It’s unfortunate there’s no inclusion of an SD card reader or ethernet, as the Thunderbolt protocol fully supports both. These also don’t reach the 10 gbps of the USB-C standard, meaning external drives won’t be run at full bandwidth. Ports on the back are limited to 3 USB-C ports at 5 gbps, slower than a fully fledged Thunderbolt 3 port. This eliminates cable clutter and also means you can keep your charger in your bag.

In addition to this, 85W over the same cable is enough to power a 15” MacBook Pro, a handy one-cable solution. They can get fairly loud, but don’t pack much in the way of bass or clarity.Īn advantage of using a 2016 or newer MacBook Pro with the LG UltraFine 5K monitor is being able to plug directly in via the included Thunderbolt 3 connector, for the full 5K experience straight out of the box.

With two built-in 5W speakers, audio is a little ‘tinny’, and slightly under-powered when compared to iMac Speakers. Microphone quality is also strong, equally on par with the iMac and MacBook Pro lines. The UltraFine 5K features In-Plane Switching (IPS) Technology with Thunderbolt 3 / USB Type-C Inputs, Built-In Webcam with Microphone, and Built-In USB Type-C Hub. (If you want to upgrade for better video conferencing capabilities or discover which webcam works best with Zoom, we suggest buying something external such as one of the Logitech models.) The integrated 1080p webcam is a welcome improvement over my MacBook Pro 720p camera and makes for ‘good-enough’ quality FaceTime and Skype calls when chatting to clients and friends. This is something I turn off for photo editing, as I like to set my display to 350 cd/m² to ensure a consistent exposure brightness.

The built-in ambient light sensor on this monitor lets it automatically adjust the brightness to match your surroundings, just like a MacBook. LG also includes a VESA mount in the box, so you could easily attach the display to a mounting arm, adding further flexibility down the line. It’s not a major gripe, but other monitors of this class wobble a lot less. Though not so much of an issue when editing photos, I would suggest lowering the height when writing emails and blogs. That being said, the display wobbles from small vibrations such as typing when extended to maximum height. The metal stand is very sturdy and gives confidence when picking up the monitor. Though understated and clean, they’re very uninspiring, with the same thickness as iMac bezels – a far cry from the bleeding-edge design of newer competitors.

Clad in black plastic bezels, the aesthetics of the LG UltraFine are up for debate, and I personally feel that this is one area that LG skimped on.

Lg monitor apple