Wondering if I should buy Ultrawide monitor of 49"

[anubisvolga]

Hello everyone.


Yes, I am new in this forum, and I will be deeply grateful if someone can help me to clarify a big doubt that I have before to buy a new monitor for my Macbook Pro 13" Late 2013 (A1502) I'm very conscious that it's a bit old, but still works very well, it's well cared and all, what it makes me worrying if my mac can handle the new monitor that I'm taking into consideration to buy, but only for work not for gaming or anything, I am a programmer and I want to move from a 1920 x 1080 monitor to 3840 x 1080 only to program more efficiently without buying 2 monitors, I want for real to buy this monitor:

• Samsung LC49HG90DMNXZA 49-inch HDR Curved (in Amazon)

and I have read in some post that "there's no problem" if I use the ThunderBolt to DisplayPort if is true, then I will buy the monstrous monitor...

Please someone help me to get rid my doubt from my head before to buy the monitor and I will be very grateful.

 

[zen]

I have the exact same Macbook Pro, and I think you're going to have trouble with that display - not just in terms of the resolution, but also the refresh rate.

That display's refresh rate goes up to 144 Hz. I think the maximum refresh rate connected via DisplayPort is 60 Hz on this Macbook Pro. The tech specs don't say - I have a 165 Hz display on my PC (27", 2560 x 1440), and when I connected by Macbook Pro to it, it worked fine but the low refresh rate was very noticeable. The max resolution by DisplayPort (on this Macbook Pro) is 2560 x 1600.

You can get higher resolutions if you connect by HDMI (1080p display at up to 60 Hz, 3840 x 2160 at 30 Hz, or 4096 x 2160 at 24 Hz), but those refresh rates will look absolutely diabolical.

The other factor is the resolution - that curved display is 3840 x 1080, and I just don't know if the Macbook Pro will offer that if you plug it in. Displays of those resolutions weren't around in 2013, and as far as I can tell, the Intel Iris 5000 graphics chip in the Macbook Pro won't recognise the display's native res.

In summary: don't buy it. That monitor is nice but expensive, and you really don't have a computer that can run it adequately.

 

[loybond]

That 144 Hz on your display is intended for gaming; for a smoother experience. It's not really meant for, nor will anyone really notice a benefit in normal day-to-day to use.

I'm curious... how do you notice a slower refresh rate when you connect your macbook? Is it at 30 Hz? You can certainly notice 30 Hz, but 60 Hz is standard for monitors; you wouldn't notice that using the computer for non-gaming tasks vs. a higher than 60 Hz refresh rate.

As long as the OP can get 60 Hz (which s/he can), the monitor shouldn't be a problem.

I have the exact same Macbook Pro, and I think you're going to have trouble with that display - not just in terms of the resolution, but also the refresh rate.

That display's refresh rate goes up to 144 Hz. I think the maximum refresh rate connected via DisplayPort is 60 Hz on this Macbook Pro. The tech specs don't say - I have a 165 Hz display on my PC (27", 2560 x 1440), and when I connected by Macbook Pro to it, it worked fine but the low refresh rate was very noticeable. The max resolution by DisplayPort (on this Macbook Pro) is 2560 x 1600.

You can get higher resolutions if you connect by HDMI (1080p display at up to 60 Hz, 3840 x 2160 at 30 Hz, or 4096 x 2160 at 24 Hz), but those refresh rates will look absolutely diabolical.

The other factor is the resolution - that curved display is 3840 x 1080, and I just don't know if the Macbook Pro will offer that if you plug it in. Displays of those resolutions weren't around in 2013, and as far as I can tell, the Intel Iris 5000 graphics chip in the Macbook Pro won't recognise the display's native res.

In summary: don't buy it. That monitor is nice but expensive, and you really don't have a computer that can run it adequately.

 

[zen]

That 144 Hz on your display is intended for gaming; for a smoother experience. It's not really meant for, nor will anyone really notice a benefit in normal day-to-day to use.

I'm curious... how do you notice a slower refresh rate when you connect your macbook? Is it at 30 Hz? You can certainly notice 30 Hz, but 60 Hz is standard for monitors; you wouldn't notice that using the computer for non-gaming tasks vs. a higher than 60 Hz refresh rate.

As long as the OP can get 60 Hz (which s/he can), the monitor shouldn't be a problem.

Personally, I can see 60 Hz even on a still desktop, and running mine at 165 Hz makes for a noticeably smoother experience even in things like Office and web browsing (this is in Windows 10, which may handle displays differently to macOS. Some people can’t see any difference with lower refresh rates, like 60 Hz, and that’s fine.

However, I still think the OP will have difficulty with resolutions. I’m not sure the MacBook Pro will even offer ultrawide resolutions when the display is plugged in. You might be able to see them in something like SwitchResX, but it might be a hardware limitation of the Intel Iris 5000 chip.

I think my point still stands - that monitor is serious overkill for such an old computer, given that the OP won’t be getting the full benefits of it.