In the age of portable technology, having a reliable, high-quality external monitor can significantly enhance productivity and creative work. The Espresso Displays ‘espresso 17 Pro’ is a prime example of this! Offering a sleek, high-resolution solution for photography professionals and tech enthusiasts alike. Here’s my review of this beautiful, Australian designed and engineered portable display.
Design and Build Quality
The first thing that struck me about the Espresso Displays 17 Pro 4K display is its design. At just 9mm thin, it is one of the slimmest monitors on the market. The display weighs in at just 1.1kg, so that combined with the ultra-thin profile makes it easily portable, perfect for those who need to travel or work from various locations. The aluminum frame and scratch resistant (level 6) glass not only add to the aesthetic appeal but also ensure durability. (aka my 10yo hasn’t damaged it yet!)
This pro series monitor comes with a super sturdy magnetic stand, aptly named ‘Espresso Stand Pro’ which folds down into a compact travel partner for your display. It allows for easy attachment and detachment, no fiddly lining up, you open the stand and then position your display in front of it and after a decently reassuring thunk, you’re attached and good to go. The stand is pretty much infinitely adjustable, providing multiple viewing angles to suit different needs, whether you’re working, presenting, or watching a video. You can pretty much set the stand from flat to 18 degrees (for drawing) with the handy in-built foot right up to pretty much vertical and everywhere between.
Display Quality
The display measures in at 17.3″ and has a 4k resolution. It can achieve 450 nits brightness, which isn’t as bright as most current day Mac laptops, my 16″ Macbook Pro hovers around 1000 Nits, and honestly I thought this might be a bit of a show-stopper, but in actual real-world use, the displays brightness has been absolutely fine. I’ve used it a variety of environments from my home office to a cafe and for a mixture tasks including photo editing, both in Lightroom and Photoshop, as well as in my 9-5 as a social media manager, having my work and post schedule all spread out on the Espresso Displays 17 Pro 4K wherever I am is a total god-send!
Technical Notes from espresso here:
- “espresso 17 Pro screen shows 1.07 billion colours, covering 100% of the DCI-P3 colour space”
- The espresso 17 Pro screen has a resolution of 3840 x 2160, commonly known as 4k. This results in a Pixels Per Inch (PPI) of 257.6. In comparison, the Apple retina display is 227 PPI, and the Apple Pro XDR display is 245.
In short, it’s a stunner!
Performance and Connectivity
This was a big eye opener, it’s so very simple! A single (included) USB-C cable runs your power and signal to the display, you don’t need anything else. Now, you can use an external battery pack if you’re away from power and want to save a little laptop battery power, the Espresso Displays 17 Pro 4K has two USB-C ports, and while you connect your laptop to one, you can connect an external battery to the other to add some external juice. Espresso Displays also have their own ‘Espresso Charge’ external battery, which is a 32,000 mAh gargantuan external battery, it magnets itself perfectly to the Espresso stand and doubles your run time. Note, some airlines may give you a sideways glance when you mention 32,000mAh, so make sure you check before you fly. (I don’t have the battery and wasn’t able to test battery life with it, I’m sorry) Just a note here: It can be taken on flights with carry-on but with permission from the airline. i.e. it’s designed to support as close to a full day of power when combined with a full battery charge on the laptop.
Portability and Versatility
For my everyday carry, I’m currently using my thinkTank Venturing Observer 20L backpack, its a sleek, no mess, no fuss EDC Backpack and the 17 Pro 4K slots into the laptop section of the backpack with not so much as a MM to spare. I can take the display, my 16″ Macbook Pro as well as the stand, any cables, my pen, headphones, water bottle and a notepad (yes, actual real paper, that stuff is so good – try it haha) with relative ease. The display is lighter than my Macbook Pro, and really hasn’t added any heft to my EDC.
User Experience and Software
The espresso 17 Pro comes with a couple of pieces of software, notably espressoFlow which is the engine room of screen management if you will, allowing you to manage workspaces, you can use your display as a semi-touchpad, you can rotate the screen and there’s also a great ‘snap’ feature. Oddly, there was one thing I missed when I left the ‘Windows’ computing world, that was the ability to SNAP a screen into a certain place – the espressoFlow software allows you to use a quick set of key combos to shift your active windows from one display to the other, to the left, to the right etc – it’s SUPER handy, even when I’m on my iMac with my traditional second screen, I can use espressoFlow there, and flick windows around my two main screens like I’m dealing cards – it’s a great piece of software!
There’s also JOT, Jot is kinda like a notepad that allows you to draw, as well as implement many various shapes and sizes, think graphs etc. You can draw something, copy and paste it into many various other apps – it’s great for noting stuff down in meetings, kind of like a scribble pade for big kids (But my 10yo also says it’s his favourite thing)
Speaking of Jot, let’s talk about the pen experience for just a minute. The espresso 17 Pro isn’t a replacement for your high end graphics tablet, it’s not coming after your Wacom (in its current form, though I guess they could at some point?) the resolution of the pen isn’t up to scratch with what you can do on a dedicated graphics tablet, but for run and gun edits in photo applications (as opposed to fine detail work) it’s completely fine and really enjoyable to use.
Using the espresso 17 Pro without the pen, with the ‘LiveTouch’ gesture movements and scrolling are silky! Even with my clumsy fingers, the display is very easy to navigate, using similar gestures to those you might be used to using on your Mac.
Battery Life and Power Consumption
One aspect to consider is power consumption. While the monitor does not have an internal battery, it draws power through the USB-C connection. This can impact the battery life of the connected device, especially if you’re using a laptop. However, the power draw is relatively low, and the convenience of a single-cable connection often outweighs this drawback. Keep in mind that for higher brightness levels, you might need to employ that extra external USB-C battery or the espressoCharge.
My Conclusion
The Espresso Displays 17 Pro 4K display is an excellent choice for anyone in need of a portable, high-quality external display. Its sleek design, stunning 4K resolution, and easy connectivity options make it a valuable tool for professionals and creatives. While it may have some minor drawbacks, such as power consumption with prolonged use, the overall performance and portability make it a standout product in the portable monitor market.
Whether you’re a digital nomad, a remote worker, or someone who simply values high-quality displays, the Espresso Displays 17 Pro 4K display is worth considering. It combines form and function in a way that enhances productivity and delivers a superior visual experience.
