Apple's Studio Display vs. Dell's Latest $655 27-Inch UltraSharp Monitor

[ajfahey]

That would not be Retina at typical distances. We want a 5.5K 30 inch monitor. I'd pay $2,500 for that, no problem.

You aren’t we.

 

[SFjohn]

I bought the Dell monitor last month. Works very well for me.

ASD was under consideration but to expensive.

I would also have eyestrain related headaches but those too have largely disappeared.

Purchasing lower price devices can definitely relieve headaches, or so I’ve been told. 😉

 

[citivolus]

Me too -- that was one of the reasons I didn't go down the "5k panel + driver board from AliExpress" route

I did and am loving it…how are you dealing with the lack of 5K offerings in the meantime?

 

[dork]

Am I the only one disturbed that the host is proudly wearing gear from the team with the rapiest quarterback currently in the NFL?

 

[anthogag]

It looks boring and has no camera or speakers. Going once, going twice,...sold for $10

 

[rgwebb]

Love the constant diarrhea stream of Apple Studio Display v. "Display that low-speeds think is a comp but it is not a comp" articles.

 

[loby]

You (and others) can keep saying this 😜 and maybe I'm just cursed with good eyesight, but sitting at my normal distance (just measured at 24") on a 4K 27" screen, the text looks slightly out of focus. (And I'll readily concede macOS at a non-2x scale may be a factor here, but a 1080p-alike mode is too little real-estate.) And because it looks slightly out of focus, my eyes keep trying to focus better, but of course they can't, because what they're looking at really is soft-edged...

I've had terrible eyestrain-related headaches for years. Since getting the Studio Display, when the text looks properly sharp even if I lean in (to about 16"), my eyestrain headaches have reduced enormously both in number and intensity, measured in the amount fewer painkillers I'm taking for it.

That alone makes the Studio Display worth every penny. And why, at least for me, any comparison to a display with a lower pixel density is invalid. 😀

Humm...I agree and have dealt with the same issues, especially if your work demands many hours in-front of the display.. continue to live with the eye & headache issues too, regardless of the monitor.

I thought the reflective mirror was also the cause (as with my beloved Apple Thunderbolt monitor). I also heard that Retina can cause eye strain and headaches to some too.

If what you say is the facts, then though Apple's Studio Display is quite expensive in comparison to it limitations and issues..but..."if" it does minimizes eye strain and headaches...then I would take a second consideration and look at it.

Hope to go somewhere and see the screen under the store's florescence lighting (as most stores have) to check the glare etc. Usually by looking at the screen for a few minutes, you can tell about eye strain etc.

 

[loby]

I bought the Dell monitor last month. Works very well for me.

ASD was under consideration but to expensive.

I would also have eyestrain related headaches but those too have largely disappeared.

Do you think the disappearance is due to the Matt finish?

 

[AppleHore]

What a whopping difference in price.

I like the fact how you can tilt it upside down/sideways.

What a whopping difference in specs. I have a $300 phone I can sell you too. But it’s not anything that resembles an iPhone…

 

[Rafterman]

The biggest difference between the Dell and the Studio Display is that you can actually get Dell without waiting two months.

 

[gaximus]

Not much point of a large screen if you are putting it far away is there? Could just as well get a 20" 4k display and put it closer.

That is true, I was just pointing out that Retina is not defined by size and pixel count, but also by distance from the eyes.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I did and am loving it…how are you dealing with the lack of 5K offerings in the meantime?

I went 4k/32"/144hz and love it

I actually prefer things a bit larger than I'd get on a 5k doing 1440p/2x, so scaling is sort of my reality anyhow..

..and now that I've had higher refresh rates -- whoa
I am not going back to just 60hz, I can tell you that.

Even just normal desktop usages, I love how smooth everything is and the scrolling -- I love it!

 

[oldwatery]

Am I the only one disturbed that the host is proudly wearing gear from the team with the rapiest quarterback currently in the NFL?

Haha. His clothing choices are very weird for a tech video presenter. But I just hate all these new video reviews replacing real writing. It seems to be the way now…….but not for this old fart.

 

[nastysailboat]

27" 4k is not retina. Over and out.

Especially when it’s not true 4K

 

[oldwatery]

The biggest difference between the Dell and the Studio Display is that you can actually get Dell without waiting two months.

I just went to buy a SD and saw that. WTF! It’s a standard display not a special order vehicle.

 

[mousekiks]

Neither monitor does. Did someone say they did?

The Dell monitor does support HDR. And the article makes it sounds like the studio display has better HDR which is obviously impossible.

 

[enricoclaudio]

The Dell monitor does support HDR. And the article makes it sounds like the studio display has better HDR which is obviously impossible.

Have you even tried the ASD with HDR content? I have and having a LG 32UN880-B 4K HDR next to my ASD, all I can say HDR content looks 10 times better in the ASD than in the LG 4K HDR. Even that the ASD does not “officially” support HDR, it really does. In fact, YouTube and Apple TV apps enable HDR content in the ASD. All my HDR/DV movies purchased over Apple TV play in HDR in my ASD.

 

[boss.king]

It looks boring and has no camera or speakers. Going once, going twice,...sold for $10

I mean, you could spend the difference on better speakers or a camera, maybe even both. Not everyone wants or needs all of that built in.

 

[Zdigital2015]

AFAIK the Dell monitor is certified DisplayHDR-400, which is in fact quite a low HDR standard, but a HDR standard still.

Said that, I think Apple's display could also obtain DisplayHDR-400 certification if Apple wanted to. I guess Apple doesn't consider such certification significant enough to bother.

It is in fact the absolute lowest DisplayHDR standard that be gotten away with, which is not saying much for Dell or any other OEMs.

I don’t think that Apple doesn’t care, so much as Apple pursued it own path, for better or worse.

 

[abhibeckert]

Not much point of a large screen if you are putting it far away is there? Could just as well get a 20" 4k display and put it closer.

27" at 4K needs to be at least 21 inches to be "retina". I sit around 26 inches from my 5K iMac.

 

[Zdigital2015]

I mean, you could spend the difference on better speakers or a camera, maybe even both. Not everyone wants or needs all of that built in.

We’ll, Apple made the decision to include them, so with all the other monitors you have to choose from, there must be one that will fit the bill for you.

 

[leicaman]

Comparing 4K displays to the Studio Display's 5K is pretty much useless for the people who notice the difference. I used two Dell monitors that were higher-quality than the ones mentioned here, and those were great, and I used them professionally for years, but they don't hold a candle to my Studio Display.

 

[boss.king]

Comparing 4K displays to the Studio Display's 5K is pretty much useless for the people who notice the difference. I used two Dell monitors that were higher-quality than the ones mentioned here, and those were great, and I used them professionally for years, but they don't hold a candle to my Studio Display.

Here’s the secret though: the overwhelming majority of people wouldn’t know the difference unless they were using them side-by-side. I get that 5K is a better resolution for this size, but the differences aren’t as major as people like to make out.

 

[jakey rolling]

That is true, I was just pointing out that Retina is not defined by size and pixel count, but also by distance from the eyes.

Why are so many of you stretching so hard to "define" what Retina is? There is no industry standard definition for it, as it is an Apple marketing term and nothing more. Retina means whatever Tim Cook tells you it means. No more, no less.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Here’s the secret though: the overwhelming majority of people wouldn’t know the difference unless they were using them side-by-side. I get that 5K is a better resolution for this size, but the differences aren’t as major as people like to make out.

This is exactly right

If people are not doing some side by side analysis, they find 4k scaled resolutions look outstanding

It's even true for me -- I've done the 5k/4k side by side routine and I can see a difference..

But it's not really that big of a deal honestly and once the 5k goes away, in about 20 mins I'm fully acclimated to 4k and loving it.