9+ Best Monitor For Mac Mini | Unrivaled Guide 2022

In this guide, we will help you choose the best Mac Mini monitor that’s perfect for you. Furthermore, we will offer you the best models currently available on the market. Before purchasing a product of this category, it is good to analyze some aspects and some technical characteristics that are crucial in your choice.

Being products designed primarily for graphic editing and productivity, many times it is preferred to use more than one monitor. Unlike a Mac and a Macbook, Mac Minis are marketed without a monitor included in the box. For this reason one needs to purchase a third party monitor. In fact, Apple allows you to use external displays with your Mac to enhance your user experience.

Best Monitor For Mac Mini

Best Monitor For Mac Mini | Comparison Table 2022

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Best Monitor For Mac Mini | 2022 Products Overview

Best Monitor For Mac Mini | Unrivaled Guide 2022

Checklist

Display technology

Different computer monitors are powered by different display technologies. In the past, most computer monitors used cathode ray technology (CRT). In recent years, however, alternative display technologies have emerged, some of which include liquid crystal displays (LCDs), light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Of those display technologies available, OLED offers the highest level of performance.

Screen size

Computer monitors are available in a wide range of sizes. Some are only 17 inches small, while others measure up to 40 inches. The screen size refers to the diameter of the display. Large computer monitors have a large display, which generally makes them preferable over smaller computer monitors. The downside to a great computer monitor, however, is the price. Unsurprisingly, they usually cost more than smaller computer monitors. If you’re planning to buy multiple computer monitors for your business, you may want to keep an average size to save money.

Budget

If you normally work with high-resolution images and constantly switch between tools in the Adobe suite, you are probably looking for the best possible image to improve color reproduction. But just know that compared to most general / business use monitors, a professional monitor will cost you.

The diagonal and the “format”

Monitors, like TVs, are measured in inches. The measurement refers to the diagonal of the screen (from the lower left side to the upper right side). One inch equals 2.54cm. Looking for a monitor, we will undoubtedly hear about “format”.

For example, “16: 9” indicates the proportion between the base size and the height of the rectangle in which the images are displayed. If the base is 16cm, the height will be 9cm; the dimensions obviously increase as the screen size increases but they always remain proportional to the basic values ​​that refer to the horizontal and vertical side.

The size of the screen is indicated by providing the size of the diagonal, a measure that allows you to get an idea of ​​the overall size of the display, taking into account the rectangular shape and the fixed proportion between the base and the height.

The resolution

Among the specifications to take into account when choosing a monitor, certainly the first is the resolution. This term refers to the precision of the details that the system is able to display, a direct consequence of the quantity of the single points that make up the image on the screen. Resolution is related to both screen size and dot spacing. This parameter measures the number of pixels (in width and height) that can be displayed on the screen.

For example, the term 1080p means displays with a resolution of 1920 pixels (width horizontally) x 1080 pixels (height on the vertical axis).

As the resolution increases, the number of pixels that can be displayed on the screen, and consequently windows and other elements, grows. The resolution of many 24 ″ widescreen LCD monitors is Full-HD (1920 × 1080 pixels), the same as HDTVs for 1080p or 1080i modes. New generation monitors integrate support for “4K” resolution, in other words 4,096 × 2,160 pixels; still others support the lower “Ultra HD” resolution: 3,840 × 2,160 pixels, also called 2160p.

The 5K resolution is integrated in larger screens (usually 27 “) and is equal to 5120 × 2880 pixels. Typical maximum resolutions of today’s monitors are: 1920 × 1200 pixels or 2560 × 1600 pixels; other higher ones begin to be found on consumer models but are normally available on professional models.

macOS support at high resolutions

The latest versions of macOS support DisplayPort 4K resolution monitors via Single-Stream Transport technology at 30Hz and 60Hz on the following Macs: Mac Pro (Late 2013), iMac (Retina 4K, 21.5-inch, Late 2015, and following), MacBook Pro (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014 and newer), MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015 and later).

Connecting 4K monitors with 3,840 x 2,160 resolution is supported at 60Hz on the following Macs: MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015 and later), MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014 and newer), Mac Pro (Late 2013), iMac (Retina 4K, 21.5-inch, Late 2015 and later), MacBook Pro (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014 and newer), MacBook Air (Early 2015 and later).

The door

Many 4K and 5K monitors can be connected to the Mac using Thunderbolt or HDMI cables. For monitors with integrated DisplayPort port just use a Thunderbolt cable; some of these integrate a DisplayPort port which requires a DisplayPort to Mini DisplayPort cable. The latter are very cheap cables and can be found for a few tens of dollars on Amazon.

Macs sold from 2011 to 2013 use the first generation of Thunderbolt; this supports DisplayPort 1.1a technology, offering a maximum throughput of 8.64 Gbps and capable of driving virtually any 4K or 5K display with a refresh rate of 60Hz.

What is the refresh rate?

Refresh rate is the number of times in a second the image is redrawn on a display. It is a parameter that is measured in Hertz (Hz) and allows you to evaluate the effective stability of the image on the screen (as the refresh rate increases, eye fatigue caused by imperceptible flicker decreases). Typical frequencies of monitors are: 24Hz, 30Hz and 60Hz

The color space

In the technical descriptions of some monitors, you will find chromaticity diagrams, a standard of the Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage (CIE) that shows the color space manageable by the screens. Without going into technical details (which we will perhaps talk about in a separate article), the breadth of these figures allows us to know the mathematical models of perception indicated as color spaces and represented by acronyms such as XYZ (it is the CIE 1931 model) , xyY, Lab, Luv.

The colors are indicated by two chromatic variables (x and y), arranged along the Cartesian axes of a plane where there is a “U” curve. The “pure” colors (technically those of the visible spectrum, from red to violet) are distributed along the curve; inside the curve we find the colors ranging from pure colors to ideal white (in the center). These diagrams allow you to make evaluations from the point of view of tonal ranges (gamut) and understand how many of these a device is actually able to reproduce. Professional monitors cost more because they are usually able to offer higher gamuts than cheaper ones.

Calibration

To obtain the best possible color match the monitors are calibrated in the factory but the overall final result depends on several factors: the video card used, the panel used, the lighting modes of the work environment and more. maOS integrates standard features that allow you to calibrate the monitors via software by creating customized profiles. The operating system and other software that use Apple’s ColorSync technology can take advantage of these profiles and reproduce the colors of images more faithfully.

Monitors intended for professional environments (photography, video, desktop publishing) should be calibrated regularly using a colorimeter, a device that offers functions that allow you to adjust contrast, brightness, determine the brightness response curve, the response curve and the point better white.

The colorimeters (standard or available as an option with some professional monitors) allow direct measurement of display radiation and ambient light, generating customized profiles. The instrument in question allows you to measure the gamut and evaluate various parameters with which to determine the uniformity of the tonal response and brightness of the panel.

Panel technology

Panel technology means the type of liquid crystal used and the backlight system used. These are two parameters that determine the quality and breadth of the reproducible chromatic range, as well as the precision with which the input signal is transformed into the final tones.

These technologies also affect factors such as brightness, contrast and viewing angle or viewing angle, the latter being an arc on the perpendicular of the panel within which the colors should not veer in a noticeable way.

Most of the panels used in today’s monitors are divided into: Tn ( Twisted Nematic ) and Ips ( In Plane Switching ). The former has been on the market the longest, it is the cheapest but this does not necessarily mean that it is inferior to competing technology. With the Tn type panels it is possible to obtain higher refresh rates than Ips, even reaching speeds of 1ms against the average 5ms of the others. The refresh rate is particularly important with programs (eg games) that present moving images.

The IPS monitors, on the other hand, offer advantages from the point of view of color reproduction, of their consistency, for the greater amplitude in the viewing angle. In fact, Tn panels typically suffer from greater directionality in color rendering and brightness (in particular on the vertical axis). More expensive IPS panels display billions of colors with true 10-bit encoding and coverage of 99% of the sRGB spectrum.

Consumption and certifications

Parameters concerning energy consumption should not be underestimated. It is true that the vast majority of today’s displays consume very little but between one model and another there are differences that would be noticed by measuring consumption in standby (in the absence of input signal). Consumption grows based on the diagonal, brightness settings and features that automatically adjust the backlight.

There are various standards for energy certifications and the most important acronyms are: Energy Star, EPEAT, ROHS and TCO. The presence of one or more of these abbreviations guarantees compliance with specific regulations but also parameters that take into account the management of materials and the ease of separation of components when the time for recycling arrives.

Thunderbolt e HDMI

The Mac’s Thunderbolt port supports displays with refresh rates up to 60Hz; Macs with an HDMI port allow you to manage displays with a refresh rate of 24Hz or 30Hz due to specific limitations of the HDMI 1.4 standard. The HDMI of the Mac Mini 2018 supports monitors with resolutions up to 4096×2160 @ 60Hz.

Macs with Thunderbolt 2 support DisplayPort 1.2 technology; the supported bandwidth is doubled, allowing (provided you have an adequate video card) to manage more monitors.

I MacBook Pro con Thunderbolt 3

The latest MacBook Pros (with Thunderbolt 3) simultaneously support native resolution, in millions of colors, on the integrated display and:

• an external monitor with 5120 × 2880 resolution at 60Hz and over a billion colors
• up to two external monitors with 4096 × 2304 resolution at 60Hz and millions of colors
• up to two external monitors with 3840×2160 resolution at 60Hz and over a billion colors

The digital video output of these models is Thunderbolt 3 (native DisplayPort output via USB ‑ C) and functions as VGA, HDMI and Thunderbolt 2 output via adapters (sold separately)

iMac Pro with Thunderbolt 3 port

The iMac Pro with Thunderbolt 3 port simultaneously supports native 5K (5120×2880) resolution, with one billion colors, on the integrated screen and:

• two external monitors with 5120 × 2880 (5K) resolution at 60Hz and one billion colors; or
• four external monitors with 3840×2160 (4K UHD) resolution at 60Hz and one billion colors; or
• four external monitors with 4096 × 2304 (4K) resolution at 60Hz and millions of colors.

Native DisplayPort output via USB ‑ C supports VGA, HDMI, DVI and Thunderbolt 2 outputs via adapters (sold separately)

The “cascaded” Thunderbolt connection

Some monitors with a Displayport / Thunderbolt connection allow multiple monitors to be chained together to a single video output. With the Mac Pro, for example, it is possible to connect up to six monitors to the single video output of the computer, a technique called “daisy-chaining”, a “circle” that allows you to take advantage of multiple independent displays without degrading the quality of the images.

Additional inputs / outputs

Some monitors provide inputs and outputs that have nothing to do with the display. For example, some have integrated USB ports that function like a hub connected to the computer. On still others there are audio inputs which, combined with standard integrated speakers, allow you to amplify the audio output of the computer, without resorting to additional speakers, even if the amplification is normally limited to a few watts.

Image Quality

So, what makes the ASUS PA329C the best 32″ 4K monitor for the money for your Mac Mini?

To start with, it has a wide color gamut covering 98% of the DCI-P3 color space as well as 100% sRGB, 100% Adobe RGB and 84% Rec. 2020.

It gets better: it also supports hardware calibration, has an integrated uniformity compensation technology, 14-bit LUT (Look-up Table), it’s factory-calibrated at Delta E < 2 and it supports HDR with DisplayHDR 600 certification.

Other specifications include a 400-nit peak brightness (600-nits for HDR), a 1,000:1 static contrast ratio, 10-bit color depth support and localized dimming consisting of 32 zones that can dim parts of the image for higher contrast ratio.

Now, with a 32″ 4K monitor, you’re getting a pixel density of 139 PPI, so the image won’t be quite as crisp as that of a 27″ 4K display, but you’ll get a much bigger screen and plenty of screen space.

The monitor also offers plenty of additional features including PiP/PbP, QuickFit Virtual Scale (on-screen grid), advanced image adjustment tools (including five gamma modes) and various presets (including five different color spaces).

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is a bit bulky, but it’s robust and versatile with up to 130mm height adjustment, 90° pivot, +/- 45° swivel, -5°/20° tilt and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Frequent questions

Verdict

I have tried to list the best Mac Mini monitor, I hope you have been able to find a reliable option. You can take a look at the following for clarity:

• If you want the best, consider getting: LG 27UL500
• If you want high value for your money then you get: Lenovo C24-25
• If you want the cheapest, get: LG 27UL850

If you still haven’t found the right one, comment below and I’ll help you find one within 1-4 weeks.