In the segment of ultra wide monitors, Benq was an early adopter brand with a gaming model, the XR3501. We were very enthusiastic about it at the beginning of 2016, but by now it couldn't keep up with its specifications. So we had been looking forward to the successor, the EX3501R. When it reached our lab a while ago, we immediately got to work with it.

At its introduction, the Benq XR3501 was particularly striking because of its size and 144Hz refresh rate; the resolution of 2560x1080 pixels was less appealing. More than two years later we can state that 'wide Full HD' is something that we mainly expect in the budget segment, or it has to be combined with even higher refresh rates. The new EX3501R ultra wide has a panel with 3440x1440 pixels, or UWQHD. It combines that resolution with a 100Hz refresh rate and a fairly modest price.