Samsung Viewfinity S9 — Official Details from Samsung

[Yonkec]

Out of curiosity, what’s the expected behavior when connected to the 2015 MacBook Pro? My initial guess is that that Mac can’t drive a 5k display, but I could be wrong. Should it at least display 4k or some lower resolution? Interesting nonetheless.

Yeah they can't do 5k but have worked in the past on other 5k monitors without -that- big of an issue. I think they are essentially sending a 4k image to the 5k monitor? Certainly not ideal but shouldn't be a reason the S9 is unable to handle that.

Hopefully its an easy fix in the firmware?

 

[chrfr]

I think you are right. I just google and S9 has a mini-DisplayPort that supports 7680 x 4320 / 60 Hz and 3840 x 2160 / 120 Hz.

The cable I'm using is an Apple Thunderbolt2 to Thunderbolt2 (I can't find mini-DisplayPort to mini-DisplayPort cable)

But like you said, at least it should display 4k or lower res... at least some the image on the screen.. but it doesn't.

You need a DisplayPort cable, not a Thunderbolt cable, to use the DisplayPort connection on the display, so it's not really a surprise that this did not work for you.

 

[xraydoc]

From that first review, I'm not regretting my Apple Studio Displays.

 

[kvic]

You need a DisplayPort cable, not a Thunderbolt cable, to use the DisplayPort connection on the display, so it's not really a surprise that this did not work for you.

If this still does not resolve the issue, check 'DisplayPort version' setting on S9 and try both 1.2 or 1.4. @joe.peeravas

 

[bittervictorian]

Seems to have gone official in South Korea:

Samsung launches ViewFinity S9 5K monitor in South Korea

Samsung has launched the ViewFinity S9 5K monitor in South Korea. This monitor is made for media professionals and creators ...

www.sammobile.com

 

[tstafford]

From that first review, I'm not regretting my Apple Studio Displays.

Seems unlikely most ASD owners will end up regretting. It's a question for the folks who haven't purchased due to price. Is the S9 sufficiently good to warrant whatever Samsung charges (and whatever discounts can be wrangled). I never thought this thing would actually be better (other than price).

 

[xiJulian_]

i just found this when i opened youtube but haven’t been able to find anything about it on their US website

 

[mushy peas]

Seems to have gone official in South Korea

No idea why that article would say it has a VA panel.

Seems unlikely most ASD owners will end up regretting

Yeah, the price is a sunk cost at this point for existing owners, and the panel is fine if you ignore that cost.

I think the regret might just kick in as 6K and 8K mini-LED panels start hitting the market in the next 12 months and ASD owners are stuck with more of the same.

 

[ppj845]

The M8 was discounted more than half recently. Wonder how much S9 will go down in a year. 600?

 

[joe.peeravas]

After calibrating both monitors. And put it in a well-light-controlled room, I think they look not so much different now.
Trying to post the next video very soon as I thought the review from major channel should come out soon,too.

 

[squan]

After calibrating both monitors. And put it in a well-light-controlled room, I think they look not so much different now.
Trying to post the next video very soon as I thought the review from major channel should come out soon,too.

Thanks for the quick comparisons! Appreciate that!

My biggest concern with matte vs glossy is the sharpness of the text (and other details). Do you notice any difference on that front? I know it's not easy to capture but like when you look at text on the one screen and then immediately to the other, is there a noticeable change in crispness?

 

[kitsunesoba]

I think the regret might just kick in as 6K and 8K mini-LED panels start hitting the market in the next 12 months and ASD owners are stuck with more of the same.

IMO that depends on how good the out-of-the-box experience for those monitors is. For some people, not needing to coax the hardware into working at full capacity is worth a lot.

If the Ultrasharp 6k thread is anything to go by, if the 6k panels use the XDR's resolution they'll probably be as smooth to use as Apple displays are, but anything beyond that is a crapshoot.

 

[mushy peas]

but anything beyond that is a crapshoot

That’s kinda stopped being a problem for new Macs though, because they’ll all have HDMI 2.1 ports. Doesn’t help M1 users of course.

Also doesn’t help those that want to use less expensive docks (2.1 docks are pretty pricey) or Thunderbolt, as it appears Apple’s implementation of DSC over TB is problematic at best.

 

[kvic]

After calibrating both monitors. And put it in a well-light-controlled room, I think they look not so much different now.
Trying to post the next video very soon as I thought the review from major channel should come out soon,too.

I'm wondering what's the IPS panel inside the S9. Obviously I'm not asking you to do a teardown or 'hack' into S9's service menu. Just raising the question to bring up awareness. My main thought is whether Samsung has developed its own 5K panel in house or simply sourcing from BOE.

I remember BOE had been developing a 27-inch 5K IPS panel last year. It's expected entering mass production 23Q1. I had been expecting 5K monitors to flood the market in 2023. Lol..apparently that was too optimistic. Given the timing of the BOE panel and S9's release date, the story looks interesting once again.

 

[mushy peas]

My main thought is whether Samsung has developed its own 5K panel in house or simply sourcing from BOE.

Samsung don’t make LCD panels anymore, they sold their fabs to TCL. It’s almost certainly a BOE panel, as no one else has produced a 5K IPS panel except LG for Apple.

 

[kvic]

Samsung don’t make LCD panels anymore, they sold their fabs to TCL. It’s almost certainly a BOE panel, as no one else has produced a 5K IPS panel except LG for Apple.

Hopefully it’s indeed the BOE panel. Likely more 5K monitors are coming in the following months and years. The big and price conscious Chinese vendors haven’t even entered the game.

My brand new LG comes with a 4K BOE panel. The color and quality is a shock and awe moment to me personally..in a great and positive sense.

 

[joe.peeravas]

Here is the 2nd Video. Hope you guys like it!

 

[miemo]

Here is the 2nd Video. Hope you guys like it!

Great, thanks! Once calibrated, the color reproduction indeed looks quite similar (although with a slight difference in tint as you mentioned), at least as much as can be seen with something recorded with a camera and shared over YouTube 😅 Think the matte effect especially is something that would have to be seen directly to be able to evaluate properly.

The brightness change on the S9 with the Mac app looked pretty horrible - really messed up the tones badly! 😲 I’m guessing that’s not how it’s supposed to work with that particular app??

 

[squan]

I've never used an app to control brightness like Better Display (or Luna or Monitorcontrol) but I read a lot of good things about it, so it might just be a small glitch at the very bottom of the brightness scale?

Maybe someone with experience with these apps can chime in?

I must say, there's a lot to like about the S9, specially for someone looking to attach the PS5 through the Displayport as well and have a stellar screen for both work and gaming.

 

[i486dx2-66]

so it might just be a small glitch at the very bottom of the brightness scale?

Maybe someone with experience with these apps can chime in?

By default, BetterDisplay has a blended software/hardware brightness control. This means that as you dim the display, it dims using the hardware control (monitor backlight brightness) until the backlight is at its minimum value. From there, it allows further additional dimming via software control, which DOES inherently reduce the image quality in the process, but allows for an expanded dimming range beyond what the monitor would otherwise provide.

 

[Zest28]

IMO that depends on how good the out-of-the-box experience for those monitors is. For some people, not needing to coax the hardware into working at full capacity is worth a lot.

If the Ultrasharp 6k thread is anything to go by, if the 6k panels use the XDR's resolution they'll probably be as smooth to use as Apple displays are, but anything beyond that is a crapshoot.

It's like buying a Samsung Android Phone to work with your iPad and Mac. You know a more expensive iPhone works better with Mac and iPads than a Samsung Android phone.

 

[CWallace]

Hopefully it’s indeed the BOE panel. Likely more 5K monitors are coming in the following months and years. The big and price conscious Chinese vendors haven’t even entered the game.

They have entered the game, but at the moment they all seem to be on AliExpress.

Kuycon has a US distributor with Click Clack, but they have been out of stock of all versions for some weeks.

 

[kvic]

They have entered the game, but at the moment they all seem to be on AliExpress.

Kuycon has a US distributor with Click Clack, but they have been out of stock of all versions for some weeks.

I did some research recently before I went ahead and bought my LG instead. The Kuycon 5Ks has been on sale for more than a year at this point in time. They sold about 10k units in its domestic market, which is a very small number. Given the timing of its launch, Kuycon was not possible to use the BOE 5K panel. I would speculate it's likely using the same ASD panel albeit with some catches.

In general sense, you're right small Chinese vendors have been trying the 5k market already. Kuycon is a bit more serious guy among the smaller players. I was hoping Huawei to release a 5K in 2023 but apparently they care more about cashflow. Still hopeful for bigger players from China will enter the market. Also let's wait for the first confirmation the S9 is indeed (or not) the 5K BOE panel.

 

[i486dx2-66]

They sold about 10k units in its domestic market

Where did you find that info?

 

[fathergll]

Updated: I don't think this monitor is ready for the Mac.

I'm working on a new video about a comparison between these two and I found a lot of problems.
- I can't connect my 2015 MacBook Pro with Thunderbolt2 port via MiniDisplayPort. And I don't have a PC to test on the mini DisplayPort. So now, only 1 Thunderbolt port that working for me.
- I've plugged in the hard disk, the mic, and the sd card reader via USB-c on the rear monitor. They are showing the lights but no signal on the Mac. I mean I can't use all of that. --- Updated: problem solved. I forget that I set in the s9 menu that Thunderbolt/Type C port for Monitor only. I just reset it and now they are all work!
- The calibration app is not working when I've scanned the QR Code to pair between the monitor and the mobile

Maybe because I get it too early before the official release date and the firmware and software is not ready yet. Maybe because we need to wait for another update from Apple. I have no idea.

BTW, thanks tornado99. I had tried a better display app and now the keyboard can control the brightness and the sound volume.

Based on all of this and following Samsung enough I know their QC is terrible. Their big tv QD-OLED's last year were released with massive bugs in the OS and thats easier to QC than trying to get a monitor compatible with multicomputer across different computer OS.

If I were just buying 1 monitor I would never get the S9 at that price over the ASD(and I've bashed Apple on the ASD).

To me where the S9 could be the value play is if on sale and you need to setup multiple monitors which is where I take major issue with the ASD as you are paying for redundant things like the webcam, speakers...etc. Apple's marketing has people using the ASD in a 3 monitor setup and it's complete insanity that you need to drop anywhere from $4,800-$6,000 for just three 27" monitors. These things aren't magical and they are old tech(though still good). I mean Apple used to give you an entire computer with that panel(5k iMac).