BenQ MA320U review: cheaper alternative to Apple Studio Display

If you think the Apple Studio Display is too expensive but you want a monitor designed for a Mac, then the BenQ MA320U is a great choice.

BenQ MA320U review

Nowadays you can use virtually any screen for your Mac, but some screens are still better suited than others. If you’re unlucky, you’ll have to use a dongle to connect your Mac and the monitor will be too low-resolution for macOS’ sharp retina mode.

If you want to be sure that everything works together perfectly, you should buy the Apple Studio Display. However, in one fell swoop you will be almost 1,800 euros poorer. Even if you can afford that, you may not want to spend that much for a monitor. That’s why it’s good news that BenQ now has an alternative that only costs 600 euros. The BenQ MA320U is a 32-inch 4K screen that was specially designed for the Mac.

A suitable appearance

The edges are made of matte black plastic, but the back and base of the BenQ MA320U are metal-colored. This makes them match the aluminum color of the Mac well. There is a rubber part in approximately the same color on the base, so you can safely place your MacBook on it.

The BenQ MA320U has a whole range of connections at the back: 2x HDMI, 1x USB-C with 90 watt power supply for your MacBook, 1x USB-C for charging your iPhone and one USB-A connection. BenQ supplies a cable clip so that you can route the cables neatly along the stand of the screen. At the front you will also find a headphone output and an extra USB-A port under the screen.

Unlike the Apple Studio Display, the BenQ MA320U is fully adjustable. This way you can easily adjust the height, vertical angle and horizontal angle, and you can even rotate the screen. Ideal if you have a flexible desk that you regularly adjust.

A user-friendly monitor

Connect the BenQ to your Mac with a USB C cable and go through the initial setup with the joystick at the bottom of the screen. You will see that everything is immediately set up correctly and that the colors are aligned with those of your MacBook screen. Your MacBook will also be charged immediately.

You only use the buttons on the screen to adjust the brightness, volume and input source. You can easily adjust all other settings via the Display Pilot 2 app on your Mac. The app adds a handy screen settings menu to the menu bar. It is also possible to synchronize the brightness of the screen with the built-in screen of your MacBook. You can even have the color settings automatically adjusted by activating a certain Focus in macOS. Only when you connect a game console, you may miss a traditional on-screen menu.

Good image quality

The BenQ MA320U has a 4K resolution with a contrast ratio of 1300:1, which looks razor-sharp. Set your Mac to 2560 x 1440 pixels and the macOS image is nicely balanced with the size of the screen. The maximum brightness of 500 nits is bright enough, sometimes perhaps even a little too bright. Unfortunately, the HDR mode is actually nothing more than a gimmick. It remains an LCD panel, so there is no real high dynamic range. In our opinion, BenQ could have omitted this function.

BenQ MA320U review: conclusion

If you want a cheaper alternative to the Apple Studio Display, the BenQ MA320U is one of your best options. The image is sharp and clear and is completely synchronized with the image settings of your MacBook. The monitor has a wide range of connections and is also fully adjustable. There is also a 27-inch version available, the BenQ MA270U. It is also 100 euros cheaper.