[MacHeadChef]

At first I was undecided whether to buy the imac 24" or Mac Pro. But now I'm thinking about a 30" display with the Mac Pro and thinking anybody have an opinion about the Dell 30" over the Apple 30"? I mean Dell 30" is on sale for around $1450 and Apple is still $1999. Which display would you choose?

[SSharon]

I would take the dell.

[slpdLoad]

I'd buy the Dell because of the additional inputs.

Here's a comparison article, if you're interested: CNET prizefight: Apple 30-inch LCD vs. Dell 30-inch LCD - CNET reviews

[Mr Heliums]

Not sure I understand about the 'additional inputs'. I'd prefer the Apple because of the Firewire port and the extra USB port. A flash card reader leaves me cold.

[slpdLoad]

Ah, my bad. I assumed that ALL of the new Dell displays included S-Video and/or Composite inputs, which I would like. Guess not.

[PowerPc = Pwnage]

Dude, for the price, your gettin' a dell.

[MattJeff]

dell looks slick but i still dont trust em'. Apples never let me down and dell has many times.

[Laurence]

I would also go for the Dell... I got the 2407WFP and it is really nice. I didn't even realize how nice it is to have the PiP with the extra inputs. The built in card reader is really handy too, if you have a camera. The dell has a USB hub, but not firewire.

The drawbacks to the Dell...

1. If you turn off the monitor, it powers off the card reader !?! This causes error messages about removing a card improperly if you forget to remove it.

2. The on-screen menus won't accept input from the buttons while a message is still onscreen from the last change... ie... I change the main input from DVI to VGA, and then I press the PiP button to turn on the VCR in a small window... the PiP button does not respond unless I wait 5 seconds for the DVI->VGA notification to disappear. Small annoyance, but just poor design.

3. Range of height adjustment is very limited... I wish I could have the monitor about 4 inches higher... This is still way better than the Apple monitor which doesn't have ANY height adjustment. (And no, angle is NOT the same thing)

[robby818]

I have the Dell.

1. My first one (April 06) had a much brighter right side than left side. This was observed by many owners and one of the reviews. It was really distracting. My latest one (October 06 rev 3) does not have this issue.

2. The Dell monitor prevents my Mac Pro from sleeping. I had this issue when I had a Power Mac as well. The Dell display seems to prevent sleep. the workaround is to power off the display and then put the mac to sleep.

3. It's a good value and I am happy with it now, but I had to do a few exchanges before I got one that I was happy with. At least Dell/Costco were easy about returns and exchanges. Apple can be a pain about exhanges and Apple will pull the restocking fee BS with you if you want ot do a simple return. I think if I had to do it over again I would have gone with the 24" monitor (i have one on a pc) and avoided some of the headaches i had with the video card and sparkling images (not unique to the dell, apple cinema displays do the same thing with the low end radeon 9650s).

[iDaver]

Originally Posted by robby818 

I have the Dell.

2. The Dell monitor prevents my Mac Pro from sleeping. I had this issue when I had a Power Mac as well. The Dell display seems to prevent sleep. the workaround is to power off the display and then put the mac to sleep.

3. It's a good value and I am happy with it now, but I had to do a few exchanges before I got one that I was happy with. At least Dell/Costco were easy about returns and exchanges. Apple can be a pain about exhanges and Apple will pull the restocking fee BS with you if you want ot do a simple return. I think if I had to do it over again I would have gone with the 24" monitor (i have one on a pc) and avoided some of the headaches i had with the video card and sparkling images (not unique to the dell, apple cinema displays do the same thing with the low end radeon 9650s).

2 sounds like a deal killer for me. I have my G5 Power Mac set to sleep automatically after a short period, which it does several times a day, for power saving and for security when I'm away. I don't want to have to power off the display each time I get up from my desk.

As for "sparkling images," there's a lengthy discussion at the Apple.com/Support/Discussions about "dancing pixels" where "flickering blue and green pixels" in darker areas is described. (I'm guessing that's what you're talking about as well.) It sounds like quite an issue over which several people have returned their 30" Cinemas several times (and they're convinced it's not a GPU issue). That's not encouraging.

I've been saving for a 30" display. Now I'm thinking I might wait for revisions to both the Apple and the Dell before buying either. I've been leaning toward the Apple, for its slightly better appearance, its all-in-one cable and its Firewire hub. It seems the only thing the Dell has going for it, IMO, is the price. Its card reader and extra inputs aren't a big draw for me.

[TFunkadelic]

Originally Posted by iDaver 

2 sounds like a deal killer for me. I have my G5 Power Mac set to sleep automatically after a short period, which it does several times a day, for power saving and for security when I'm away. I don't want to have to power off the display each time I get up from my desk.

As for "sparkling images," there's a lengthy discussion at the Apple.com/Support/Discussions about "dancing pixels" where "flickering blue and green pixels" in darker areas is described. (I'm guessing that's what you're talking about as well.) It sounds like quite an issue over which several people have returned their 30" Cinemas several times (and they're convinced it's not a GPU issue). That's not encouraging.

I've been saving for a 30" display. Now I'm thinking I might wait for revisions to both the Apple and the Dell before buying either. I've been leaning toward the Apple, for its slightly better appearance, its all-in-one cable and its Firewire hub. It seems the only thing the Dell has going for it, IMO, is the price. Its card reader and extra inputs aren't a big draw for me.

? I have a dell monitor and my mac sleeps fine.

[Atheist]

Originally Posted by iDaver 

2 sounds like a deal killer for me. I have my G5 Power Mac set to sleep automatically after a short period, which it does several times a day, for power saving and for security when I'm away. I don't want to have to power off the display each time I get up from my desk.

Wow... you must have money to burn... the sleep issue is worth $550? If you're worried about security, just have your screen saver require a password... and make one of your corners "hot" so it starts the screen saver... when you step away from the computer... just put the mouse in the corner.

I have the 24" Dell and love it!

[iDaver]

Originally Posted by Atheist 

Wow... you must have money to burn...

Yeah, I'm rollin' in dough.

[iDaver]

Noticed today that the Dell 30" is down to US$1276. That's $723 less than Apple's. It's getting very tempting. Unless Apple introduces higher resolution displays soon, I might go Dell.

I've seen several comments elsewhere about the sleep issue. It seems if you're not using the Dell display as a USB hub/card reader, the Mac will sleep fine without powering down the display. Can anyone else confirm this?

[Tuoder]

If some research were done on what kind of LCD panels are used in the models, that may be good to know. I am not in the market for anything quite THIS big right now, so I haven't done the research myself. But, I have heard that sometimes the LCD panels themselves are identical, from the same manufacturer and Apple jsut charges more.

Just a thought.

[YuSa28]

I was testing one DELL and one APPLE... and looks better to me the DELL 30 DISPLAY, Im a MAC ADDICT (for more than 15 years) , but I reclently bought a DELL 30 DISPLAY.... Great image quality and EXCELENT price WITH 3 YEAR of FULL WARANTY.... I recomend DELL !!!!

here are one picture.

[all2ofme]

YuSa28 - I keep noticing things in your photo. Has your keyboard melted or something?

[YuSa28]

No... my keyboard had the plastic film on it ... is brand new

[iDaver]

YuSa28, that's a helluva nice setup you have there! Does your Mac sleep ok, without powering down the display?

[iDaver]

Originally Posted by Tuoder 

If some research were done on what kind of LCD panels are used in the models, that may be good to know. I am not in the market for anything quite THIS big right now, so I haven't done the research myself. But, I have heard that sometimes the LCD panels themselves are identical, from the same manufacturer and Apple jsut charges more.

Tuoder, somewhere I read that both Apple and Dell use the same 30" panel from LG Electronics. I don't know how true it is. If so, the only benefits of the Apple are the metal enclosure, the Firewire hub and the all-in-one cable. Buying the Apple sacrifices the longer warranty and the much cheaper price of the Dell. I'm leaning toward buying a Dell but I think I'll hold out and see what might happen at MWSF. Meanwhile, HP and Samsung have new 30" displays coming out this month. Neither is expected to be as cheap as the Dell but the specs sound pretty good.

Anyone know why sometimes I get email notification of new posts to MacNN threads and sometimes not?

[badtz]

I just wish the Dell looked as good as Apple's, otherwise I would also most likely go the dell route

[all2ofme]

Even if they use the same panel that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll be of equivalent quality. Dell might pay more to get the better picks, for example (though of course it may not work like that).

Also, does that 'panel' from LG include the backlight and all of the other requisite bits? An even backlight's really important.

I'm not saying it's impossible that they'd be identical, just that I'd not take it as a given even if they're from the same OEM.

[thebunny]

As much as I'm a fan of Apple, my vote goes to Dell here. They're a lot cheaper and the overnight replacement warranty is tough to beat. My Dell 3007WFP came with backlight bleeding in a corner so I called them up and they sent another one the next day! Every time I have to repair something through Apple I end up waiting for a week or more before I get it back (record is three weeks for a PowerBook repair).

[BJNY]

Another option, HP is shipping their 30" on Nov. 11th for $1699.
It's the only 30" using the latest backlight tubes achieving more gamut.

HP outs price, ship date for its 30-inch LCD monstrosity - Engadget

[scottmorgan42]

I don't know where you got the $1450 price for the 3007, I see it listed for $1274 at
Dell 3007WFP 30" Widescreen LCD Display $1,274 - dealmac.com

I have a 24" Dell 2407 and it not only sleeps fine with my macbook, it looks great, and the monitor has a specific "Mac Mode" for use with Apple computers. (I think that gives you 1.8 gamma) Anyway, for over $700 less, with adjustable height, usb hub and card reader, go with the Dell, no question.

[robby818]

I think the sleep issue pertains to the tower machines. I had this issue on both a Power Mac and Mac Pro with the dell 200WFP, and now with the dell 3007. i thought the probelm was caused by another device like my scanner or usb hub but it was in fact the monitor.

[paulinbognor]

I'm only a few days away from ordering my Mac Pro I was planning to buy the 30"ACD to go with it until I happened to check out dell:
30" display reduced to: £1026.66
30" ACD £1549

The ACD has always been more expensive but always in teh same kind of area as the Dell. This reduced price for the Dell seems too good to miss though.

So the real question is whether the ACD is £500 better than the Dell! I know the Dell doesn't look anywhere near as nice but...£500 is £500
As I understand it they both use the same SIPS panel.

[robby818]

I'm less keen on Dell monitors after my experience with the 3007. I've been through four of them before I found one I liked:

March Rev 1- several dead pixels in distracting locations

March Rev 1- right side much brighter than left

November Rev 2- annoying buzzing noise on some brightness settings. the plastic case creaks loudly as the display warms up. there is a video glitch that only occurs w/i 10 minutes of a cold start- a vertical or horizontal line appears and then disappears in a split second and does not occur again, always after a cold start. one dead pixel

December Rev2- buzzes but only at brightest setting, the buzz is too low to hear at lower brightness settings. brightness is not perfectly even, but after it warms up it is hard to see any diff. betweeen the right and left side. no dead or stuck pixels. i'm keeping this one.


I've owned a number of Dell LCDs--1702, 1704, 2005, 2405, 2407, 2000, and 2001. Sure I've had small issues like a dead or stuck pixel but nothing like the problems I am having with the 3007. I really like the 24" Dell, so I would recommend that one but if I were to go with a 30", I think I would choose the Cinema display especially now that Apple's prices are more reasonable and I like the styling of the cinema display better now.

[paulinbognor]

Thanks for the reply Robby. Looks like you've had some VERY, VERY bad luck

I guess this maybe points to one of the reasons the Dell is so much cheaper. You are the first person I've come across though that has had major problems with the 30".

[badtz]

Looks like HP's new LP3065 30" display features a better backlighting system than Apple and Dell ....

http://displayblog.wordpress.com/200...0-lcd-monitor/

[gperks]

Dell just announced their updated 30" too, with the larger gamut and 8ms response.

MacNN | Dell debuts updated 30-inch display

[iDaver]

Cool. Choice is always good.