External Monitor Recommendation (for online artwork).

[redbrick05]

Hello friends, 

I am looking to purchase an external monitor to use with my 2009 MacBook Pro. I have been using Photoshop on the laptop for 5-6 years now but due to my worsening eyesight, the laptop screen is a bit too small for me now.

 

My main use for the monitor will be online artwork creation (mainly Space Paintings/related artwork to be displayed on sites like DeviantArt, personal website, etc). As a result, I would prefer a monitor with good color depth and accuracy. Now I know professional grade monitors cost a lot but since my artwork will only be displayed online and not printed/published, I don't really need an overly expensive monitor. I can only spend about $250...at the most I'm willing to stretch it to around $280-300. What are some good monitors in that price range - color wise for creating online artwork?

 

My reasoning for keeping the budget around $250 is twofold. First, I don't have a lot to spend.

Secondly, since I have a mid 2009 MacBook Pro, I will probably have to replace it in another 3-4 years time. During the same time, I can then spend $400-500 to get a better display instead of spending more now and having to buy again (with technology moving so rapidly these days) when I get new hardware. Does this make sense? Are there any other options that I am overlooking? 

 

I'm not sure which monitors the laptop will be able to drive so I'm listing the graphics specs from my MacBook Pro below. 

2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3

  Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M

  Type: GPU

  Bus: PCI

  VRAM (Total): 256 MB

  Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)

  Device ID: 0x0863

  Revision ID: 0x00b1

  ROM Revision: 3448

  gMux Version: 1.8.8

  Displays:

Color LCD:

  Resolution: 1440 x 900

  Pixel Depth: 32-Bit Color (ARGB8888)

  Main Display: Yes

  Mirror: Off

  Online: Yes

  Built-In: Yes

Display Connector:

  Status: No Display Connected

 

I would appreciate any advice/help in steering me in the right direction. If possible, can you include an explanation with your recommendations as to why said displays would be good for my needs (so I can understand my purchase better since I am not an expert in monitor tech)

Thank you. 

[ZetZet]

u2414h

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

I don't have a mac myself, so knowing what display connectors you have would be helpful. do you have mini displayport/thunderbolt, mini DVI, or HDMI?

 

welcome to the forum!

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

Hello friends, 

I am looking to purchase an external monitor to use with my 2009 MacBook Pro. I have been using Photoshop on the laptop for 5-6 years now but due to my worsening eyesight, the laptop screen is a bit too small for me now.

 

My main use for the monitor will be online artwork creation (mainly Space Paintings/related artwork to be displayed on sites like DeviantArt, personal website, etc). As a result, I would prefer a monitor with good color depth and accuracy. Now I know professional grade monitors cost a lot but since my artwork will only be displayed online and not printed/published, I don't really need an overly expensive monitor. I can only spend about $250...at the most I'm willing to stretch it to around $280-300. What are some good monitors in that price range - color wise for creating online artwork?

 

My reasoning for keeping the budget around $250 is twofold. First, I don't have a lot to spend.

Secondly, since I have a mid 2009 MacBook Pro, I will probably have to replace it in another 3-4 years time. During the same time, I can then spend $400-500 to get a better display instead of spending more now and having to buy again (with technology moving so rapidly these days) when I get new hardware. Does this make sense? Are there any other options that I am overlooking? 

 

I'm not sure which monitors the laptop will be able to drive so I'm listing the graphics specs from my MacBook Pro below. 

2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3

  Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M

  Type: GPU

  Bus: PCI

  VRAM (Total): 256 MB

  Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)

  Device ID: 0x0863

  Revision ID: 0x00b1

  ROM Revision: 3448

  gMux Version: 1.8.8

  Displays:

Color LCD:

  Resolution: 1440 x 900

  Pixel Depth: 32-Bit Color (ARGB8888)

  Main Display: Yes

  Mirror: Off

  Online: Yes

  Built-In: Yes

Display Connector:

  Status: No Display Connected

 

I would appreciate any advice/help in steering me in the right direction. If possible, can you include an explanation with your recommendations as to why said displays would be good for my needs (so I can understand my purchase better since I am not an expert in monitor tech)

Thank you. 

I did some personal research. your laptop should have a MiniDisplayport on it. I am assuming US for pricing

if you had more money, I would recommend the PB278Q for it's larger size and much higher resolution at 2560*1440. it's very similar to the apple cinema displays and has the same resolution as the previous 27 inch imacs before the 5k upgrade, but I'll stick to your budget.

as ZetZet recommended, the  dell U2414h would be a great option as it has minidisplayport and displayport on it and is a calibrated 1080p monitor available here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824260174

my last recommendation is the Asus PA238QR. also 1080p and also has displayport input as well as various others. factory calibrated. a tiny bit smaller and lacks an included displayport to minidisplayport cable you will need, but adds markings on the bezel that function as a ruler as well as overlays of various sizes and patterns that can be turned on. this one is a bit cheaper as well: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236424&cm_re=PA238QR-_-24-236-424-_-Product

[redbrick05]

I have attached a picture of the ports I have on my laptop. I'm not too worried about the external display having every port imaginable as I can always get different adapters to make it work. 

 

 

Is there any advantage to having a 16:10 monitor over a 16:9? And will my laptop scale correctly/use all the available monitor space if I get a 16:10 display?

Is the color on the Dell 2414 good..are they very apparent ghosting/light leak/tint differences on it or anything else that would hamper creating artwork on it?

 

 

 

I did some personal research. your laptop should have a MiniDisplayport on it. I am assuming US for pricing

if you had more money, I would recommend the PB278Q for it's larger size and much higher resolution at 2560*1440. it's very similar to the apple cinema displays and has the same resolution as the previous 27 inch imacs before the 5k upgrade, but I'll stick to your budget.

as ZetZet recommended, the  dell U2414h would be a great option as it has minidisplayport and displayport on it and is a calibrated 1080p monitor available here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824260174

my last recommendation is the Asus PA238QR. also 1080p and also has displayport input as well as various others. factory calibrated. a tiny bit smaller and lacks an included displayport to minidisplayport cable you will need, but adds markings on the bezel that function as a ruler as well as overlays of various sizes and patterns that can be turned on. this one is a bit cheaper as well: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236424&cm_re=PA238QR-_-24-236-424-_-Product

I would love to get the PB278Q but it is out of my budget. It looks lovely though. 

Are there any major differences when it comes to color between the Asus P238QR and Dell 2414H?

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

I have attached a picture of the ports I have on my laptop. I'm not too worried about the external display having every port imaginable as I can always get different adapters to make it work. 

 

 

Is there any advantage to having a 16:10 monitor over a 16:9? And will my laptop scale correctly/use all the available monitor space if I get a 16:10 display?

Is the color on the Dell 2414 good..are they very apparent ghosting/light leak/tint differences on it or anything else that would hamper creating artwork on it?

 

 

 

I would love to get the PB278Q but it is out of my budget. It looks lovely though. 

Are there any major differences when it comes to color between the Asus P238QR and Dell 2414H?

your laptop should use 16x10 without any trouble at all advantage is a little bit of height, a personal preference really, not a preference of mine. both of those displays are pre calibrated and I don't expect any significant light bleed. a little backlight bleed at the corners is a side effect of IPS tech, but both are IPS which is the best panel technology for color sensitive work.

they should be pretty similar when it comes to color as they are both IPS with 1000:1 static contrast ratios and are both calibrated. I would expect the PA238QR to have better color as it has a 100% sRGB coverage where the U2414h only has 96% sRGB coverage the U2414h has an average delta E(some sort of color accuracy metric) of above 4 where the PA238QR is guaranteed to be below 5 the PA is an 8 bit panel with a 10 bit look up table the U2414h is a 8 bit panel but I don't know if it is 8 or 10 bit LUT

the PA series stands for ProArt, which pretty much describes your use for it, so that is what I would recommend

as an added note, all three of these monitors include fantastic stands, which is a nice touch IMO

[redbrick05]

your laptop should use 16x10 without any trouble at all advantage is a little bit of height, a personal preference really, not a preference of mine. both of those displays are pre calibrated and I don't expect any significant light bleed. a little backlight bleed at the corners is a side effect of IPS tech, but both are IPS which is the best panel technology for color sensitive work.

they should be pretty similar when it comes to color as they are both IPS with 1000:1 static contrast ratios and are both calibrated. I would expect the PA238QR to have better color as it has a 100% sRGB coverage where the U2414h only has 96% sRGB coverage the U2414h has an average delta E(some sort of color accuracy metric) of above 4 where the PA238QR is guaranteed to be below 5 the PA is an 8 bit panel with a 10 bit look up table the U2414h is a 8 bit panel but I don't know if it is 8 or 10 bit LUT

the PA series stands for ProArt, which pretty much describes your use for it, so that is what I would recommend

as an added note, all three of these monitors include fantastic stands, which is a nice touch IMO

 

Thank you for the explanations so far Pjtruslow and everyone else. I'm leaning towards the U2415 (something about the Acer's ruler on the display itself is off-putting to me). 

 

I hope I'm not being too much of a bother but I have a few more questions. 

Where can I find if these monitors have PWM dimming? I will be spending a lot of time looking at the screen so I would like to know if these will be easy on my eyes.

 

Also, would it be wise to wait for the Dell U2515 instead of the U2415, apart from size? What would be the advantages?

[redbrick05]

So far my top 3 choices are 

Dell U2415 

Dell U2515 (this one is really tempting but I'm not sure if that extra $ is worth it) - will my MBP be able to drive 1440p? Also what is the difference between 1080p and 1440p?

Asus PA248Q