Samsung Viewfinity S9 Display – Apple Studio Display Competitor

[PetPet]

Samsung recently released their Viewfinity S9 Display in Singapore. The monitor has a PPI of 218 and a resolution of 5120 x 2880, identical to that of the Studio Display. This display is ideal if you are running both Windows and macOS. ASD accepts a single thunderbolt connection, this makes it a hassle to switch between input sources. The S9 accept inputs from either a thunderbolt 4 connection or a mini display port. The downside is that the monitor is a smart monitor.

The Apple Silicon Macbooks is known to be capable of driving at S9 at 5120x2880 60Hz. I tested it with a 13inch Intel Macbook Pro 2020 (4 Thunderbolt Ports) and am happy to share that you can drive the display at 5120x2880 at 30hz over thunderbolt.

Edit:

• 13’ Macbook Pro 2020 (4 Thunderbolt Ports) 5120x2880 30Hz over thunderbolt
• 16‘ Macbook Pro 2020 with AMD GPU 5120x2880 60Hz, over thunderbolt

https://www.samsung.com/sg/monitors...nity-s9-27-inch-5k-resolution-ls27c900paexxs/

 

[junk610]

5120x2880 at only 30Hz seems low.
Shouldn't it be able to support at least 60Hz?

 

[PetPet]

5120x2880 at only 30Hz seems low.
Shouldn't it be able to support at least 60Hz?

yea it is the 13 inch intel macbook was able to manage 30Hz.
An intel macbook with AMD GPU as well as the Apple Silicon Macbooks are able to drive it at 60Hz.

 

[junk610]

yea it is the 13 inch intel macbook was able to manage 30Hz.
An intel macbook with AMD GPU as well as the Apple Silicon Macbooks are able to drive it at 60Hz.

Ah that makes sense lol

 

[Parka]

I currently have a review unit of Samsung Viewfinity S9.

Feel free to ask me anything, and I will include the answers in my video review.

My impressions so far:

POSITIVE
Image quality is good. The display is really bright and looks stunning. I'm a visual content creator so I appreciate the matte surface.

It's obviously expensive but it's cheaper than Apple Studio Display with matte surface and adjustable stand.

If you don't need 5K, you can get way cheaper 27-inch 4K displays, and use the app BetterDisplay to get you sharp UI scaling. This will save a lot of money.

NEGATIVE
It looks metalic but build quality is mostly plastic except for the stand's base which is metal. Build quality is quite similar to monitors with black plastic construction. I'm not too bothered by this since it's not like I will adjust the monitor much after it's set on the table.

There is one miniDisplayPort, one Thunderbolt 4 port, and three downstream USB 3.0 type C ports. There is no HDMI unfortunately.

All ports face backwards to the stand. The ports are between the stand so it's not easy to plug in the cables compared to connecting cables to the top. E.g. It's not possible to insert a USB flash drive with this design. This design is very silly. In other words, you'll probably get better user experience with a Thunderbolt dock connected to your Mac rather than use the display for any USB hub features.

The pre-order goodie is a Samsung T7 Shield 4TB SSD but the promo ended end of August.

The main downside to me is actually just the ports facing the back and not down.

 

[PetPet]

@Parka does enabling HDR on your Mac turn the display dimmer for you?

 

[junk610]

I currently have a review unit of Samsung Viewfinity S9.

Feel free to ask me anything, and I will include the answers in my video review.

My impressions so far:

POSITIVE
Image quality is good. The display is really bright and looks stunning. I'm a visual content creator so I appreciate the matte surface.

It's obviously expensive but it's cheaper than Apple Studio Display with matte surface and adjustable stand.

If you don't need 5K, you can get way cheaper 27-inch 4K displays, and use the app BetterDisplay to get you sharp UI scaling. This will save a lot of money.

NEGATIV
It looks metalic but build quality is mostly plastic except for the stand's base which is metal. Build quality is quite similar to monitors with black plastic construction. I'm not too bothered by this since it's not like I will adjust the monitor much after it's set on the table.

There is one miniDisplayPort, one Thunderbolt 4 port, and three downstream USB 3.0 type C ports. There is no HDMI unfortunately.

All ports face backwards to the stand. The ports are between the stand so it's not easy to plug in the cables compared to connecting cables to the top. E.g. It's not possible to insert a USB flash drive with this design. This design is very silly. In other words, you'll probably get better user experience with a Thunderbolt dock connected to your Mac rather than use the display for any USB hub features.

The pre-order goodie is a Samsung T7 Shield 4TB SSD but the promo ended end of August.

The main downside to me is actually just the ports facing the back and not down.

Could you also compare it to the Apple Studio Display in terms of panel quality?
On paper it looks at least as good.

I've only spent 5-10mins playing with it at the store, but the Studio Display looked better to me.
Which then again could be due to the glossy display

 

[Parka]

Could you also compare it to the Apple Studio Display in terms of panel quality?
On paper it looks at least as good.

I've only spent 5-10mins playing with it at the store, but the Studio Display looked better to me.
Which then again could be due to the glossy display

I don't have Apple Studio Display nor seen it in person so I cannot say much. But I review many monitors and laptops so I can say glossy displays will definitely give more vibrant colours and contrast. Downside of glossy is of course reflections which I don't like and is a no-go for me.

If you want matte, Apple Studio Display is USD 300 more.

There are so many reviews online bashing the Samsung display build quality which I can sort of understand given the high price point. I don't have issue with build quality though. For me, it's the high SGD2288 price point, and sometimes it is $200 off on Shopee Lazada.

There is a big price hike with displays for visual content creators currently. For the budget conscious, like me, I will stick to 1440P. lol

 

[junk610]

I don't have Apple Studio Display nor seen it in person so I cannot say much. But I review many monitors and laptops so I can say glossy displays will definitely give more vibrant colours and contrast. Downside of glossy is of course reflections which I don't like and is a no-go for me.

If you want matte, Apple Studio Display is USD 300 more.

There are so many reviews online bashing the Samsung display build quality which I can sort of understand given the high price point. I don't have issue with build quality though. For me, it's the high SGD2288 price point, and sometimes it is $200 off on Shopee Lazada.

There is a big price hike with displays for visual content creators currently. For the budget conscious, like me, I will stick to 1440P. lol

Guilty! I was also one of those bashing its high price point relative to its perceived quality lol!

I think what rubbed me the wrong way was the "Hey I'm a premium product cuz I'm priced like the Studio Display"......yet "I'm not really metal I just pretend to be".
I would much rather they just stick to black plastic cuz it least that keeps it honest haha.

Now that I'm in an environment where light source is under control, I will seriously consider upgrading to a glossy OLED/mini-LED at some point to take full advantage of the panel.

 

[Parka]

Guilty! I was also one of those bashing its high price point relative to its perceived quality lol!

I think what rubbed me the wrong way was the "Hey I'm a premium product cuz I'm priced like the Studio Display"......yet "I'm not really metal I just pretend to be".
I would much rather they just stick to black plastic cuz it least that keeps it honest haha.

Now that I'm in an environment where light source is under control, I will seriously consider upgrading to a glossy OLED/mini-LED at some point to take full advantage of the panel.

The look is good.

Build quality is not as solid as metal but the thing is once you set it on the table, how often are you gonna go touch and feel the build quality?

But some Apple fans just want to spend money to feel good. Paying USD 400 for height adjustable stand is silly.

 

[KoChi]

Should I pay 500+ for the tilt and height adjustment?

 

[junk610]

The look is good.

Build quality is not as solid as metal but the thing is once you set it on the table, how often are you gonna go touch and feel the build quality?

But some Apple fans just want to spend money to feel good. Paying USD 400 for height adjustable stand is silly.

I'm guessing most folks who buy the Studio Display prefer the glossy screen.
Paying an extra $400 for matte + another $600 for height-adjustability is mad.

With Studio Display, the panel covers over the frame nicely, so it isn't visible straight on .
Which gives it that sleek, premium unibody aesthetic.
Also, those built-in speakers are reportedly better than most.

In that same price range, the new Samsung 32" 4K OLED display (~USD1500) looks interesting.
Have you reviewed any OLED displays? Would love to hear your insights on OLED vs IPS panels.

 

[junk610]

Should I pay 500+ for the tilt and height adjustment?

Can also consider a monitor arm for max adjustability.

 

[Parka]

I'm guessing most folks who buy the Studio Display prefer the glossy screen.
Paying an extra $400 for matte + another $600 for height-adjustability is mad.

With Studio Display, the panel covers over the frame nicely, so it isn't visible straight on .
Which gives it that sleek, premium unibody aesthetic.
Also, those built-in speakers are reportedly better than most.

In that same price range, the new Samsung 32" 4K OLED display (~USD1500) looks interesting.
Have you reviewed any OLED displays? Would love to hear your insights on OLED vs IPS panels.

The one thing that Apple does well is their anti-reflective coating on glass is really good, and really minimises reflection. But even so there are still reflections and for some people any reflections is a no-go.

32-inch I feel is kinda too big as a desktop monitor.

Anyway, I actually still prefer LCD over OLED because LCD looks better at lower brightness. There aren't many OLED desktop monitors in the market. The ones I've reviewed are all from laptops and since they are OLED, they have vibrant colours and noticeably better contrast. Having said that, a good LCD can still look terrific. OLED to me is not a must have as LCD tech today is really good.

 

[iCubes]

I'm seriously considering the Samsung option since it could be used easily between Mac and windows computers whereas the Apple one is designed for Macs only. But I've heard of issues with the camera not working consistently and reliably with Mac machines. Also read about the display having issues waking up or unable to switch between inputs reliably. What are your experiences with those?

 

[junk610]

The one thing that Apple does well is their anti-reflective coating on glass is really good, and really minimises reflection. But even so there are still reflections and for some people any reflections is a no-go.

32-inch I feel is kinda too big as a desktop monitor.

Anyway, I actually still prefer LCD over OLED because LCD looks better at lower brightness. There aren't many OLED desktop monitors in the market. The ones I've reviewed are all from laptops and since they are OLED, they have vibrant colours and noticeably better contrast. Having said that, a good LCD can still look terrific. OLED to me is not a must have as LCD tech today is really good.

Actually, I think you're right about glossy screens.
Even with ambient light under control, it's challenging to avoid reflections completely.

The 32" size is well within peripheral vision, and that height is absolutely perfect.
I'm on split-screen mode all the time and appreciate the extra screen space.

I would love a 38" 5K2K flat widescreen. Have you reviewed any of those?
Almost same height as a 32", and a very usable 27% wider.
Still within peripheral vision, with dot pitch as crisp and sharp as 32" 4K displays.

Good to know LCD looks better than OLED at low brightness, cuz I set mine at only 15%.
Much easier on my eyes and still plenty bright in normal situations.

 

[Parka]

I'm seriously considering the Samsung option since it could be used easily between Mac and windows computers whereas the Apple one is designed for Macs only. But I've heard of issues with the camera not working consistently and reliably with Mac machines. Also read about the display having issues waking up or unable to switch between inputs reliably. What are your experiences with those?

I haven't tested the webcam extensively so I can't say much.

Only issue with the camera is the camera angle tilt can adjusted but limited, so you may have to tilt the monitor to get the camera to point downwards more.

 

[Parka]

Actually, I think you're right about glossy screens.
Even with ambient light under control, it's challenging to avoid reflections completely.

The 32" size is well within peripheral vision, and that height is absolutely perfect.
I'm on split-screen mode all the time and appreciate the extra screen space.

I would love a 38" 5K2K flat widescreen. Have you reviewed any of those?
Almost same height as a 32", and a very usable 27% wider.
Still within peripheral vision, with dot pitch as crisp and sharp as 32" 4K displays.

Good to know LCD looks better than OLED at low brightness, cuz I set mine at only 15%.
Much easier on my eyes and still plenty bright in normal situations.

32 will work better if you split screen a lot. But even 27-inch can do split screen very well. The surface area is still noticeably bigger than A3 paper. So you can effectively look at two A4+ size windows.

However, the larger the display, the more likely you have to see further away to see everything. You have to make sure your table is big enough for you to place your keyboard further away. For ultra wide displays like the 38 5K2K, you will have to turn your head left and right.

The Samsung display is high enough for you to place a 14-inch laptop beneath. The top down dual display setup is more comfortable compared to left right ultra wide dual display setups.

 

[PetPet]

I'm seriously considering the Samsung option since it could be used easily between Mac and windows computers whereas the Apple one is designed for Macs only. But I've heard of issues with the camera not working consistently and reliably with Mac machines. Also read about the display having issues waking up or unable to switch between inputs reliably. What are your experiences with those?

I have not used the webcam extensively. switching inputs are reliable but annoying for me. Unlike traditional monitors where you can switch source on the fly.

On the S9, you’re required to enter the Tizen OS to select a source and by doing so there is a delay.

No issues with waking the monitor using my MacBook or Windows PC

 

[junk610]

32 will work better if you split screen a lot. But even 27-inch can do split screen very well. The surface area is still noticeably bigger than A3 paper. So you can effectively look at two A4+ size windows.

However, the larger the display, the more likely you have to see further away to see everything. You have to make sure your table is big enough for you to place your keyboard further away. For ultra wide displays like the 38 5K2K, you will have to turn your head left and right.

The Samsung display is high enough for you to place a 14-inch laptop beneath. The top down dual display setup is more comfortable compared to left right ultra wide dual display setups.

Yes, thanks to the 32" size, I usually split the screen 3-4 ways comfortably with the Rectangle app.
It's like harnessing the combined screen area of 4x 13" laptops, and hard go back to a smaller display haha.

Good point about sitting position. I sit an arm's length from my 32" but still feel I could use a wider display.
Did a mock up of the 38" at the same position and my peripheral vision feels maxed out lol.
I'll need to test it out at the store to know for sure.

Can't do laptops for home use...my poor neck would complain lol!