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Ultrawide recommendation

R

ryankidd17

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 12, 2014
146
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So I’ve browsed a bit and saw there were quite a few issues back in December with ultra wide monitor resolutions and sleep/wake functions.
Wondering if these have been resolved with recent updates?

And if anyone has a recommendation for an Ultrawide monitor (34 to 38”)? Important thing for me is to have usb-c power delivery for my M1 MBA (also will use it with my work station on windows).

I thought about the Dell 3818 and 3421, but I’ve heard that they’re the worst in terms of Apple support. So if anyone has a working Ultrawide setup, I’d love to know about it. Thanks!
 
ryankidd17 said:
That’s great to hear. Charges and hub works fine for you?
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Yes no issues but I do now use the caldigit ts3+ dock. I have noticed, in the past week, that the system seems to “chug” a little when connected to the monitor. Not sure if it’s a thunderbolt dock issue vs the actual MBA. I have the 7 core air.
 
I've got the U3818DW and use it with my M1 MBA (and 16" MBP).

It's not too bad, if a Mac isn't fully charged, then the power delivery can cause issues (disconnecting every couple of minutes). This is due to the PD from the monitor not matching the spec.

Connecting a fully charged laptop is fine though (I've got a fully charged MBA connected with one cable right now). USB pass through is a little buggy, I've got a webcam plugged in to the monitor – sometimes I need to reboot my Mac for it to see it.

The most recent firmware for the screen made this worse. The issue has not been resolved in recent updates – and Dell have indicated it won't be resolved in future updates.

If you're looking for compatibility – go with an LG ultrawide or the updated Dell Ultrawides (U3821DW) which promise to have solved the issue.

My next ultrawide will be an LG (probably a 5K2K 40").
 
I have had two LG 34UM68-P 34-Inch 21:9 UltraWide IPS Monitors for a while, they are cheap (under 300$) and they work great.
 
Hi All, jumping on here as my question is very similar to the original post (I have an M1 MBA on order).

1)Has the ultrawide issue with Bigsur / M1 been fixed now? I have spent a couple of hours searching online and I think MacOS 11.2 fixed it but I am looking for confirmation? People seem to post a lot more when something isn't working than when it is. :)

2)Can anyone recommend any screens in the $600/£600 range that works without issues. I currently have my eye on the SAMSUNG C34J791 / LG UltraWide 34WN80C-B but I am not sure of their compatibility (or lack of).

Any help will be great.

Thanks
 
I can tell you that my LG 34UM68-P monitors 2560x1080 work just fine no problems. If that helps.
 
I've used a 49" LG Ultrawide successfully with my M1 Air with no issues, connected over thunderbolt/usb-c.

The only thing I'd say is that its definitely worth seeing if you can live with the non-Retina/4K resolution. Might be less of an issue on a 34' though.
 
I have a LG 38in Ultra Wide that I'm using right now...it works great, no issues whatsoever. It is connected to my Mac mini M1 and I occasionally also use it with my Intel MBP(2019 Model) all connected through a single USB-C cable.
 
No real issues with my ultrawide (in my sig) at 3440x1440 on my M1 MBA up to 120Hz refresh rate.

I will note, however, that over HDMI, this monitor only communicates that it runs at 50Hz, which makes for some slightly jerky motion. Odd behavior, but it does that to both my PC and my Mac -- only offers itself at 3440x1440 @ 50Hz. So it's not my MBA acting funny. I can, however, use a custom resolution (Nvidia control panel on Windows, SwitchRez on Mac) to force 3440x1440 @ 60Hz, which works just perfectly over HDMI. Monitor's on-screen display confirms 60Hz. Not sure why it does this, but seems to be something odd with the monitor. Same result with multiple different HDMI cables.

Runs on both my Mac and PC at up to 120Hz (monitor's highest refresh) over DisplayPort without having to fiddle with SwitchRez or the Nvidia control panel.

This monitor isn't USB-C, but it's currently running through a Thunderbolt dock, so still a single-cable connection to my MBA.

As noted above, you can tell it's not a "retina" display, though. So unless you've got your heart set on an ultrawide, I might recommend a 4K display instead.
 
Anyone with an LG 35WN75C-B or Dell P3421W? i’m leaning towards the former and would like to know if the issues with ultrawides have been resolved? The posts online and in youtube are confusing. Some have reported issues and some have had none. Thanks
 
lightwave3 said:
Anyone with an LG 35WN75C-B or Dell P3421W? i’m leaning towards the former and would like to know if the issues with ultrawides have been resolved? The posts online and in youtube are confusing. Some have reported issues and some have had none. Thanks
Click to expand...
Hi There, I have the P3821W.

I bought a MacBook Air and the screen in March and they have worked very well so far. The only issue I have had is that VERY rarely (less than once a week when using for 40 hours a week) is that the screen goes black for 1 second then comes back. I can't even diagnose it (e.g. dodgy cable) because it is so rare and fixes itself.

But other than that the monitor works with the Mac flawlessly.
 
Djerome said:
Hi There, I have the P3821W.

I bought a MacBook Air and the screen in March and they have worked very well so far. The only issue I have had is that VERY rarely (less than once a week when using for 40 hours a week) is that the screen goes black for 1 second then comes back. I can't even diagnose it (e.g. dodgy cable) because it is so rare and fixes itself.

But other than that the monitor works with the Mac flawlessly.
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Looks like Dell has a change of mind policy in my country. Might just go for Dell then. Thanks for the input.
 
cmhsam said:
I use the DELL 3818w and have no issues with it and the MBA.
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Same here. Its working great. The audio is not the greatest, but I hooked some older Bose to it. It switches nicely between the USB-C for my M1 and DP for my cMP.
I use MonitorControl 3.0b5 on my M1 to manage the brightness/contrast and SoundSource for audio.
 
So at the moment, is there a reasonably-priced ultra wide which offers a retina-like resolution?

My main machine is using an LG 27" UHD screen which is really good, but is just too cramped for my workflow. I don't want to get a second monitor, can't justify the Pro XDR, so am looking for something in the 35-28" category.
 
ascender said:
So at the moment, is there a reasonably-priced ultra wide which offers a retina-like resolution?

My main machine is using an LG 27" UHD screen which is really good, but is just too cramped for my workflow. I don't want to get a second monitor, can't justify the Pro XDR, so am looking for something in the 35-28" category.
Click to expand...
There’s a pretty limited number of retina (or retina-adjacent) ultrawides.

And what do you consider “reasonably priced”?
 
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Yeah, there's almost nothing available at Retina level even with normal widescreen - ultrawide is even worse.
I would LOVE an ultrawide that was actually similar to two 27" displays next to each other, instead of two ten year old 27" displays next to each other...
 
tofagerl said:
I would LOVE an ultrawide that was actually similar to two 27" displays next to each other, instead of two ten year old 27" displays next to each other...
Click to expand...
There's some 49" 5120×1440 ultrawides which are exactly that - at the same decidedly "non-retina" 110 ppi... Ugh.
 
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