Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

External displays for macbook pro retina 13" late 2013

cochinet

cochinet

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 21, 2016
37
15
Hi guys, I'm looking for a little help here :)

I'm not quite convinced with the changes in the font rendering that Mojave brought us, because I use an external monitor LCD and it looks a little off even doing all the configuration changes that are "recommended" that supposedly "fix" this issue, but I'm not getting anywhere.

So I was trying to find a guide or advise to know if there is any external display / monitor that could accomplish a bigger resolution without going blurry Mojave. Or maybe an external monitor that could accomplish the "Retina Scaled" versions. (don't know if this helps)

A couple of days ago I bought a 27" 4k UHD display but I got the native resolution at 3840x2160 and the text looks very very tiny, then changed it to 1920x1080 retina and it gets too big, so I'm looking for something in between.

Does anybody know if there is something like this anywhere hehehe :)

(also don't know if a new macbook could be the solution, but right now a new mac is kind of a long shot for me)
 
I have a MacBook Pro 13" (mid 2014). I bought this monitor back in 2015, and it holds up very well:

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-25-Inch-LED-lit-Monitor-U2518DX/dp/B075X8SNWK/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

It has a resolution of 2560 x 1440, so very close to the native 2560 x 1600 of the MacBook Pro. The text looks good on Mojave -- though I can certainly tell a difference between the external display and my computer screen.

I do a lot of programming and writing talks, so heavy Terminal and Keynote usage. Both apps look great on the big screen, so if you're doing similar things, I certainly recommend it.

I've been thinking of getting a second one to keep at work, but wondering if I should make the jump to a 4K display; like you, concerned about the small text when moving to that resolution.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Nebulance said:
I have a MacBook Pro 13" (mid 2014). I bought this monitor back in 2015, and it holds up very well:

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-25-Inch-LED-lit-Monitor-U2518DX/dp/B075X8SNWK/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

It has a resolution of 2560 x 1440, so very close to the native 2560 x 1600 of the MacBook Pro. The text looks good on Mojave -- though I can certainly tell a difference between the external display and my computer screen.

I do a lot of programming and writing talks, so heavy Terminal and Keynote usage. Both apps look great on the big screen, so if you're doing similar things, I certainly recommend it.

I've been thinking of getting a second one to keep at work, but wondering if I should make the jump to a 4K display; like you, concerned about the small text when moving to that resolution.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this. :)

I had a Dell u2515h and worked pretty awesome. But when Mojave came I started to notice that anti-alising stuff and got into my head. And sold that monitor.

Then I purchased a Philips 276E8VJSB, thinking that the 4k stuff could work better. But got the native resolution (3840x2160) at 30hz and it looked too small and a little slow. Then the 1920x1080 got too big, sharp though then I started playing with resolutions and none looked good. I was hoping to get the "scaled retina" resolutions but only got the list of resolutions. Holding alt + clic on "scaled" got the list, but none of them really worked. So I returned it.
IMAGE 2019-03-26 10:07:23.jpg

So reading around maybe this macbook pro isn't able to pull what I want. But, anyways, not buying a new mac just for this. It works pretty great.

So right now I'm waiting for a AOPEN 27ML1U bmiipx that should worked pretty much the same as de Dell u2515h. but in 27" should look a little better in native resolution.

Here are the amazon links for this monitors.

https://www.amazon.com/Philips-276E...B/27&qid=1553615811&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmrnull

https://www.amazon.com/27ML1U-bmiipx-27-inch-FreeSync-Technology/dp/B07LD78515

I also do a lot of programming but I'm kinda picky with how the font looks. :)
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
cochinet said:
Thanks for this. :)

Here are the amazon links for this monitors.

https://www.amazon.com/Philips-276E8VJSB-3840x2160-MultiView-DisplayPort/dp/B07JXCR263/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1?keywords=PHILIPS+276E8VJSB/27&qid=1553615811&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmrnull

https://www.amazon.com/27ML1U-bmiipx-27-inch-FreeSync-Technology/dp/B07LD78515

I also do a lot of programming but I'm kinda picky with how the font looks. :)
Click to expand...

I'm surprised that 4K Phillips one is so cheap! Though I guess your experience is why it is? Hard to say. Hope the AOPEN one works out!

Oh, I totally agree about fonts, I'm all about selecting good ones to program with. Not sure if you've seen it, but a favorite of mine is Input:

http://input.fontbureau.com

It's free, anti-aliasing, and has many variations. Focused on programming. Another good one is of course Apple's San Francisco (SF Mono). I've stuck with that one for quite a long time now.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Nebulance said:
I'm surprised that 4K Phillips one is so cheap! Though I guess your experience is why it is? Hard to say. Hope the AOPEN one works out!

Oh, I totally agree about fonts, I'm all about selecting good ones to program with. Not sure if you've seen it, but a favorite of mine is Input:

http://input.fontbureau.com

It's free, anti-aliasing, and has many variations. Focused on programming. Another good one is of course Apple's San Francisco (SF Mono). I've stuck with that one for quite a long time now.
Click to expand...

Thanks :)

I'll check that site out.

I'll update as soon as I get the display to see how it performs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nebulance
cochinet said:
Thanks :)

I'll check that site out.

I'll update as soon as I get the display to see how it performs.
Click to expand...

Finally the display arrived, and it looks pretty good. It's working at 75 Hertz so I think that is good. I had the same resolution in the dell u2515h but it looks better here. I think the couple of extra inches is what makes the difference.

Thanks!

upload_2019-3-29_9-28-0.png

upload_2019-3-29_9-31-10.png
 

Attachments

  • upload_2019-3-29_9-27-27.png
    upload_2019-3-29_9-27-27.png
    169.2 KB · Views: 356
  • Like
Reactions: Nebulance
cochinet said:
Finally the display arrived, and it looks pretty good. It's working at 75 Hertz so I think that is good. I had the same resolution in the dell u2515h but it looks better here. I think the couple of extra inches is what makes the difference.
Click to expand...

That looks great -- glad it worked out!
 
cochinet said:
Thanks for this. :)

I had a Dell u2515h and worked pretty awesome. But when Mojave came I started to notice that anti-alising stuff and got into my head. And sold that monitor.
Click to expand...
I actually use that same Dell U2515H monitors (2 of them actually) with my 2017 MBP, and I don’t have any issues at all with the anti-aliasing or anything. Overall these are fine monitors, and I’d suggest one if you can find a good one used.
 
Just pulled the trigger on that one (Dell U2718Q, 27" 4K), since the price of a Used -- Like New one was down to $340. Not bad.
 
Will the above dell u2718q 27” 4K work with a MacBook Pro mid 2014 model? I’m using a dell 2216h right now find the image quality very uncomfortable. I’ll appreciate suggestions on monitors that will get me as close to the Retina experience as the mid 2014 MacBook Pro will allow. Pls also advise if I should use DisplayPort or hdmi. Thank you
 
funkygenius said:
Will the above dell u2718q 27” 4K work with a MacBook Pro mid 2014 model? I’m using a dell 2216h right now find the image quality very uncomfortable. I’ll appreciate suggestions on monitors that will get me as close to the Retina experience as the mid 2014 MacBook Pro will allow. Pls also advise if I should use DisplayPort or hdmi. Thank you
Click to expand...

Use Display Port for the best picture!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back