Connecting 2015 15" Retina MacBook Pro to Dell U2715H?
What would be the 'best' way to connect the 2015 Retina MacBook Pro to a Dell U2715H monitor? If I wanted to use the monitors USB 3.0 ports and also output sound to a Dell soundbar, how many cables would I need?
I was previously considering getting a Thunderbolt Display, but the reasons against are:
- Bigger and heavier than the Dell
- Ugly wide bezels
- Twice as expensive as the Dell
- Uses more power than the Dell
I do wonder what functionality I'll lose though. Will I end up having to (dis)connect HDMI, USB and audio each time I (un)dock the laptop?
Would I connect the MacBook to the display using some sort of adapter, or just the HDMI port? UPDATE: The U2715H doesn't support 2560x1440 over HDMI, only using the MiniDP connection.
Solution 1:
Do NOT use the HDMI video output!
Please buy a Mini DisplayPort cable connect your MacBook and U2715H.
Solution 2:
The Dell monitor came with a Mini DP connector, which was all that was needed to carry the image. It also came with a USB connector, which has then allowed me to use the Dell soundbar.
The font smoothing on the Dell is not as good as on an official Apple monitor, which is somewhat annoying as the hardware is the same, it's a software problem. When dragging a window from the laptop screen to the Dell screen, you see OSX change the algorithm it's using to something more rubbish.