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Acer XR382CQK - 37.5” Ultrawide Monitor and MacBook Pro

It’s time for another Ultrawide Monitor test! After two failures, I am hoping that the third one will be it!

Recap of monitors I have tried so far: 1. Dell U3818DW Link to the post I did on this one 2. HP ENVY 34-inch Ultra (TL;DR: It was impossible to calibrate the color correctly)

Just like the 2 monitors above, this was all done using the same Late 2016 15” MacBook Pro w/ TouchBar.

This time I am trying the Acer XR382CQK! This monitor doesn’t seem to be one of the top hits you come across when looking for Ultrawide monitors. I came across it somewhat by mistake. My primary focus was on the LG 38UC99-W and was ready to pull the trigger on it, but at the eleventh hour, I found this Acer. After a good bit of comparison, I went with the Acer for the following reasons. 1. Materials: The Acer and LG use the same LCD panel. 2. Price: The Acer was $899 compared to the LG at $1399 3. Refresh Rate: The Acer is at 75Hz (only when using DisplayPort) while the LG caps at 60Hz. For some reason, the USB-C and HDMI connections on the Acer just gave me 30Hz (which looked terrible).

Downsides To Using The Acer Monitor * Like the other panels I have tried, no audio control of the monitor’s speakers using MacOS native controls. There are a couple of workarounds but they are kinda hacky and I would rather not bother. The integrated speakers are barely ok anyway, so you would be better off with external speakers more than likely. * The USB A 3.0 hub on the back of the monitor (4 ports) is only accessible through the USB-C port. Although it states they are USB 3.0, I could only get them to recognize as 2.0 ports on the mac so far. I opted for an Aukey Hub that gives me 4 USB-A ports as well as pass-through of up to 100W power. * Although the stand that comes with the monitor is very nice and super stable, it does require a lot of depth, and with my desk setup it sits the monitor too close to my face. I decided to get an adjustable monitor arm so I can float the monitor in any position and it will also have the added benefit of extra room under the monitor.

Now that I have figured out all the quirks and made the necessary adjustments, I am super happy with this monitor. I still really like the form factor of the 38” Ultrawide panels and am so happy I finally have found one that works with my setup. It’s not perfect, but it will work until future offerings come along. Now, on to the final setup!

The Final Setup * Acer XR382CQK Monitor * Aukey CB-C58 Hub * Amazon Basics Premium Single Monitor Stand * Cable Matters USB-C >> DisplayPort Cable * G-DRIVE with TB3 | 10TB for archiving * G-DRIVE with TB3 | 4TB for TimeMachine and MacBook drive imaging using Carbon Copy Cloner. * Logitech MX ERGO Wireless Trackball * Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard