Apple Cinema Display Alternatives

cotton31

cotton31

cotton31

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Joined
25 Feb 2007
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Hi,

I'm looking for alternatives to a 27" ACD - I'm looking to get a MacBook and my other half has a Windows laptop, so we'd like to be able to connect both.

I believe that this isn't possible on the current ACD without a Thunderbolt compatible Windows machine - if I'm wrong please let me know! :D

So I suppose I'm looking for something with a decent screen, looks nice, potentially with builtin ports, and obviously Mac & Windows friendly!

I like how the ACD has one cable for power & video to the laptop...

Any recommendations?

Thanks!
 
dell 27" (2713) ultrasharp. much better than the thunderbolt displays. you will need 1 cable for displayport and 1 for USB, but I'm not aware of anyone other than Apple that offers an all-in-one cable.

you may also need to do this fix for the 2713 to display properly on a mac though - http://embdev.net/topic/284710
 
Looks like it could fit the bill - just doing a bit of searching...is the 2715 a newer version? I'm not too sure how Dell model numbers work!

Thanks,
 
I have the 34" LG curved monitor and it has a Thunderbolt display and runs off my rMBP fine, but it's used mainly as a Windows monitor for gaming. If you do any photo processing I'd recommend sticking to a flat screen.

Does your missus use the Macbook in clamshell mode when connecting to an external display? If so, consider how many USB ports she has on the Mac, as I only have two, one for keyboard, one for mouse, which doesn't leave any room for USB sticks. Thunderbolt allows you to put in USB devices into the monitor with it acting as a hub, sorry if you already know this! Also, the HDMI output for me is terrible compared to Thunderbolt.

The LG screens are lovely, however some do have backlight bleed issues, something which the Dell screens seem to be better at. I understand that LG are replacing screens with issues though, so bear it in mind.

I also have the U2713H and it has no thunderbolt, doubt the HM does.
 
Doesn't your U2713H have DisplayPort though?

USB ports aren't really a consideration as I have bluetooth keyboard & mouse...

Thanks for your advice :D
 
No, there is more backlight bleed on the LG and the stand isn't as good.

D0S9cA5.jpg


However the curve and ultra wide of the LG are superior when gaming, and tbh I don't notice the bleed that much.

Depends on your needs I guess.

Gaming and movies, get a curved ultra wide monitor.
Professional desktop use get a flat 16:9 panel.
 
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