Is this the Best 5K Monitor for Mac? BENQ PD2730S Review

Meet the BenQ PD2730S, a new 5K display joining a very small club alongside ASUS, Samsung, and Apple. It tries to balance performance, features, and price while focusing on color accuracy. I’ve been testing it for the past couple of weeks.

Why 5K matters on a Mac

Because of how macOS scaling works, interface elements are designed to be a certain size. The result is a sharper image on a 27-inch 5K display than on a 27-inch 4K display scaled to look like 1440p. Until recently, the 5K options were basically the Studio Display, the Samsung ViewFinity S9, and the ASUS PA27JCV.

Design and ports

It follows BenQ’s clean, minimal design, a bit bulkier than some, with a chin and a BenQ logo. On the bottom right is a quick-select key (color, KVM, mute), a joystick for the menus, and power. On the left are four USB ports and a headphone jack. The rear ports point horizontally, which makes plugging things in easier.

Inputs include HDMI, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt 4 (up to 90 W to your laptop), and USB-C for a second computer through the built-in KVM. A second Thunderbolt 4 port lets you connect an SSD or daisy-chain a second display up to 5K. It has a built-in power supply, so no brick.

If there’s one thing I’d change across BenQ’s designs, it’s the gap between the frame and the bezels. It isn’t even all the way around, and dust settles in it.

The stand base is large, about 11 by 8¾ inches, and very sturdy, with height, tilt, swivel, and full 90° rotation. I also tried BenQ’s new Ergo arm. It has a reinforcement plate to protect your desk from the clamp, holds up to 44 pounds, swivels 360°, and is the most solid display arm I’ve ever tried.

Color, uniformity, and my measurements

These are factory calibrated to a Delta E under 2. By eye, it looked more uniform and less blotchy than others I’ve tested recently, with just two small areas of backlight bleed near the bottom, less than on the ASUS 5K. The nano matte coating does about as well as most matte displays, with a very slight grain on white and gray, maybe less than on the ASUS.

In the default P3 mode, my measurements were disappointing: 96% P3 versus the stated 98%, 267 nits, and 650:1 contrast. I asked BenQ, and switching to the full user mode lets you turn off the uniformity setting. Then I measured 100% P3, 499 nits, and 1490:1. The reason it’s on by default is consistency: with uniformity off, the backlight gets brighter but varies much more across the panel. For designers and photo and video editors, consistency matters more than brightness.

Out of the box you also get preset color modes, including the M-book mode that matches your Mac. Pros can calibrate with Palette Master Ultimate and a colorimeter (it works on Mac), and Display ColorTalk matches two BenQ displays or your MacBook screen without a calibration tool.

Mac integration and the rest

Display Pilot software gives you brightness, volume, color mode, dual view and picture-in-picture from the menu bar, and with keyboard control enabled you can use your Mac’s keys, with the cursor on that display. The overlay looks a little off, but it works. The free MonitorControl utility is an alternative.

The two 3 W speakers are predictably bad. The included hotkey puck is decent, but once my settings are set I leave them alone. Waking takes three to four seconds, which is fast, though I don’t know why it needs a countdown before sleeping.

How it compares

At $1,199, it sits between the ASUS PA27JCV ($799) and the Studio Display ($1,599, often $1,299), and the Samsung S9 has been on sale for $699. The BenQ has better backlight uniformity than the Samsung and ASUS, but not their brightness and contrast. The Samsung has the better design, but the BenQ has Thunderbolt 4 and daisy chaining. The Studio Display has the best design hands down, great speakers, an OK webcam, and instant macOS integration, but only one input, no KVM, no pass-through, 950:1 contrast, and a height-adjustable stand costs at least $400 more.

If 5K and uniformity matter most, go BenQ or Studio Display. If price matters most, look for the Samsung S9 on sale. And if you don’t care about 5K, the BenQ MA270U is perfect for everyday Mac use.

Links

• BENQ PD2730S
• BenQ Ergo Arm
• Studio Display
• Asus PA27JCV
• BenQ MA270U
• Samsung ViewFinity S9
• Wood Laptop stand
• Affordable 5K Display for Mac: ASUS ProArt PA27JCV
• The Everyday Mac Display - BENQ MA270U
• Samsung ViewFinity S9 5K vs Apple Studio Display
• BenQ Monitor for Mac Page link
• BenQ Monitor for Graphic Design page link

In this video

• 0:00 a new 5k option!
• 0:28 why 5k?
• 0:58 basic specs
• 1:11 design and thunderbolt 4 and daisy chaining
• 2:34 I would change this…
• 2:52 stand and sturdiness
• 3:16 benq ergo arm
• 3:50 display initial test backlight and consistency
• 4:35 nano matte
• 5:08 lower than expected results and Uniformity setting
• 6:25 display is not just for designers
• 6:39 benq calibration tools
• 7:16 Mac integration
• 8:18 speakers
• 8:36 hotkey puck
• 8:57 sleep and wake time
• 9:17 vs vs vs vs. Which one to get?