Are miniLED backlights the future of display technology? Or is it a temporary distraction while we wait for OLEDs and microLEDs to be adopted for PCs?

The new Philips Evnia 34M2C7600MV has arrived. With a peak brightness of 1,400 nits, this monitor is ultra-bright on paper. However, we have yet to see a miniLED monitor without significant problems. Can Philips crack the code for perfect miniLED backlight performance?

For this amount of money, we hope so. This product has a list price of $1,800. Speaking of money, at least the basic form factor is spot on. The 34-inch ultra-wide-angle panel with a 21:9 aspect ratio and the gentle but immersive 1500R curve remain one of our absolute favorites. The 3,440 x 1,440 pixel resolution is likewise a great compromise between visual detail and an adequate frame rate.

Indeed, one might say that a pixel density of 110 DPI is a little underwhelming compared to, say, a 27" or 32" 4K monitor. However, when it comes to frame rates, these higher resolutions take a toll on the GPU.

Anyway, the Philips Evnia 34M2C7600MV definitely features miniLED backlighting, with 1,152 local dimming zones for fairly precise lighting control. It also has a peak HDR performance of 1,400 nits.

In fact, the figure Philips quotes as the screen's SDR brightness is even more impressive at 720 nits. This is the screen's brightest SDR mode to date.

Interestingly, this is all based on VA panels rather than IPS screen technology; VA technology offers much better inherent contrast than IPS. But then, miniLED backlighting is supposed to take care of contrast, and IPS tends to be quite fast.

On that note, Philips offers a gray-to-gray response time of 2.5ms. Response time specs are not very reliable, but we are used to seeing 1ms and 2ms panels and have never seen 2.5ms. In any case, by Philips' own estimation, this is not a cutting-edge speed for LCD technology. Nor would we expect it to be, given that VA panels are used.

Nevertheless, 165 Hz refresh is available, which should be sufficient for all but the most demanding esports types. Color accuracy specs are also good, covering 97% of the DCI-P3 digital cinema color gamut, which is below 2 Delta Es.

Connectivity is another strong point, with dual HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, and USB-C, and 90W of power delivery, allowing for a single cable connection to a laptop, although 90W is not enough for a proper gaming laptop. One drawback is that despite the HDMI 2.1 specification, panel refresh was limited to 120Hz via HDMI in our tests. 165Hz would require using DisplayPort or USB-C to get the full benefit.

Rounding out the main features is the beautifully crafted enclosure and stand, which feature an unusual off-white hue and Philips' signature Ambiglow mood lighting. The latter consists of 14 RGB LEDs on the back of the enclosure, which can be configured to illuminate the wall behind it with static light or respond to the visuals and colors on the screen itself.

The stand is also height, tilt, and swivel adjustable. Without a doubt, this is a very good looking kit from an industrial design standpoint. It also looks and feels high class.

But what about the most important aspect, picture quality, which is quite sizzling, even in SDR mode? And thanks to the VA technology, black levels are well controlled in SDR mode with local dimming disabled, even at full brightness.

There are a few issues with the Evnia's SDR performance, but we'll talk about those later. We'll talk about that later, because we need to talk a bit about the HDR performance of this screen. I'm a little confused.

To be clear, this monitor can reach eye-popping heights. If you're looking for a monitor that will burn an image into the back of your retina, this is it. The actual hardware is fantastic. However, the calibration of its 1,152-zone miniLED backlight is questionable at best.

Philips has a variety of HDR modes, including DisplayHDR 1400, which this panel is certified for, as well as gaming, cinema, and photo. with DisplayHDR 1400, the dimming algorithm keeps the lighting low most of the time This results in loss of detail in darker scenes.

Take for example the underground bar scene in Cyberpunk 2077. Basically nothing is visible; switching to HDR game mode raises the lighting level, but shifts the colors to extreme saturation levels.

Even in outdoor scenes, the DisplayHDR 1400 mode looks disappointing, even with the user-configurable local dimming increased to the maximum setting, and the colors in HDR Game mode look even more ridiculous.

Interestingly, Evnia is at its best in SDR mode for cyberpunk and other games that support HDR. It really packs a punch, and the contrast inherent in VA panel technology keeps black levels and colors reasonable.

Reasonable for gaming. Back on the desktop, the default SDR mode is too saturated. Frustratingly, SDR colors are most accurate when run in HDR mode, but that mode limits the brightness of SDR content.

In other words, this 1,400-nit HDR monitor looks most punchy in games running in SDR mode, but in HDR mode, SDR color accuracy is improved, although the brightness of SDR content is limited.

As we said, this is all a bit confusing and reflects the complexity of both HDR support and miniLED backlighting. even with 1,152 zones, each zone is shared by thousands of pixels. the lighting obtained with per-pixel technologies such as OLEDs The accuracy and control of the lighting obtained with per-pixel technologies such as OLEDs is nowhere near as good.

Ultimately, any miniLED implementation is a compromise. Trade-offs must always be made. For example, if a screen is displaying a small bright object on a dark background, should the zone behind it be fully operational to generate blooming, or should the black level take precedence? There is no right answer, only preference, and there are countless other tricky decisions to be made.

One thing this Philips panel does well in HDR mode is local dimming on the Windows desktop, where the various backlight zones do not blink on and off overtly. You can see the backlight react as you move windows around on the screen, but it is all quite subtle and far superior to, for example, Samsung's miniLED monitors, which have incredibly clumsy backlight modulation.

Backlight issues aside, responsiveness is another relative weakness of the Evnia; Philips claims 2.5ms, which is nothing special these days. However, this screen does not even measure up to that number. Indeed, there are three levels of pixel overdrive to choose from. However, when the overdrive is disabled and set to the lowest setting, there is a rather obvious old-fashioned blur.

This can be adjusted to some extent with overdrive. However, as you increase the level, overshoot and reverse ghosting become a problem. The best compromise is the middle overdrive setting, but it still suffers from some blurring and overshoot. In short, this monitor is off the pace of the best IPS monitors and Samsung's latest VA screens in responsiveness.

All of this means that there is a good screen lurking in here somewhere. The hardware is great. Certain HDR content (mainly HDR video mastered to the right brightness) can look spectacular when run at its best. However, in most cases, you are fighting some kind of problem. Also, the fact that the SDR mode with local dimming disabled looks best in game speaks volumes about how the miniLED technology implemented here is a waste of time, effectiveness, and money.

Of course, the Philips Evnia 34M2C7600MV is not special in that it is a miniLED monitor with obvious problems. We have yet to see one that has been satisfactorily calibrated. But at this incredibly high price level, the problem is completely unacceptable. Even if color and HDR calibration were miles better and pixel response were state-of-the-art for an LCD monitor, this panel would still look ridiculously overpriced.

We wonder whether the miniLED problem reflects the fact that it is still a fairly new technology, or whether it is an overly complicated and awkward interim solution to a problem that can only truly be solved by per-pixel technologies such as OLEDs and microLEDs. We favor the latter, but would be very happy to be proven wrong. However, this Philips monitor is definitely not in that league.