Whats a good external Monitor to run with my 27" iMac?

ThisIsMe said:

Looking to buy a external monitor to run with my 27" iMac besides the 27" thunderbolt display thats to much for my budget. I would say with in the price range of 300 to 400 bucks. Thanks for the help. My main work is video editing surfing the web and Blogging.

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You would definitely be looking at a lower resolution screen... because the ATD is actually reasonable priced compared with other monitors that have 2560 horizontal resolution.

1920x1080 monitors are a dime a dozen and easily affordable in your price range or lower (probably under $200). I would not go larger than 24"... and would probably want 21" or so. I would compute the pixel density and buywhatever size monitor gives you the same pixels per inch of your 27" iMac, so that things look the same size when drag items from one screen to the other... or have things spanning both screen. You do not want items looking like you are dragging them under a magnifying glass as you drag to the lower res screen.

/Jim

You will probably be disappointed if you don't pair it with another IPS monitor. The inexpensive monitors these days are all TN and designed for video with 1080P HD resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio. Not optimal for computer use!

I use an old 20" 1600x1200 pixel, 4:3 aspect ratio, Dell monitor (current model is 2007FP, $429). It matches quite well for pixel density with the 27" iMac. The 24" Dell U2412M is $369, 1920x1200 (16:10), and has DisplayPort (you would need a DisplayPort to mini-DisplayPort cable or adapter.)

You won't find a good quality 27" monitor with the same resolution (2560x1440) as your iMac for that budget.

You can probably find these on special

http://www.amazon.com/HP-ZR2740w-27-inch-Backlit-Monitor/dp/B005MR4P0W/ref=pd_cp_e_0

http://www.amazon.com/HP-ZR2740w-Monitor-12ms-2560x1440/dp/B005PAIZ34

http://www.amazon.com/Dell-UltraSharp-U2711-27-inch-Widescreen/dp/B0039648BO/ref=pd_cp_pc_1

You can get a 27" monitor with 1920x1080p resolution for your budget, but I am not a big fan of working at such a low resolution on a big screen. Also, I would recommend to keep the same resolution for all of your workspace.

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talmy said:

You will probably be disappointed if you don't pair it with another IPS monitor. The inexpensive monitors these days are all TN and designed for video with 1080P HD resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio. Not optimal for computer use!

I use an old 20" 1600x1200 pixel, 4:3 aspect ratio, Dell monitor (current model is 2007FP, $429). It matches quite well for pixel density with the 27" iMac. The 24" Dell U24123M is $369, 1920x1200 (16:10), and has DisplayPort (you would need a DisplayPort to mini-DisplayPort cable or adapter.)

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I use the 24" Dell U2412 and it's a great monitor.

Best monitor for the money

I agree that you won't be able to match the resolution of you iMac for that money, but you can get a beautiful monitor for under 300 bucks. I love my monitor! Check out the reviews:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004LXK8LI

A cheap monitor next to your iMac looks foolish, and does not add to your productivity. You better set up your spaces right and do something fun with the 300 bucks.
And next time, if 27 inch is too small, buy a mini or a pro with the one and only real serious monitor: the NEC PA301W.

ThisIsMe said:

Looking to buy a external monitor to run with my 27" iMac besides the 27" thunderbolt display thats to much for my budget. I would say with in the price range of 300 to 400 bucks. Thanks for the help. My main work is video editing surfing the web and Blogging.

Click to expand...

For that price, get an iPad (2 or refurb retina) to use for surfing/blogging while you edit.

You can actually now buy a yamakasi catleap Q270 which uses the same panel as your 27 inch imac and costs only $300. The QC will be a bit below apple's so you might have to accept a few dead pixels. But for the price, that's not such a big deal.

I've been quite satisified with the Auria EQ276W

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0384780
(NOTE: Microcenter's website image makes it look kinda crappy, but it looks better in person)

$399 for a 27" 2560x1440 IPS panel. Has display-port input, so you can use a cheap miniDP->DP cable rather than an expensive DP->dual-link-DVI that I think you need for the catleap.


On the downside, the stand kinda sucks, but for the price....