Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Tucom

Cancelled
Original poster
Jul 29, 2006
1,252
312
This is incredible - Retina iMac 5K screen - if not the exact panel as per some reports - in a beautifully constructed (overall) iMac like design for Retina like performance on Mac Pro's, or whichever other machine you wish to use it on -

https://www.planar.com/products/desktop-touch-screen-monitors/24-inch/ix2790/

Planar IX2790

I'm losing my mind right now - been looking for such an exact 'Cinema Display' replacement for years, but this is more than I could have ever asked for. One day, just maybe I'll splurge. Reports are exceedingly good from those who have gotten good panels, but there are negative reports as QC seems to be a bit hit or miss, but that certainly wouldn't deter me.

Thought I'd share for anyone looking for such a Retina 5K Cinema Display type deal.


 
You might want to read the fine print before purchasing:

FOR MAC: DP Support up to 3840 x 2160, HDMI Support up to 3840 x 2160, 5K resolution is only available via the DisplayPort input and requires a graphic card with DisplayPort 1.4 support (MST not supported)
 
This is incredible - Retina iMac 5K screen - if not the exact panel as per some reports - in a beautifully constructed (overall) iMac like design for Retina like performance on Mac Pro's, or whichever other machine you wish to use it on -

https://www.planar.com/products/desktop-touch-screen-monitors/24-inch/ix2790/

Planar IX2790

I'm losing my mind right now - been looking for such an exact 'Cinema Display' replacement for years, but this is more than I could have ever asked for. One day, just maybe I'll splurge. Reports are exceedingly good from those who have gotten good panels, but there are negative reports as QC seems to be a bit hit or miss, but that certainly wouldn't deter me.

Thought I'd share for anyone looking for such a Retina 5K Cinema Display type deal.

...and it even includes both a stand and a VESA mount - no extra charge. ;)
 
Interesting that the text says bezel free, but the pictures show a thick bezel, or am I seeing things?
Sort of like my monitor, bezel free until you turn it on.
When I questioned this with the supplier I was told, "that's not a bezel but a border":eek:


photo.JPG photo 2.JPG
 

And there's plenty of good reviews as well - quit cherry picking to make it look as though you have any tangible point or weight in an argument.

I swear 90% of this forum is nothing more than self-entitled snobs with no appreciation for quality - or any - alternatives at the best of times, but instead just reveling in being a pessimistic troll. It's a literary behavioral phenomenon on these forums lately.

Good reviews:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-...ef=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00009Q97W

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Planar-IX2790-5K-LCD-Monitor/470270348 (scroll down)

https://www.reddit.com/r/Monitors/comments/8zomas/i_just_received_the_5k_27_planar_ix2790_ama/

Good day, and next time try not to be the typical parade pisser. Goes a long way.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
This monitor is exactly the same as iiyama XB2779QQS-S1 according to Amazon reviews. It does look more like an Apple product though.
 
Hahahaha.

“Quit cherry picking....”
proceeds to cherry pick links to only good reviews

Sorry, did you have a point? Let's just let this **** review fester without any counters, right?

Case in point. He cherry picked one bad review, thus countering with multiple good ones.

Glad to laugh a bit today though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: turbineseaplane
Thanks for pointing this out. It's unfortunate that Apple doesn't make stand-alone 5K monitors; their new 6K, ultra-expensive, professional-grade monitor is amazing but out of reach (and overkill) for the vast majority of us. The LG Ultrafine really seemed like the only option for 5K, but it has mixed reviews and I don't think any of them say it's similar to Apple's iMac monitors.

I did a bit of Googling and found a Reddit post about the monitor. Someone asked how it compares with the iMac 5K's screen and the author replied favorably, noting that the color profiles were different but otherwise it seemed about the same. This one also looks a lot nicer than the Ultrafine monitors.

Definitely something to consider, and thank you again for making mention of it!

Edit: As someone looking to move away from my iMac and to a Mac mini, but wanting to have a similar screen, the only downside I can see with this monitor is the lack of an integrated camera (even though it seems to have the cut-out for one in the chassis). For folks who don't FaceTime from their computers it probably won't matter, though. For those of us who do, I guess the Ultrafine is still the only choice...
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tucom
This monitor is exactly the same as iiyama XB2779QQS-S1 according to Amazon reviews. It does look more like an Apple product though.

I mean it would be, given they're the only two 5K panels on the market at the moment besides Apple's. Given the design, build quality (overall) and supposedly excellent picture quality, for day to day use and a bright, new Retina panel it looks to be a golden goose.

Sure is tempting..
[doublepost=1562801516][/doublepost]
I did a bit of Googling and found a Reddit post about the monitor. Someone asked how it compares with the iMac 5K's screen and the author replied favorably, noting that the color profiles were different but otherwise it seemed about the same. This one also looks a lot nicer than the Ultrafine monitors.

Definitely something to consider, and thank you again for making mention of it!

No problem man! And this is my point - it seems to be an excellent alternative, if not the only option for people wanting a 5K Cinema Display that never existed, yet people still like to B*** and moan as if they're someone with an opinion worth listening to.

Anyways, glad it reached some people - If I happen to pick one up I'll report back.
 
Sorry, did you have a point? Let's just let this **** review fester without any counters, right?

Case in point. He cherry picked one bad review, thus countering with multiple good ones.

Glad to laugh a bit today though.
Lol where did I cherrypick.. there are literally only 4 reviews with 3 of them being terrible.
 
Lol where did I cherrypick.. there are literally only 4 reviews with 3 of them being terrible.

Two are of quality control, which I addressed in the initial post. The rest I posted are over the moon when you get a good set, with one comparing it side-by-side to 5K iMac. I may have misinterpreted the initial tone of your post, as I read it was one single review you were trying to use to throw shade on, but it's still a blatantly obvious pessimistic slap on the face to this awesome product. A few QC issues to iron out, and it's a steal.

And did you read the two negative reviews? They're written by what seems like 10 year olds who never graduated 2nd grade English, and the main issues were some dead pixels and a few replacements that needed to occur, otherwise fine. The only credible critical review was the dude trying to color calibrate his display with issues of the final color reproduction, which conflicts with the iMac vs. review, so who knows. Regardless, do the majority of people buy iMacs or iPads for pro-level photo editing? No, many of it's day to day work, and in my case it would be gaming and audio work and music production.

Finally dude: it isn't my monitor - if you don't want one, don't get one.
[doublepost=1562806568][/doublepost]Wait, Mods, this was meant to be in the Mac Pro forum section, was it moved? If not, please move it mods. Thanks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: turbineseaplane
Two are of quality control, which I addressed in the initial post. The rest I posted are over the moon when you get a good set, with one comparing it side-by-side to 5K iMac. I may have misinterpreted the initial tone of your post, as I read it was one single review you were trying to use to throw shade on, but it's still a blatantly obvious pessimistic slap on the face to this awesome product. A few QC issues to iron out, and it's a steal.

And did you read the two negative reviews? They're written by what seems like 10 year olds who never graduated 2nd grade English, and the main issues were some dead pixels and a few replacements that needed to occur, otherwise fine. The only credible critical review was the dude trying to color calibrate his display with issues of the final color reproduction, which conflicts with the iMac vs. review, so who knows. Regardless, do the majority of people buy iMacs or iPads for pro-level photo editing? No, many of it's day to day work, and in my case it would be gaming and audio work and music production.

Finally dude: it isn't my monitor - if you don't want one, don't get one.

It isn't your monitor, a product that you have never used, but you call it "this awesome product". It's a 5K panel that has serious QC issues. With its price, I'd spend a couple hundred more and find a refurbished LG Ultra Fine 5K, with proper Thunderbolt 3 and built in HD webcam.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • Like
Reactions: steve62388
Sorry, did you have a point?

You're also oddly gung-ho for a product that, as far as I can tell, you don't own. It's just a monitor that vaguely sort of resembles Apple design. Nothing terribly special about it spec-wise. The reviews on it are mixed at best. The more concerning thing to me is the lack of reviews given the fact it's been out for a year. There only appears to be one person on this forum who claims to have owned one. I don't want to be accused of "cherry picking", so i'll leave it up to anyone who's curious to type the model # into search and see what they thought about it.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Reality check.

This is not a true 5K monitor. It’s what they call a 5K2K. Not that it’s bad as long as you know the difference — see the link below.

No Mac older than 2018 can use it since it’s 5K over DisplayPort 1.4 and only a few current MacBooks support this (10.14.2 and later). You’ll need a high quality USB-C to DP 1.4 cable. 1.4 was introduced third quarter 2018, BTW.

The 27” LG UltraFine has the same screen as the 2017-on iMac.

There’s another 5K2K monitor out there. Although it, too supports DP 1.4, you can also connect via Thunderbolt 3 iMacs/Mini and MacBooks. Here’s a review that also explains 5K2K
https://9to5mac.com/2018/11/26/revi...mac-mini-macbook-air-pro-thunderbolt-3-video/

Not understanding the whole deal about DP 1.4 and 5K2K may explain some of those bad reviews.

I swear 90% of this forum is nothing more than self-entitled snobs with no appreciation for quality - or any - alternatives at the best of times, but instead just reveling in being a pessimistic troll. It's a literary behavioral phenomenon on these forums lately
Well, the naysayers are right, more or less. This monitor is incompatible with most Macs.

Read and learn.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • Like
Reactions: Ledgem
This is not a true 5K monitor. It’s what they call a 5K2K. Not that it’s bad as long as you know the difference — see the link below.
I hadn't heard about 5K2K, so I read your linked article. Even based on that, the Planar is still a true 5K monitor.

Based on Wikipedia, something is 5K when it has a horizontal resolution of 5,000 pixels. The widescreen LG screen that your linked article refers to technically fits this, but being widescreen means that its vertical resolution is similar to that of a 4K screen. They talk about how it is more like a "4.5K" or "5K2K" screen (because the horizontal is close to 5,000 pixels while the vertical is closer to 2,000 pixels). Standard 5K monitors thus far have used a resolution of 5120x2880. But according to Planar's website, 5120x2880 is what the resolution of this screen is.

No Mac older than 2018 can use it since it’s 5K over DisplayPort 1.4 and only a few current MacBooks support this (10.14.2 and later). You’ll need a high quality USB-C to DP 1.4 cable. 1.4 was introduced third quarter 2018, BTW.
This is a point of concern. The Planar webpage mentions HDMI, and HDMI 2.0 would be able to deliver 5K at 60 Hz, but it seems no Macs - not even the latest - currently support HDMI 2.0. (edit: this isn't true; the Mac mini 2018 supports HDMI 2.0, and possibly others... I probably messed up when Googling this.)

Displayport 1.4 is theoretically supported on the 15-inch MacBook Pro 2018's hardware, but that's it... although even the 13-inch model, which only supports Displayport 1.2, is said to be able to drive a 5K display. I'm uncertain what it means for compatibility with the Planar monitor, though - we'd have to reach out to them.

My take-away from this is that it's surprisingly difficult to ensure support for a 5K monitor on a Mac if you're not connecting through Thunderbolt 3.
 
Last edited:
It seems you are already sold on this one.

From reading the reviews and doing doing a bit more of googling I personally would not consider buying it.

The company seems to buy panels off the market and give them some housing. The mentioned device is also said to feature the hole for the camera as found on the iMac. So given the similar look and the number of negative reviews, I suspect they are getting the panels that were sorted out in the iMac panel production.

Putting it in a iMac-clone case is not really an original idea then, after all, and rather adding insult to injury.

For what it seems to be, I find it way overprized.

(Many of their other products get very mediocre reviews as well - hardening my opinion that they are just housing 2nd or 3rd grade parts. But then, they should be honest enough to tell so and adjust their prices accordingly.)
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.