Apple Sidecar VS Portable Display! 

Best way is to use external portable monitor and iPad sidecar together to get three displays on the go :)

Thanks Jerry. When Sidecar came out last year I bought a 12.9" iPad with Apple Pencil, thinking it'd be the perfect way to edit photos instead of using the mouse, using the iPad for selecting and my iMac's screen for overall color/brightness adjusting. Sadly my iMac is too old to use Sidecar, and I now have a Mac Studio and my new monitor should be here Monday, SO stoked to finally try this out for photo editing!

Used to have a iPad running Duet Display wired about 10 years ago, worked perfectly and will run on a 20,- second hand iPad 2

This is a really good comparison video and offers things to think about. Appreciate the post as it was exactly what I was looking for.

Great work!! I have been using my iPad Side Car Wirelessly and I was fed up with the connection issues so I decided to look into other wired monitors. This helps me realize I don't need that! ahah saved me a couple hundred bucks.

Hi, just wanted to add, that the iPad also supports universal control. In addition to that you should take a look at the reference mode on the 12.9 inch iPad for a better more colour accurate experience.

There it is! Sidecar and Universal control are great reasons to always go for the ipad.

I needed this video before buying the C1422H 14" Dell portable monitor for my Macbook Air A1 . Thanks

yes! i was too oblivious. was searching for this for more than a year. it was so making sense, but every google search leads me to wireless sidecar. i have been gave up using the unstable wireless and the ipad has been a sitting brick. so thank you so much for this video!

I bought a used 2nd gen iPad Pro 2 years ago just to fill out documents and the ease of pulling up notes/files on my mac. Sidecar being added a few months later was a huge bonus and now I use it everyday for work to have slack off to the side

Thanks for this video. I'm like you; I have a studio display and dislike having to move my head to the side to see another display. I have a nice gap on my desk, in front of the monitor, where a 2nd display would work well. Leaning towards the iPad so far.

thanks!! great review for people that travel and work :)

I have a 15" portable USB-C monitor I paid ~$110 and a new 10th Gen regular iPad. I find they both complement a 13" M1 Macbook Air, the 15" for road trips, and the iPad for air/cruise ship trips. If I could only choose one, the iPad is overall more versatile, but with usb-c monitors being so inexpensive, if you have the need, get both.

I've been using sidecar with my mac for the past 6 months and I'll chime in my thoughts. Sidecar is intended to be used wirelessly hence it has to compress the display output to be streamed, as a result your mac get's a bit warm on sidecar, my mac runs on average 10 degrees hotter. When I plug my mac to a regular display I have a negligible temperature difference. This might be a factor for longevity if it is your primary use case. In other words, I wouldn't buy an iPad just for another display. A portable is cheaper and performs better than an iPad.

Just want to point out, there are better options out there than that Dell display. I found a decent 15 inch USB C portable monitor on Amazon for around $250 that has 500 nits of brightness, and supposedly 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut(though I don't have the tools to test that). I'd like to see this comparison with some of the other options out there. I still use Sidecar when I need a quick side display, but for longer work sessions on the road in a hotel room for instance, I just prefer this monitor.

Putting the smaller screen directly underneath the larger one is indeed a great idea. Thank you for sharing!

Great video, I was looking if someone had tried the set up with the Dell monitor and a Mac, and the difference between using sidecar and iPad…so this video nailed it! 🤩 One question, can you power the Dell monitor on the go? With the MacBook (I have the Air M1) not plugged in to a wall socket? Or do I need to be plugged in to get power to the monitor?

The Dell portable monitor is quite expensive as far as HD portable displays go. Mine was about $150 and came with a case allowing for portrait and landscape configuration. This is typical of monitors which are just repurposed laptop screens. At that price, with the added screen real estate it makes much more sense, especially since I use multiple windows on my portable monitor. That 15" display makes it easy to view stuff side by side, whereas everything is more cramped on a 10" display.

This video is exactly what i was looking for

Would you also recommend the IPad as secondary display for a windows laptop? It provides a lot of functionality and you can connect as well

been using my 12.9in m1 ipad pro + apple's keyboard case with my 16in m3 max macbook (and before m3, i was using it with my m1 max) and its just perfect. good display, quick response, fits in my backpack, has a long battery for wireless sidecar, and can be used as an ipad anytime i want to leave my office with just a portable computer.

If possible, check out the CNBANAN 2.5K Portable Monitor 16". I find it compelling because it has a 3:2 aspect ratio and a relatively high resolution, and it's going for $109 at this moment.

Great review. Thanks for sharing.

Nice overview and comparison. FYI, you had the iPad Pro 12.9 on the screen when you said they both have 60Hz panels.

What about this same dilemma but for PC? Using Duet software?

I use an iPad Mini 6 with an MBA M2 13. It works great! I prop up the MBA with a Moft stand whilst using an external keyboard and mouse, so I can lay the iPad Mini directly on the keyboard. It works great for secondary stuff that I just need to glance at from time to time. Like you initially, I just used SIdecar wirelessly, and it was wony at best. Wired definitely works better, but I wonder if this will lead to overcharging issues with the iPad, along with draining the battery of the Macbook. To change the resolution of the iPad, an app called "Maestro" does the trick! Otherwise, the font is too small, and cannot be adjusted natively.

I've had a portable ASUS 15" screen with battery and I use it as a secondary screen for nearly 3 years with ZERO faults.... the iPad connection with or without cable for SideCar isn't the greatest... which is weird... Because for some reason there are software running the connexion while a standard portable screen needs just the signal. If not for visual edits a firmly believe the Asus is a far better option and much cheaper.

This is brilliant! I didn’t know sidecar could be used wired. I gave up on it for years because of how laggy and unstable it is wireless. Thanks!

Sidecar is one of the main reasons I use to justify owning an iPad. I actually use it wired 99% of the time. It’s awesome when working remotely.

I use the iPad with sidecar, I use a tablet mount and then put it on a small tripod so it works as a monitor at eye-level.

Great video! I'm looking for a portable display. I can't decide between de Dell vs Espresso display!

Thanks for this vid. I was actually struggling with doing my work on the attic with a dockingstation and ultrawide monitor for my MBA M1. But now that we have a new dog I want to work at the kitchtable sometime and really miss an extra screen. I will give sidecar a try. Thanks for doing the maths on this one! ;-)

I'm thinking about get a portable display to use it with my Mac Studio on the Go

Sidecar is an awesome way to bypass the restrictions baked into the M1 on how many external displays you can have - over thunderbolt you can only drive one but with sidecar you can add another. If you really wanna get funky with it you can also use airplay for a second external display - the response time isn’t 100% but I have a 43 inch lg smart tv on my desk I got with a great discount and it’s awesome for watching RU-vid, netflix etc through my MacBook plus it’s also hooked up to my switch and xbox

Id be more interested in sidecar if the Mac could take advantage of the iPads Hardware. And id be more interested in the portable monitor if it was also a big battery able to keep my laptop powered while off grid.

Thanks! I have the Mac Studio computer (in US) and will be traveling to another country for 2/3 months. Internet browsing, email, youtube videos, Word Excel Powerpoint and probably some GarageBand use will likely be my needs. Due to MacStudio's small size (will easily go in luggage) and my recent heavy expense for it, including Office for Mac, Apple keyboard and mouse, looking for an inexpensive monitor option. Again I need one small display (10.2" or 10.9") for this visit and as you rightly say, Ipad has stand alone benefits too. Which iPad would you recommend for me? And any associated issues/ problems I need to address / buy too for this purpose before I depart for the trip? Not tech savy and your help is appreciated. I have the cables (i think USB c to not sure) that come with new Apple keyboard and mouse. Which cable will i require to connect MacStudio to IPad?

Can you use an iPad as the only display for a Mac Studio? Not a secondary. Thanks

Please show options for Bootcamp and os x for portable displays above 60hz! Please

the more expensive portable monitor options, like the INNOCN 15 in 4k touch screen works absolutely perfect with the Mac, plus I use it has a gaming monitor for the XBOX and its literally my favorite screen to game on.

Really nice video! What size is the iPad Pro in the video?

especially for traveling digital nomads portability is important .. i think macbook air M1 with some iPad connected via USB-C is a good choice.

Excellent video!

Great vid as usual. Can't wait for you to reach your 100k subs.

Where can I get those wallpapers on the iPad, MacBook, and the portable monitor?

So my iPad Pro is my primary personal PC. I’m still looking for a review and options for a portable second monitor for my iPad with Magic Keyboard. If you got options, I’m all ears!

useful video,thanks for you sharing,it's help a lot

When connected via usb can you use the internet hotspot on the iPad if you need internet access say at a library?

Did you have TrueTone on while measuring the iPad's display gamut?

Thanks for that excellent review Jerry! I have a need that would really best be suited by an iPad running full MacOS. iPads running iOS have just enough limitations to make it not a viable (mobile) work computer for me and unfortunately, it doesn't look like Apple is going to offer an iPad - not even an upscale one that they could charge a premium for - with MacOS any time soon. However, because of the touchscreen on iPads, they provide a feature I really need... the ability for customers to sign legal documents via the touchscreen. (The trackpad on the MackBook is HORRIBLE for making decent looking signatures!) An alright compromise would be if I could "Sidecar" the iPad to my MacBook, share my MacBook's browser to the iPad, so as to have full MacOS functionality with that browser, but use the iPad's touchscreen to sign that document via the signing feature (typically DocuSign) on the website. I would try it myself, but even with the latest iOS available for my iPad, it predates the ability for Sidecar and I'm reluctant to buy a new iPad just to see if this would work. Sorry if that's overly long-winded. I trust that the iPad's touchscreen feature is still fully active in Sidecar mode, even for controlling content from the MacBook? More importantly, can it be used to sign documents on the MacBook's browser? Do you know if what I'm talking about would work? As I had mentioned above, even better would be an iPad running MacOS with the ability to also work as a 2nd display for my MacBook, but I'm not holding my breath for that. Thanks so much for your help Jerry!

Hey, you might want to review the new Intelhill U16NA portable monitor (16" 4K 16:10)

Is there any way to share a screen between two ipads without USB and using two different wifi from distance?

I use my iPad Pro 10.5" in a Zugu case which has multiple stand options. It is the best iPad case without a keyboard in my opinion. It works great in sidecar or with universal control.

Great video. So I'm clear, does sidecar wired work without any available wifi? I work on a cruise ship and wifi is crazy expensive. Same question for universal control if you have any experience with that. Thanks!

I wish the Dell had a slightly larger screen and higher resolution. The design is fantastic.

I need to hook up 2 portable monitors to a 21 inch lap top. Or extending monitors. Any suggestions?

Great video, thanks for sharing. I got the mac studio and my current ipad pro (iPad Pro (12.9-inch) (3rd generation) won’t connect to it, with or without cable, when going to Settings it won’t show side card, it does show the iPad for mirror display but won’t connect, gives me an error. Now ironically I can mirror the iPad into my mac studio. All of this includes an actual monitor connected to mac studio, of course. The iPad and Mac studio are in the same network and iCloud accts. Have you successfully used the iPad as with the Mac Studio and another monitor?

Got a iPad Pro 12.9 M1 with miniLED, but when using it as external display, the iPad does not support HDR and even P3 color space! No HDR, no P3 color space. I'm on the latest iPadOS version, which is 16.2

was shopping for a travel monitor and was looking for recommendations. When using Sidecar, it is somewhat glitchy moving documents around but will try it wired. the only thing i like about some of the travel option screens is that there is a holder that expands your laptop. (looking for a screen that doesn't need a stand, think sitting on a plane or train, do you know of any options to attach my IPAD to my macbook pro?

I was specifically looking at this video to see if you noticed the fan running more or less with the monitor. When I use my iPad and sidecar with my MacBook Air, the fan kicks up. I have a separate large monitor that doesn’t cause my MacBook Air fan to come on. It goes against my thinking that the apple device (iPad) would cause a heating issue with another apple device (MBA) vs. hooking up a cheap 20’’ monitor.

Hi can you pls share how you extend the Macbook display to DELL I have Samsung tab and I feel like I just wasted money I couldn’t use it as a secondary screen

iPad pro has an 120hz screen, maybe it's only 60hz in sidecar mode but it is an 120hz. also the sidecar option with a wired connection is a lot better den wireless

Great video. But how do you force Sidecar to use wired connection instead of wireless?

i have an ipad pro m2 and I use universal control and it is AMAZING!

Man, that dell display looks like my surface laptop studio 2 as far as response time goes, not quite as bad though lol... There's a reason I'm looking at other laptop solutions/ipads now.

I love the side car, but it drains the battery like crazy. I am currently looking at espresso monitor

You forgot the most important thing. The Ipad has it's own battery, so using it will not hurt your battery life on the go at all, whereas the Dell screen can only be used with an outlet (or I am not sure maybe charged by your laptop but that will drain it pretty quickly.)

For me, I’m not a Mac person nor have I heard or used sidecar (now I know). I’m one of those guys that likes to annotate when it comes to zoom, keynote or PowerPoint. So, in some cases the iPad has an advantage as far as wireless goes. But, when it comes to quality, I’d prefer an external monitor.

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:00 🖥️ *Introduction to second display options for MacBook* - Exploring two options: portable display via USB-C and Sidecar with an iPad. - Highlighting the need for a second display in various scenarios. 00:28 💡 *Discovering Sidecar wired for iPad* - The revelation that Sidecar can be used wired with an iPad. - Discussing reliability issues with wireless Sidecar and the value of a small second display. 01:22 💰 *Pricing and design comparison* - Comparing the pricing of a Dell portable display and iPads. - Discussing the design differences between the two options. 02:22 🖥️ *Display characteristics* - Examining the display specifications of the Dell Portable Display and iPads. - Discussing the impact of resolution, pixel density, and color accuracy on user experience. 04:48 🎨 *Color accuracy and response rate* - Comparing color accuracy between the Dell display and iPads when using Sidecar. - Discussing the pixel response issue on the Dell display and its impact on video playback. 06:14 📚 *Use cases and device features* - Exploring the use cases for both the iPad and portable display, including their strengths and weaknesses. - Highlighting features like the Apple Pencil, Touch Bar, and stability of wired Sidecar. 07:42 💡 *Conclusion and recommendation* - Providing a recommendation based on value, display quality, and versatility. - Suggesting that the iPad with Sidecar is a better choice for most users. Made with HARPA AI

I have both but can't connect both at the same time with charger since there is only 2 ports. One for ext display another for power..

Is there a portable monitor that connects via Bluetooth that any Apple (iOS,macOS) device can use?

Just curious.. if the iPad has, let's say... 50% battery life, can you plug it in for sidecar, but have it not charge? That might be an issue with using an iPad. Laptop battery life.

Thanks for the really good comparison. This, and some of the comments were quite enlightening, but then again it made some drawbacks clear to me and my personal case: I do have a Mac Mini M2pro and a Ipad Air 4th gen, using Sonoma and latest iPadOS. I do use Duet - and I will stick to it. First of all: resolution... Sidecar offers me a really poor 1180x820. I mean, I do have a 2360x1640 screen after all, but as far as it seems I cannot even select this by some Apple restrictions. but with 1180p everyting is way too large and no real estate. That's kinda year 2010+ era... But then I discovered in one of the comments "Easyres". thanks a lot for that hint. Great tool and besides giving me the choice of full resolution one can choose between lots of others as well. So that might have been the solution. Yes, I have to admit, that 2360x1640 is just a bit too high of a resolution for the 11inch screen. Menus and buttons are just a bit too small. But as said, Easyres at least offers some "inbetweens". So there's a really suitable 1600x1112. This would really fit... As a side note, Duet does not offer something in the 1600p range, but it has a slightly higher 1768x1230 (and the next lower is the 1180p). It's not that sharp, but very usable, and rather due to fonts getting smaller than due to some distortions. But well, next issue... just normal touch screen when using sidecar?!? I mean, it's a iPad after all.. Nope (besides some scrolling)! Apple just throws away one of the key feature of that device. That's already a real bummer... Duet on the other hand gives normal touch control right away. And if I tested and googled it correctly, there is no sidecar and universal control at the same time. So no "just leaving sidecar and doing some stuff in other iPadOS apps with mouse and keyboard". Again something I just don't get it why Apple can't offer it. And another "check" for Duet. Here I can leave the duet screen and do normal universal control stuff and return easily to the Duet screen. Lastly Duet is really stable wireless and wired right away. So just my thoughts about the topic. And as a side note, I was lately thinking about a portable display (that's why I found this video), but rather something like the lenovo thinkvision m14d with 2240p. But then again, after all the Air with Duet is good enough.

Love the wallpaper, where can I find?

Does Ipad with sidecar work with windows ?

I really like the idea of sidecar, but you can’t use the touch display. Everything has to be done through the mouse still. I’m really hoping Apple starts merging their operating systems between iPadOS and MacOS. For now I have an espresso 17 pro display that has the touchscreen feature for software that I like to use.

After setting up my new MacBook from my old - I was able to control one with the other and vice versa,, almost like sidecar but they still acted as separate devices so you couldn’t pull windows from one to the other.. I wonder why I have never heard of this. It means I can use a MacBook next to an iMac, control the iMac with the trackpad and keyboard of the MacBook and run the labour intensive tasks there, while using the separate ram and processing power on the MacBook to do all writing / browsing / notes on the side… (which effectively means I wish I hadn’t purchased a fully spec MacBook Pro but instead a baseline MacBook Air + an iMac 😅)

If going with the dell C1422 I highly recommend purchasing a dell powerbank. The display will drain your laptop battery very quick.

Great review! Thanks. FWIW, I suspect that pass-through charging is a non-issue if the iPad you are using an iPad (in my case 2018 12.9 inch iPad Pro) with the Magic Keyboard. But I’ll have to try it out to be sure.

where do you get those wallpapers :)

Makes me really want an iPad now lol.. kinda would be nice to have a second display for my MacBook Pro

I have a 1080p monitor together with an iPad Pro 12.9" at home with my MacBook Pro. But the resolution mismatch is really an issue. iPad Pro works better with the resolution actually. I have a 4K 17" portable monitor when I work outside. It performs much better than a 1080p Dell portable monitor I think. Although I will adjust the resolution to 2K for better reading size. I have a 24" 4K monitor in office but I will adjust the resolution to 2K also for better reading size. In conclusion, 1080p is not really enough for reading. 2K is the best resolution for me to read. Sidecar of iPad is really a value-added to my iPad Pro.

Better performances compared to THAT specific display. I just bought a 4k OLED display for less than 300 dollars, which is better than the iPad, for sure.

Having the iPad pro 12.9, disappointed overall. •Bad connection issues. Disconnection. Freezing. Better now in Ventura 13.4, but still gets disconnected every 3 hours or so. •Often glitches and stutter of mouse cursor. •Not as responsive as my old Dell P2415Q 4k monitor (which has relatively slow 60Hz refresh and 8 ms response). Much less responsive than Macbook screen (ProMotion). •With color images, including Apple's own colored desktops: Grainy JPEG like squares from compression, even when connected through usb-C cable. Might be a cable issue, will try USB 3.2 soon. •No color calibration through System Preferences •No ability to change into portrait mode, only landscape. (C'mon Apple!) •Touchscreen only works with apple pencil. • Apple pencil responsiveness is slow. Cursor lags behind pencil. •Good: Brighter screen than the 16" M1 Macbook Pro. •Colors seem bright. • Whites look better than Macbook Pro default profile-a bit less red and green.

And then there is the advantage of universal control with the iPad. Do iPad stuff with your Mac keyboard and trackpad that can’t be done with anything else. Next level stuff that just works

The problem is... work laptop doesn't support sideCar (Not in the same iCloud setup) ...

I have serious issues with connecting the iPad via cable. Wifi connects but I have to deal with occasional drop out. I may have to be going to a portable monitor route.

the best solution tends to be what one already has, and i already own an ipad air 4, so...

The iPad Pro has a 120hz panel, not a 60hz. I think Sidecar is limited to 60hz, but that's got nothing to do with the panel. The iPad Pro should also be very colour accurate, but again, it may not be colour accurate within Sidecar because of the way it compresses video. I don't think you made any distinction about the iPad Pro's actual specs, and Sidecar's limitations, which is disappointing.

Anyone know how to use two Dell Portable Screens with a MacBook M2 2022? Any hubs that have two usb C exits? By the way if you have an Amex Platinum card you get a Dell credit annually of $250.

How did you find an iPad for 309

I just setup my iPad mini as a 3rd monitor and I was using side car and never knew about the wired option. thank you for making this video. I still suggest to get that OlED monitor I mentioned on your last video. the 4k scales so well on at 16 inch display and the colors are beautiful. Send that dell back and get this one. PU15-PRE(4K,Touch,Battery) but if you only want 1080p they have the 1080p version like 250$. B09L16P68X that is the model for the 1080p version.

What app do you use for sidecar because the built in sidecar has a panel on the side?

Does this work for Mac Studio?

A portable monitor has the advantage of being compatible with other devices as well, like a hand held games console, a fire stick or anything that can output video through usb c or hdmi. When I travel for work I actually connect a portable monitor AND an iPad for hotel based triple display productively. Then chill with the steam deck plugged into the monitor. #goodtimes

I use often my 12.9 inch iPad Pro as a second Display with cable and with ThirdParty Apps like Easyres or something like this I can use resolutions up to 3180x2384!!! and I think maybe that is the real resolution of the iPad and not 2732x2048 or why I can use resolutions higher than this...

- Consider portable USB-C displays for mobility (start 0:08) - Explore wired Sidecar with an iPad for reliability (start 0:31) - Assess the suitability of displays for specific tasks (start 1:22) - Compare pricing and design features of Dell vs. iPad (start 1:37) - Check color accuracy for creative work with colorimeters (start 4:21) - Evaluate response rates for video playback (start 5:14) - Explore wireless vs. wired Sidecar stability (start 6:34) - Examine pass-through charging capabilities of displays (start 6:52) - Analyze overall value and versatility of iPads as second displays (start 7:11) - Research additional portable monitor options for specific needs (start 7:59)

I've been using one of these portable displays (Asus zen) for years. I will switch to the iPad for a few reasons not mentioned. Number 1, and by far: battery life. Portable monitors just don't have good battery life, my monitor routinely gives up after 3 to 4 hours, and that's when it's plugged into and pulling juice out of my laptop. A fully charged iPad will run for 10 hours, which is the magic number to give you a full day's work. Number 2: WEIGHT!!! These portable monitors are generally 50% to 100% heavier than iPads! Other reasons include: compatibility: This is a tricky one. iPad sidecar only works with Apple products, so if you only have Apple computers at home, great, it always works, easy, but if you don't, that's an issue. These portable monitors are supposedly universal, which is great in theory, but in practice it rarely works out. I have to mess around with drivers and what not with each computer, and with some computers it won't work out all. So iPad wins on all fronts.

You can draw on the iPad, using it with the Apple pen. I don’t think you can do that with any regular touch screen monitor.

Something annoying is that a ton of streaming services won’t play video when sidecar is enabled, wireless or wired. my guess is for anti piracy??

3:38 this isn't a real point. you can rescale any monitor if you want the text to be larger.