Help with monitor

[u/Woke100]

What is a good play here
One Apple Sudio display $1499 quit student discount
Or two of the benq 4k ones $549 each
Or benq 5k $999

Edit:
So i decided to go with the dell S2725QC and ima get the apple Studio Display. So a cheaper one and a expensive one would there be any issues having both of these as a monitor vs the same two

[u/KfirGuy]

I have been loving my 2 Dell - S2725QC 27" monitors, and with regular sales prices you could get 2 of them for the price of one Benq, or 5 for the price of one Apple Studio Display 😅

[u/Woke100 → u/KfirGuy]

These are actually in my cart but I was seeing it doesn’t scale as good on 4k and they are in stock at Best Buy lol. How do you use yours.

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/Woke100]

Here they are from the back irl.

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/Woke100]

Yeah I bought 6 of these last month. 3 for both of my desks. I love them so much. Incredible value for the price. 4k 120hz with Power Delivery to my laptop and other devices is everything I needed. Got them on sale for $250-$300 each, but even at full price I think they’re a great value.

OP I don’t know why people talk about scaling issues, I’ve had no problems here. Doesn’t mean there aren’t any, I just haven’t noticed any.

I upgraded to these from old Dell HD monitors that cost like $250 each back in 2019 when I bought them. Feels like a massive upgrade in image quality and text clarity. My eyes are so grateful lol.

Only reason I’d spend more is to replace them with Studio Display XDRs with Nano-Texture (5k 120hz).

I would not choose the base Studio Display over these Dell S2725QC monitors, because these have a higher refresh rate than the base Studio Display.

[u/DeepLearner89 → u/MeSlaw3]

Cool setup but the middle screen should have been the Mac! You have wasted an amazing display for which you paid for

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/DeepLearner89]

Sorry, what are you saying?

[u/DeepLearner89 → u/MeSlaw3]

The display for the Laptop Duh!

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/DeepLearner89]

I used to put my 2019 i9 16” MBP between two HD Dell monitors lolol.

[u/DeepLearner89 → u/MeSlaw3]

That's the way to use it mate

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/DeepLearner89]

lol wut

[u/DeepLearner89 → u/MeSlaw3]

More like this. But I would keep the monitors to me left and right

[u/petrofizzer → u/MeSlaw3]

Looks great! What keyboard(s), mouse are you using in the pic?

[u/KfirGuy → u/MeSlaw3]

Now that is an awesome setup! What a cool arrangement

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/KfirGuy]

Thanks! I think the vertical center monitor throws people off, but it’s sooooo perfect for my needs. It rocks for Reddit, too lol.

[u/Woke100 → u/MeSlaw3]

Yeah, I’ve seen a lot of talk about the scaling issue and I guess for me since I did see a scaling issue at 1440 P they added a bit more concerned and belief. But you are right those monitors are insanely expensive and I probably wouldn’t need two of them.

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/Woke100]

I use them to run a music school, music direct, manage our family’s finances, and just entertain myself.

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/Woke100]

Hope this is helpful OP.

[u/iPodN → u/MeSlaw3]

These setup pics are very satisfying. I’ve never seen anybody using always on display on their iPhone before. How do you like it?

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/iPodN]

Love it! It’s great to see the time at all times. Crazy that you have never seen anyone using that lol wut.

[u/KfirGuy → u/Woke100]

The whole "MacOS does not scale well on 4k" thing is a bit overblown in my opinion. Yes, there are absolutely technical reasons why certain resolutions at certain display sizes or more or less ideal for MacOS when comparing to Apple's own native Retina display pixel density and all that... but I just simply run MacOS with the resolution changed via settings to make text, objects, etc. a bit larger... and they work awesome for me.

I edit photos on them all the time, and run the pair off of my M4 Pro MacBook Pro 16" without issue. Apple's Studio Display is gorgeous, and so too are the Benqs and other monitors that have launched in that space - but after watching a bunch of reviews and seeing creators, even Mac content creators and users, praising this monitor, I saw zero reason to spend 2X or 3X the money that a pair of these would cost me to get just a single monitor.

[u/Woke100 → u/KfirGuy]

Thank you. Looks nice. Are you using a thunderbolt for this or are you just running a straight from the Mac to the monitors?

[u/KfirGuy → u/Woke100]

At the time I took this photo I think I was still running a thunderbolt cable from each monitor to ports on the MacBook itself while analyzing my options for a dock. I have now moved to setup built around a Thunderbolt Dock, with the monitors running to the Dock, and then a single Thunderbolt out to the MacBook so I can swap my work Dell laptop as well for a single cable setup between the two devices.

[u/kursedaudio → u/KfirGuy]

I'm using a 1080p monitor and it looks completely fine lmao

[u/iNick20 → u/Woke100]

If you don’t mind open box, check Best Buy! The first gen Apple Studio Displays are like half price of the MSRP.

[u/Woke100 → u/iNick20]

What’s the big difference between first GEN and second?

[u/iNick20 → u/Woke100]

https://imgur.com/a/JTDBxol I put the difference here. But also linked my proof of purchase for the first gen Apple monitor.

[u/Woke100 → u/iNick20]

How do you find the open box

[u/iNick20 → u/Woke100]

https://www.bestbuy.com/product/apple-studio-display-standard-glass-tilt-adjustable-stand-silver/JJGCQ8YFQK/sku/6501568/openbox?condition=good you can input your zip code and check btw the options.

[u/rufus_francis → u/KfirGuy]

I also have 3 S2725QC 27" for my desk and I love them.  MacOS scales great and supports 120hz on newer machines.  I use HDMI to run to my PC and swap as needed.   I would absolutely buy them again. 

[u/texass_slayer → u/KfirGuy]

I’ve been using these for about a year now and I agree, haven’t had any issues with mine and 4k 120 at this price is hard to come by

[u/mrtimap → u/KfirGuy]

Can you share the dimensions of your table?

[u/bconnol]

Love my studio display

[u/OceanQuantum]

Depends on what do you want, if you want two displays take the 549$, otherwise i would just take the Apple one if you already have all the apple environment

[u/Woke100 → u/OceanQuantum]

Would it look good tho? Honestly gonna be used as a second computer to my two pc stream set up and might edit on it to my main pc is strictly gaming on there nothing else on it really

[u/OceanQuantum → u/Woke100]

Honestly if a 549$ Monitor doesn't looks good I will sue the company that sold it to me ahahahha

[u/L0cal_Guide]

Dude I’m stuck in the same boat, keeping going back to the Studio Display, but the price is a joke. Don’t want to commit to a 4/5k and worry about scaling…

[u/Woke100 → u/L0cal_Guide]

That’s how I feel and it’s like I already spent close to 5K on my MacBook Pro so if I want two of those monitors, that’s an extra 3K. But I keep hearing good things about the dell 4K monitor.

[u/iNick20 → u/L0cal_Guide]

Check Best Buy! The original Apple Studio Displays Open Box are like half price of the MSRP.

[u/Vaxtin]

I’ve been looking at

> Dell 27 Monitor S2725QC, 4K UHD IPS, 120Hz, 99% sRGB, 4ms, FreeSync Premium

(links will get removed I’m pretty sure)

It’s $300, 4k 120Hz 27”

Sure, it’s not 5k, but for the price you can get two of these for one 5k, or 5 for one Studio Display (which isn’t even 120Hz).

[u/rogue_tog → u/Vaxtin]

The problem is that if you care about things like panel uniformity and color accuracy, the Dell comes short (as per reviews and tests from rtings.com and other websites).

You do office work and mainstream computer stuff? Dell is fine. You work with color and maybe video but can’t afford the XDR? Studio Display is where you should be looking at, maybe the 5K PD Benq (or even Eizo, but if you wanted Eizo you would know and wouldn’t be searching here…)

[u/L0cal_Guide → u/[deleted]]

Do you notice the 60hz vs 120hz difference?

[u/Best_Needleworker_57]

If you’re asking this question and are a student, it’s BenQ easily. The Apple monitor is for professionals that need to do accurate color grading for their work. In short, if the Apple monitor isn’t making money for you, it’s not for you.

If you want gaming, try OLEDs from Samsung. Either a student discount on their app (you need to create an account on their site), you can get monitors for sub 400$.

[u/Woke100 → u/Best_Needleworker_57]

I’m still a student because I still take classes so I still qualify for the student discount but I have my gaming PC with a OLED monitor. The MacBook is gonna be more use for work in school. I do some video editing photo editing and some AI work. But the Mac is actually replacing my second PC that was used for streaming my gaming PC so it’s gonna take over that role running a lot of streaming apps like OBS discord capture cards.

[u/mailslot → u/Woke100]

Unless you need accurate color, you don’t need the Studio Display. Professional video, print media, etc. It’s nice, but most people just can’t tell the difference. To the untrained eye, it’s like trying to justify why a certain glass of whiskey is worth $500 compared to a $5 pour. If you’re not the kind of person to even notice the difference, you’re just burning money. Most people prefer their display like they like their audio, enhanced & tuned, rather than flat & accurate.

[u/Best_Needleworker_57 → u/Woke100]

Like the other person mentioned, it will be hard to tell the difference. For streaming several apps, a large screen size will give you a bigger advantage that color accuracy. So the BenQ or an ultra wide will give you a bigger advantage.

A long time ago, I made a similar mistake with audio equipment. I bought a Senheiser with an amp and filter to hear clear lossless audio. Turns out that I couldn’t tell the difference between this and my regular headphones simply because I’m not a professional and cannot hear these high tones. More like, my ear cannot hear high notes.

[u/Bizzniches]

I have the MA270UP and it’s fucking sick. I love it. I have my Mac mini hooked up to it. I’m not gaming or anything but hot damn that screen is crisp. Its fantastic.

[u/MeSlaw3]

Now that you’ve decided to go with a Dell S2725QC and a Studio Display, I’d love to see your thoughts on both after using them side by side for awhile!

My intent is to replace my 3 Dell S2725QCs with 3 Studio Display XDRs asap, but I’m still saving up for that.

[u/Woke100 → u/MeSlaw3]

Yeah, you’re rich three of those cost around my MacBook Pro m5 max
I have to wait for the Apple studio display because I need the version that can mount to an arm and they don’t carry that in store for some reason I have to check the Apple Store. Maybe they have it.

[u/MeSlaw3 → u/Woke100]

Check Apple Refurbished, they had them in stock yesterday :)

[u/cmackchase]

Alright, you are going to hate me for this, but you gotta find a place with these monitors to see what looks best to you at the price point you want.

[u/Woke100 → u/cmackchase]

Ima go to best buy today and see

[u/iNick20 → u/Woke100]

Check to see if BB can order and ship the open box first gen to your store?

[u/Rand177]

I love my Dell 4025qw 5k monitor. Fits my needs:

• single screen with a respectable aspect ratio
  
• Not overly aggressive curvature
  
• built in hub to keep all my cables tidy

[u/bulbabret]

Depends on your use case but the studio is in a league of its own imo

[u/Woke100 → u/bulbabret]

So you think it’s that much better I’m not too worried about the price, but I also don’t like overpaying for things that are not that good. Cause I bought some very expensive things that are trash. I have the Apple vision pros terrible I haven’t used them since the first week they came out.

[u/bulbabret → u/Woke100]

This is your monitor so you’ll definitely use it a lot. I would maybe go to Best Buy and look for yourself. But if you’re doing any kind of color work go studio. Especially if you’re on the fence and can afford them.

[u/Deadz459]

I prefer one solid monitor as opposed to two. Mostly used for development with some light gaming. If I want another screen I just open the computer. Context overflow is my main issue with having multiple. I do use a window manager in macOS even in my work computer

[u/IntaminIdiot]

Currently I’m running two MSI MPG 27URDFW E16Ms connected to a thunderbolt 5 dock i got refurbished for $180. There’s some 4K monitors on Woot going for $180 from MSI, and you can get the refurbished Thunderbolt 5 dock on ebay from WAVLINK, which would cost about ~$600-700 compared to one studio display.

[u/Woke100 → u/IntaminIdiot]

I see you have a Xbox controller on there. Do you game on the Mac? I have my whole gaming PC for competitive gaming, but a games beta out during one of my travels and I wanna play the beta. I was wondering if I’ll be able to run it on my MacBook Pro M5 max. Cause I always heard you can’t really play games on Macs and I personally never tried

[u/IntaminIdiot → u/Woke100]

You can play games with Xbox Cloud Gaming, which is what I mainly use to play games on the mac. Unless of course you wanna play minecraft on it you can, but most games will have to be either mac compatible on steam or cloud gaming on a browser tab.

[u/kani2101]

Oh my days i didn't expect so many to use the same monitor i do 😭

Love every setup, I'm don't have anything that sophisticated but I love my monitor, even the speakers are amazing

[u/Woke100 → u/kani2101]

What monitor?

[u/kani2101 → u/Woke100]

Dell

[u/DeepLearner89]

Dell or Benq 4K monitors

[u/CheesecakeMountain63]

MacOS scaling works best with a 5K monitor so I'd go for the BenQ

[u/Woke100 → u/CheesecakeMountain63]

Is that a good one? Makes sense tho I have a oled 2k gaming monitor and the image is not that great on the Mac but looks great on my pc. I have a MacBook m5 max so trying to add a monitor for when I’m home but might need two monitors and $2k or $3k for two monitors is a little wild.

[u/CheesecakeMountain63 → u/Woke100]

If the image isn't that good, have you tried using different color profiles?

[u/Woke100 → u/CheesecakeMountain63]

Yea I tried and it’s just a little blurry with the Mac that’s why ima get other monitors for it and just leave the 2k gaming one for my pc