I am buying a new display and trying to decide what would be best: One 30 inch or two 23 inches monitors?

To those who have a 30 inch,

do you feel you still need a second monitor?
if you would do it again, would you still get the 30inch or go for two 23 inches?

I will apreciate any advice anyone can offer. Thanks.

Interested too.... so: [bump]

I use both... If you are the kind of person that likes dual monitors, the 30" won't be a good replacement. You have a ton of room on the screen, but it's easy to want to fill the entire screen up.

I typically run lightroom on the 30" while having email, web, etc. on the 23"

+1. The 30" is HUGE when you first get it...but after a few weeks it feels just like a regular size monitor. I plan on buying a 2nd near the end of the year. If you personally like a dual monitor setup, then I would go for the dual 23's over a single 30".

30" rules. I've never actively ran two monitors, bit the 30 is a dream to work on. Like David said it seems huge at first, and before long you just smile every time you sit in front of it..

2-23" vs 1-30" I would say go 30. 2-30" well I can't even imagine but if you try it let us know...

I was tempted to go fo 2-30" but I just cannot justify $4k for monitors! Ouch!! But, can you imaging retouching in that screen without almost having to zoom in?! Wow!

I use Aperture and I am sure it can benefit greatly from the screen real estate. But I am hooked using two screen and I am not sure if I can get use to just one. So, I was thinking on a 30 and a 20, maybe... Almost like Sherk and the donkey combination

Gavin (and those who have a 30") what benefits have you found of using the 30"?

Thanks.

>do you feel you still need a second monitor?

nope.

>if you would do it again, would you still get the 30inch or go for two 23 inches?

30 all the way.



I think it was worth the expense. You spend your whole life looking at the thing, it may as well be comfortable. I love having endless desktop space.

The biggest actual advantage is editing virtical pictures. At 50% in PS, I can see the entire virticle pic (8MP, MkII) and still see all the menus and bars.

You really do spend more time working and less time scrolling. I don't know how much $$ that translates to, but I figure I'll use this monitor for the next 5 years. Sitting here at least 30 hours a week - do the math on it over time and the cost difference isn't much.

I've never used two monitors so it's hard to answer your first question other than to say buying a 30in screen was the best purchase I've made in a long time. No regrets at all so if I were to have to do it over I wouldn't hesitate at the 30in choice. Size matters!!! Seriously, it's a beautiful screen to work on, it's easy on the eyes, plenty of screen space & it blows your clients away too! When I fork out for another Mac, I'll definitely be buying a second 30in screen.

30" inch all the way, baby! Also one of the best decisions we've made regarding equipment. I believe it truly is an asset to our workflow by being able to put so many photos on the screen at one time and actually see them. Not to mention being able to see a much larger slice of the image at 100%. I have a 23" sitting on a desk, collecting dust waiting for our studio to open, and I've never felt the need to hook it up for the dual monitor capability.

30" monitor

Get the smaller one. Who ever says bigger is better is full of $%@?

Besides, you don't want to have too much of that stuff on your desk, do you.

Just get two 30's!!!
Problem solved

Even though the 30 kicks major arse, it does start to feel like a normal size screen after you've been using it for a while. I think we just get greedy cuz you always want something bigger. Two 23's might be more effective if you want to easily organize your workflow.

Get the 30" now and then another one later down the road.

I use a 30" and a 20" right now. I do a lot of photography and design work so it is the perfect set up for that. I usually have whatever I'm working on (Aperture, InDesign, Photoshop) open on the main screen. The 20" usually has my e-mail, iTunes and any secondary documents for the project I'm working on. I usually keep a Safari window open on the 20" too.

Eventually I plan on upgrading to two 30" screens.

The best part (that I don't think anyone has talked about) is how impressed clients are when they come to view photos on the 30" monitor. This setup is second to none when it comes to having several people in the office colaborating on a project or looking through photos.

Be like Al Gore and get 3 30" displays. I'm sure Apple gives him anything he wants. They get tons of exposure because of it.

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29...1363003,00.html

That picture is CLASSIC!

Makes me feel much better about my own desk!

I'm high maintenance......I have to have 2 30" monitors

if you look at the specs for two 23" inch monitors, it's so close to one 30" monitor. We like having two 30" monitors.

Woah! Dude, his desk and office looks just like the federal government. I'm sure he'll fit right in. "I see another 2 squre inches over there, I can pile some more random junk there, and that teeeetering pile of unknown band-aide garbage can take a few more folders before it actually collapses."

I'm not really for or against Gore. I do applaud his efforts on global warming, but wow - I've said for years the federal govt is built like a house of cards and his desk nails it, and for someone who will hopefully "clean up" Washington.... suddenly I'm not so sure.


And he's got a mighty big rainbow frog on his wall. I wonder the story behind the frog.

Thanks so much for all your opinions. I just got my new MACPRO and decided for the 2 23inches. I was going to get the 30" but to get it to PR was ridiculously expensive.

Regardless of the size, what I do like is the quality of the Apple screens. Wow! I am impressed.

Thanks again. You guys and gals were very helpful in my decision.