing. LG relies on an extremely fast IPS panel. According to the manufacturer, the monitor works with a response time of just one millisecond and at a maximum refresh rate of 175 Hz. However, this is an overclocking function.
In normal mode, the LG 38GL950G-B works with a refresh rate of 144 Hz. Like all monitors compared so far, the gaming model from LG also offers a resolution of 3840 x 1600 pixels. It stretches diagonally over 95.25 centimeters (37.5 inches). According to the manufacturer, however, it covers 98 percent of the DCI-P3 color space. This is a top value compared to office monitors.
His so-called “sphere lightning” is interesting. LG installs LED lights on the back of its screen, which indirectly illuminate the wall behind the monitor in the same color as the gameplay flickers across the screen.
However, its connection options are not as extensive: two USB-A sockets as well as one DisplayPort and one HDMI input each could not be enough for one or the other gamer. Too bad: LG has completely dispensed with a USB-C connection.
The MSI Optix MEG381CQRDE is the most expensive gaming monitor in comparison, and it comes with a first disappointment: According to the manufacturer, it displays 96.2 percent of the DCI-P3 color space. That’s 1.8 percent less than the LG monitor. However, that should be the deciding factor in the purchase for very few interested parties. Of course, MSI also uses an IPS panel with a resolution of 3840×1600 pixels over 38 inches.
With the overclock function, its refresh rate is 175 Hz and a millisecond response time. And the MSI monitor also offers Nvidia G-Sync technology. MSI trumps its competition in one respect: the display is about 200 candela brighter than the LG monitor. And that’s by no means the only special feature of the screen.
It has a camera mount at the top of the screen. This should be interesting for streamers who want to create a high-quality image for their audience thanks to an external camera. If you want to take a video call on the screen, you don’t need the camera mount because the MSI screen has a microphone and webcam built into the middle of the bottom edge of the screen.
Practical: The scope of delivery includes a mouse bungee that can be attached to the screen. This is a mouse cable guide that prevents the mouse cable from getting tangled. A mouse bungee can of course also be purchased separately. It is a nice and unique gadget on the screen anyway. Incidentally, it can also be adjusted in height, tilted and swiveled.
The monitor also features adjustable LED lights on the front and back. They either light up or flash or are smart. In this context, smart means that the LEDs can display the weather for the coming days, for example. Which hardcore gamer might be interested in that remains the manufacturer’s secret. However, it is more practical to let the front LEDs display scores. But that doesn’t work with every game.
More interesting is the so-called “Human Machine Interface”, or HMI for short, of the monitor. This is a tiny display at the bottom left of the screen. It shows the current refresh rate, resolution and input source. And that’s not all. Predefined values such as processor or graphics card utilization and their temperature can also be displayed.
This is particularly useful for overclockers who like to keep an eye on such values. Speaking of input sources: the monitor offers a similar number of these as its competitors. In addition to a DisplayPort input, there are two HDMI sockets and three USB-A connections for mouse and keyboard.
The Acer Predator X38P concludes. Compared to MSI, Acer focuses on the essentials. On mouse bungee, camera mount, webcam, microphone
This is a top value in this comparison, but it can be assumed that it is only achieved with the overdrive function. According to the manufacturer, the response time is one millisecond without this overclocking function. The Acer Predator X38P is on par with the LG 38GL950G-B in the DCI-P3 color space. With a color space coverage of 98 percent, both take the top spot in the comparison.
On the other hand, the built-in speakers are a bit weaker. Acer treats its Predator to two 7-watt speakers. Of course, the monitor also offers G-Sync. The connection options are also on par with the competition. It offers a USB hub with four USB-A sockets, an HDMI and a DisplayPort input. Of course, the height of the monitor on the base can also be adjusted and it can be rotated and tilted.
Sources: youtube.com/onkelbogi, prad.de, heise.de, prad.de
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