Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#1

Post by hemancuso » Tue, Mar 24, 2020, 7:42 PM UTC

We're all stuck at home now and probably thinking a bit more about how to upgrade and optimize the home office. I have an old 27" QHD display which developed a column of dead pixels and I wanted to solicit thoughts regarding experiences with those monster 30"+ (curved?) displays, or multiple 27/28" displays. I will be driving them from a 16" MBP, peripherals aren't a concern for me.

Thoughts? Recommendations?

Re: Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#2

Post by willcate » Tue, Mar 24, 2020, 8:03 PM UTC

I have the ASUS version of that monitor -- still works well, and a 24" horizontal-oriented next to it for inbox & document reading. If I upgraded I'd go for 34" curved.

Re: Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#3

Post by Ghjklov » Tue, Mar 24, 2020, 8:07 PM UTC

I was thinking about this one time. From a utilitarian standpoint, having multiple monitors provides a sort of redundancy. If one fails, you'll still have one to work on.

On the other hand, it also depends on your setup. If your setup can easily allow you to manage your workspaces across two different monitors, it might be better than managing everything on one screen. The opposite could be true, and you benefit from only having to deal with one screen and don't have to fiddle with anything.

Re: Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#4

Post by gjvc » Tue, Mar 24, 2020, 9:31 PM UTC

At work I have two 27" Dell UltraSharp monitors. Landscape on the left, portrait on the right. (27" is the biggest of the range that may be rotated using the included stand) This is good for different content types. Logs can be wide. Code can be long.

At work I have two 30" Dell UltraSharp monitors, both landscape, because they don't rotate. I have to alter my work pattern a bit to make the most of the size when I need to view some things.

The immersive feeling is good. Tiling window managers (or an application like Tilix, a terminal emulator with tiling layout) make for efficient division of screen space.

Re: Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#5

Post by downerending » Tue, Mar 24, 2020, 11:07 PM UTC

Another factor to consider is how whatever window manager you use will interact with them. Things are probably better these days, but some WMs aren't very smart about multiple monitors.

Re: Ask HN: One Giant monitor, or multiple large monitors?

#6

Post by hemancuso » Wed, Mar 25, 2020, 1:09 AM UTC

downerending wrote: post #5

Another factor to consider is how whatever window manager you use will interact with them. Things are probably better these days, but some WMs aren't very smart about multiple monitors.

For the most part, I'd just be using macOS WindowServer. Which isn't very helpful. That's part of what is driving the question about whether one big monitor is ultimately better.