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Thread: Macbook monitors

  1. #1
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Macbook monitors

    My lovely LED cinema display appears to have packed in. The screen goes blank although ports still work and it shows up in my system info. Suggests a panel issue.

    The unit is actually 9yrs old so probably not worth repairing. Does anyone have any experience of non-Apple monitors? I have previously used a BenQ but love the Apple ones. I could buy another cinema display on ebay or such but just thought I'd ask around first.

    Budget about £500

  2. #2
    Grand Master wileeeeeey's Avatar
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    For £500 or less you will get an amazing monitor. I have a Cinema Display but when it dies I won't get another Apple monitor (they don't even make monitors anymore). BenQ is a very good make.

  3. #3
    Master
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    Have a look on Gumtree as at least you can see it before you buy. Here's a pair for £150:

    https://www.gumtree.com/p/computer-m...ads/1327611954

    It may not be near you but there are others on there.

  4. #4
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by wileeeeeey View Post
    For £500 or less you will get an amazing monitor. I have a Cinema Display but when it dies I won't get another Apple monitor (they don't even make monitors anymore). BenQ is a very good make.
    Yes I think it tells you a lot when they don't make them any more and even class the displays as 'vintage'. I just really like the ease of use with the power to macbook etc.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mr Pointy View Post
    Have a look on Gumtree as at least you can see it before you buy. Here's a pair for £150:

    https://www.gumtree.com/p/computer-m...ads/1327611954

    It may not be near you but there are others on there.
    I'm after a new one to be honest but thanks. I couldn't believe mine was 9yrs old to be honest - I never took some of the covers off and it still looks like it did the day I got it.

    Quite keen on this as it says it will also power the laptop

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01BSIL4...076359-21&th=1

  5. #5
    Craftsman
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    I have a couple of Dell 27" monitors at work. I think they were the same panel as the one Apple used.
    I use them for CAD work and they do everything I want. I calibrate them every few months so there is no colour difference between them. Can't remember the model numbers off the top of my head. When I bought them they were about £500 each. Might be worth a look as they must have come down in price now as it was 4-5 years ago.

    Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

  6. #6
    Eizo.
    i use a CG class for retouching and image editing and it’s a fantastic monitor, you might pick up an Eizo CS level monitor for around your budget, if i couldn’t stretch to an Eizo i would consider a BenQ

  7. #7
    DELL do some crackers, very happy with mine which I bought in preference to a Cinema Display.

  8. #8
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Thanks all. Looks like there is a lot more choice than when I originally bought my Mac monitor back in 2010.

    Will have a good look around at the males mentioned today. Thanks again.

  9. #9
    Craftsman
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    Let us know which one you decide to get, I will be in a similar situation around April time

  10. #10
    Master Skier's Avatar
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    I've recently replaced two 24" Dell 2408WFP monitors with two 27" Dell 2719DC monitors at home; they are superb. The panels in Dell monitors are made by Samsung (or at least these are). Half the battle, as with a lot of tech, is that you can't really try before you buy or even see the monitors as just about the only place with them on display is PC World.
    Last edited by Skier; 10th February 2019 at 12:52.

  11. #11
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    Just watch the resolution & make sure you understand the effects increasing resolution can have. I went from a 24" 1920x1200 to a 27" 2560x1440 & struggle to read some text sizes. I raised the scaling which helped a bit but I suspect my next move will be back to two 24" displays. I also don't like 1080 screens & find 1200 is much prefereable but there is less choice.

  12. #12
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Skier View Post
    I've recently replaced two 24" Dell 2408WFP monitors with two 27" Dell 2719DC monitors at home; they are superb. The panels in Dell monitors are made by Samsung (or at least these are). Half the battle, as with a lot of tech, is that you can't really try before you buy or even see the monitors as just about the only place with them on display is PC World.
    Those Dell's are beautiful looking monitors. Do they charge the macbook/laptops? I presume so given its USB-C? Good price too

    Quote Originally Posted by Mr Pointy View Post
    Just watch the resolution & make sure you understand the effects increasing resolution can have. I went from a 24" 1920x1200 to a 27" 2560x1440 & struggle to read some text sizes. I raised the scaling which helped a bit but I suspect my next move will be back to two 24" displays. I also don't like 1080 screens & find 1200 is much prefereable but there is less choice.
    Thanks - had not considered that. Will do

    Quote Originally Posted by Pretzel View Post
    Let us know which one you decide to get, I will be in a similar situation around April time
    Will do

    Annoyingly, the fault on the Apple display is adhoc. Sometimes it works fine, others not. Makes me wonder if its a cable fault. But saying that, if I can get something decent with the connectivity and charging ability I want I don't mind replacing a 9yr old screen that has been used a hell of a lot.

  13. #13
    I use factory calibrated Dell panels with my Mac workstation. Absolutely no complaints.

  14. #14
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Hmm - now doing some further digging and as my macbook air is an early 2015 version it doesn't have a USB-C port. Doh.

    Do I just need a USB-C to thunderbolt adapter?

  15. #15
    Viewsonic or BenQ are the ones we use at work, I'd go for the Mac->HDMI adapter -> monitor route as we noticed that the newer Mac's do not suppose USB-C->DVI.

  16. #16
    Master Skier's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by senwar View Post
    Those Dell's are beautiful looking monitors. Do they charge the macbook/laptops? I presume so given its USB-C? Good price too.
    They do indeed charge a laptop with an output of up to 45W. I don't use this feature at this time as the monitors are connected to a desktop computer and my tidy desktop OCD wouldn't allow a cable to be lying on the desk . I should purchase a retractable USB-C to USB-C cable. One additional benefit for me is that in the Summer my study gets very warm from the sun beating on the south-west facing window. These new panels produce far less heat than those they replaced.
    Last edited by Skier; 15th February 2019 at 15:33.

  17. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by eldrich View Post
    Viewsonic or BenQ are the ones we use at work, I'd go for the Mac->HDMI adapter -> monitor route as we noticed that the newer Mac's do not suppose USB-C->DVI.
    Yes they do, but you need the right ‘DP-Alt mode’ adapter, the best one is the cable creation one from amazon

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/CableCreati.../dp/B0126WHQEW

  18. #18
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Well that was a bit of a change of tact. Noticed curry’s were selling current MacBook airs for £100 less than Apple. Also offered £400 trade for Apple MacBooks.

    Wasn’t expecting to do that but I now have a brand new MacBook Air so at least it has the right port. My 2015 MacBook Air was probably worth about £550-600 but then again it had a battery fault sorted by Apple earlier this year so wouldn’t have felt comfortable selling it anyway.

    Think I’m going to go for the Dell mentioned above too. One I like the most during research.

  19. #19
    Also look at the LG 27inch 27UK850-W (4K Ultra HD IPS). Also offers USB-C charging. Has normal USB ports on the rear, which is useful. Also offers HDMI and DisplayPort connectivity. Pretty good reviews last year. Tech may have moved on....

    If you're feeling flush, look at the LG display on Apple's website, the LG UltraFine 4K Display - however it will be beyond the budget....

  20. #20
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by cman View Post
    Also look at the LG 27inch 27UK850-W (4K Ultra HD IPS). Also offers USB-C charging. Has normal USB ports on the rear, which is useful. Also offers HDMI and DisplayPort connectivity. Pretty good reviews last year. Tech may have moved on....

    If you're feeling flush, look at the LG display on Apple's website, the LG UltraFine 4K Display - however it will be beyond the budget....
    Thanks. i did look at that on the Apple site but didn't want to spend that much. I've ordered the Dell S2719DC as mentioned above.

    I now think the fault was with my macbooks display port and not the monitor. I've managed to plug the Apple display into my work Surface Pro today and it is working fine as an extended display. Will run it for a week and then if all good either keep as a work monitor or sell on.

  21. #21
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Thanks for the help and recommendations all. As mentioned above, I ended up going for the Dell (thanks Skier) and have to say it is fantastic. The size of the viewing/screen now is brilliant. Lovely monitor, excellent display and looks great with the macbook. And charges as stated - exactly what I wanted.

    No text or viewing distortion or blurring either so very very happy

    Thanks all again.

  22. #22
    Quote Originally Posted by cman View Post
    Also look at the LG 27inch 27UK850-W (4K Ultra HD IPS). Also offers USB-C charging. Has normal USB ports on the rear, which is useful. Also offers HDMI and DisplayPort connectivity. Pretty good reviews last year. Tech may have moved on....

    If you're feeling flush, look at the LG display on Apple's website, the LG UltraFine 4K Display - however it will be beyond the budget....
    Surprised the Dells suggested aren't 4K like this or doesn't it make much difference in practice?

  23. #23
    Master Skier's Avatar
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    In my opinion there’s little point in paying the premium for a 4K monitor for a computer as you either need the eyes of a 12 year old to use the monitor’s native resolution or you have to use Windows scaling (or Mac equivalent) on the display so that text, icons etc. appear large enough to use, thereby negating most of the benefit.

    Of course there are use cases (for example, medical viewing of CT/MRI scans) where the increased resolution would be of benefit.
    Last edited by Skier; 12th February 2019 at 15:24.

  24. #24
    ^^ Useful, thanks.

  25. #25
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Well my joy is a little short lived.

    When my macbook goes into sleep mode if not used for a period, the monitor goes into sleep mode too. However, it then beeps as though charging has started and starts scanning for inputs before saying 'No USB-C type signal from your device'. Now I regularly have the macbook go into sleep mode just during my working day (use 3 different laptops).

    Any ideas?

  26. #26
    Master Skier's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by senwar View Post
    Well my joy is a little short lived.

    When my macbook goes into sleep mode if not used for a period, the monitor goes into sleep mode too. However, it then beeps as though charging has started and starts scanning for inputs before saying 'No USB-C type signal from your device'. Now I regularly have the macbook go into sleep mode just during my working day (use 3 different laptops).

    Any ideas?
    What's the issue? The beeping?

  27. #27
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Skier View Post
    What's the issue? The beeping?
    That and the monitor constantly being in search mode. Screen goes off and comes back on within 30 seconds beeping power to laptop and then searching.

    Reading Dell forums it has been mentioned but Dell just say only windows supported.

  28. #28
    Master senwar's Avatar
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    Bit of an update on this. Spoke with Dell and there was nothing they could do so arranged for it to be returned. Gutted as it's lovely but hey ho. Couldn't find anything online to resolve the issue either. Was going to buy the LG one mentioned above but kept thinking 4k was overkill for me. Monitor was due to be picked up by Dell today.

    Anyway, bought a new usb-c to usb-c cable yesterday from Amazon after reading about an issue on a totally different screen. £12.99. Came this morning (before DPD collection), tried it, and works like a treat! Spoke to Dell, cancelled the return and they have refunded 10% for my troubles! So got it for £360. Very happy with that and all working well now.

    If anyone comes back to this thread researching, I bought the S2719DC and this cable resolved the problem

  29. #29
    Craftsman
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    Useful update, thank you

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