New 27-inch display

I currently use a 27-inch LG 27ea83 as an external monitor. It is an IPS display with a 2560x1440 resolution which I bought back in 2014. It is basically this one here: http://www.lg.com/hk_en/monitor/lg-27EA83.

Now I am thinking of upgrading my monitor to a retina resolution. I intend to use the new monitor with a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar (late 2016 model) and a Dell XPS 15 9550.

The tricky point is that, here in Brazil, where I live, high-resolution monitors are very rare; it is hard to find anything with a resolution superior to 1920x1080. I can only find these at Dell's website.

I am thinking of the two following options:

• Dell P2715Q
• Dell U2718Q

They are both nearly the same price, and the configurations are very similar. They are both 27", IPS, with a 3840x2160 resolution, and brightness of 350 cd/m2. The U2718Q seems to have a little bit better contrast. However, I could not find any comparison between these two models, and, as I have to order it online, I cannot just look at them both to check them out.

There is also the S2817Q model, slightly cheaper, but it has a TN panel, so I think it should be inferior. There are other cheap alternatives as well, but all of then have TN panels. Do I have any reason to consider them?

There are superior IPS models, of course, but much more expensive, such as the UP3218K, which is a 31.5" with a 7680x4320 resolution, but it costs 6x as much.

Are these two monitors (P2715Q and U2718Q) better than the current one that I have? Which of them is the better one? Is it worth the upgrade?

Thanks.

 

Retina resolution on your Macbook is about the same as your monitor, only the iMac goes higher at 4k or even 5k. I think 1440p is plenty and not necessary to upgrade to 4k at the moment, unless you really need to, such as for photo editing and such. If it was for gaming, which is not likely the case because of the notebooks you mentioned, then yes a higher refresh rate monitor is a nice upgrade, like a 144Hz at 1440p and a small response time, like 5ms response time or less.

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My advice... Don't bother with 4K resolution displays. They aren't going to give you a huge jump towards a better display experiencr over what you have. Don't get me wrong... There *is* a difference. But the jump from 1440p --> 4k resolution is relatively minor. It isn't going to be anywhere near the huge jump in image quality you get from going 1080p --> 1440p.

If you want a jump in image quality and general computing user experience, look for an ultrawide monitor... 34" monitor @ 3440x1440 resolution (21:9 aspect ratio). If you do research on these kinds of monitors, you'll find that most reviewers praise the ultrawide 21:9 aspect ratio absolutely superb for productivity use, and great for immersion in games. These montiors are going to give you a far superior experience that simply another 16:9 monitor that has slightly better pixel desntiy.

 

For 27" and IPS, I would look at the XB271HU/PG279Q or the freesync variang XG270HU/MG279Q

 

Problem is, here in Brazil, the options are very limited. Just checked, the Acer monitor is available here, very expensive as usual US$1250...ouch. I don't think gaming is a priority for the OP though.

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And that's why there's corruption, and drug business is king

 

Thanks for the advice. There is a 3440x1440 Dell monitor available here, and it is almost twice the price of the 4k displays. It is wider but has the same pixel density of the 27" 2560x1440 monitor (109 ppi). Why is there a jump in image quality?

The 27" 3840x2160 options at least provide a higher pixel density (163 ppi).

As for the difference, I can clearly see how much better the iMac with retina display looks in comparison to my current display. A 4k display is still not that good but should provide a better experience.

 

No, gaming is definitely not a priority.

 

Thanks.

Those models seem to have a 2560x1440 resolution. I already have a 27" monitor with a 2560x1440 resolution.

Now, I want to upgrade to a higher resolution. And the only IPS models which I found for sale in Brazil matching these specifications are the ones sold by Dell.

Of course there are lots of other models available in the US. But they are not for sale in Brazil. I can get them imported, but they will likely be stuck in the customs office for as much time as the authorities may feel like, and I will have to pay taxes which, in the aggregate, amount to more than 100% of the price of the monitor.

So, unless there is a very good reason to choose something else, I am sticking with one of the models which are sold here.

 

Well if you do opt to import to Brazil, you can buy through Amazon and they charge the taxes before hand, and the product sales through custom no problem and very quickly, since the taxes are prepaid.

 

@woodzstack can you import to brazil without tax?

 

I could not find a single display at Amazon that was available for shipping to Brazil (even though other products may be available for shipping).

B&H Photo Video ships to Brazil, but costs are prohibitive. For instance, the Dell P2715Q costs USD502, but the final cost after shipping, tax and custom duties are included, is USD1,485.32. The LG 4K display costs USD391, but the final cost is USD1,243.13. And I will still have to pay an additional 6% over all these amounts for the currency exchange tax. It is more expensive than the Dell models available here in Brazil, which are about USD850 (and which have local warranty).

So, I am sticking with the Dell models available in the local market unless there is a real good reason to import something else. Any ideas?

 

No.

Well, maybe you can buy in a foreign store without paying the taxes in advance. But then I will receive a letter from the customs office saying that I will have to pay the taxes so the product can be cleared. And as you can see the taxes are really high. And there is no way around it.

 

That's going to be your best bet. It's not as if Dell makes lousy monitors, far from it. They're some of the best you can buy.

 

Ask him first, he can import to a number of countries without tax so it's worth checking.

 

Any import of product without payment of tax in Brazil is considered smuggling. It is just not possible to bring in products without paying taxes, at least not in a legal manner.

And in any case, I am not so sure it would be worth it. Monitors are not that expensive in Brazil as laptops are. The Dell U2718Q, for instance, costs USD645 at Amazon. That's before any shipping costs, or any other premium or tax (and, as displays are heavy, shipping does not tend to be cheap). In Brazil, this particular model costs about USD800-850. And for this price you get 3-year local warranty, and a zero dead pixel guarantee.

 

Thanks for the advice. Which model do you recommend, among those I mentioned?

 

I moved to a Lenovo P27 4K 27 inch display after my cat destroyed my Dell U2711 2560x1440 monitor (the glass cracked after an acrobatic maneuver by said cat who jumped onto the monitor). In my humble view, there is no point to a 4k display at this size. You will have to upscale everything to be able to see anything, and you will end up back at an equivalent 2560x1440p screen because of the upscaling. 4k really comes into its own at 40 inch screen sizes. A 32 inch screen should be used at a minimum imo. Mind you, the 4k videos on YouTube look spectacular on a 27 inch 4k monitor, but that is a pretty limited use-case for a display.

I would go with an ultra-wide monitor if you want a screen upgrade. If you want 4k go with either a 4k 43 inch TV or monitor. There are many threads on this on the hardforum.com. Visio and Samsung are popular brands for 4K monitors for computers (basically LCD TVs used as monitors). The prices are in the $500 to $700 range. There is also the 'Wasabi' Korean brand sold on eBay that is a 43 inch 4k monitor for a good price that people are really happy with. Good hunting.

 

I find my self agreeing. I upgraded to a 27" 2560x1440 and haven't felt any need to go higher res. If I got a bigger screen down the road I'd probably go higher res, but that's a ways off if it happens.

 

Do you really see a problem in scaling? I have no problem with scaling. In fact, I use a Dell XPS 15 which has a 15.6-inch display with a 3840x2160 resolution. And a MacBook Pro with a 13.3-inch display and a 2560x1600 resolution on Boot Camp. Both run Windows at a scaled resolution. To be honest, all my devices I had since 2013 are "retina" and all of them use some degree of scaling. I have no issues with that. I prefer having to scale to having a low-resolution display or being able to see individual pixels. The 2560x1440 resolution monitor is not bad, but it simply pales in comparison to, say, the 27-inch iMac with retina display. Each to his own, I guess.

 

The 2560x1440 resolution is not bad, but I want to have a higher resolution display. I don't really need more real screen estate (although that could be nice), but I want a higher resolution to work with (even if it means scaling).

 

27" is in a grey area for me, where I know the pixel density is enough at my current resolution but probably wouldn't say no to higher if my display died and there was something with high refresh and high resolution available for a replacement. But your priority might be content creation which will benefit from the higher resolution whereas mine is not.

 

Actually, it depends on what you understand as content creation. I do not edit photos or videos. I use the laptop to browse the Internet, read PDFs and use Office applications. However, as I do these activities intensively, I want to have the best possible experience.

I do not really need a 3840x2160 monitor. I do not even need my current 27-inch. Nearly all people who use a computer the way I do use crappy laptops and sometimes a cheap TN external display.

But the fact is that I want to have this premium experience, even if people may think it is not necessary. If I am going to spend hours each day in front of my computer (more than, say, inside my car), I want the experience to be as good as it can get.

And my external display, which is a 27-inch, has a lower resolution than my 15.6-inch Dell, my 13.3-inch MacBook Pro and even my 9.7-inch iPad. And the individual pixels are really starting to annoy me.

 

If you're just wanting a premium experience, why stop there? Get a UP3218K and you'll be set.

 

I'd love to, but it costs some USD5,000, and I am not even sure my laptops will be able to drive such resolution...

 

Displayport 1.4 or better should carry the signal but likely you'll be limited in FPS, which may or may not be a problem for a non-gamer.

 

I understand your reasoning: it's quite okay to want a better experience.

No, I don't have any problems with scaling and text is sharper on the 4K monitor compared to the 2K monitor, so that will help with your pdf reading. The BenQ 27 inch 4K monitor gets good reviews, and Dell always makes reliable, good monitors. If Dell is easily available in Brazil then that would be a good choice. Just check the reviews about image retention as some of the 4K monitors suffer from that.

 

Thanks.

In fact, BenQ models are not available here. I think only Dell sells IPS 4K monitors (and it takes around a month for them to be delivered, as Dell seems to import it itself).

The only other 4K models available here are TN, and marketed as "gamers" (and are a biy cheaper and have decent delivery estimates).

Now, between the P2715Q and the U2718Q, which are the only 4K IPS around, which should I choose? Should I assume the U2718Q is better as it is a newer model?

 

Dell models with a "U" in them are part of their UltraSharp line and are the more premium product. Get the U2718Q if it's within your budget.

 

The panels themselves perform similarly, what the U really has going for it is it's got DP1.4 instead of 1.2 and HDMI 2.0 instead of 1.4