Sceptre E345B-QUT168

amazon Sceptre E345B-QUT168 reviews

The new Scepter E345B-QUT168 has nearly everything that goes into a full-blown gaming monitor. Beautiful 1440p resolution, high refresh, responsive, great picture quality, slick design, and powerful, active features. And it is not very expensive.

Is a gorgeous 34-inch IPS panel with 144Hz refresh support, AMD Freesync Premium, and 1440p enough to stand out in today’s crowded gaming monitor market? The new Scepter E345B-QUT168 offers all of that, plus some player-centric extras, and does it all at a fairly accessible price point compared to some monitor rivals.

For starters, Scepter used the near-compulsory IPS display technology common in most high-end LCD panels, with better viewing angles than TN panels. Scepter has also equipped the E345B-QUT168 with some particularly bright RGB LEDs.

But this monitor will have to pack some extras and certainly deliver its core functionality as a 34-inch ultra-wide gaming monitor. While the slick design and reasonable price sweeten the deal, the E345B-QUT168 has an uphill battle on its borders against the usual ‘big boys’ in this category from Asus and Acer.

Specifications

34-inch wide HD Quad HD screen

Quad HD Resolution Wide 3440 x 1440

Refresh rate up to 144Hz

21:9″ ultra-wide screen

AMD FreeSync Premium Technology

IPS panel

Height adjustment

Blue light filter

Frameless

Built-in speaker

About the price

Priced in the sub-$400 range (current prices available below), the Scepter E345B-QUT168 is a pretty decent buy. This is a new upgrade to the stunning Scepter C345W-2560UN we reviewed last year, but the new model has a higher resolution (3440 x 1440) than its predecessor (2560 x 1080) and a newer aesthetic.

But all in all, Scepter has priced this console at a competitive level and not too much money to invest in an overview display.

Similar to LG’s 34GP83A-B is a few hundred more expensive but offers a higher refresh rate, is compatible with Nvidia G-Sync, supports HDR 400, and has a curved Nano-IPS display.

The Acer Nitro XZ342CK Pbmiiphx has a similar price point but offers a 34-inch curved VA panel, DisplayHDR500, and 95% sRGB coverage compared to the E345B-QUT168’s 99% sRGB coverage.

Design And Features

The Scepter E345B-QUT168 might look like a great value compared to many widescreen gaming alternatives. But it’s still not cheap for a monitor, so you’d expect a quality product. That’s exactly what the Scepter delivers in this 34-inch display.

The design is sophisticated and feels expensive. That V-shaped stand is sturdy and widely adjustable in height, tilt, and swivel. The aesthetic is also quite slick, thanks in part to the thin bezels on three sides of the panel. In terms of looks, another standout feature involves the circular RGB LEDs on the back, where the stand attaches to the monitor.

Strictly speaking, these design flourishes do not increase the performance of the Scepter E345B-QUT168 as a monitor. But if you’re into this sort of thing, the RGBs are a smart implant, well-configured to match the red stripe that runs along the ergonomic stand, all the way to the base. It is very shiny.

More commonly, the E345B-QUT168’s core feature set starts with a 34-inch IPS panel that boasts both a 21:9 aspect ratio and a 144Hz refresh. That’s pretty nice (but common) for an IPS panel, which raises questions about this display’s pixel response. It is rated at 1ms, but pixel response has always been a strong point of IPS.

Most of the competitors in the gaming segment come with IPS or VA technology, but VA technology has a clear advantage, which is static contrast. This monitor is rated at 3,000:1 for static contrast, the standard for what most IPS monitors can achieve.

In terms of resolution, we’re looking at 3,440 x 1,440 pixels, which is the current standard for this type of 21:9 display. There is also adaptive sync support in the high-end AMD FreeSync instead of the Nvidia G-Sync form, which is available in the LG 34GP83A-B gaming monitor.

Elsewhere, you’ll get good connectivity in the form of two DisplayPorts, two HDMIs, and audio output, but you don’t have any USB ports. The Samsung Odyssey G7 (LC32G75TQSNXZA) features a pair of USB 3.0 ports and a higher 240Hz refresh rate, while the MSI Optix MPG341CQR includes a USB-C input.

where can you get a Sceptre E345B-QUT168 online

Resolution

A 34-inch ultra-wide display with 3,440 x 1,440 pixels and 144Hz refresh is finally the hot spot for high-end gaming in 2022. Yes, you can get a higher resolution and refresh rate in the display play games, but profits dwindle pretty quickly.

The main advantage of the Sceptre’s particular combination of specs and hardware is that it allows for quite a bit of detail to be displayed and very flexible frame rates in most games thanks to the latest cards in existence. Today, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, are packed into high-end gaming PCs.

4K gaming at 144Hz looks very good. But you’ll be in luck driving a game like Metro Exodus in 4K and full of detail. You’ll need a graphics card, such as the RTX 3090 in the Asus ROG Strix GA35 (model GA35DX-XB999) to hit 60 fps, let alone 144 fps.

Anyway, thanks to the use of IPS technology, the Scepter E345B-QUT168 looks alive and powerful right out of the box. Its color reproduction is very vivid, with outstanding black levels. Certified HDR400 is a very poor man’s HDR.

Still, it’s a bright and dynamic display by today’s standards. Think of it as a supercharged SDR rather than a true HDR and you’ll get the idea right, even if it’s convenient that this monitor can handle HDR signals. It means the display will still give you accurate colors when viewing HDR content, be it videos or games.

Sure, there are LCD panels that offer pretty little motion blur. But what Scepter achieves with this IPS panel technology is very impressive. There is zero latency mode, especially with AMD FreeSync Premium enabled, but you will still find little subjective evidence of latency.

Of course, the 144Hz refresh rate makes things smooth and slick, as long as you have a device capable of pushing enough graphical firepower. It should also be noted that the E345B-QUT168’s adaptive sync works well with both AMD and Nvidia graphics cards, via the built-in DisplayPort. All of this makes this console work well for gaming without major flaws, with great picture quality, high speed, and a great feature set.

Conclusion Scepter E345B-QUT168

Structure of Scepter E345B-QUT168 ? Well, in a very crowded gaming market, it does an outstanding job. The use of IPS instead of VA or TN panel technology is an added plus in terms of viewing angles and image quality.

It delivers more vibrant colors and wider angles than the VA alternative and, in this implementation, has little or no flaws in feedback and input lag. We would rate it as a win.

Scepter has come up with a very powerful feature set. The core specs, including ultra-wide 1440p resolution and 144Hz refresh rate, are in a great position for high-end gaming right now, and extras include RGB LED lighting Glamor and sleek design can sweeten the deal depending on your needs and preferences.

All that is offered at a very reasonable price, which may not be cheap but is highly competitive with similar monitors. The reality is that this type of gaming panel is expensive, but this monitor will save you a few hundred dollars.

Therefore, if you are shopping in this part of the market, we recommend placing the Scepter E345B-QUT168 at or near the top of your shopping list.