I've recently upgraded from a Dell 2405FPW to a U2711. Here's my short review from a Mac perspective.
1. It's basically plug and play (on my Mac OS 10.5.8).
2. It requires a DVI Dual link graphics card. The LCD monitor comes with the appropriate cable to enjoy the maximum resolution straightaway. No HDMI cable though.
3. When plugged into the Radeon X1900XT, it doesn't show the dual boot screen when holding Alt while starting up -- that's if you're using Boot Camp. You're still on that dual boot screen, just that you have to choose blindly your boot option.
4. When plugged into the Radeon 4870HD, there are no issues.
5. Colour calibration, if you don't require 100% colour matching to your output i.e. photos, is very quick via the System Preferences.
6. If you're on Windows (via Boot Camp), you'll need to download and install the graphics card driver, which I can't seem to find/run on the disc provided.
-- My general review --
The resolution is outstanding at 2560 by 1440. Yes, there's 160 pixels missing from the bottom compared to a typical 30-inch, but coming up from 1920 by 1200 it doesn't really matter.
The colours are vibrant, which is great. The text is a bit smaller, of a size you typically see on 13-inch laptops. It took me a while to get used to the smaller font size.
This set is non-glossy. Apparently, Dell has applied some anti-glare coating. I've read on forums that some customers disliked it but I've no problem with it.
Compared to a 24-inch, 1920 by 1200, the U2711 isn't much taller, it's much wider. I can fit two webpages, 1024px each, and still be able to see icons on the desktop.
As for backlight bleeding, it's hard to detect. It means if your widescreen movies still show the letterbox black bars, you'll be less distracted.
The U2711 also works well with my PS3 via HDMI. I'm not sure of the audio capabilities but I use a 2.1 speaker plugged in with a 3.5mm jack. One thing to note is you'll have to set the audio settings on your PS3 to output 2.1 sound to make sure they output all the sound, dialogue, effects, surround, etc.
Gaming on the PS3 is very enjoyable. The games had to be upscaled and there's a notch of graininess. Not really an issue unless you're sitting really close. Everything looks pretty snappy and I don't notice any lag but I'm don't really play FPS games.
Note that this monitor would require a decent graphics card with dual-DVI output. If you want to game at the maximum resolution, they you need a powerful card.
This is a huge physical monitor. My table is really small and it took up almost half of it. But not regrets.
I managed to get this LCD at US$690 equivalent in Asia, Singapore. It's really value for money. This set is going to last me for a long time, until the slimmer LED version comes out in who-knows-which year.
I would recommend this monitor to graphic designers, photographers or anything who multi-task a lot.
1. It's basically plug and play (on my Mac OS 10.5.8).
2. It requires a DVI Dual link graphics card. The LCD monitor comes with the appropriate cable to enjoy the maximum resolution straightaway. No HDMI cable though.
3. When plugged into the Radeon X1900XT, it doesn't show the dual boot screen when holding Alt while starting up -- that's if you're using Boot Camp. You're still on that dual boot screen, just that you have to choose blindly your boot option.
4. When plugged into the Radeon 4870HD, there are no issues.
5. Colour calibration, if you don't require 100% colour matching to your output i.e. photos, is very quick via the System Preferences.
6. If you're on Windows (via Boot Camp), you'll need to download and install the graphics card driver, which I can't seem to find/run on the disc provided.
-- My general review --
The resolution is outstanding at 2560 by 1440. Yes, there's 160 pixels missing from the bottom compared to a typical 30-inch, but coming up from 1920 by 1200 it doesn't really matter.
The colours are vibrant, which is great. The text is a bit smaller, of a size you typically see on 13-inch laptops. It took me a while to get used to the smaller font size.
This set is non-glossy. Apparently, Dell has applied some anti-glare coating. I've read on forums that some customers disliked it but I've no problem with it.
Compared to a 24-inch, 1920 by 1200, the U2711 isn't much taller, it's much wider. I can fit two webpages, 1024px each, and still be able to see icons on the desktop.
As for backlight bleeding, it's hard to detect. It means if your widescreen movies still show the letterbox black bars, you'll be less distracted.
The U2711 also works well with my PS3 via HDMI. I'm not sure of the audio capabilities but I use a 2.1 speaker plugged in with a 3.5mm jack. One thing to note is you'll have to set the audio settings on your PS3 to output 2.1 sound to make sure they output all the sound, dialogue, effects, surround, etc.
Gaming on the PS3 is very enjoyable. The games had to be upscaled and there's a notch of graininess. Not really an issue unless you're sitting really close. Everything looks pretty snappy and I don't notice any lag but I'm don't really play FPS games.
Note that this monitor would require a decent graphics card with dual-DVI output. If you want to game at the maximum resolution, they you need a powerful card.
This is a huge physical monitor. My table is really small and it took up almost half of it. But not regrets.
I managed to get this LCD at US$690 equivalent in Asia, Singapore. It's really value for money. This set is going to last me for a long time, until the slimmer LED version comes out in who-knows-which year.
I would recommend this monitor to graphic designers, photographers or anything who multi-task a lot.
You can use various inputs such as DisplayPort. The DP cable Dell uses has the normal sized DP connectors which is a problem since current Macs need the mini DP connector. Such DP-mDP cables are available from NEC, Circuit Assembly, Monoprice and others. If you wish you could also use the other inputs but they don't allow you to use the max resolution (2560x1440). One of the biggest advantages of Dell displays are the many input options.