Latest news with #BenQPD2730S
Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
BenQ PD2730S review: For creatives using Mac, this 5K monitor ticks a checklist
A year ago, BenQ's PD3225U display set a really high bar for creator focused monitors, specifically for those using an Apple Mac Studio, a Mac mini or a MacBook Pro, for instance. A year later, it is the turn of the BenQ PD2730S to provide an alternative choice to gold standard that is the Apple Studio Display. This time around too, the demographic BenQ hopes to line up with their wads of cash, are the creative professionals. In terms of a price comparison, the PD2730S is priced at ₹1,02,500 while the Studio Display is priced ₹1,59,900. There are reasons to prefer each, and this is that sort of workflow, where personal preferences will eventually outweigh core specs. Speaking of which, these would generally revolve around how a user perceives clarity, colour reproduction, colour precision followed by the secondary layer of good-to-haves such as viewing angles, panel illumination levels and a matte coating, if at all. Apple charges extra for that option, BenQ has the nano-matte coating to reduce reflections available as standard with the PD2730S IPS monitor which has a 5K resolution (that's a good 218 pixels per inch on this 27-inch panel). The game to find value is clear, and that's only good news for a consumer who is spending top money for these optimised screens. One could arguably complain that BenQ could have done more to give the PD2730S a more upmarket look. Visually, the thick plastic chin and the plastic back don't really fit well on a premium display. It is a for-purpose design, and while there's nothing wrong with it, a premium touch was perhaps essential. No shortage of connectivity ports though, including HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, and Thunderbolt 4 with DisplayPort Alternate Mode as well as 90-watt power delivery. There can perhaps be an argument for a dedicated display port option, but for most workflows, this array should suffice. The software suite was the PD322U's strong suit, and that continues with the BenQ PD2730S. It can get a bit confusing for the uninitiated, but once everything is in place, this IPS display can really shine through. There is the Palette Master Ultimate software, essentially a calibrator if you have an external device such as a Datacolour Spyder, or the alternate being Display ColorTalk for similar controls. The BenQ PD2730S has Pantone and Pantone Skin Validation certifications, which lends credence to the sort of accuracy that creative workflows would require. Perhaps not what you and I may need for Zoom calls, but editing requires everything to be as realistic as possible. You can also download the BenQ Display Pilot 2 for finer display controls, such as desktop partitioning, daisy chain more than one monitor and configuring the Wireless Hotkey Puck. Compared to some previous displays, the wireless puck is rather fun to use — and a quick way to change settings, though for most use cases, once may be more than enough. The only real weak-link in the BenQ PD2730S proposition would be the middling 3-watt speakers. That's in stark contrast to Apple's speaker implementation in the Studio Display. These speakers, specifically, struggle to be too loud, have no sense of lower frequencies (due to the lack of any subwoofer) and barely enough to listen to a podcast as you get on with your work. An external speaker will be the need of the hour. The BenQ PD2730S is meant for creative workflows, and image quality, colour accuracy and viewing needed to be top notch. And it is, with the layer to reduce reflections, really adding value. One school of thought could point to a limiting 400 nits of brightness, which may be a tad on the lower side for certain video editing, but that may be a fraction of the collective time you spend with this display. Contrast, colours and viewing angles are a troika of strong points for the PD2730S, though you may feel an OLED panel could have given this monitor greater powers still. It is more cross platform too, than Apple's display, if you have a Windows machine to connect this with.
Forbes
11-04-2025
- Forbes
The Best MacBook Pro Monitors To Get The Display Your Mac Deserves
Of course, the MacBook Pro's Retina Display is built for accurate and vivid colors. But sometimes, the 14- or 16-inch display is simply not be enough 'screen estate' to display all your work. The best monitors for MacBook Pro seamlessly transform your laptop into a larger display, giving you plenty of work space while showcasing life-like colors in video editing software like Final Cut Pro. After extensive research and testing, we named the BenQ PD2730S 32-Inch 5K Monitor as the best monitor for MacBook Pro overall for its stunning color accuracy, as well as its brightness to help you work in any environment with ease. The best monitors for MacBook Pro feature stunning color accuracy and plenty of connectivity ports ... More to make working easier. But there are other monitors that are worth your consideration as well. If you want to keep the cost under four figures, the Dell UltraSharp 27 U2725QE Monitor brings a 120Hz refresh rate and a wide selection of ports for connecting all your gear. Others, like the Apple Studio Display, are built for casual users. Here are the best monitors for MacBook Pro. Amazon Screen: 31.5-inch Mini LED | Resolution: 5,120 x 2,880 | Brightness: 400 nits | HDR: HDR10 | Native contrast: 2,000:1 | Refresh rate: 60Hz | Response times: 5ms | Color gamut: 100% sRGB, 99% DCI-P3, 98% Display P3, Delta E ≦ 2 | Connectivity: 1 x HDMI, 1 x DisplayPort, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 upstream, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 downstream, 2 x USB-C, 1 x USB-B, 3 x USB-A, 1 headphone jack Pros: Cons: The monitor for your MacBook Pro should offer a slew of connectivity ports, showcase vivid and extremely accurate color and deliver enough power to charge your device while it's docked. The BenQ PD2730S 27-Inch 5K Monitor includes all of these features while staying within a reasonable price range. Its color is stellar: It can handle 98% DCI-P3, a visual standard backed by digital cinema companies and creators that aims to bring uniformity to the color on your screen. It also brings more vibrant contrast, which is in part thanks to the monitor's HDR compatibility. Apple developed its own visual standard, called Display P3, which the BenQ supports to highlight accurate colors when editing video on your MacBook. You also get 100% sRGB, which works in conjunction with Display P3 and DCI-P3 to reproduce reds, greens and blues. You can connect a host of devices thanks to the port selection which includes one HDMI, two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a slew of USB-C and USB-A ports. You can also pair a KVM switch or daisy chain your peripherals to customize you work setup, the latter not all monitors can do. One of the USB-C ports includes a 90W charger, which is more than enough to charge your MacBook Pro while you're working at your desk. While the brightness could be stronger, at 400 nits, it's still good enough for most working spaces—just don't place your monitor in direct sunlight. Dell Screen: 27-inch ISP | Resolution: 3,840 x 2,160 | Brightness: 450 nits (SDR), 600 nits (HDR) | HDR: None | Native contrast: 3000:1 | Refresh rate: 120Hz | Response times: 5ms | Color gamut: 100% Rec.709, 100% sRGB, 99% DCI-P3, 99% Display P3, Delta E ≦ 1.5 | Connectivity: 1 x HDMI, 2 x DisplayPort, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 upstream, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 downstream, 3 x USB-C, 5 x USB-A, 1 headphone jack, 1 Ethernet Pros: Cons: Plenty of monitors built for MacBook Pros can cost thousands of dollars. For that price, you're usually getting a slew of must-have features, especially if you're working on heavy applications that require color-accurate graphics. But if you want to keep your price tag under $1,000, the Dell UltraSharp 27 U2725QE Monitor should be the one you add to your desk. It brings an impressive array of features that include a 4K UHD display with a 120Hz refresh rate. For context, most of the monitors on this list only have a 60Hz refresh rate, which can cause minor blurring during action sequences. If you're working with images, this won't matter much, but for those immersed in Final Cut Pro, it's more of a concern. It also comes with a couple of Thunderbolt 4 ports and can charge your MacBook up to 140 Watts—the highest charging speed Dell offers. It has a native contrast of 3000:1, which promises up to 47% deeper blacks. It also hits 99% DCI-P3 and Display P3; the higher these percentages, the better to make sure you're seeing accurate colors. Its Delta E, which also essentially measures color accuracy, is 1.5. The lower that number, the stronger the monitor can achieve accurate colors that are imperceptible to the eye; the fact that a monitor under $1,000 can hit this is very, very impressive. That said, don't expect HDR10, software that can work in conjunction with the high contrast ratio to deliver deeper, inkier blacks. If you're into astrophotography, this may not be the best monitor for you, but for most who don't want to spend a fortune, this monitor will suffice for most. Amazon Screen: 31.5-inch IPS | Resolution: 3,840 x 2,160 | Brightness: 1,000 nits | HDR: HDR10, HLG | Native contrast: 1,000,000:1 (Max) | Refresh rate: 60Hz | Response times: 5ms | Color gamut: 99.5% Adobe RGB, 100% sRGB, 99% DCI-P3, 98% Display P3, Delta E ≦ 1 | Connectivity: 3 x HDMI, 1 x DisplayPort, 2 x USB-C, 1 x USB-B, 3 x USB-A, 1 headphone jack Pros: Cons: For artists and videographers, the Asus ProArt PA 32UCR-K 32-Inch Monitor is built with superior picture quality for images and video in mind. The ISP display has a 98% DCI-P3, 98% Display P3 and a color accuracy of Delta E < 1—the latter of which is the best on this list. The display also comes with 576 dimming zones and 1,000 nits brightness. Tack on HDR10 and HLG, and it's poised to deliver gorgeous images and videos that require high-contrast images. It also comes with 99.5% Adobe RGB. This color space has a wider color gamut, built for artists and photographers. In other words, it's for professionals, but plan to put in a little extra work to bring consistency across all the displays—a common issue with Adobe RGB. That said, it's important to note one major shortcoming for this monitor: It doesn't offer any Thunderbolt ports, and instead relies on a single USB-C cable to connect your MacBook. It also charges it, so no need to worry about your laptop dying unexpectedly. But for die-hard Thunderbolt fans who need to transfer large amounts of data, this may be a major issue. Still, for the color features, it's well worth it for artists. Apple Screen: 27-inch Retina display | Resolution: 5,120 x 2,880 | Brightness: 600 nits | HDR: None | Native contrast: 1200:1 | Refresh rate: 60Hz | Response times: 5ms | Color gamut: DCI-P3, Display P3, sRGB, True Tone technology | Connectivity: 1 x Thunderbolt 3 upstream, 3 x USB-C Pros: Cons: For Apple fans who are casually working on projects or need a larger display without all the extras, the Apple Studio Display more than suffices. The 27-inch display has one Thunderbolt 3 port and three USB-C ports to connect all your gear, and the Thunderbolt port charges your device at up to 96 Watts. It's also seamless to connect, and you can just plug your MacBook in and it automatically registers this connection. It gets brighter than some of the picks on our list at 600 nits, but that's not its biggest claim to fame: The monitor hits a 5K picture quality with a 5,120 x 2,880 resolution. It has the usual suite of metrics, including DCI-P3, Display P3 and sRGB; Apple doesn't disclose the percentages on these monitors. For users who are editing the occasional TikTok video or image for a social media post—the target audience for this particular monitor—it won't matter. Plus, the display still hits over a billion colors and features Apple's True Tone technology, so you can expect realistic, vibrant colors when you're working. And, if you're working with audio from your MacBook, the Studio Display also features spatial audio in its speakers. But it's important to note a few drawbacks: Notably, there's no HDR and you can't daisy-chain your peripherals. Because there are only a handful of available ports, that may be an issue for you. But if you can handle that and the higher price tag, it's good enough for the biggest of Apple enthusiasts. Apple Screen: 32-inch Retina display| Resolution: 6,016 x 3,384 | Brightness: 1,600 nits peak (1000 nits standard XDR, 500 nits SDR) | HDR: HDR | Native contrast: 1,000,000:1 | Refresh rate: 48-60 Hz | Response times: 5ms | Color gamut: 100% DCI-P3 | Connectivity: 1 x Thunderbolt 3 upstream, 3 x USB-C Pros: Cons: While most people will be happy with the Apple Studio Display's performance, the Apple Pro Display XDR was designed with the most powerful Apple computers in mind. Built for the latest Mac Pro, its 6K resolution can be viewed with 1,000 nits under normal circumstances. You can also increase that up to an impressive 1,600 nits to help highlight deep blacks. It's not just the brightness that helps to capture gorgeous, dark colors on this display: It also has 576 individually calibrated LEDs to make sure that the entire panel is ready for whatever you throw at it. The design on the back may look a little odd as it looks like pinwheels, but the build creates additional airflow for when you're working on graphics-intensive applications to become a heat sink. It also comes with a slew of graphics features, including True Tone, Display P3 and a 10-bit color depth to produce beautiful images on-screen. That said, it's a gorgeous display, but it's also the most expensive option out of all of our picks, costing around $5,000 for all of these features. The extras, like light-absorbing nano-texture glass and mounts, add more to an already sky-high price. At Forbes Vetted, our tech team brings decades of experience in consumer technology, having authored countless computer guides covering everything from the best laptops for working from home to the best desktop computers. Some of our experts, including executive editor Dave Johnson, have even written books on these topics. To find the best monitors for MacBook Pros, we dove deep into the weeds. We narrowed our monitors for consideration to reputable brands including Apple, BenQ and more. Based on our research and testing, we found the BenQ PD2730S 32-Inch 5K Monitor to be the best monitor for MacBook Pro. The monitor has vivid color accuracy and a large display that makes working easier. The monitor also features an impressive port selection, including two Thunderbolt 4 ports. DCI-P3 is a color standard designed by the Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI) that offers a wider spectrum of colors than the sRGB (Standard Red Green Blue). DCI-P3 is largely used in the film industry and digital motion pictures. 'Display P3 is a specific variation of DCI-P3 made exclusively for Apple devices which offers compatibility with macOS for color accurate workflows,' says Jason Hishmeh, co-founder of Varyence. 'For MacBook Pro users engaged in graphic design, video editing & high quality photo editing, a monitor that supports Display P3 ensures the best possible experience,' he adds. The best alternative to the Apple Monitor is the BenQ PD2730S 32-Inch 5K Monitor, which supports Apple's visual standard, Display P3, for stunning, accurate colors. In addition to the large, vibrant display, the monitor includes a Mac-compatible Thunderbolt 4 port that delivers 90W power to keep your MacBook Pro charged while you work.
