Samsung MD230X3 Eyefinity 3x1 Display

Product: Samsung MD230X3 Eyefinity Display
Provided By: Samsung
Price:Find Lowest Price Here

Introduction:

Samsung is one of those companies that aren't afraid to support the early adopters.  This makes them early adopters themselves and they've been right alongside AMD with the Eyefinity platform.  Early monitor releases had 1"+ wide bezels and the experience wasn't as fluid as we'd all hoped.  As time has progressed, things have got better, more affordable and today we are looking at the latest generation of Eyefinity-Supported displays from Samsung - the MD230X3.  This unit is a combination of three MD230 displays that have a very narrow/thin (15.2mm) bezel and work to make the multi-monitor experience less obtrusive. 

In this review, we're going to evaluate the MD230 display and share some experiences with the 3x1 Eyefinity setup.

 
MD230X3 Box

First Impression:

When Samsung offered to hook us up with some Eyefinity action, they first wanted to make sure we had a card that could run the displays properly.  We assured them that we did or would if our ASUS HD 5870 couldn't make it happen.  Thankfully, this card has two DVI-D ports, a Display Port as well as a standard VGA and they can be very easily configured to run three screens without any issues at all.

In terms of the box, it is huge.  You don't get the scale from the image above, but you could probably fit two Cirque de Soleil performers in this thing.  In fact it is almost as big as one of my small freezers.  Inside the box we've got a ton of hardware as they provide a hefty stand that can support the 3x2 Eyefinity setup.  Also included (but not pictured) are the power cables to daisy-chain to each LCD as well as USB cables for control and a wired control pad that can be used to setup each LCD individually or all at once.  This is also used to power cycle the screens.

Box of Goodies

Three Screens

One of the major things that keep them all together and positioned correctly are the hinges.  The MD230X3 setup comes with two sets for the extra monitors and it looks like every other MD230 screen you buy comes with a pair of hinges to keep you rocking and expanding you setup.  This hinges have a very smooth and interesting pivot system that keeps the edges of the screens close to each other and keeps the experience sweet.  You'll also notice the stand is rather large as it will support up to six displays and provide height adjustment to boot.

Hinges

Mega Stand

Assembly:

It's not often that an LCD monitor review requires an "Assembly" section. However, the MD230X3 comes dissembled for obvious reasons.  When this is assembled in "landscape" mode, it is almost 63" wide.  That's much wider than a 55" LED TV.  This also allows you to decide if you would prefer the landscape or portrait modes.  I initially assembled in landscape, but after reading about all the games that do not support ultra wide screens due to the non-standard field-of-view (FOV), i changed things up for actual testing.  The installation and assembly below shows the landscape orientation.

Solo Back

One + Hinges

Two Built

The manual comes with very good instructions for building the 3x1 landscape, portrait or even the 3x2 setup.  I was able to easily follow along and assemble the display in a matter of minutes using my trusty Philips #2 screwdriver.  After I tried using this on a few games that didn't support the resolution or aspect ratio of 5760x1080, I ended up switching things around to the portrait mode and running 3240x1920.  This is closer to a standard aspect ratio and worked better in games.  Also, this kept things closer together and I didn't get neck strain while playing.