Presently, I am using an LG 27” 4K and a Dell 24” 4K monitor on an M1 mini. I am thinking about expanding my screen “real estate.”
My decision is between going with a second LG 27” 4K (the same model) to replace the 24”, or a larger screen size.
Perhaps my biggest concern is that there seem to be very few screens that are larger than the 27” size that also have a higher resolution. My concern is that a 32”, 48”, etc 4K monitor obviously must have a lower pixel density than a 27” 4K, and I am concerned that with larger size comes less image quality, which is very important to me. I know a lot of people are adopting these 38” and 49” widescreens with the latter advertised as being equal to 2 x 27”, but at much lower resolution.
I have worked with 2 monitors of equal size before. Right now the 24” is off to the side as an informations, screen only (calendar, task list) but I don’t find it as useful as I had hoped so I am looking more at a dual monitor setup where both are in use.
Other issues:
— I do hate having the bezel in the middle of my field of view, arguing for one large monitor rather than two smaller;
— color accuracy is very important as I do a lot of photography work;
— For the same reason I want to stay away from curved monitors, so the various 49” options are pretty much out;
— refresh rate does not matter as I don’t game;
— I also have an M1 MBAir, so one larger monitor is handy when I want to dock, but in practice I could use just one 27” external on the MBA when needed without it being a major issue;
— no, I don’t have enough need to justify the Apple XDR!
I know this ultimately becomes a personal decision of pros and cons, but it will help me to,hear what others think and/or can recommend from their experiences and use of various monitors.
Thanks for any ideas and thoughts.
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That’s a good description of the problem. How far back do you usually sit? Lower PPI can be okay at larger distances. At the same distance, you’d need 6k+ for 32” to maintain PPI, and that restricts you to the mid four figure screens including the XDR. 
I’ve used two monitors for about 20 years now. I’ve never felt the need for a single large monitor because I wanted multiple monitors to easily have many windows viewable at once.
What I have found important is to have the same pixel pitch across both monitors so that windows can be dragged between them without changing size or jumping up/down doing the crossing.
I currently have two 27" displays, one the 5k display of the iMac and the second a 4K LG display. Both are set to 2560x1440 “Retina” which means that the displays are actually full resolution but reduced in software – you still cannot see the pixels.
The LG display is in Portrait orientation. This reduces the desk space and I stack two windows vertically (Calendar and Omnifocus) there all the time, but can switch Spaces on the LG if I need it for more workspace. That’s another thing, Spaces is more useful with dual displays than it would be with one large display since you can change spaces independently.
Thanks!
I generally site about 2-3 feet from my current monitor, making pixel pitch important, I think.
In terms of multiple windows, with one widescreen monitor I would likely divide it conceptually into three regions, left middle and right, with windows tiled in each region. Like the center would have a full height window, while the left and middle might have full hight or half height, depending on content and the job at hand.
Another benefit to one large monitor is when I am working on a large spreadsheet, which is not frequent, but often enough to make a small monitor problematic (hence why I sometimes hook my MBAir up to the 27”.
Yes, the Apple XDR would be a potential solution, but cost prohibitive. I don’t know of any other 6K monitors around, but it sounds like a time for Google.
Oh yes, and totally agree on ensuring the same dot pitch for both monitors, Having windows resize when dragged between screens is not ideal. That’s why if I go two monitors, I’ll get a duplicate of the LG I already have.