30" Cinema Display? Ever getting a new one?

[empirepd]

Ok, I REALLY want to upgrade my Dual G5 Mac Pro to a new Mac Pro, but have been waiting and waiting until Apple updates their 30" Cinema Displays before doing it. Does anyone have an opinion on when these freakin' things are going to get updated?!

What are other people doing? Are they just giving up and buying the old Apple one or buying another brand display to pair with their new Mac Pro?

Thanks,
Sam

 

[Blue Velvet]

What are other people doing?

I'm probably going to buy something else later this year, or early next. Simple. It's not as though Apple are the only people who make quality displays.

I would never base the timing of an expensive Mac purchase around the update cycle of Apple's monitors. The only relevance that would have is if I cared about the finish and look and whether it matched my computer... which I don't.

My hunch is that they're going to get out of the 'pro' display business.

 

[GoCubsGo]

I'm sorta with BV on this one. If I were buying today (as opposed to when I bought my 30" in 2007) I would buy something else. Even in 2007 it was a bit of a risk because everyone spoke of the updates that were literally around the corner. I've been through two WWDCs on these, two years etc etc and no updates came.

I would not recommend a 30" ACD to anyone today unless they needed their display to match. HP has done some fairly good things so has Dell. At this point I could not tell someone to buy a 30" ACD with a straight face. It is not for the lack of ports and **** (that is BS) it is that there are quality panels out there now that do meet the standards of an ACD as far as I can see.

 

[empirepd]

HP has done some fairly good things so has Dell. At this point I could not tell someone to buy a 30" ACD with a straight face. It is not for the lack of ports and **** (that is BS) it is that there are quality panels out there now that do meet the standards of an ACD as far as I can see.

Can you guys suggest a HP or Dell monitor that would be the 30" ACD competitor?

Is there an issue with the type of video port connection between the Mac Pros and the non-Apple displays? I am not even sure what the standard is today on the Mac Pros. The only reason I ask is because I was one of those poor saps that happen to buy my G5 and 20" ACD in that narrow window when they were putting ADC ports on them, so I got stuck with an out of date port technology pretty quickly. What video port type should I be looking for?

Thanks,
Sam

 

[xraydoc]

Can you guys suggest a HP or Dell monitor that would be the 30" ACD competitor?

Is there an issue with the type of video port connection between the Mac Pros and the non-Apple displays? I am not even sure what the standard is today on the Mac Pros. The only reason I ask is because I was one of those poor saps that happen to buy my G5 and 20" ACD in that narrow window when they were putting ADC ports on them, so I got stuck with an out of date port technology pretty quickly. What video port type should I be looking for?

Thanks,
Sam

Dell 3007WFP-HC (one dual-link DVI input, 4 port USB hub, flash card reader)

Dell 3008WFP (2 x dual-link DVI inputs, DisplayPort, HDMI, VGA, Component, Composite, S-video inputs, 4 port USB hub, flash card reader)

HP LP3065 (2 dual-link DVI inputs; not sure what else)

Eizo and NEC also have 30" displays but I don't know much about them.

None are LED lit; all use standard CCFL backlights.

All Mac Pros have at least one "dual-link DVI" port. This port is basically two full DVI channels combined in to one connector to facilitate ultra-high resolution panels (anything over 1920x1200). You'll require one dual-link DVI port to run a 30" display at full 2560x1600.

Alternatively, Apple's current line all have video out technology called mini-DisplayPort. The DisplayPort specification supports up to 2560x1600 resolution as well. New Mac Pros have one dual-link DVI port and one mini-DisplayPort port.

All of Apple's current laptops & iMacs also support dual-link DVI resolutions via DisplayPort. Prior to that, the older model 15" & 17" MacBook Pros support dual-link DVI directly. The new (current) Mac mini also supports DisplayPort.

You can convert mini-DisplayPort to DVI with a $29 adapter or to dual-link DVI with a $99 adapter. Some people have reported that the dual-link DVI adapter had been troublesome with picture distortion and blanking.

If your 30" monitor has DisplayPort (only the Dell 3008WFP, AFAIK), you can get full resolution without the $99 adapter via a mini-DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable, which has as Apple's mini connector at one end and a normal sized connector at the other. These are slightly hard to come by still, but at least two companies have them for sale.

I have a Dell 3008WFP; got it 2 days ago and so far, in my limited experience so far, I'm very satisfied.

 

[empirepd]

Thanks for the advice, guys.

A follow-up question occurs to me: Are these other monitors you suggest (Dell, HP, etc.) better than the current Apple 30" Cinema or about the same? Seems like if the Apple one is still about as good, I should just go with it when I buy my system.

 

[lixuelai]

HP LP3065 has 3 dual link DVI and a USB hub.

I would go

3008WFP > LP3065 > 3007WFP-HC

You can hook up the 3008WFP with the miniDisplayPort->DisplayPort cable that is currently being sold by a third party manufacturer. The downside of the 3008WFP is input lag. But if you are not going to play much games (mostly FPS) then you should be fine.

LP3065 and the 3007WFP is about the same. The LP3065 is better calibrated out of the box and has 2 extra dual link DVI which is way more useful than VGA. Other than that they use the same panel. All are newer than the Apple 30". The Apple is equivalent to a 3007WFP non-HC which is a slightly older IPS panel.

I have the HP and it is the best bang for the buck. If money is not too much of a concern then get the Dell 3008WFP. NEC, Eizo at the 30" level IMO is not much better. Eizo does not use IPS anyways.

 

[macintel4me]

Dell 3007WFP-HC (one dual-link DVI input, 4 port USB hub, flash card reader)

Dell 3008WFP (2 x dual-link DVI inputs, DisplayPort, HDMI, VGA, Component, Composite, S-video inputs, 4 port USB hub, flash card reader)

I have an early 2008 Mac Pro as background.

Comparing the 3007 and the 3008 I don't see why the 3008 is better than the 3007 for me. The 3008 has the following over the 3007: one more DVI input, DisplayPort, HDMI, Component, Composite and S-video inputs.

I don't think I care about any of those extra 3008 inputs. I'm not sure why I would pay almost 50% for things I would never use.

 

[empirepd]

Thanks for the input, guys.

I think I am mostly interested in a comparison of image quality and image technology for the Apple vs. the others. I understand ports are important, but I am not the type of user that would take advantage of tons of port options, I don't believe. I basically use my Mac for music production and other basic stuff like internet. Not a big gamer, not going to watch HDTV on my Mac, etc...so, that kind of stuff is not as big a deal for me.

I would go

3008WFP > LP3065 > 3007WFP-HC

Was this an order of recommendation? 30087WFP being the most recommended?

Thanks,
Sam

 

[kasakka]

I have an early 2008 Mac Pro as background.

Comparing the 3007 and the 3008 I don't see why the 3008 is better than the 3007 for me. The 3008 has the following over the 3007: one more DVI input, DisplayPort, HDMI, Component, Composite and S-video inputs.

I don't think I care about any of those extra 3008 inputs. I'm not sure why I would pay almost 50% for things I would never use.

You might want to care about the DisplayPort input though. Since the Mini-DisplayPort -> Dual-Link DVI adapter seems to be still crap (and overpriced), getting a 3rd party mini-DP –> regular DP adapter might be the easiest way to get full 2560x1600 resolution without problems or huge adapters.

Another benefit of the 3008WFP over most 30" monitors is that it has a OSD and scaler, thus it works better for lower resolutions (scales very nicely to lower resolutions for games for example) and color correction can be done on the monitor itself instead of just using software. I haven't had any problems with input lag on my A02 revision 3008WFP.

Overall Eizo and NEC probably have better 30" models (even though they use the same LG panel as the 3008WFP I think) but they are a fair bit more expensive so the Dell has the best price-quality ratio at the moment IMO.

 

[macintel4me]

You might want to care about the DisplayPort input though. Since the Mini-DisplayPort -> Dual-Link DVI adapter seems to be still crap (and overpriced), getting a 3rd party mini-DP –> regular DP adapter might be the easiest way to get full 2560x1600 resolution without problems or huge adapters.

I have a Mac Pro so I don't need to worry about the Mini-DisplayPort and therefore the adaptor issue is a non-issue for me.

Running at lower resolutions is not a priority for me at the moment either.

Thanks for the info.

 

[empirepd]

You might want to care about the DisplayPort input though. Since the Mini-DisplayPort -> Dual-Link DVI adapter seems to be still crap (and overpriced), getting a 3rd party mini-DP –> regular DP adapter might be the easiest way to get full 2560x1600 resolution without problems or huge adapters.

I will be buying a Mac Pro system, so I don't think the Mini-DisplayPort is an issue for me as the Mac Pro's only have the Dual-Link DVI ports, correct?

 

[lixuelai]

Thanks for the input, guys.

I think I am mostly interested in a comparison of image quality and image technology for the Apple vs. the others. I understand ports are important, but I am not the type of user that would take advantage of tons of port options, I don't believe. I basically use my Mac for music production and other basic stuff like internet. Not a big gamer, not going to watch HDTV on my Mac, etc...so, that kind of stuff is not as big a deal for me.



Was this an order of recommendation? 30087WFP being the most recommended?

Thanks,
Sam

Just pick the cheapest then. All 3 are better than the Apple ACD. The 3007WFP-HC and the HP is 1 generation newer and the 3008WFP is 2 generations. Notice the HC there. The non HC 3007WFP is the same as the ACD.

 

[benborman]

I will be buying a Mac Pro system, so I don't think the Mini-DisplayPort is an issue for me as the Mac Pro's only have the Dual-Link DVI ports, correct?

Current Mac Pros ship with video cards that have both a Dual-Link DVI Port and a Mini Display Port. The standard option is the nVidia GeForce GT 120. CTO options include up to 4 GT 120 cards, or an ATI Radeon HD4870.

Also available is the nVidia GTX 285, as a third-party upgrade available from the Apple store, although it is not offered as a CTO option. This card features two Dual-Link DVI ports. http://store.apple.com/us_smb_78313/product/TW387ZM/A

For the cards with the Mini Display Port connection, there are both DVI and Dual-Link DVI adapters available, but the latter suffers from poor performance and bad customer reviews. It costs an extra $100, to boot. http://store.apple.com/us_smb_78313/product/MB571Z/A?fnode=MTY1NDA5OQ&mco=NjcxNTgxOQ

Of course, there are also a handful of PC cards that can be flashed to use in a Mac Pro, but that is covered in other threads.