Monitor Suggestions for M1 (& M4) mini

[karatekidk]

Hi, all. While I know there are multiple threads on monitors, I hope to have suggestions from you all.

I have been using m1 mini (which I have had no complaints about) and recently parted with my Asus ProArt 2k 27" monitor because I moved to a different country.

Now that I am settled in my new place, I would like to buy a new 27" monitor for my m1 mini. I don't do photo editing, so another 2k monitor would be ok. However, I am tempted to upgrade to m4 mini sometime in the near future because I started using my Osmo Pocket 2 more and would like to have better video editing experience. If the upgrade really happens, I would like to keep using the same monitor to save money.

I am wondering if I could have your suggestions for which monitor I should have specifically in the context I described above. Thank you very much for your time!

 

[benwiggy]

If you've read all the other threads, then you'll have all the information already.

There are loads of 2K 27" displays out there. The best way to get a "better video editing experience" would be with a 5K 27".

MacOS is designed for high-density displays. The bigger the pixels, the worse things look.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Once you spec 27", the fans are likely to bombard you with Apple Studio Display (ASD) and only ASD. So expect a lot of that in posts that follow.

There is merit to stepping up the resolution. ASD is 5K and 5K at 27" is essentially an ideal target for Macs. So if they convince you to go 5K and since you already have experience with ASUS monitors, I suggest the new 5K 27" monitor from ASUS... at about half of base ASD pricing.

If your attraction to 27" is mostly for height of the screen and you do anything that would benefit from spreading out the work across a wider screen, consider one of the ultra-wides. For about the same price as ASD, you can get a 40" Dell 5K2K ultra-wide that is about the same physical height as the screen you had but offers much more horizontal work/play space... especially useful for any apps with timelines, like video editing. I went this way myself when I went Silicon and I could never come back to a squarish screen again.

That Dell has a rich hub built in with 3 video inputs, so you could connect both Macs to it and still have another port for 1 more device (game box, AppleTV, PC, disc players, etc).

That one is like two 27" screens jammed into one frame. In fact, you can even split screen it so you could have one Mac on the left and one on the right. The hub is also a KVM, so one keyboard & mouse can work with both.

Your other comments read like price may be a key driver so none of these may fit the budget. If so, there are abundant lists of "best 27" monitors under $XXX" just a simple search away. If you find yourself in the $400-$500 zone on a favorite, again, I'd consider adding a few hundred to get that ASUS 5K monitor. If money is not really too much of a factor, I'd favor a quality ultra-wide like that Dell.

In a standalone monitor decision, you are doing the right thing in NOT just considering the "now" but also the future. This purchase will not just be one for 2025 but also potentially still being used in 2035+ hooked to an M14-15 Mac. As such, you might consider taking this purchase even more seriously than the Mac or iPhone choices... because you'll probably go through 2-4 of those before this purchase needs a replacement. Choose wisely.

 

[Alameda]

I have an LG 27” 4K60 display. It’s great, and they’re cheap. You can use it at all sorts of different resolutions. For utmost sharpness, you run it at 1080p mode, at other resolutions, if you look really closely, the fonts will have a little bit of jaggies.

So if you want ultra finicky perfection, you get a 27” 5K display, but they cost 2-3 times more.

 

[karatekidk]

If you've read all the other threads, then you'll have all the information already.

There are loads of 2K 27" displays out there. The best way to get a "better video editing experience" would be with a 5K 27".

MacOS is designed for high-density displays. The bigger the pixels, the worse things look.

Once you spec 27", the fans are likely to bombard you with Apple Studio Display (ASD) and only ASD. So expect a lot of that in posts that follow.

There is merit to stepping up the resolution. ASD is 5K and 5K at 27" is essentially an ideal target for Macs. So if they convince you to go 5K and since you already have experience with ASUS monitors, I suggest the new 5K 27" monitor from ASUS... at about half of base ASD pricing.

If your attraction to 27" is mostly for height of the screen and you do anything that would benefit from spreading out the work across a wider screen, consider one of the ultra-wides. For about the same price as ASD, you can get a 40" Dell 5K2K ultra-wide that is about the same physical height as the screen you had but offers much more horizontal work/play space... especially useful for any apps with timelines, like video editing. I went this way myself when I went Silicon and I could never come back to a squarish screen again.

That Dell has a rich hub built in with 3 video inputs, so you could connect both Macs to it and still have another port for 1 more device (game box, AppleTV, PC, disc players, etc).

That one is like two 27" screens jammed into one frame. In fact, you can even split screen it so you could have one Mac on the left and one on the right. The hub is also a KVM, so one keyboard & mouse can work with both.

Your other comments read like price may be a key driver so none of these may fit the budget. If so, there are abundant lists of "best 27" monitors under $XXX" just a simple search away. If you find yourself in the $400-$500 zone on a favorite, again, I'd consider adding a few hundred to get that ASUS 5K monitor. If money is not really too much of a factor, I'd favor a quality ultra-wide like that Dell.

In a standalone monitor decision, you are doing the right thing in NOT just considering the "now" but also the future. This purchase will not just be one for 2025 but also potentially still being used in 2035+ hooked to an M14-15 Mac. As such, you might consider taking this purchase even more seriously than the Mac or iPhone choices... because you'll probably go through 2-4 of those before this purchase needs a replacement. Choose wisely.

I have an LG 27” 4K60 display. It’s great, and they’re cheap. You can use it at all sorts of different resolutions. For utmost sharpness, you run it at 1080p mode, at other resolutions, if you look really closely, the fonts will have a little bit of jaggies.

So if you want ultra finicky perfection, you get a 27” 5K display, but they cost 2-3 times more.

I appreciate all of you for taking the time to share your thoughts. After reading all the comments, the ASUS 5k monitor would be great, though I find it expensive. Nonetheless, I see that it is priced much less than the Apple display and would last for a long time. Does m1 mini fully support 5k?

I thought about 4k, but I read all the things about scaling not optimized for Mac. I think I understand it, but can anyone explain about it simply? Is that really big of an issue?

 

[benwiggy]

Does m1 mini fully support 5k?

If only there was a way you could find out...

Mac mini (M1, 2020) - Technical specifications – Apple Support (UK)

support.apple.com

 

[PaulD-UK]

“If only there was a way you could find out...”

The tech specs don’t tell it all… 😉

Yes the system profiler will tell you the screen image is 5K/60, but if you have rapidly changing full-screen images like Desktop animations or gaming the screen doesn’t keep up as the GPU and/or Display Engine can’t quite manage to fully display the fast-changing images…

This won’t be a problem unless you are OCD about it. 😧
I lived with it quite happily for years until I got a new M4 Pro mini, which performs perfectly.

For static displays or movies etc the 5K screen was great to work with the M1, but I don’t game

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

5K will work fine with M1. Apple has been on the 5K train for a LONG time. Much older Macs support 5K.

And Mac can look fine in 4K too at only 27”. That’s a huge resolution hop from 1080p and you’ll definitely notice the increased sharpness.

Disconnect that M1 and take it to a monitor retailer. Hook it up and judge with your own eyes.

Or if you happen to have a 4K TV, you can attach it to that to see what the UI looks like at 4K on what will prob be a much greater screen size. People do this frequently for business presentations. It looks just fine. If you think so too, compressing the same 4K down into 27” means just more densely-packed pixels for what will seem like an even sharper picture. Basically, this is a big step towards “retina” but not quite retina. If you think the UI looks good on that TV, it will look even better on a monitor.

 

[Alameda]

I appreciate all of you for taking the time to share your thoughts. After reading all the comments, the ASUS 5k monitor would be great, though I find it expensive. Nonetheless, I see that it is priced much less than the Apple display and would last for a long time. Does m1 mini fully support 5k?

I thought about 4k, but I read all the things about scaling not optimized for Mac. I think I understand it, but can anyone explain about it simply? Is that really big of an issue?

When I use my 4K monitor at 4K, I get a lot of detail and a huge desktop, but the text is pretty small. I often use this setting for RAW photo editing.

When I use my 4K monitor at 1080P, it is exactly 1/4 of the monitor’s 4K and the text is extremely sharp and crisp. This gives me the best quality, but a 1080p desktop is pretty small. So I often use a higher resolution, in-between 1080p and 4K. It works fine, it’s just not as razor-sharp-perfect as 1080p looks. But I can use a web browser and word processor just fine.


If I had a 27” 5K monitor, then the ultra-super-sharp sweet spot mode is 1440p. That gives me a much bigger desktop than the 1080p of the 4K monitor.

Beyond that, you have to see it. Some people could care less, and others think it’s a big deal. A 4K monitor is much cheaper, but if you spring for the 5K, it should last you through many computer upgrades.

 

[karatekidk]

“If only there was a way you could find out...”

The tech specs don’t tell it all… 😉

Yes the system profiler will tell you the screen image is 5K/60, but if you have rapidly changing full-screen images like Desktop animations or gaming the screen doesn’t keep up as the GPU and/or Display Engine can’t quite manage to fully display the fast-changing images…

This won’t be a problem unless you are OCD about it. 😧
I lived with it quite happily for years until I got a new M4 Pro mini, which performs perfectly.

For static displays or movies etc the 5K screen was great to work with the M1, but I don’t game

5K will work fine with M1. Apple has been on the 5K train for a LONG time. Much older Macs support 5K.

And Mac can look fine in 4K too at only 27”. That’s a huge resolution hop from 1080p and you’ll definitely notice the increased sharpness.

Disconnect that M1 and take it to a monitor retailer. Hook it up and judge with your own eyes.

Or if you happen to have a 4K TV, you can attach it to that to see what the UI looks like at 4K on what will prob be a much greater screen size. People do this frequently for business presentations. It looks just fine. If you think so too, compressing the same 4K down into 27” means just more densely-packed pixels for what will seem like an even sharper picture. Basically, this is a big step towards “retina” but not quite retina. If you think the UI looks good on that TV, it will look even better on a monitor.

When I use my 4K monitor at 4K, I get a lot of detail and a huge desktop, but the text is pretty small. I often use this setting for RAW photo editing.

When I use my 4K monitor at 1080P, it is exactly 1/4 of the monitor’s 4K and the text is extremely sharp and crisp. This gives me the best quality, but a 1080p desktop is pretty small. So I often use a higher resolution, in-between 1080p and 4K. It works fine, it’s just not as razor-sharp-perfect as 1080p looks. But I can use a web browser and word processor just fine.


If I had a 27” 5K monitor, then the ultra-super-sharp sweet spot mode is 1440p. That gives me a much bigger desktop than the 1080p of the 4K monitor.

Beyond that, you have to see it. Some people could care less, and others think it’s a big deal. A 4K monitor is much cheaper, but if you spring for the 5K, it should last you through many computer upgrades.

I appreciate all the comments - I learned a lot! Now I am heavily leaning towards getting myself a 5k monitor, most likely the ASUS one. It is just not for sale yet in Japan, so I will wait and try to check it out once it becomes available.

Thank you again, and Happy February.

 

[Alameda]

I appreciate all the comments - I learned a lot! Now I am heavily leaning towards getting myself a 5k monitor, most likely the ASUS one. It is just not for sale yet in Japan, so I will wait and try to check it out once it becomes available.

Thank you again, and Happy February.

I think Samsung and LG also make 5K displays. But the Samsung has very bad reviews due to quality problems, so I would avoid that one, unfortunately.