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4k at what resolution (Dell U2720Q and MBA)

austyn23

austyn23

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 22, 2017
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Hi to all,

I have the MBA 16g and I want to try an external display.

I´m used to the 5k iMac 2560x1440 retina resolution.

As we know, there are no good 5K external displays, so looking in 4K I found the Dell U2720Q 27 inch.

If I use it at 1920x1080 "retina" mode, everything would look enormous; on the other side on 4K (3840x2160) the interface is going to be too small right?

So, how 2560x1440 looks at 4K? any thoughts?

Thanks!
 
It'll be fine. I use "Looks like 3008x1692" on my 27 inch 4K display from a Mac mini 2018. It uses a frame buffer of 6016x3384 which is scaled down by the GPU to 4K for output to the display.

My display could accept a 6016x3384 signal (but only up to 50 Hz 8bpc RGB from an eGPU) and do the scaling itself down to 4K which might take some pressure off of the GPU but I've never seen any benchmarks that show an affect of GPU scaling in macOS.

I suppose "Looks like 2560x1440" will be just as good. That will use a 5K frame buffer. Scaling 5K to 4K is probably slightly easier on the GPU.
 
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austyn23 said:
So, how 2560x1440 looks at 4K? any thoughts?
Click to expand...
To me, the difference between a 27" 4K monitor running scaled at "looks like 2560×1440" and a 27" 5K monitor running pixel-perfect at "looks like 2560×1440" is very obvious. So it's 5K or bust. :)
 
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Amethyst1 said:
To me, the difference between a 27" 4K monitor running scaled at "looks like 2560×1440" and a 27" 5K monitor running pixel-perfect at "looks like 2560×1440" is very obvious. So it's 5K or bust. :)
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Yes I know... but there is not 5K 27 inch monitor on the market (some LG are there but used and too expensive).

So the 4K has to be used 1920x1080 for the best experience?
 
I use that specific monitor with a M1 Mac mini and the 2560×1440 setting, and I am really happy with how it looks. Crisp without the interface being too small.
tempImageZ0Kjb7.jpg
 
bouras said:
I use that specific monitor with a M1 Mac mini and the 2560×1440 setting, and I am really happy with how it looks. Crisp without the interface being too small.View attachment 1828699
Click to expand...

Oh thanks, I can´t see the sharp text from the photo; but it looks good. Have you ever use an iMac 5K to compare?
 
2560 x 1440 is fine on a 4K display. It's actually rendered as 5K internally then scaled to 2560 x 1440, so it is a HiDPI resolution.
 
Aggedor said:
2560 x 1440 is fine on a 4K display. It's actually rendered as 5K internally then scaled to 2560 x 1440, so it is a HiDPI resolution.
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Yes; the scaling makes it less sharp than an actual 5K display running at pixel-perfect 2560×1440 though. I have both sitting next to each other and the difference is there. :)

austyn23 said:
So the 4K has to be used 1920x1080 for the best experience?
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Correct, but the scaling isn't too bad. It's just when you have scaled and pixel-perfect modes side by side that the difference really hits you.
 
Amethyst1 said:
Yes; the scaling makes it less sharp than an actual 5K display running at pixel-perfect 2560×1440 though. I have both sitting next to each other and the difference is there. :)


Correct, but the scaling isn't too bad. It's just when you have scaled and pixel-perfect modes side by side that the difference really hits you.
Click to expand...

I see, well I just ordered one on Amazon, let´s see how the MBAir handles with the lid plus the Dell.

The native resolution looks too small bur crisp? or starts to look pixelated?

Thanks
 
Amethyst1 said:
Yes; the scaling makes it less sharp than an actual 5K display running at pixel-perfect 2560×1440 though. I have both sitting next to each other and the difference is there. :)
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I'm sure. But without a 5K display sitting here for comparison, I absolutely cannot see any pixels on my 27" LG 4K display from a normal sitting-at-a-desk distance. It looks brilliant, and with my M1 MBA, there is absolutely no performance hit from scaling.

I know this is a Mac forum and we are all perfectionist (hey, we use Macs!), but a 27" 4K display makes a pretty darned good Mac desktop experience.
 
Aggedor said:
I'm sure. But without a 5K display sitting here for comparison, I absolutely cannot see any pixels on my 27" LG 4K display from a normal sitting-at-a-desk distance. It looks brilliant, and with my M1 MBA, there is absolutely no performance hit from scaling.

I know this is a Mac forum and we are all perfectionist (hey, we use Macs!), but a 27" 4K display makes a pretty darned good Mac desktop experience.
Click to expand...

Of course, side by side, the comparion is a must hehehe

I would leave the iMac off and work with the MBAir and the 27 4K Dell.

I really liked the performance of the Air, a lot over the iMac (is 2017, I can´t complain, is really fast and only has 8 gb of ram).
 
austyn23 said:
Oh thanks, I can´t see the sharp text from the photo; but it looks good. Have you ever use an iMac 5K to compare?
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Not very recently. I'd expect the iMac to look better anyway both due to the higher res and it being glossy. The Dell shouldn't be far off though.
 
austyn23 said:
Oh thanks, I can´t see the sharp text from the photo; but it looks good. Have you ever use an iMac 5K to compare?
Click to expand...
I have a U2720Q on a 2017 iMac 5k as a secondary display. I have it running as looks-like 2560 x 1440 so it matches the iMac's display. You can tell the difference between them, but a lot of it is that the iMac is glossy and the U2720 is not.

The U2718Q was a better monitor... I have two of those as dual displays on my 13" 2020 MBP.
 
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Amethyst1 said:
No chance of that with the Dell UP2715K :)
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1)
Because the Dell makes it plainly clear in its onscreen menu when 5K is enabled? LG and Apple Thunderbolt displays are dumb because they give no onscreen info.

2)
Because the Dell requires two cables for 5K?
A person could connect one cable to Mini DisplayPort and one to DisplayPort - that won't work for 5K but it's kind of weird to expect that to - it's more logical that the two full-sized DisplayPort inputs are the inputs required for 5K.
 
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I finally got the Dell 4K.

At 2560x1440 looks good, side by side with the iMac is not good enough; but when I use it alone is good.

At 4K is too small.

At 1920x1080 is sharper, but too big.

The adjustments are welcome (height, tilt, rotation); can´t understand how the iMac don´t have this yet...

USBC is great, one cable for all, and traditional USB ports on the screen are perfect to complement the Air.

I like a lot the Air over the iMac on performance, so I will keep the screen and hopefully we can see an 5K external display from apple this year or the next one.

Thanks to all for the responses and comments,
 
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austyn23 said:
I finally got the Dell 4K.

At 2560x1440 looks good, side by side with the iMac is not good enough; but when I use it alone is good.

At 4K is too small.

At 1920x1080 is sharper, but too big.

The adjustments are welcome (height, tilt, rotation); can´t understand how the iMac don´t have this yet...

USBC is great, one cable for all, and traditional USB ports on the screen are perfect to complement the Air.

I like a lot the Air over the iMac on performance, so I will keep the screen and hopefully we can see an 5K external display from apple this year or the next one.

Thanks to all for the responses and comments,
Click to expand...
You prefer a MacBook Air M1 + 4K monitor over an iMac 5K?
 
jungleghost said:
You prefer a MacBook Air M1 + 4K monitor over an iMac 5K?
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Over my ex 2017 imac yes, is really noticeable the speed and performance boost on the Air, but again, over my 2017 imac and it’s configuration.

Also like the matte display of the Dell.

BUT the 4k is good but not as good as the 5K of the iMac. A week later I’m adjusted to the 4k, it looks good and crispy, but is no the 5k for sure.
 
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austyn23 said:
Over my ex 2017 imac yes, is really noticeable the speed and performance boost on the Air, but again, over my 2017 imac and it’s configuration.

Also like the matte display of the Dell.

BUT the 4k is good but not as good as the 5K of the iMac. A week later I’m adjusted to the 4k, it looks good and crispy, but is no the 5k for sure.
Click to expand...
What is the config of your iMac? I'm really thinking trade my MBP M1 in a iMac 21.5 4K i7 2019, cause I just cannot find a screen that is big (but not that big as 27") and sharp enough (retina), the iMac and the old LG ultrafine are unique.
 
jungleghost said:
What is the config of your iMac? I'm really thinking trade my MBP M1 in a iMac 21.5 4K i7 2019, cause I just cannot find a screen that is big (but not that big as 27") and sharp enough (retina), the iMac and the old LG ultrafine are unique.
Click to expand...

My iMac was the 2017 i5 with 8gb of ram; now I´m on the Air (8 cores, 16 ram) with the DELL and it goes really good; I was waiting for the 14 inch MBP but I´m not going to make the swap; I´ll stick to the Air.

There is no 4k monitor under 27 inch (from dell at least). I also have the 25 inch model with USB C (U2520) but it´s 2560x1440 and the difference is too noticeable for my eyes. At least 4K I suggest.

I don´t recommend going with an Intel to be honest, M1 is the way to go IMO.
 
austyn23 said:
My iMac was the 2017 i5 with 8gb of ram; now I´m on the Air (8 cores, 16 ram) with the DELL and it goes really good; I was waiting for the 14 inch MBP but I´m not going to make the swap; I´ll stick to the Air.

There is no 4k monitor under 27 inch (from dell at least). I also have the 25 inch model with USB C (U2520) but it´s 2560x1440 and the difference is too noticeable for my eyes. At least 4K I suggest.

I don´t recommend going with an Intel to be honest, M1 is the way to go IMO.
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Yep, the downside is the m1 iMac is double the price of the intel i7 21.5 4K. How do you got used to the lower ppi? For me the difference its too clear. I had a 27" 4K, and after I see an iMac Screen, immediately I sold my monitor.
 
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