One thing’s for sure – 49-inch monitors look amazing
A 49-inch ultrawide monitor really is a thing of beauty. When positioned on a desk it’s all you see – it commands your attention. You immediately start thinking of all the things you could use it for and you can imagine how productive it will make you. Your work will become a breeze and you’ll be the envy of your friends. Gaming! You imagine the beautiful looking landscapes stretching across your peripheral. You must have one!
But are they all they are cracked up to be? Let’s discuss.
A 49-inch ultrawide monitor is great for productivity if used correctly. If gaming is your thing then they provide an immersive experience, however, they aren’t for the competitive gamer.
The monitor I own
I own the Samsung LC49RG90SSUXEN 49″ Curved LED Gaming Monitor. I bought it from Amazon for an eye-watering £976.52 about a year and a half ago. At the time, I had just started out as a software developer and justified the purchase by telling myself that I would be so much more productive if I owned that monitor.
The selling point of this particular modal was the resolution – 5120 x 1440. I’d previously used a couple of large(ish) monitors with a height of 1080px and these monitors didn’t cut it for me. The text looked too big and I couldn’t fit enough on the screen, which I found especially annoying when coding. My new monitor had to have a height of 1440px and that meant I had to spend a little more.
The benefits of an ultrawide monitor
First off, let’s look at the benefits of having such a large monitor.
Screen size
The humongous amount of screen real estate definitely increases productivity if used correctly. With the ability to have various windows open and visible at once, I’m no longer spending time searching for or tabbing between windows.
I tend to have the window I’m primarily using in the center of the screen and then position supporting windows off to either side. Again, because of the 1440px vertical resolution, I can even split the side sections in half, top to bottom, to fit in more windows. Because the monitor is so wide, these extra windows are off in my peripheral and don’t distract me too much, but they are there if I need them.
Window management
When I first started using the monitor I found it annoying to position and resize various windows. This is where FancyZones came to the rescue. FancyZones is a free program that comes as part of Microsoft Power Tools. It allows me to set up zones on my screen where I can drag and drop windows that automatically resize. I can even set up different layouts of the zones and swap between them with a keyboard shortcut. I have one layout for blog writing and another for coding.
The benefits of an ultrawide over two smaller monitors
The advantage of a 49-inch monitor over two smaller monitors is that you only need one power cable and one HDMI/display port cable, which makes cable management easier and cleaner. Using two monitors means that a bezel is visible down the middle of your view, this is particularly annoying if you like your main window to be centered.
Screen splitting
A good thing about having two separate monitors is that you can have two different input sources, but, any 49-inch monitor worth its salt will also allow for this. The Samsung allows for two input sources and I can choose the aspect ratio of the inputs: 16:9 (16:9), 21:9(11:9), or 11:9(21:9). I don’t use this feature often as it divides my attention, but it has its uses. I imagine this feature would be great for streamers – being able to have the game running on one window with chat open on another.
The negative side of owning an ultrawide monitor
Now let’s look at some of the cons I’ve come across while using an ultrawide.
It really is wide!
Because the monitor is so wide I need to turn my head to view the outer edges. Although this sounds fairly trivial, I find I try and avoid it and end up using the middle of the screen for anything that requires my attention for a minute. Anything more than a glance to the side windows and I will reposition into the center. This is only a half-con as it is better ergonomically to have the thing you are looking at right in front, but it does feel like I’m defeating the purpose of the larger screen sometimes.
Trackpads
Trackpads aren’t cut out for 49-inch monitors. On the occasion when I’ve attempted to use a trackpad I quickly go find a mouse. There is too much area to cover with a trackpad and it feels like an age to navigate from one corner to the other. It’s also incredibly easy to lose track of where the cursor is!
Features are going to cost
An annoyance with my particular model is that it doesn’t come with built-in speakers. The monitor does have audio out, so I can connect speakers and run the sound through whichever input screen I want, but I would have liked the clean look of inbuilt speakers.
The USP of these ultrawide monitors is their size – that is what you are paying for, and the extras can fall by the wayside unless you are going to pay a lot more. So if you are looking for an amazing refresh rate and a lot of features, then you may be better off going for a smaller size or be prepared to spend big.
Compatability
One of the bigger issues I’ve had is compatibility with MacBooks. I cannot run the full 5120 x 1440 straight from one output of my MacBook. I am forced to use a docking station and run two display ports to the monitor in order to achieve full screen at a decent resolution. If I wanted to use one display port then I was limited to a height of 1080px. I’ve not come across this issue while using Windows.
They are hefty pieces of equipment
The physical size and weight of these monitors are something to keep in mind. Not all desks will be able to accommodate such a wide monitor, so be sure to get the measuring tape out before buying. Also, if you have a shallow desk then the stand could be an issue – my desk is a bit on the narrow side so the stand hits the wall behind the desk and forces it closer to me than I would like. I’ve considered mounting on a swivel arm, but I’ve been told that the weight of the monitor can cause cheaper stands to tilt forward.
Overwhelm
Now possibly the biggest issue: having all that screen space means you tend to fill all that screen space. But do you really need to have Spotify open all the time? Is the window with a newsfeed really necessary while you type up a report? More windows equal more distractions and this is where I’d advise being careful. Well positioned and useful windows will increase productivity while unnecessary visible windows will decrease productivity.
I’ve written another post regarding The Benefits of Tidying Up which ties in nicely with having too many windows open.
A word about gaming
I’m not much of a gamer anymore, but I do dip my toe from time to time and couldn’t resist trying a few games out on the large screen. The results are varied and the type of game is important to keep in mind.
Competitive gaming is a definite no – I loaded up Counter-Strike and almost instantly stopped playing. I don’t play competitively, so it wasn’t the lower fps that put me off, but the fact I had to move my head to see the mini-map and corner of the screen. I would be looking at one side of the monitor while someone else would appear on the other side and take me out before I knew they were there.
I also tried Cyberpunk and that was a different experience. The wide monitor gave a sense of immersion that a smaller monitor could not. Unfortunately, with Cyberpunk and other games, they are not yet fully optimized for the larger aspect ratio and therefore menus and cutscenes are still displayed at lower resolutions with black bands down the sides. I’d advise checking if the game you intend to play supports the larger resolution or you may be sorely disappointed.
Conclusion: would I recommend buying?
Yes. Yes, I would. Despite the cons listed above, I would still choose a 49-inch monitor over a smaller monitor or two monitors. I’ve tried going back to a smaller monitor, and often have to do so if I go into the office, but I miss the screen space. I get annoyed having to squish windows or tab between them.
There are times when the monitor feels excessive. Times when I’m conscious of the extra power the monitor needs. And times I wish I had better frame rate. But, productivity is key to me at this stage of my life and productivity is what the ultrawide gives me – productivity in bucket loads.
That’s all for now,
Iain McClafferty – The Five Year Mortgage
