Macbook pro and Dell U2515H

[ymotion]

Hi,
Just got a new Dell U2515H monitor after reading great reviews about its performance. I connected the monitor to me macbook pro Retina Mid 2012. I connect them with the mini dp to dp cable that comes with the monitor.
It does look great but there are few things still bother me. One of them is the text. The text on the Dell is not clear/ crisp as it is on the Retina. It looks a bit vogue or weak. I attach two screenshots where you can see the difference ("Dell text" and "Retina text") I'm woking on the best resolution 2560x1440.
Any suggestion?

Things I tried to do:
I tried to change the response time in the monitor from normal to fast - didn't make any difference.
I also tried to calibrate it but for some reasons I couldn't match the instructions: for example, you need to increase the brightness to the point that the oval center is barely visible [see attached file: "Dell calibrate"] - it gives you example of too dark and too bright, but even when I increase the brightness to 100% I didn't get close to the expected too bright...

Is it possible that the 2012 model does not work well with such a new monitor?

Thanks a lot!
ymotion

 

[Fontane]

Hi,
Just got a new Dell U2515H monitor after reading great reviews about its performance. I connected the monitor to me macbook pro Retina Mid 2012. I connect them with the mini dp to dp cable that comes with the monitor.
It does look great but there are few things still bother me. One of them is the text. The text on the Dell is not clear/ crisp as it is on the Retina. It looks a bit vogue or weak. I attach two screenshots where you can see the difference ("Dell text" and "Retina text") I'm woking on the best resolution 2560x1440.
Any suggestion?

Things I tried to do:
I tried to change the response time in the monitor from normal to fast - didn't make any difference.
I also tried to calibrate it but for some reasons I couldn't match the instructions: for example, you need to increase the brightness to the point that the oval center is barely visible [see attached file: "Dell calibrate"] - it gives you example of too dark and too bright, but even when I increase the brightness to 100% I didn't get close to the expected too bright...

Is it possible that the 2012 model does not work well with such a new monitor?

Thanks a lot!
ymotion

I'm reading reviews on this monitor now and someone in the past had the same problem as you. He changed the option to 'scaled' under preferences>settings and that did the trick. Search macrumors and you will find the thread.

Edit: here's the thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/dell-u2515h.1848446/#post-21421587

 

[bootz]

Text will never be as sharp on the U2515H compared to the Retina MacBook Pro. The Retina screen packs many more pixels compared to the U2515H. If you want to emulate the Retina screen on the U2515H, you'll have to run it in HiDPI mode (which is why the Retina MacBook Pro looks so great).

The drawback(s)? First, even in HiDPI mode, it won't look as good as the laptop (see previous reference to the number of pixels). Second, your usable space will be knocked down to 1280x720, compared to the native 2560x1440 of the U2515H.

See: http://blog.thefelt.net/make-1280x720-hidpi-work-on-a-169-wqhd-display/

As an owner of the U2515H, I first stuck with the native 2560x1440 resolution, then tried HiDPI mode. While HiDPI looks great on this monitor, 1280x720 is too small a workspace, especially on a 25" monitor. Sadly, the U2515H only makes sense if you are going to run it at its native 2560x1440 resolution. The only scaled mode worth using is 1280x720 HiDPI.

If I could do it all over again, I would have gone with the U2415H. Sorry...

 

[ymotion]

Text will never be as sharp on the U2515H compared to the Retina MacBook Pro. The Retina screen packs many more pixels compared to the U2515H. If you want to emulate the Retina screen on the U2515H, you'll have to run it in HiDPI mode (which is why the Retina MacBook Pro looks so great).

The drawback(s)? First, even in HiDPI mode, it won't look as good as the laptop (see previous reference to the number of pixels). Second, your usable space will be knocked down to 1280x720, compared to the native 2560x1440 of the U2515H.

See: http://blog.thefelt.net/make-1280x720-hidpi-work-on-a-169-wqhd-display/

As an owner of the U2515H, I first stuck with the native 2560x1440 resolution, then tried HiDPI mode. While HiDPI looks great on this monitor, 1280x720 is too small a workspace, especially on a 25" monitor. Sadly, the U2515H only makes sense if you are going to run it at its native 2560x1440 resolution. The only scaled mode worth using is 1280x720 HiDPI.

If I could do it all over again, I would have gone with the U2415H. Sorry...

Hi Bootz,
Thanks so much for your reply. I was wondering if this is the case, if you can get something close to the Retina or not...
Now I'm curious about the U2415H you mentioned. Why would you choose this monitor over the U2515H? Isn't that the same monitor, just in 24inch? (I know Dell has the same for 27").

 

[ymotion]

I'm reading reviews on this monitor now and someone in the past had the same problem as you. He changed the option to 'scaled' under preferences>settings and that did the trick. Search macrumors and you will find the thread.

Edit: here's the thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/dell-u2515h.1848446/#post-21421587

Hi Fontane,
Thanks so much for your reply. For me, it automatically went to the best resolution so there's nothing really I can change...

 

[sammich]

Is the issue here just a mistunderstanding of how LCDs work? The Retina has a much higher pixel density than the Dell, and with the Retina running in HiDPI mode, you're going to get nice smooth text. If you ever get the chance, compare an iPhone 3G with an iPhone 4. Night. And. Day.

Your eyes will eventually adjust to it anyway. Sit back from the screen and it'll look better. I have an rMBP 15" and the screen is glorious and sharp. When I'm at home I sit in front of my U2713H (2560x1440, 27") with a new U2515H off to the right. It doesn't bother me in the slightest, although the 25" does look a little smoother than the 27".

 

[ymotion]

Is the issue here just a mistunderstanding of how LCDs work? The Retina has a much higher pixel density than the Dell, and with the Retina running in HiDPI mode, you're going to get nice smooth text. If you ever get the chance, compare an iPhone 3G with an iPhone 4. Night. And. Day.

Your eyes will eventually adjust to it anyway. Sit back from the screen and it'll look better. I have an rMBP 15" and the screen is glorious and sharp. When I'm at home I sit in front of my U2713H (2560x1440, 27") with a new U2515H off to the right. It doesn't bother me in the slightest, although the 25" does look a little smoother than the 27".

OK, Thanks Sammich for sharing here. I just wonder if all external monitors will have the same results when connected to the MBP, or should I try some other manufacturers (and of course, within the limited budget),

 

[DoFoT9]

OK, Thanks Sammich for sharing here. I just wonder if all external monitors will have the same results when connected to the MBP, or should I try some other manufacturers (and of course, within the limited budget),

Well, given that this is expected behaviour, yes they will all have the same results.

 

[ymotion]

Thanks DoFo T9!
So now I'm trying to check the density of the pixel (dpi) - I hope I understood correctly - and compare different monitors. For some reasons this info is not always mentioned in the tech specs of different manufacturers (I checked Samsung and Asus and couldn't find any -and stopped there). I saw that U2515H has 117 dpi. I also saw "pixel Pitch", which I think means the actual size of a pixel.

 

[Fontane]

OP, I just bought this monitor and using it with a late-2013 rMBP. Big improvement over a standard monitor but I see what you mean by the fuzzy text. I haven't come across a solution yet. I also would like to figure out how to increase the size of the text. Everything is so small and there's so much wasted screen space on many websites.

 

[ymotion]

Hi,
So I was looking around for a solution and came to this thread in Dell community:
http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/peripherals/f/3529/t/19629444
You can read the first reply. In a nutshell the solution there: change the refresh rate (by changing the settings of Nvidia card in Nvidia's control panel). Of course, this is on PC, but I wonder if something similar can be done on a mac. Really tried to look for a something online but couldn't find anything. Is there a way to change the settings of Nvidia card on mac computers? Anyone here can guess if that can improve things or is it a solution suitable for PC only?

BTW, I have Nvidia GeForce GT 650M

Thanks a lot!

 

[bootz]

I think it just may be the fact that Windows looks better than OS X Yosemite & El Capitan on non-HiDPI displays. I run Windows 8.1/10 using Parallels Desktop at native resolution on my U2515H and it looks sharper than OS X displayed on the monitor at the same resolution. You'll read complaints that the fonts used on the newer versions of OS X just don't look good on non-Retina displays.

But, if you want more control over the resolutions available for your U2515H, SwitchResX will do that.

 

[ymotion]

I think it just may be the fact that Windows looks better than OS X Yosemite & El Capitan on non-HiDPI displays. I run Windows 8.1/10 using Parallels Desktop at native resolution on my U2515H and it looks sharper than OS X displayed on the monitor at the same resolution. You'll read complaints that the fonts used on the newer versions of OS X just don't look good on non-Retina displays.

But, if you want more control over the resolutions available for your U2515H, SwitchResX will do that.

Hi bootz,
Thanks for your reply! I'll try out the SwitchRes. I guess the question of finding the best monitor for your needs is a bit more challenging to me than I thought. I have several more questions so I'll post them in a new thread. Thanks again

 

[Ludmila]

OP, I just bought this monitor and using it with a late-2013 rMBP. Big improvement over a standard monitor but I see what you mean by the fuzzy text. I haven't come across a solution yet. I also would like to figure out how to increase the size of the text. Everything is so small and there's so much wasted screen space on many websites.

Hi! could you please tell me if you finally found a solution? Is your mac 13 or 15 inches? Mine is macbook pro retina 13 late 2013 and I am thinking to by DELL u2515h. Is there any way to find a decent resolution with a sharp text and image? Thank you in advance!