Budget 21-30k 4K Monitor

N

Nalin

Skilled
I am looking for suggestions for a good 4k monitor, currently looking at 2 options from LG :-

  • LG 24UD58
  • LG 27UL650

Both of these have IPS panel, 24 inch one has a good PPI but is quite old as it was launched 2-3 years back. 27 inch one is latest model that was launched few months back, but it is quite big imho and has poor PPI in comparison to the former. Both of them are available on Amazon.
 
I am using the 27UL650 currently with my 3070. I find the display very responsive and immersive. I don't play fps games but the different picture settings are a good to have. The viewing angles are great for an IPS panel. I recommend this monitor over any 4k monitor in this range. If you don't have a budget constraint, there is a 144hz panel but it is twice the cost of this.
 
sudzman said:
I am using the 27UL650 currently with my 3070. I find the display very responsive and immersive. I don't play fps games but the different picture settings are a good to have. The viewing angles are great for an IPS panel. I recommend this monitor over any 4k monitor in this range. If you don't have a budget constraint, there is a 144hz panel but it is twice the cost of this.
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Actually I don't need 144hz panel since my main usage is not gaming, do you find 27 inch too big?

I am going to connect this monitor to MAC, after scaling it will default to 1080p so everything will look twice as big when compared to unscaled 4k native resolution. 27 inch will make text and icons too big from what I have understood.
 
Actually, I find 27" ideal for my setup. I have a 2 monitor setup. The 2nd monitor is a 24" one. I plan to have a 3rd monitor with an arm which will be another 27" one but thats just me.

I don't own a Mac to confirm if it will upscale or downscale. Maybe check a few reviews online.

Cheers and happy shopping!!!
 
To understand scaling just imagine 1080p on 27 inch screen. If you are not using scaling on Windows then change it to 200%, this is what most users choose to make everything look legible otherwise everything will look way too small.
 
@Nalin - my wife has the lg 27ul650 connected to a mb pro 2015 @ 4k60 used for work no gaming. It did not impress me at first because of scaling (everything looks like 1080p) but then I put another win 10 1080p max laptop to it I could see a difference. The screen is noticably sharper with the mb pro but it still does not look 4k. In hindsight I could have gotten a 24 inch 1080p screen and it would have been sharper because of ppi and no scaling. She just wanted a large screen so is happy. For me size comes with resolution bump but 4k native at 27inch is just not usable as per my experience maybe 27 inch 2k or 32 inch 4k screen would be better. I have no plans to buy another screen soon to test. Hope this helps.
 
MrB said:
@Nalin - my wife has the lg 27ul650 connected to a mb pro 2015 @ 4k60 used for work no gaming. It did not impress me at first because of scaling (everything looks like 1080p) but then I put another win 10 1080p max laptop to it I could see a difference. The screen is noticably sharper with the mb pro but it still does not look 4k. In hindsight I could have gotten a 24 inch 1080p screen and it would have been sharper because of ppi and no scaling. She just wanted a large screen so is happy. For me size comes with resolution bump but 4k native at 27inch is just not usable as per my experience maybe 27 inch 2k or 32 inch 4k screen would be better. I have no plans to buy another screen soon to test. Hope this helps.
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1080p monitors look horrible on macOS since a few years. due to absence of sub-pixel AA. and their version of font smoothening. i wish i knew this beforehand.
 
MrB said:
@Nalin - my wife has the lg 27ul650 connected to a mb pro 2015 @ 4k60 used for work no gaming. It did not impress me at first because of scaling (everything looks like 1080p) but then I put another win 10 1080p max laptop to it I could see a difference. The screen is noticably sharper with the mb pro but it still does not look 4k. In hindsight I could have gotten a 24 inch 1080p screen and it would have been sharper because of ppi and no scaling. She just wanted a large screen so is happy. For me size comes with resolution bump but 4k native at 27inch is just not usable as per my experience maybe 27 inch 2k or 32 inch 4k screen would be better. I have no plans to buy another screen soon to test. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
I can't understand what you are trying to say?

MacOS handles scaling brilliantly, to avoid text looking too small it defaults to these two settings :-
  • 4k native -1080p after scaling
  • 5k native - 1440p after scaling
Only 24 inch 4k monitor available here in India is LG 24UD58 and hence I am thinking of going with it for my upcoming MBA. It's the closest you can get as far as Retina is concerned. MBA has 227 PPI and UD58 has 184 PPI and apart from the 5K Ultra Fine (218 PPI) that costs 1 Lakh this is the next best thing as far as PPI is concerned. LG 27UL650 has 163 PPI and 4K resolution that after scaling will look like 1080p on 27 inches, this will make text look too big and blurry.
 
What I meant was with scaling it looks big but not blurry and without scaling its just too small.

@Muathez - I didn't know that. I am a windows user.
 
MrB said:
@Nalin - my wife has the lg 27ul650 connected to a mb pro 2015 @ 4k60 used for work no gaming. It did not impress me at first because of scaling (everything looks like 1080p) but then I put another win 10 1080p max laptop to it I could see a difference. The screen is noticably sharper with the mb pro but it still does not look 4k. In hindsight I could have gotten a 24 inch 1080p screen and it would have been sharper because of ppi and no scaling. She just wanted a large screen so is happy. For me size comes with resolution bump but 4k native at 27inch is just not usable as per my experience maybe 27 inch 2k or 32 inch 4k screen would be better. I have no plans to buy another screen soon to test. Hope this helps.
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If you don’t like the 4k hiDPI scaling to look like 1080p, you can press the option key on the display preferences to view other available options - including non scaled 4K (which is practically unusable)

I use 4K scaled to 2560x1440 on a 24" 4k - which I find a good balance between size and crispness
 
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superczar said:
Its a Samsung U24E590
I have used it with a USB-C -> HDMI cable
Currently using it with a Apple Multiport adapter -> HDMI cable

Works fine with both
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Do you think it's worth it to invest in costly Apple Multiport adapter or those Thunderbolt 3 to HDMI/Display port cables can do the job?

I am going to connect LG 24" UD58 to MBA M1. The problem with this particular model is that it doesn't have built-in USB-C like 27" UL850.
 
Nalin said:
Do you think it's worth it to invest in costly Apple Multiport adapter or those Thunderbolt 3 to HDMI/Display port cables can do the job?

I am going to connect LG 24" UD58 to MBA M1. The problem with this particular model is that it doesn't have built-in USB-C like 27" UL850.
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Thunderbolt 3 docks will be far more expensive than the Apple one
The cheap ones on amazon are USB-C docks and not TB - and practically all of them will max out at 4K30 on a single external monitor

If you want to do it for cheap , use a 4k60 USB-C to HDMI cable
Note the 4K60 specifically as many cables on amazon etc are 4K30
 
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superczar said:
Thunderbolt 3 docks will be far more expensive than the Apple one
The cheap ones on amazon are USB-C docks and not TB - and practically all of them will max out at 4K30 on a single external monitor

If you want to do it for cheap , use a 4k60 USB-C to HDMI cable
Note the 4K60 specifically as many cables on amazon etc are 4K30
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So all those USB-C to HDMI/Display Port cables available on Amazon can't do 4K60?

In that case I think it's worth it to spend extra on Apple Multiport adapter as it can charge and do 4K60 simultaneously with a single port.
The other port on MBA M1 will remain free.
 
Nalin said:
So all those USB-C to HDMI/Display Port cables available on Amazon can't do 4K60?

In that case I think it's worth it to spend extra on Apple Multiport adapter as it can charge and do 4K60 simultaneously with a single port.
The other port on MBA M1 will remain free.
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Not all - there are some (and not too expensive) that do 4k60

However the AMA is still recommended - it seems to be working absolutely fine for me with charging + monitor + gigabit ethernet, external cam, external mic and a headset on a single port
And leaving 1 port free for a USB HDD (Samsung T7) when needed

If you use a C to HDMI cable, that will block a full port.
Not to mention that single cable docking is convenient and far more usable than hooking multiple cables each time

Also, there have been reports of cheap/no-name dongles killing laptops (Asus G14, new MBA) if used for PD charging - As with all things reddit, it is a bit hard to verify but better to avoid anyway
 
I now wonder if spending 25K on a 2 year old LG 24" UD58 and another 7K on AMA with total near 32K is worth it or not especially when the latest 27" UL850 is available at 40K on Amazon with USB-C 60W charging support and comes with speakers as well. Only con is lower PPI and I don't know if 1080p scaled resolution will look good on 27" or not..
 
Nalin said:
I now wonder if spending 25K on a 2 year old LG 24" UD58 and another 7K on AMA with total near 32K is worth it or not especially when the latest 27" UL850 is available at 40K on Amazon with USB-C 60W charging support and comes with speakers as well. Only con is lower PPI and I don't know if 1080p scaled resolution will look good on 27" or not..
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I use 2560X1440 HiDPI on 24"
Why do you have to stick to 1080p?
 
superczar said:
I use 2560X1440 HiDPI on 24"
Why do you have to stick to 1080p?
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No I meant post scaling 1080p on 27" UL850 vs 1080p 24" UD58. Both are 4K native only. But I read somewhere that if we change default post scaled 1080p to some other resolution it will decrease the performance of the system, 1440p on 4K is possible or not?

LG 27" UL850 has built-in USB-C port, I don't think any 24" have that port iirc.
 
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