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Any hope for a bigger display?

D

Duncanreally

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 24, 2010
56
35
Wow, the replacement of the 30"ACD with a 27"monitor with lower resolution is really disappointing. I've owned the 30"ACD for nearly four years, and I was hoping to replace it with something bigger and better. Is there any chance that Apple will have such a thing soon?

It seems bizarre that monitor technology has moved backwards in 5 years! Or is it just Apple that's moving backwards?

Duncan
 
Maybe if Apple releases a 30" iMac in the future they might offer a 30" monitor but I wouldn't expect one soon. Apple obviously don't sell many hence sharing the screen with the iMac and only offering one size to save costs.
 
I say there is no chance of a 30" as long as the 27" is offered. Apple is dropping the 24" as being too close to the 27" and since 30" is almost the same (just 1.78 and a small amount of vertical resolution) as a 27" why would Apple offer both. Also it looks like more and more manufactures are switching from 1.6 to 1.78 aspect ratios for monitors (look at the amount of 22" to 24" for instance).
 
But if the current 27" replaces the old 24", shouldn't there be something coming to replace the old 30"? What size and res would this be? What's the maximum resolution the current video cards can handle?

Duncan
 
I think come September when the 27" Cinema Display is released, they'll release a 21.5" Cinema Display too.

You won't find anything bigger than 27" for a while.
 
spinnerlys said:
All the Macs support up to 2560 x 1600 on an external display.

Example
Click to expand...

Thanks. So this settles it - there's obviously no reason to make a monitor with higher res than the old 30" ACD, because no current Mac could support it. I must say, I find it odd that there is no demand for this. More resolution is far more useful for everyday use than more RAM, faster processor, etc. I mean it's the screen you actually look at - the ability to have more stuff on it means you can work in a more parallel way, instead of having to flick between tasks.

Well if I can't have higher resolution in a monitor, I want a Macbook that can drive 2 external monitors!

Duncan
 
Duncanreally said:
Thanks. So this settles it - there's obviously no reason to make a monitor with higher res than the old 30" ACD, because no current Mac could support it. I must say, I find it odd that there is no demand for this. More resolution is far more useful for everyday use than more RAM, faster processor, etc. I mean it's the screen you actually look at - the ability to have more stuff on it means you can work in a more parallel way, instead of having to flick between tasks.

Well if I can't have higher resolution in a monitor, I want a Macbook that can drive 2 external monitors!

Duncan
Click to expand...

I completely agree with you. bigger than a 27" acd would have been heaven. I said it before though and I'll write it here again too. I'm hoping the updated mac pro is only a short-term item until it's properly updated next year with some proper upgrades worthy of the MacPro name.

My honest thinking, goes back to apples patent for a hyper reality display. I'm thinking the next little leader will be something like a 36" 3D display supporting 2K resolution. Although what that would cost only the fairies would know and I'd probably be needing to be dancing with them to justify spending such an amount.
 
My biggest gripe is the fact that they aren't going to have a matte screen. I mean they are marketing the glossy to the mass consumers but the thing is, your average consumer isn't going to pay $999 for a monitor, so why they won't have a matte option is retarded.
 
Yeah... you won't find anything bigger than an 30" (unless you go to a tv... but that will only be 1920x1080), considering the highest current resolution standard is 2560x1440.
 
Is there demand for a 30-inch?

Check your local Best Buy and see how many 30-inch displays (monitors) they have on the floor.

You'll see the most they've got are 27-inchers. If you're lucky. Otherwise they tend to stop at 24.

There's an obvious reason for this.
 
*LTD* said:
Is there demand for a 30-inch?

Check your local Best Buy and see how many 30-inch displays (monitors) they have on the floor.

You'll see the most they've got are 27-inchers. If you're lucky. Otherwise they tend to stop at 24.

There's an obvious reason for this.
Click to expand...
...yes but what are they really? This is the confusing thing about the 27" size. You can get one for less than $400. However these are just 1080P and basically TV port overs.
 
spinnerlys said:
All the Macs support up to 2560 x 1600 on an external display.

Example
Click to expand...

That's the same kind of statement Apple gives with maximum supported RAM.
All current Macs are equipped with Display Port which means that the maximum supported resolution is 3840 × 2160, which would make a nice resolution for a 32 or 34" display.

I still hope the market will come up with such a thing cause 30" has become way too small.
 
Transporteur said:
That's the same kind of statement Apple gives with maximum supported RAM.
All current Macs are equipped with Display Port which means that the maximum supported resolution is 3840 × 2160, which would make a nice resolution for a 32 or 34" display.

I still hope the market will come up with such a thing cause 30" has become way too small.
Click to expand...

Display Port's supported resolution is just the connector's ability to pass a signal and conform to a standard. This has nothing to do with the video card's abilities (other that it uses a proprietary Display Port connector).
 
Once Apple starts getting the ball rolling on resolution independence in OSX, we might FINALLY start seeing some nice high resolution screens. With all the ruckus apple has made with their fancy new 'retina display' and high PPI, we might be getting close to that day.
 
Duncanreally said:
I must say, I find it odd that there is no demand for this.
Click to expand...
I don't--there's a reason 30" monitors were available several years ago, but NOBODY has made one larger than that that isn't a TV.

For all but a handful of people in very specialized fields, 30" is around the practical upper limit past which you either have to start moving your neck around to look around the screen--resulting in serious physical strain--or sit farther away, which is of limited utility due to the limits of the human eye.

With resolution independence, I would expect to see high-end monitors with up to about a 200ppi density (the iPhone's 325ppi display needs to be that high because you're holding it a lot closer to your face; I expect 200ppi is around the max necessary for the arm's-length distance people usually sit from a monitor). Then again, Windows 7 has pretty good resolution independence already, and there's still nobody offering anything outside specialized uber-expensive products yet.

Incidentally, I don't expect to see the distance we sit from our screens change much regardless of how good screens are; the standard distance is such that you can easily lean in to see more detail if necessary, which becomes less effective the farther away you are.

In fact, I'm not even sure I like the higher-pixel density screen on my MBP over the lower-density 27" when I'm doing graphics work; to lean in close enough to discern individual pixels--an occasional necessity--I'm already reaching the limits of how close I can focus. Any higher and I'd need to use screen-zoom to see detail, which indicates that's around the max necessary density for any use.

Bottom line, I'm skeptical that any company is going to make a display (that's not a TV) much larger than 30", ever. The tiny handful of specialists who actually have use for a neck-strain-inducingly-large screen like that can just buy multiple thin-bezeled monitors and arrange them appropriately.
 
Those looking for a new Apple 30" might want to consider this new one:

Dell U3011:
The screen is a 16:10 format display which will use a 10-bit H-IPS panel from LG.Display. This will be the LM300WQ5 panel which is listed on LG.Display’s website at the moment. A version of this panel is already being used in the 3008WFP although with an 8-bit colour depth. Looks like they have perhaps done the same as they did with the 24” panel used in the Dell U2410 and HP LP2475W. This came in an 8-bit (used in the HP) and a 10-bit (used in the Dell) version, with the same part number, just a different revision. Given the newer spec here from the U3011 and 10-bit colour depth (8-bit +AFRC), I expect the same is true here. An updated panel revision for use in the new model.

This model is designed to replace the 3008WFP and so has some improvements in the spec as you might expect. This includes a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 7ms G2G response time and 12-bit internal processing. There's a whole load of interfaces available including 2x DVI, 2x HDMI and DisplayPort.

Interfaces
30"WS 2560 x 1600 7ms G2G 1000:1 100,00:1 370 178/178 1.07b H-IPS tilt, height, pivot VGA, 2x DVI, component, 2x HDMI, DisplayPort

The screen is pencilled in for a release date at the end of October at the moment, but could possibly move a little sooner.
 
Duncanreally said:
Well if I can't have higher resolution in a monitor, I want a Macbook that can drive 2 external monitors!
Click to expand...

I believe there's something in the upcoming version of the DisplayPort specs about being able to "chain" monitors together; thus you'd be able to hook them up similarly to the way FW is daisy-chained.
 
xgman said:
Those looking for a new Apple 30" might want to consider this new one:

Dell U3011:
The screen is a 16:10 format display which will use a 10-bit H-IPS panel from LG.Display. This will be the LM300WQ5 panel which is listed on LG.Display’s website at the moment. A version of this panel is already being used in the 3008WFP although with an 8-bit colour depth. Looks like they have perhaps done the same as they did with the 24” panel used in the Dell U2410 and HP LP2475W. This came in an 8-bit (used in the HP) and a 10-bit (used in the Dell) version, with the same part number, just a different revision. Given the newer spec here from the U3011 and 10-bit colour depth (8-bit +AFRC), I expect the same is true here. An updated panel revision for use in the new model.

This model is designed to replace the 3008WFP and so has some improvements in the spec as you might expect. This includes a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 7ms G2G response time and 12-bit internal processing. There's a whole load of interfaces available including 2x DVI, 2x HDMI and DisplayPort.

Interfaces
30"WS 2560 x 1600 7ms G2G 1000:1 100,00:1 370 178/178 1.07b H-IPS tilt, height, pivot VGA, 2x DVI, component, 2x HDMI, DisplayPort

The screen is pencilled in for a release date at the end of October at the moment, but could possibly move a little sooner.
Click to expand...

You might want to check out the new (June) HP ZR30w from their Small Business Division.

It has a matte screen, a 3 year warranty extendable to 5 years and comes with all the cables you need including dual-link DVI, DP, USB (it acts as a USB hub too).

I got from Kanex a 6' MDP to DP cable and with this my Mini recognized the ZR30w immediately.
 
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