Thank you - yes, Joe (the great reviewer) made that point in a YouTube comment. The problem with using BT speakers reported on the M8 is that they have been said to repeatedly drop out, need to be reconnected every time you want to watch etc, and raise the need to go into the settings constantly?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Samsung Viewfinity S9 — Official Details from Samsung
- Thread starter pisarn
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Good review, thanks Joe.
It looks like the Samsung’s major downsides are the build materials, speakers and stand wobble, none of which matter to me because I’ll be putting it on a VESA arm and have a pair of B&W speakers connected to my Mac.
And I’m pretty sure there are programs for macOS that allow it to control third-party monitors.
Given the disappointing Dell 6K display, I’m really leaning towards one of these until the upcoming 32” 8K displays are here. Price dependent, of course, but I’d expect it to be 33-44% cheaper here in Australia too (after discounts) because the ASD is stupidly overpriced.
It looks like the Samsung’s major downsides are the build materials, speakers and stand wobble, none of which matter to me because I’ll be putting it on a VESA arm and have a pair of B&W speakers connected to my Mac.
And I’m pretty sure there are programs for macOS that allow it to control third-party monitors.
Given the disappointing Dell 6K display, I’m really leaning towards one of these until the upcoming 32” 8K displays are here. Price dependent, of course, but I’d expect it to be 33-44% cheaper here in Australia too (after discounts) because the ASD is stupidly overpriced.
bittervictorian : I'll test the Bluetooth speaker and I will reply it here if it needs to reconnect almost every time.
mushy peas : the stand wobble is fine for me, it's understandable as the Apple stand is solid and well made which you have to pay a large extra for it. This one can tilt & rotate without any extra cost. In fact, it is quite steadier than the LG Ultrafine 5K. Lol.
mushy peas : the stand wobble is fine for me, it's understandable as the Apple stand is solid and well made which you have to pay a large extra for it. This one can tilt & rotate without any extra cost. In fact, it is quite steadier than the LG Ultrafine 5K. Lol.
After the wobbly mess that was my prior 4K Samsung, that would actually be one of the first tests I did on a new one.
Moving my chair, someone walking by, any of those were enough to make it wobble. 🤦♂️
You can use Monitor Control app on MACOS. I use it for my Dell monitor and it does a good job of adjusting the brightness.
My brand new LG is pretty solid. Haven't experienced what you said. Perhaps you exaggerated the wobble effect when your desk is hit. If you work in a 'hostile' environment, a more sturdy desk is a better way to solve the problem. Adding some weight to the desk will help too.
Appreciate you following up with the answer! Very good review and well narrated, especially since English isn't your native language.
Edit: I just re-watched the intro to your review - does it really have a huge external power supply? I hate external power supplies. 🤦♂️
I'm curious, what's disappointing about the Dell 6K display (aside from the price)? It's out of my price range so I only briefly looked at it, but I thought it was supposed to be pretty decent as long as the looks don't bother you (which they don't to me).
Last edited:
Yes that has been known since the CES reveal. It's large both to power the display and to provide close to 100 watts via the TB/USB-C ports.
Build quality, with lots of users in the thread reporting bad IPS glow, the KVM has issues, and it doesn’t work natively over Thunderbolt 4 (which IMO is Apple’s issue, but it’s still disappointing). Plus, the so-very-prominent webcam appears to be total trash.
Maybe disappointing wasn’t the right word, but it wasn’t the slam dunk I’d hoped it would be. Especially with so many 32” 8K displays in active development and heading to production.
Yep, and the only way Apple is able to get around that with the ASD is by designing an expensive custom flat-layout internal power supply, which is no doubt a factor in the ASD's price.
I hated power bricks that came with laptops in the old days (i.e. ~15yrs ago). A 90W brick was huge and heavy to carry around. Today a 200W power brick weights less than that and is about the same volume. I think using external power supply for monitors is a reasonably sound design choice.
The body of monitor could be made thinner. For example, Dell's Ultrasharp series with built-in PSU, the depth (thickest region) is about 5.3cm. LG's Ultrafine series with external PSU, the depth (thickest region) is about 4.5cm. Thinner is better (..up to a certain point). Just aesthetically speaking, I find LG more pleasing to look at from the side.
Without a built-in PSU, the monitor's internal has less heat to dissipate. Easier and cheaper on a cooling solution. I believe Ultrafine series in recent years are cooled passively by well designed convection flow. For example, the tear down of this 2018 model has not found any fans inside.
Less heat also means electronics going to last longer, operate more reliably and accurately (which is crucial for color). Touch wood. If your external power brick dies early, it's user replaceable. Very easy to find replacement because higher-power consumer electronic devices seem to be de facto on ~20V DC. That also means the power brick is re-usable for other compatible devices or even DIY projects if unfortunately your display panel/backlight dies early. It's even more environmentally friendly, so to speak.
Without a built-in PSU and perhaps cooling fans, leaving more room for other features. The same Dell series doesn't come with built-in speakers while the said LG series come with two 5W speakers built-in. I find it quite convenient for watching news clips. And my desk has one thing less (external speakers) to mess up.
Better yet, at least for me, the power brick can be hidden (by zip tie) under your desk. That is a much better place to install a PSU than inside the back of a display IMO
The body of monitor could be made thinner. For example, Dell's Ultrasharp series with built-in PSU, the depth (thickest region) is about 5.3cm. LG's Ultrafine series with external PSU, the depth (thickest region) is about 4.5cm. Thinner is better (..up to a certain point). Just aesthetically speaking, I find LG more pleasing to look at from the side.
Without a built-in PSU, the monitor's internal has less heat to dissipate. Easier and cheaper on a cooling solution. I believe Ultrafine series in recent years are cooled passively by well designed convection flow. For example, the tear down of this 2018 model has not found any fans inside.
Less heat also means electronics going to last longer, operate more reliably and accurately (which is crucial for color). Touch wood. If your external power brick dies early, it's user replaceable. Very easy to find replacement because higher-power consumer electronic devices seem to be de facto on ~20V DC. That also means the power brick is re-usable for other compatible devices or even DIY projects if unfortunately your display panel/backlight dies early. It's even more environmentally friendly, so to speak.
Without a built-in PSU and perhaps cooling fans, leaving more room for other features. The same Dell series doesn't come with built-in speakers while the said LG series come with two 5W speakers built-in. I find it quite convenient for watching news clips. And my desk has one thing less (external speakers) to mess up.
Better yet, at least for me, the power brick can be hidden (by zip tie) under your desk. That is a much better place to install a PSU than inside the back of a display IMO
Last edited:
Just watched the early review from the guy in Thailand. S9 looks to be what we expected - another option for 5K w/ expected differences in features that represent Samsung's tendencies vs. Apple's. I'll be interested to see some more reviews (and more importantly the US price) but it appears to be a solid alternative to the ASD. Not selling my ASDs to buy it, but good that there is another option in the market if I need a display for my wife or kids.
Did you only try Thunderbolt like in the video? I use a maxed out Intel Mac Mini with an eGPU which I connect to a monitor over DisplayPort. I'm hoping that I would not run into a problem like in the video using DisplayPort.
I've been looking forward to this one since it was announced because I do need dual input support, but now I'm not so sure anymore. Guess I'll wait for more reviews since it's still going to be a while before it's easy to buy.
Hi,
I'm about to try this solution, too. Actually, I buy this monitor for use with the Mac Pro. Maybe I have to use Thunderbolt 3 to MiniDisplayPort cable. I'll let you know when I try it.
Actually, I'm thinking about making a following video clip about comparing these 2 monitors in many aspects like what is different between the matte on Samsung and the glossy on ASD.
I'm writing the script now, and since English is not my native. It's quite complicated for me to translate from my Thai to English. I hope I can launch the new clip within the next week before the major channel launches its clip as well.
My LG Ultrafine 5K:
- Has an internal power supply
- Is plenty thin enough (I'm looking at the screen 99.99% of the time and not the profile)
- Charges at 94W via TB3 and 7.5W for each of 3 USB-C ports
- Does all this while having an adjustable stand built-in and being significantly cheaper than the ASD and with a (marginally) better webcam (although in fairness the LG display panel is fairly old now and the ASD display is surely better)
This is a valid reason for some users, but power supplies are very reliable these days when engineered with quality materials so it's not very important to me. The same with heat issues, the design of the monitor should factor in needed cooling and reliability.
All that said, the brick alone isn't going to kill the S9 for me, but I'm starting to wonder whether I should just get another LG 5K, despite its flaws and age.
I'm blown away by how far you're reaching, to cast doubt on a post that an old Samsung monitor has a poorly engineered stand. 😁
Your brand new monitor, of a completely different brand, in a completely different location, doesn't wobble? You haven't experienced it personally, so it couldn't possibly be true for someone else? That I'm exaggerating, that my work environment is hostile, that it's actually my desk that is the problem?
It's the stand. The monitor, which has a non-rotating mount, can twist with 7/16" of vertical movement at the corners with the "foot" of the stand staying flat on the table. 7/16" of movement is a LOT of pixels at 157 PPI. A 27" iMac on the same desk only moves 1/16" if really pushed.
If you're happy (or happy enough) with the LG, it's certainly the winner for price and availability if buying used.
Obviously you know that's not the case. I didn't agree with your points, spoke out and that seemed to irritate you.
The 5K Ultrafine is an older design circa 2016 (?)
With 5cm depth of the monitor casing, built-in PSU is surely possible and done it at a reasonable cost. Internal or not is more a design choice of other reasons. I was trying to provide some merits of being external. If people are bothered by an external PSU, hopefully they would be less so after a read of it. lol
Perhaps sell your existing LG 5K, and get two S9 or equivalent in the coming months (..if not years)
Updated: I don't think this monitor is ready for the Mac.
I'm working on a new video about a comparison between these two and I found a lot of problems.
- I can't connect my 2015 MacBook Pro with Thunderbolt2 port via MiniDisplayPort. And I don't have a PC to test on the mini DisplayPort. So now, only 1 Thunderbolt port that working for me.
- I've plugged in the hard disk, the mic, and the sd card reader via USB-c on the rear monitor. They are showing the lights but no signal on the Mac. I mean I can't use all of that. --- Updated: problem solved. I forget that I set in the s9 menu that Thunderbolt/Type C port for Monitor only. I just reset it and now they are all work!
- The calibration app is not working when I've scanned the QR Code to pair between the monitor and the mobile
Maybe because I get it too early before the official release date and the firmware and software is not ready yet. Maybe because we need to wait for another update from Apple. I have no idea.
BTW, thanks tornado99. I had tried a better display app and now the keyboard can control the brightness and the sound volume.
I'm working on a new video about a comparison between these two and I found a lot of problems.
- I can't connect my 2015 MacBook Pro with Thunderbolt2 port via MiniDisplayPort. And I don't have a PC to test on the mini DisplayPort. So now, only 1 Thunderbolt port that working for me.
- I've plugged in the hard disk, the mic, and the sd card reader via USB-c on the rear monitor. They are showing the lights but no signal on the Mac. I mean I can't use all of that. --- Updated: problem solved. I forget that I set in the s9 menu that Thunderbolt/Type C port for Monitor only. I just reset it and now they are all work!
- The calibration app is not working when I've scanned the QR Code to pair between the monitor and the mobile
Maybe because I get it too early before the official release date and the firmware and software is not ready yet. Maybe because we need to wait for another update from Apple. I have no idea.
BTW, thanks tornado99. I had tried a better display app and now the keyboard can control the brightness and the sound volume.
Last edited:
No regrets about buying the Apple Studio display base model. Got it at Amazon for $1,390. Seems the price on Amazon has gone back up. I like the build quality of Apple products but am sure many will find the trade-off of cheaper materials for similar panel quality acceptable.
Out of curiosity, what’s the expected behavior when connected to the 2015 MacBook Pro? My initial guess is that that Mac can’t drive a 5k display, but I could be wrong. Should it at least display 4k or some lower resolution? Interesting nonetheless.
I think you are right. I just google and S9 has a mini-DisplayPort that supports 7680 x 4320 / 60 Hz and 3840 x 2160 / 120 Hz.
The cable I'm using is an Apple Thunderbolt2 to Thunderbolt2 (I can't find mini-DisplayPort to mini-DisplayPort cable)
But like you said, at least it should display 4k or lower res... at least some the image on the screen.. but it doesn't.