- You have a desk, (light, playful music)
you have a MacBook,
but why not a monitor?
(chime rings)
Okay, we're not all millionaires.
(sighs)
There are a load of other options out there,
but they're all ugly.
And it's a problem for us design-obsessed Mac users.
It can be a big challenge to find a good monitor
to set up at a nice desk at home or work.
Or at home for work.
So I'm going to go on a journey
to see if I can find a monitor
that can feel at home beside all my other Apple devices.
(chill music) This predicament is
really confusing, because Apple has made a range
of beautiful monitors before.
Demonstrating the future of LCDs,
the Apple Cinema and Studio Displays were offered
in a range of different, at sizes prices
that shrunk slightly as the technology matured.
Their last branded monitor,
the Apple Thunderbolt Display priced at $1000
was perfectly suited for laptop deskers,
sporting an IO hub at the back,
and a MagSafe connector to charge your laptop.
But in 2016, after putting that screen to pasture,
Apple was fine to just throw their hands up in the air
and stock Apple stores with this.
The LG UltraFine Display.
It's available with either a 27 inch 5k panel
or 24 inch 4k one.
But, ugh, just look and
feel it. (fingernails clicking)
(sighs)
This is almost a Moto Rocker situation,
unbecoming of what Apple users
would like to have on their desks.
With charcoal plastics, a weirdly thick
forehead bezel to hold a webcam,
it's a monitor that almost gets there in so many respects,
but never completes the journey.
With the wonderful high resolution 5k panel from the iMac,
it could be a fantastic MacBook companion
like the old Thunderbolt screen.
But there's just so much missing,
like nice materials, an ethernet port,
SD card reader, or even any USB-A ports.
All things that would have made this
a fantastic and useful screen.
So what happens when we leave the Apple store
and look at the hundreds of other options
out there in the monitor sphere?
There's got to be something nice.
(jazzy music)
What I'm looking for is a monitor
with good industrial design,
good cable management, and support for USB-C,
all for less than $800.
And after looking through all the options,
I've arrived at these three. (bubbles popping)
Which I will show you after I show you this
ominously black iMac.
As you can probably see it's been Dbranded.
And they're sponsoring this video.
Yes, Dbrand, the people who provide thin, sleek,
customizable protection for all your Apple devices,
from AirTags to this, apparently.
Good riddance, white bezels!
With the craziest drops dropping year round,
you can make your device truly your own.
So check out their patterns
and protection at the link below.
Now, the first option I'm going to show comes from Razer.
(chill music) (thunder rumbles)
(electricity crackles)
Despite being gaming focused,
this monitor is really stunning.
The back is clad in fabric.
(electricity crackles)
The stand, though quite heavy,
has integrated diffused RGB light
that tastefully glows against the desk.
(energy hums)
Cable management looks like a set of spillways
that the bright green cables flow down.
If you have a Space Gray MacBook
and matching keyboard and mouse,
this will look great on your desk.
As it is a gaming monitor, it does retain those priorities
like temporal resolution over spatial resolution.
This monitor is only 1440p, not 4k.
This one, the latest model has a 165 hertz refresh rate.
And it'll set you back $800.
But a 144 Hertz model is also available
for 1 to $200 less if on sale.
And that one offers 15 watts of charging over USB-C.
That's a mere trickle compared to the 96 watts
the big 16 inch MacBook pro charger outputs.
But better than this newer model that doesn't charge at all.
This Razer is still kind of expensive.
And if it's money you want to save,
might I suggest the MSI Modern monitor.
It's 24 inches and 1080p, which is the largest
I would recommend anyone go at this resolution.
The panel is nothing to write home about,
and the cable management could be a little bit better
with a home or stand or something.
Also this logo?
Kind of meh.
But it costs around $160, and at that price,
it's very hard to find something this attractive
that includes a USB-C input.
Though it doesn't come with a USB-C cable.
So you're going to have to find one
that supports DisplayPort, which is harder than you think.
(cables clattering) Uh, how am I supposed
to know it's DisplayPort?
I just have to test all these?
(cables clattering)
It too will only send a 15 watt trickle to your laptop.
Perhaps the most exciting thing about this monitor
is the potential for color.
A few months ago, MSI posted a short animation
to Facebook previewing five familiar looking options.
And when I asked MSI about it,
they didn't have much information other than to say
that they're in the process of releasing other colors
and that the post was to gauge interest.
So please let them know your interest
in the different variants, because that'll be great.
If you're looking for an ultrawide,
these Samsung CJ791 is really compelling,
which unfortunately, I don't have here.
It supports Thunderbolt 3
with an extra port for daisy chaining.
It is quite attractive,
and has really decent cable management.
Priced at $700, sometimes less on sale,
I haven't been able to find a more compelling ultrawide.
So these monitors are all good,
but there is one that stands out among the rest.
Providing what I think is the most
attractive package at a decent price.
And it's this.
The Dell Ultrathin 27 inch monitor.
Now most of Dell's monitor designs are competently generic.
But with an MSRP of $550, or on sale in the $400 range,
I don't think you'll find
a more attractive companion for your MacBook.
Yes, it's only got 1440p resolution.
I kind of wish it was at least UHD.
But it is quite bright at up to 400 nits brightness,
600 if you use the HDR mode under HDMI.
This is truly the spiritual successor
to the old LED Cinema Display.
I love how the ports are tucked behind the stand arm,
and that the cables can neatly be fed through it.
I love how you can connect your Mac with one USB-C cable
and provide 45 Watts of power.
I love that there are two USB-A 3.0 ports
for peripherals and drives.
If I had a MacBook that I wanted to set up on my desk,
this would be the monitor I'd get, no doubt.
In fact, the design is so good
that I think it's worthy of the fruit logo sticker itself.
(sticker peels) (gentle music)
(calm music)
There are rumors that Apple might have a less expensive
consumer-oriented monitor in the pipeline.
(page rustles) Or not.
And with how powerful Apple's ARM equipped laptops are now,
there's less reason than ever to buy a desktop
instead of a more convenient MacBook.
It's just too bad it can't be an Apple-made,
attractive, perhaps even colorful screen,
just like the iMac we all know and love.
But in the meantime, at least to my taste,
all we have are these.
Thanks for plugging your DisplayPort
compatible USB-C cable into this Mac address,
make sure to like and subscribe.
And if you think you know of any monitor
more attractive than the options I presented,
sure, you can put them in the comments below.
I'm curious what you'll come up with.