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The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

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Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#31

Post by glogla »

tshaddox wrote: post #28
nlh wrote: post #21

After working on a 27" 5K monitor (first the Dell, now the LG UltraFine), I don't think I can ever go back to non-HiDPI for my desktop, so 1440p is just a non-starter for me. The only monitor out there that would be an "upgrade" for me currently is the Apple 6K, which is far far into absurd-level purchase category. Dell has an 8K out there (UP3218K) which, at a scant $4000, looks to only slightly less crazy than the…

Where do you find a 5k monitor these days? They seem to have mostly vanished, other than the old LG one that Apple still sometimes has in stock (I’ve heard bad things about it). I also love my first-gen 5K iMac display, but can’t use it for my work MacBook. I’d love to find a solid 5K display but until then I’m still on a 1440p ultrawide.

There was Iiyama 5k as well, but they stopped making it. I almost bought it too, what a shame.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#33

Post by terminalcommand »

RobertLong wrote: post #5
xchaotic wrote: post #3

I ended up getting a KVM in the middle - it’s more cables but I have a 144Hz gsync screen and I can easily swap kB+m+screen with a dedicated, hardware button

What KVM are you using that has gsync and 144Hz support? I couldn't find one last time I looked. I'm running an Alienware 3418DW and have video switching through the monitor and a separate USB 3.0 switch.

I wondered that too, maybe he is routing everything through usb-c and uses a usb-c hub?

Conventional KVMs have VGA, I doubt he uses it. Maybe he has an HDMI one.

I've got a 4k display and finding a KVM that supports 4k 60hz is nearly impossible where I live. I plan on using a regular KVM to share mouse and keyboard via USB and use my monitors second input for manually switching between PCs.

It's a two step solution but at least doesn't break the bank.

4k has been a source of lot of frustration for me. Regular adapters don't work, regular cables don't work, you can't find content. HiDpi scaling is not that great.

I feel like an early adopter. Everything is a hassle, parts are expensive.

I had a 1080p 32 inch monitor once, it was great but the resolution was lacking. I replaced it with a 32 inch 4K one, but I couldn't get the same experience.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#34

Post by kmike84 »

I'm unsure about the advice of sticking to 1440p at 27".

I have a non-retina imac 27 (1440p), external LG 27" 4K USB-C monitor and a macbook pro 13 with a real "retina", and use them all regularly.

For my eyes, scaling works fine with 4K - font rendering is significantly better than on 1440p imac.

13" screen on macbook pro is even better, and 5K 27" would be perfect, but that's a different price point. I'm quite happy with the improvement from 1440p => "4K with scaling" transition, and won't consider buying 1440p in future.

Scaled 4K may be not the best for high precision design work, but for development tasks / text reading that's an improvement, in my experience.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#35

Post by Aeolos »

gjsman-1000 wrote: post #11

I upgraded to this setup just a few weeks ago with a MacBook Air M1 and a LG 27UK850-W 27" 4K (a monitor with a USB Hub, USB-C, and 60W charging built in). Really liking it so far.

I'm using the same monitor and while I like it a lot, the USB hub turns off whenever the monitor enters sleep mode. This means you should not connect any external drives / USB sticks on this hub, due to data corruption risks. This is a known issue without any workarounds as far as I am aware. Just a minor annoyance if you are aware of it, but I have lost data to this so please be aware of that risk.

The monitor is otherwise pretty good, with decent latency and color accuracy in SDR mode. HDR mode is not good (which is expected for standard LED backlighting without local dimming), so don't forget to turn OFF HDR in the display settings of your computer. Image quality is way better in SDR.

Edit: latency and VFR (freesync / g-sync) is also decent on this monitor, despite not being marketed for gaming.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#36

Post by uncledave »

yeahgoodok wrote: post #27
uncledave wrote: post #23

iiyama ProLite XUB2792UHSU-B1 on my M1 mini here. 27” 4K IPS. 5k would be better but it’s good enough and pretty damn cheap. And it’s not 1440p which just isn’t good enough now.

That monitor doesn't have a USB-C input, right? How do you connect both a PC and a MacBook, if you don't mind me asking?

I use a USB-C to DisplayPort adapter for the Mac: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B075V27G2R/

I use a PC as well and that’s connected to the HDMI input and you can switch between from the monitor controls.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#37

Post by 6a74 »

IMO, the best MacBook monitor is the LG 38WN95CW ultrawide monitor [1].

Pros:

* Larger 38" screen

* 90w charging

* Thunderbolt 3 (like USB-C but better)

* 144hz refresh rate

* 1ms response rate

And current generation MacBooks only support one external monitor, so two 27" 1440p monitors should not be recommended. And there are methods to having more monitors, but they require additional hardware and do not always work well.

Cons:

* Hard to acquire (out-of-stock everywhere)

* Very expensive ($1,500+)

* Cannot natively control brightness & sound via keyboard like other LG monitors, but software [2] can add this feature. Though, this is currently broken for all M1 Macs.

* Does not support True Tone

Read a review [3] for more information.

[1] https://www.lg.com/us/monitors/lg-38wn95c-w-ultrawide-monito...

[2] https://github.com/MonitorControl/MonitorControl/issues/323

[3] https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/lg/38wn95c-w

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#38

Post by eyelidlessness »

yangl1996 wrote: post #6

One thing to notice is that 1440p at 27" (one main criteria set by the author) is ideal for non-Retina macOS UI. For Retina UI, stick to 5k at 27" or 4k at 21.5" (or, look for a DPI of around 218 PPI).

For what it’s worth, if you’re on a 27@4k you can use interface scaling to get it to “looks like 1440” and it’s a reasonable approximation. The scaling renders everything at double the “looks like” resolution then scales it down, which sounds like it would hurt perf and look fuzzy but it’s really not that bad in either category.

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#39

Post by eyelidlessness »

hartator wrote: post #4

I don't like dual monitors setup, it creates more annoyance with the underpredicalty of which window is going to go where than anything to me. If you have the money, the Apple XDR 6k is super nice to code on.

I don’t like dual monitors either, but at my desk I basically just ignore the MBP screen and use it like I’m on a desktop with a single display. (I don’t close the lid for thermal reason, but I imagine I wouldn’t worry about that once I’m on an ARM Mac.)

Re: The Ultimate MacBook+PC Monitor Showdown

#40

Post by 6a74 »

kmike84 wrote: post #34

I'm unsure about the advice of sticking to 1440p at 27". I have a non-retina imac 27 (1440p), external LG 27" 4K USB-C monitor and a macbook pro 13 with a real "retina", and use them all regularly. For my eyes, scaling works fine with 4K - font rendering is significantly better than on 1440p imac. 13" screen on macbook pro is even better, and 5K 27" would be perfect, but that's a different price point. I'm quite happ…

Here's [1] an article on why 1440p at 27" might be better.

[1] https://bjango.com/articles/macexternaldisplays/

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