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Alternatives to studio display

J

jazzerd8

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 5, 2023
30
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I’m trying to determine if there is less expensive alternative monitor and possibly advantageous for my workflow. I haven’t been able to find a ton of information, but a decent amount of reviews out of the Apple world appear to experience difficulties with connectivity and resolution.

Was looking at LG 34WK95U which is also 5k. I’m afraid to go to 4k bc I currently have a retina iMac and may be tough to have less clarity. Maybe I’m bei bc precious and should just get two cheaper 4k 24” and call it a day.

What experiences do you all have?
 
I was in the exact same boat - had a 27" Retina 5K iMac and found the price of a new mini + studio display hard to stomach. Didn't want to go from 5K down to 4K either, but again, with the price of most 5K monitors, I would've been better off sticking with the Studio for that kind of cash.

I eventually did move down to 4K when I got my M2 MBA. Going into settings > displays and selecting 'More Space' (the max 3840 x 2180 resolution), I found that after a while my eyes couldn't tell the difference in daily useage (web browsing & the like).

Only when watching certain movies & possibly messing around in photoshop do differences (in color clarity/sharpness) become apparent and only after a while of looking back and forth.

YMMV though

www.digitaltrends.com

Dell S2721QS Review: A simple, elegant 4K monitor

Dell's S2721QS offers a sleek and elegant 4K monitor for the home office, but if you're looking for anything beyond the basics, there are better options.
www.digitaltrends.com www.digitaltrends.com
 
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jazzerd8 said:
In this review it says “some Mac users reported flickering”. Have you experience this?
Click to expand...
No, I haven’t experienced any flickering.

jazzerd8 said:
You both mentioned this model so it must be solid!
Click to expand...
The other commenter mentioned a different model.

The S2722QC has a USB-C port so you can use a single cable to charge your MacBook and output video.
 
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jazzerd8 said:
I’m trying to determine if there is less expensive alternative monitor and possibly advantageous for my workflow. I haven’t been able to find a ton of information, but a decent amount of reviews out of the Apple world appear to experience difficulties with connectivity and resolution.

Was looking at LG 34WK95U which is also 5k. I’m afraid to go to 4k bc I currently have a retina iMac and may be tough to have less clarity. Maybe I’m bei bc precious and should just get two cheaper 4k 24” and call it a day.

What experiences do you all have?
Click to expand...

That LG is not a true 5K display. It's 5K2K or an ultrawide 4K. It'll have the same pixel density of a 27" 4K. As far as I know the only current alternative with the same PPI as the iMac and the Studio Display is the LG 27MD5KL-B. There were a few 5K 27" displays a while back. But they all flopped.

When it comes to desktop monitors. There's very few options to match the iMac PPI. Dell has an 8K 32" with a higher PPI. Most everything else is a lower PPI. As it seems anything smaller than 27" for 4K is really rare.

That's not to say 4K 27" or 5K2K 34" will be horrible. With a good panel and scaling set the same. You won't notice a big difference from the iMac. But it won't be exactly the same. I setup a 2017 iMac and two LG 27" 4K displays several years ago. Then calibrated the LG monitors to match the iMac as closely as possible. You don't really notice the difference. Then again, they weren't for me. So, I set them up. They looked good and I've only seen them a handful of times since.
 
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velocityg4 said:
That LG is not a true 5K display. It's 5K2K or an ultrawide 4K. It'll have the same pixel density of a 27" 4K. As far as I know the only current alternative with the same PPI as the iMac and the Studio Display is the LG 27MD5KL-B. There were a few 5K 27" displays a while back. But they all flopped.

When it comes to desktop monitors. There's very few options to match the iMac PPI. Dell has an 8K 32" with a higher PPI. Most everything else is a lower PPI. As it seems anything smaller than 27" for 4K is really rare.

That's not to say 4K 27" or 5K2K 34" will be horrible. With a good panel and scaling set the same. You won't notice a big difference from the iMac. But it won't be exactly the same. I setup a 2017 iMac and two LG 27" 4K displays several years ago. Then calibrated the LG monitors to match the iMac as closely as possible. You don't really notice the difference. Then again, they weren't for me. So, I set them up. They looked good and I've only seen them a handful of times since.
Click to expand...
Thanks for that, I wonder why there are so few options that compete with studio display. Do you still use the two LG's?
 
jazzerd8 said:
Thanks for that, I wonder why there are so few options that compete with studio display. Do you still use the two LG's?
Click to expand...

Same boat here -- retiring my 27" iMac and would have expected more options for standalone 27" displays by now. The more I research this, the more the Apple Studio Display seems like it is appropriately pricedl, considering its features, build quality, color accuracy, and the competitors' offerings (or lack thereof). I also like the idea of getting permanent AppleCare for it, so while it's expensive to get into now, the next upgrade should be the Mac only. Front load your financial pain!

Am considering 4K though for price. Just not sure after all this time on 5K if that will feel limiting or not as beautiful. However it should open up more options for things like refresh rate, HDR, and local dimming. The fact that these things are missing on the ARD is disappointing, but my impression is that thunderbolt 3/4 are limited to 60Hz at 5K.
 
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maflynn said:
When I bought my last monitor, I leaned heavily on https://www.rtings.com/monitor I would definitely recommend this and similar sites.

I'm not making any comment on the Studio Display, just that the rtings site is very useful
Click to expand...
Solid tip - I leaned on them heavily when I bought my OLED TV and have been for this as well. Tons of great info, especially when comparing stats and features. Buying a monitor for a Mac specifically is definitely confounding.
 
If you want a true ASD alternative, you're going to want a 27" 5k. There's three I know of:

1) Kucyon G27. Inexpensive 5k (~$800), ships from China, glossy. People who've gotten them like them unless they get one with QC issues, in which case an exchange costs you $200. You take a risk for the low price. https://clickclack.io/products/kuycon-g27x-5k-27-inch-ips-monitor

If you want to save money, a used ASD that you buy in-person (say, on Craig's List in the US) might be the better choice, particularly if you can get one with AppleCare+

2) Samsung Viewfinity S9. Matte screen. Not yet available, but should be released within the next few months. No one knows the pricing yet, in particular what the market price will be after discounts.
www.wepc.com

Samsung ViewFinity S9 release window prediction

The tech world is buzzing with excitement about the upcoming release of the Samsung ViewFinity S9. With its professional, modern design and impressive
www.wepc.com www.wepc.com


3) LG 5k. Same panel as iMac. Dated tech, but still looks good, though some have QC issues, and LG's support is not great. Glossy.
 
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If you are using the monitor for photo/video/graphics work and are considering an ultrawide, remember to get a non curved version. It messes with vertical and horizontal lines. I just wanted to toss that information out there incase anyone was looking at them! Back to your regularly scheduled program.!
 
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yadmonkey said:
Simply not finding another option that seems like a good fit
Click to expand...
If you're fully invested in Apple hardware, the studio display certainly makes sense, though I do think there are better options available. If you're using non-apple hardware the feature disparity is even larger imo, i.e., third party displayers offer more features for non-apple users.
 
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maflynn said:
If you're fully invested in Apple hardware, the studio display certainly makes sense, though I do think there are better options available. If you're using non-apple hardware the feature disparity is even larger imo, i.e., third party displayers offer more features for non-apple users.
Click to expand...
What options would you recommend?
 
I purchased a Samsung oled G8 with a work discount after seeing it in a store and was blown away. But before it even arrives I did research and am concerned with burn in and text fringing lol. I’m not sure I’m gonna even open it! If anyone knows about this stuff, lemme know.
 
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jazzerd8 said:
What options would you recommend?
Click to expand...
Some basic questions:
Is the monitor for PC or Mac?
What is your budget?
What resolution are you contemplating?
What monitor sizes are your considering
What will be the usage, i.e., gaming, content creation, etc
Are there features that are important, i.e., ports, builtin cameras, refresh rate, etc

What does the Studio Display offer that tempts you to buy it?
 
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I like Dell's lineup of 4k monitors with the kvm built in. It's a really slick setup and I am moving from the 2 x 24 inch dell ultrasharps I have now to a single 43". Plug in my windows workstation and mac mini into it and seamlessly move from one to the other both on screen, with one keyboard and mouse. It's really cool!

I am not a lover of OLED for burn in reasons. They even get ghosting if left for a while.
 
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Monitor for newest Mac studio. Would like to stay under $1k but want a 34” widescreen. Use is music production and video editing. Nothing else matters. I am afraid anything lesser than the studio display, coming from a retina iMac is going to be a tough adjustment
 
The point and shoot pro said:
I like Dell's lineup of 4k monitors with the kvm built in. It's a really slick setup and I am moving from the 2 x 24 inch dell ultrasharps I have now to a single 43". Plug in my windows workstation and mac mini into it and seamlessly move from one to the other both on screen, with one keyboard and mouse. It's really cool!

I am not a lover of OLED for burn in reasons. They even get ghosting if left for a while.
Click to expand...
Interesting, that may be the play. They have a 34” U3423WE in that lineup as well. How is the brightness and sharpness compared to the studio monitor?
 
jazzerd8 said:
Interesting, that may be the play. They have a 34” U3423WE in that lineup as well. How is the brightness and sharpness compared to the studio monitor?
Click to expand...
I don't know. For my own use case the brightness and sharpness is fine. Probably not quite to the levels of the studio monitor, but who knows unless you have them side by side. I am not much of a specs racer and more of an experience and features fan.
 
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jazzerd8 said:
Monitor for newest Mac studio. Would like to stay under $1k but want a 34” widescreen. Use is music production and video editing. Nothing else matters. I am afraid anything lesser than the studio display, coming from a retina iMac is going to be a tough adjustment
Click to expand...
I'd look at LG UltraFine 27MD5KL-B Not quite under a 1,000 but I believe its the same display panel being used in the studio display and offers similar specs. There's also the LG 34BK95U-W UltraFine 34" 21:9 5K 2K (5120 x 2160) Nano IPS LED UltraWide

Going down to a 4k display is the Dell U2723QE 27" and I've heard good things from ASUS ProArt Display PA279CV 27" 4K HDR Monitor

I'm a fan of LG, since they make the display panels many other OEMs, Dell makes a good monitor as well. I threw in the Asus because of the positive buzz I've seen.
 
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