HP has joined the ranks of the recyclable with packaging that’s free of crumbly foam. The panel, upright and base are secured in folded cardboard forms. Assembly is toolless with a captive bolt for the base and a snap-on fitting for the panel. And don’t forget to include the mount cover trim. It comes as a separate part. It serves to cover the 100mm VESA mount, which is available for aftermarket arms and brackets. In addition to an IEC cord for the internal power supply, you get a DisplayPort cable.
(Image credit: HP) (Image credit: HP) (Image credit: HP) (Image credit: HP) The Omen 34c G2 has a simple and clean aesthetic, like all the HP displays I’ve reviewed. In front, there is a single label that says “Omen” and a tiny power LED at the right. The bezel is narrow and flush, barely visible when the power is on. The base looks small in the photo, but it’s quite substantial with a deep footprint and plenty of heft. The upright includes a 4.1-inch height adjustment along with 5/20 degrees tilt and a 90-degree portrait mode. There is no mechanical swivel, but the base has felt feet that reduce friction between the monitor and the desk surface. I could turn the Omen 34c G2 easily on my test bench.
Around the back right is a small OSD nav pad and a power toggle. The buttons are precise with just the right amount of feedback. The Omen diamond theme continues here with a snap-on plate to cover the 100mm VESA mount and a small grill for heat dissipation.
Underneath is the input pack with two HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.4. You also get a 3.5mm headphone jack to complement the internal three-watt speakers. There are no USB ports.
There are eight picture modes, all of which allow for RGB calibration. There is no gamma control, but I discovered the way to select color gamuts is to go Native for SDR. Standard is the default, and it correctly but unusually uses sRGB color for SDR. Native employs the Omen 34c G2’s full gamut, which covers around 90% of DCI-P3.
The Omen 34c G2 is unusual in that it comes set to a color mode that uses sRGB for SDR content. Nearly all wide gamut monitors default to their full color space. To get to the Omen 34c G2’s full gamut, choose Native from the list. Whatever picture mode you pick, it can be calibrated with a set of RGB sliders to a high standard. And I do recommend an adjustment as the grayscale runs a bit too warm. The settings I used are below. HDR10 signals trigger an automatic switch where all picture controls are grayed out.
With so many exotically shaped and sized monitors coming through my studio, I’m not always sure I’ll be impressed by something like a 34-inch ultra-wide. But the Omen 34c G2 managed to keep me playing for many hours. There’s nothing intangible here; it delivers super smooth video processing and lightning-quick response, along with some of the best HDR picture quality I’ve seen from an LCD. It shows that a fancy jumbo screen is not always the monitor you’ll most want to play on.
The HDR image is a huge upgrade from the Omen 34c. With over 21,000:1 contrast from the eight-zone edge-dimming backlight, black levels are low, which makes highlights pop with texture and tactility. Color is vivid and bright as well, with deeply saturated reds and blues. Green is a tad less covered than some more premium screens but when compared to others in the price bracket, the Omen 34c G2 delivers at a high level.
I was able to keep the frame rate at 180fps (thank you, GeForce RTX 4090 ), so I didn’t need MPRT to keep motion resolution high. Setting the overdrive to level 4 of 5 meant no visible motion blur in games or video. I could see a hint in BlurBusters test patterns but that was all. I tried MPRT for due diligence and saw it removed all blur and just barely showed the phasing artifact common to this feature. It is entirely usable as an Adaptive-Sync alternative at lower frame rates, say less than 130fps.
For daily use, the Omen 34c G2 is well-suited with its gentle 1500R curve and solid pixel density of 109ppi. This is equal to a 27-inch 16:9 flat panel, so the Omen 34c G2 simply becomes an extension of that format. You can do most of what you’d do with two monitors on a single 21:9 panel, thus eliminating the dividing line. And at $400 for an Omen 34c G2, you’ll save a few bucks too.
I noted above-average audio quality when playing games and watching video. Though the internal speakers aren’t terribly loud, they are free of distortion and have palpable bass extension. They are definitely superior to nearly all the monitor speakers I’ve experienced. I also noted the easy OSD navigation, logically laid out feature set and premium build quality. I did miss the USB ports though.
Takeaway: The Omen 34c G2 is a superb monitor that outperforms its competition in HDR picture quality and has video processing on par with the best LCD gaming screens I’ve reviewed. Input lag is very low and the overdrive and MPRT are precise and smooth. It gets through workday tasks comfortably and efficiently and is addictive to play on.
Current page: Features and Specifications
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/monitors/gaming-monitors/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/monitors/gaming-monitors/hp-omen-34c-g2-34-inch-wqhd-180-hz-gaming-monitor-review#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
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Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.