Samsung SyncMaster P2770HD and MacBook Pro

Probably you are reacting to the low pixel density of this display. It's a little bit large for up-close use at that resolution and, yes, text and images will look pixelated.

Apple sells a 27" iMac that has a resolution of 2560 x 1440. Your monitor is the same size but has only 1920 x 1080 pixels packed into the same screen area. The product of those two numbers gives the total pixels. So Apple's iMac has about 3.7 million pixels on the screen whereas your monitor has only a little more than half that...about 2.1 million pixels. It only stands to reason that with half the number of pixels, the screen is going to look pixelated and unsharp.

You might be happier with a smaller, denser screen. The Samsung 2343bwx might be a good choice for you.

Hi BSteely (or anybody else),

Can you elaborate a bit on the monitor resolution issue. I too was looking to pick up the same 1920 x 1080 monitor to use with my older MacBook Pro and I'm a little confused by your explanation.

For example, I have a 60" Sony TV that is 1080p which I would assume is the same resolution as this monitor. The TV, when displaying real 1080P, is spectacular even when I'm a bit too close. I realize that if it was a resolution as high as the iMac's 1440 it would be even better but it seems like the 1080 should still be great at 27".

I could be totally wrong here, but couldn't the pixelization be related to another variable like the video card?

Thanks in advance,

Steve

Steve, if you were to connect your Mac to the 60" TV at 1080p and try and use it at normal monitor distance, like from 24-inches to 30-inches away, trust me, it would not look "spectacular". Of course using a 60" monitor from two feet away is silly, but you get the idea.

Everything in a limited range is a matter of degree. I was guessing the OP was comparing the image on the MBP with the image on the 27". The pixel density is much higher on the MBP's built-in display, just as with the 27" iMac example I used previously. So you can notice this difference, but like I said, it's a matter of degree to which you will notice. It might not bother some people at all. Others find the "screen door" effect distracting. What I mean by screen door effect is that, if pixels appear to be too large on a display, people with good up-close eyesight begin to see the structure of the display instead of just a smooth, featureless blending of content and background, like printing on paper would be. This is sometimes described as a screen door effect because it looks like there is a rectangular wire screen between you and what you see on your computer's display. When you begin to see structure in your display instead of a smooth blending of pixels, it can be an annoying distraction.

27" monitors at either 1920 x 1080 or 1920 x 1200 tend to be at the upper limit of diagonal size for that resolution. In other words, most monitors of that resolution are smaller, typically 24" would be the most common size for that many on-screen pixels. 24 diagonal inches seems to give a fairly satisfying density of pixels...like around 95 pixels per inch at that resolution. I tend to like to go even higher. Apple have tended to use 100 pixels per inch or greater for their monitor products (although the 24" ACD is an exception) and that's the level I tend to like as a lower limit personally. That monitor I recommended, the 2343bwx is right at about that level of 100 ppi.

So I hope that makes what I meant more clear. Some people just think bigger is better, like, "sure, why wouldn't I get a 27" monitor at 1920 x 1080 vs. a 23" monitor at the same resolution if there's only a small price difference?" That's the question I am trying to answer, and what I am trying to explain with this post. Think it through. Or better still, try for yourself. Like I said, some people don't mind the lower pixel density of a bigger monitor at the same resolution but some people notice and do mind. So don't just think that because one monitor is bigger than another that it is better. For you, it may not be.

Don't mind BSteely, he is simply working under the orders of Steve Jobs.
Samsung monitors work just fine, its not the monitor that is the problem.
Apple under Steve's dictatorship has seen it wise not to support many 3rd party monitors in favor of possibly increasing Apple branded monitor sales.

The Apple user community is very unhappy with this move.
However, Apple is standing strong and unwilling to change.
The same monitor you have will work just fine under Windows or LINUX.
Mac OS X purposely goes out of its way to detect the exact brand and model of a monitor and discourage its use if it is not a Apple.

Most newer monitors that are currently being sold in the consumer market competing with Apple is likely not going to be Apple compatible. You can wait until its discontinued and hope Apple will then support it.

Or you can wait for a 3rd party hack, but Apple will quickly make the hack incompatible (people have tried).

If you remain with Apple, be happy with purchasing Apple branded or Apple approved products (things sold at the Apple Store) and be tied to iTunes.

Also this widely known knowledge among Apple users is a top priority DENIAL topic among tech support. So don't expect them to even acknowledge it. In fact for every person that calls in with the problem, they will insist its the first time they have even heard of it. Try it. Call 3x with different computer registrations. Each time they'll claim the problem has never arisen.

How were you connecting to the monitor?

I had a similar sounding problem connecting to a SyncMaster P2270HD via a 3rd party MiniDisplay Port -> HDMI adaptor. I then tried an official MiniDisplay Port -> DVI adaptor and it works fine.

Thanks for the tip!

I had excellent results by using the DVI input on the Samsung SyncMaster P2770HD with a MacBook Pro (with DVI out, so I used a DVI-DVI cable). This is the configuration you want with this monitor.

When I used a DVI to HDMI cable, the results were disastrous: the resolution available were wrong, the pixels were blurry making text hard to read, and the colors were off. Stay away from this combination of cable and monitor.

The effect I was seeing when using the HDMI connection the Samsung SyncMaster P2770HD was much much worse than can be explained by pixel size. The monitor was not displaying the image pixel for pixel. This was not the case when using the DVI input to the monitor.

I have a related question. I am using the P2770HD with the DVI adapter. In system preferences, the resolution is set at 1920X1080, but it also says "usable resolution 1280X800." It does seem like I am getting less use out of the screen real estate than when I used this monitor with a PC. Any guidance? Thanks!

I am also using a Samsung syncmaster 2494 as external monitor. So far so good but I cannot not use custom set up. i only use the 1080P resolution with 60 hertz(NTSC) and it is very nice. I don't complain. I used it with my macbook pro then now I am using it with my white macbook.

I have similar problem,,, new macbookpro i7 with windows in boot camp, increible view in Samsung p2770hd,, with minidisplay port to dvi adapter, and dvi-dvi cable to monitor.
because with hdmi adaptor poor quality.

with mac os x 10.6.4, the view in the samsumg it is bad quality,. (graphic card GT330 M, ) that I supose that it is better that my old macbookpro with dvi exit , , that I do see better in the samsung monitor.

incredible,

es increible que lo vea mejor con el macbook viejo ,3 años, y con el nuevo con tarjeta grafica nueva,, no tire

Alguien me puede ayudar,,
he puesto el adaptador original de apple minidisplayport a dvi, y un cable dvi-d, se ve mejor, pero bastante peor que cuando arranco en windows la partición de boot camp,.

_PLEASE READ**_

there is a trick to making the samsung work properly with PC via HDMI/DVI

1. Open MENU
2. Go to "Input"
3. Select "Edit Name" to open up the "Edit Name" sub menu.
4. Scroll down to "HDMI" and select it, (watch carefully)
5. Now assign "PC" or "DVI PC" to the HDMI setting and voila!!!

That actually worked!

Its not perfect but its soo much better then what I had before.

Thank you so much!

Now I don't feel as bad for buying this monitor haha.

Okay, I am not too bright. Where do I find Menu on Win 7?

Thanks in advance.

wait you are able to make it work with a macbook pro and syncmaster 2370?