All those coveted OLED monitors keep getting brighter, but—thankfully—that doesn’t mean they’re all getting more expensive. Case in point: the Alienware AW3426DW. Ignore the obtuse serial number, because Alienware’s 34-inch ultrawide monitor is a beautiful display. It just may not be the kind of monitor best for every kind of gamer. Two years ago, I sat in front of the viral Alienware AW3225QF with an ebbing sense of wonder. In early 2024, QD-OLED displays were still novel enough that we could bask in the color depth and contrast and imagine there was nowhere left to go. That portent largely proved true. Today’s monitors are better, but any high-end OLED screen launched in the last 30 months will feel on par with all others, so long as they get all the basics of brightness and build quality down pat. The last major consideration left is price. Alienware’s AW3426DW starts at $800. For that, you’ll get a plus-sized screen with a max refresh rate of screaming-fast 280Hz. But nobody should consider eight big ones “cheap.” In the world of high-end gaming monitors, any screen needs to work to stand out. Alienware supplies just enough to make this monitor worthy of consideration, despite its inherent downsides.