I did a lot of reading on forums, so wanted to share my experience so far with the ASUS ProArt PA32QCV.
First, where I am coming from: I have been looking to upgrade from a 2017 27” iMac for a while, and while I thought about getting a 2020 iMac, I really was ready to make the switch to Apple Silicon. I did not want a smaller screen than the 27” or a resolution less than 5K retina as I do a lot of text work and like the sharpness and screen real estate. I purchased an M4 Pro Mac mini and debated between the 6k options and the Apple Studio Display.
My first attempt to get this monitor was an order directly with ASUS for $1399, which they cancelled shortly after I placed it. A few days later I saw BestBuy had it in stock for $100 less than ASUS, so I placed an order there instead. I picked it up a couple of days ago and have been using it for a few days now. The monitor was packaged well and easy to assemble without any tools needed. I have it connected to an M4 Pro Mac mini running macOS 26.0.1 via the included Thunderbolt 4 cable.
What I like:
After reading about backlight bleed and color inconsistencies on various displays, that was the first thing I checked after I plugged it in. After putting up some test images, it fortunately looks good to me and I don’t see any issues.
The matte display was a concern for me coming from the glossy iMac 27”, but it has not bothered me. I really like the screen real estate and it is very sharp from where I sit at a viewing distance of 25”. It’s easy to have two windows open side by side and not feel cramped at all. On the 5k iMac, it felt more cramped and couldn’t really get 2 windows side by side for my work. Colors don’t quite pop as much as on the glossy display, but the trade off works for me and I think I won’t notice after a few weeks.
Brightness is plenty for the room I have it in which has south windows but is shaded by trees. I am normally running it around 250 out of 400 max.
Sleeps and wakes correctly.
Feels like a good value for the cost of $1299. The construction is solid, and while it's plastic instead of aluminum, I am staring at the screen, not the back.
Love the screen real estate. Seriously, working with 6k is much better than 5k and physically it's only about 2.5" wider than the 27" iMac.
What I don’t like:
The base feels oversized and has unnecessary text on it. I get having the ASUS logo on the front, but I don’t need color claims, resolution, etc. The base was what my spouse noticed. “Why is the base so big?” was the first comment. I guess a plus here is that the Mac mini will fit completely on the monitor base.
I installed MonitorControl (version 4.3.3) to control volume and brightness from my Apple wired keyboard (plugged into the display), and while the volume works correctly, unfortunately the brightness control does not. It appears to think that the brightness scale is 0-100, while the monitor brightness scale in the ASUS Display Widget and on screen displays both go to a maximum of 400. This means if I forget and use the keyboard controls, then the display ends up rather dim (usually dropping to 100, when I want it about 240 in my room).
ASUS Display Widget control software. It works but feels like a non-native application. It was a little disconcerting the first time that I changed display mode and the displayed image flipped upside down before flipping back. I should only need to do that once, but the annoyance with the brightness control means I need to go into the software or use the on-screen controls to reset the brightness above 100.
While I was not expecting much from the speakers, I can say they are definitely a downgrade from the 27” iMac that I was used to. I expected that going in, but was hoping they would be good enough for listening to music while working, etc. I will need to switch to headphones or get some better external speakers. They are very tinny, although better than the built in speaker on the Mac mini (that is not saying much).
It feels like I have written more about the negatives, but to me they are relatively small compared to what I like about this monitor. Overall, while it doesn’t have the seamless integration I was used to with the iMac, I have been enjoying the sheer size and resolution.
First, where I am coming from: I have been looking to upgrade from a 2017 27” iMac for a while, and while I thought about getting a 2020 iMac, I really was ready to make the switch to Apple Silicon. I did not want a smaller screen than the 27” or a resolution less than 5K retina as I do a lot of text work and like the sharpness and screen real estate. I purchased an M4 Pro Mac mini and debated between the 6k options and the Apple Studio Display.
My first attempt to get this monitor was an order directly with ASUS for $1399, which they cancelled shortly after I placed it. A few days later I saw BestBuy had it in stock for $100 less than ASUS, so I placed an order there instead. I picked it up a couple of days ago and have been using it for a few days now. The monitor was packaged well and easy to assemble without any tools needed. I have it connected to an M4 Pro Mac mini running macOS 26.0.1 via the included Thunderbolt 4 cable.
What I like:
After reading about backlight bleed and color inconsistencies on various displays, that was the first thing I checked after I plugged it in. After putting up some test images, it fortunately looks good to me and I don’t see any issues.
The matte display was a concern for me coming from the glossy iMac 27”, but it has not bothered me. I really like the screen real estate and it is very sharp from where I sit at a viewing distance of 25”. It’s easy to have two windows open side by side and not feel cramped at all. On the 5k iMac, it felt more cramped and couldn’t really get 2 windows side by side for my work. Colors don’t quite pop as much as on the glossy display, but the trade off works for me and I think I won’t notice after a few weeks.
Brightness is plenty for the room I have it in which has south windows but is shaded by trees. I am normally running it around 250 out of 400 max.
Sleeps and wakes correctly.
Feels like a good value for the cost of $1299. The construction is solid, and while it's plastic instead of aluminum, I am staring at the screen, not the back.
Love the screen real estate. Seriously, working with 6k is much better than 5k and physically it's only about 2.5" wider than the 27" iMac.
What I don’t like:
The base feels oversized and has unnecessary text on it. I get having the ASUS logo on the front, but I don’t need color claims, resolution, etc. The base was what my spouse noticed. “Why is the base so big?” was the first comment. I guess a plus here is that the Mac mini will fit completely on the monitor base.
I installed MonitorControl (version 4.3.3) to control volume and brightness from my Apple wired keyboard (plugged into the display), and while the volume works correctly, unfortunately the brightness control does not. It appears to think that the brightness scale is 0-100, while the monitor brightness scale in the ASUS Display Widget and on screen displays both go to a maximum of 400. This means if I forget and use the keyboard controls, then the display ends up rather dim (usually dropping to 100, when I want it about 240 in my room).
ASUS Display Widget control software. It works but feels like a non-native application. It was a little disconcerting the first time that I changed display mode and the displayed image flipped upside down before flipping back. I should only need to do that once, but the annoyance with the brightness control means I need to go into the software or use the on-screen controls to reset the brightness above 100.
While I was not expecting much from the speakers, I can say they are definitely a downgrade from the 27” iMac that I was used to. I expected that going in, but was hoping they would be good enough for listening to music while working, etc. I will need to switch to headphones or get some better external speakers. They are very tinny, although better than the built in speaker on the Mac mini (that is not saying much).
It feels like I have written more about the negatives, but to me they are relatively small compared to what I like about this monitor. Overall, while it doesn’t have the seamless integration I was used to with the iMac, I have been enjoying the sheer size and resolution.
