Huawei’s MateView GT monitor is perfect for my gaming and work setup

In 2021, I combined my workstation and gaming area into one corner of my room.

I previously gamed on a 55-inch TV, but I decided that it was too large for playing first-person shooters. So, I started gaming on the secondary monitor that I use for work. It’s a 4K HDR BenQ monitor with a 16:9 aspect ratio, and it simply gets the job done.

However, when Huawei offered me the opportunity to take a look at the Huawei MateView GT, I jumped at the chance. The monitor offers top-of-the-line specs, a large curved display and several pretty unique features.

And while $750 seems like a lot for a monitor, it’s well within the price range of displays with similar specs.

Specs

34-inch Curved Monitor (1500R curvature)
3440 x 1440 pixel resolution165Hz
21:9 Aspect Ratio
350 nits of Brightness
HDR Support
5W x 2 SoundBar dual speakers
Mood lighting
Mic: DMIC x 2 support
Ports: 1 USB-C (supports display, data transfer 10W max charging), 1 USB (power only), 2 HDMI ports, 1x DP port, 3.55mm headset and microphone 2-in-1 jack

Stunning display

Huawei’s MateView GT offers a premium viewing experience with a 3440 x 1440 pixel resolution and high dynamic range. When watching video content, I find there’s a lot of contrast. You can really see the differences in range with sunsets, explosions, clouds in the sky and dark scenes as well. To be specific, the MateView GT doesn’t feature Dolby Vision, just HDR10, and it lacks local dimming. Additionally, it offers a 90 percent DCI-P3 colour gamut that showcases a wide range of colours from the bright greens of grass to the different browns of bricks on buildings and more.

It also features a typical brightness of 350 nits, which is pretty reasonable for a monitor in this price range. However, the 5K iMac that I use alongside the Huawei MateView GT offers a higher brightness of 500 nits, and the difference in brightness is very noticeable. Additionally, true HDR offers a peak brightness of 600 nits.

There’s a decent amount of detail and clarity in the MateView GT’s picture. Given I’m someone who loves to watch animal documentaries, this is great. The animals are clear and you can make out the crisp detail of fur on tigers, raindrops on petals in the Amazon and more.

I’ve played games like Apex Legends, Smite, Deathloop, Halo 5, Code Vein, The Gunk and more from both my PS5 and Xbox Game Pass’ Cloud gaming option with the monitor. Unfortunately, with such a wide aspect ratio, games don’t fit exactly as they should on the display. Depending on what I’m watching or playing, the back bars on the sides vary in size.

With my PlayStation 5, every game only appears in the middle of the screen. It doesn’t look great at first, but I found myself forgetting about the black bars after a while. When playing on Xbox Cloud Gaming through Game Pass, I noticed that some titles, like Halo 5, are more suitable for the wide aspect ratio, and the black bars on the sides are smaller. If you’re playing on PC, there’s a full list of games that accept the 21:9 aspect ratio, so you’ll have a better experience than me. However, it’s worth noting that even with PC games, not every title offers support for 21:9 gaming.

It’s also worth noting that I’m not gaming at 120Hz as the Huawei MateView lacks HDMI 2.1, which is what the PS5/Xbox Series X requires to play at 120Hz. However, I actually don’t play many games that support 120Hz refresh, with Ghostrunner being the only exception. Most PS5 games don’t run 120Hz; even some of the new ones on the horizon are still at 60Hz, weirdly enough.

Additionally, I strongly believe using a curved display is one of the best methods to watch content as I find it offers the most immersive experiences — it’s sort of like an IMAX movie theatre screen. I’ve never used a curved panel on a monitor before, but I felt that both gaming and watching television was more immersive than on a flat screen. With a wrap-around design, gaming is more involving and with movies, it’s a bit of a movie theatre-like effect.

I like the design of the MateView GT as well. It features relatively small borders around the curved display and an L-shaped stand. It’s very sturdy and very easy to put together. I actually didn’t need to read the manual at all, thankfully.

There’s a soundbar with a small lightbar placed on it as well. The design is nice and you can easily fit the monitor anywhere. You’re also able to wall-mount the curved display; however, I didn’t do this.

The back of the monitor has a removable back panel so you have easy access to the ports and a way to hide them after setup. I like the idea of the ports not being exposed. These ports include one USB-C (supports display, data transfer, 10W max charging), one USB (power only), two HDMI ports, 1x DP port, 3.55mm headset and microphone 2-in-1 jack.

It’s also easy to adjust the height of the monitor by just pulling up or pushing down on the display.

Pretty colours

The MateView GT is incredibly easy to use with a five-way joystick under the display. You’re able to change any of the settings of your monitor, including raising the brightness, volume and lighting effects on the soundbar. The joystick is the only way to control the monitor as it doesn’t have its own remote.

Speaking of the volume and lighting effects, this light bar on the speaker can also control the volume of your monitor. Sliding your finger across the bar can easily and very quickly increase and decrease the volume. You can also double-tap the light bar to mute and unmute the soundbar.

The lightbar can also change colours with a variety of lighting effects, such as a flow from one colour to another, or you can have it so that it stays a single colour and more. I’m a sucker for lighting effects, and this definitely satisfies my love for them.

Additionally, the Huawei MateView GT has two 5-watt speakers in its soundbar. The speakers are loud enough to perfectly hear what I’m watching from several feet away. My iMac’s speakers are louder, but the MateView GT’s sound quality is similar. The bass is deep, and the high-pitched sounds are crisp and not overbearing. I can’t tell if the speakers on my iMac are better than what’s available on the MateView GT, but that just means they both offer very clear and great sounds when watching content or playing video games.

The experience is worth it

The MateView GT is $748.99, which puts it in the range of other monitors that offer similar specifications.

For instance, Samsung’s Odyssey G5 34-inch WQHD monitor also offers a curved display with a 1000R curvature and 21:9 aspect ratio and costs $699. It lacks built-in speakers, however. The LG UltraGear 34-inch WQHD monitor costs $1,099, but it only offers a 144Hz refresh rate, and again lacks speakers.

The MateView GT isn’t a bargain, but it’s definitely not overpriced and if you’re looking for a monitor to use for gaming or as a secondary display, it’s definitely not a bad choice.

I’ve enjoyed every moment with the MateView GT and can’t imagine gaming on anything that’s not a curved monitor. You can purchase the monitor from Canada Computers, Amazon and Staples.

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