Apple Cinema Display 30" from 2010 viewpoint?

[2contagious]

Hi,

First, I'd like to say that I know the screen was released in 2004 and last updated some time in 2007 or so, and it lacks lots of connections yadda yadda.. but you still see a lot of people going for these monitors (for their Mac Pros), so what I would like to know is:

From a 2010 viewpoint, how does the monitor compare to other 30" monitors in terms of what it is: a monitor (not a TV - I don't care for HDMI or other connections.. all I need is DVI for the Mac Pro).

- Image quality vs. other 30" displays
- Brightness?
- Quality of materials / hardware (problems?)
- Usability for graphics and photo and video editing (I'm a graphic design student)

Considering with the student discount I could get the 30" ACD for 995 GBP, it would probably work out cheaper than HP's or Dell's 30" offerings.

Any help / comments appreciated

see you,
chris.

 

[Transporteur]

- Image quality vs. other 30" displays
- Brightness?
- Quality of materials / hardware (problems?)
- Usability for graphics and photo and video editing (I'm a graphic design student)

Image quality is absolutely equal to other 30" screens. It has a top notch IPS panel. The development of 30" screens is way slower than for smaller ones, which is why you can still buy high end from 2007.

Brightness is unbeaten till now. The ACD makes astonishing 400cd, I haven't seen any other 30" screen with that brightness. Even the 27" ACD makes only 375.
I keep my (4 week old) 30" at 50% brightness during the day and at the lowest option at night.

Quality of materials is also unbeaten. You won't find another full aluminium display on the market. Build quality is absolutely great.
I can't say anything about the panel though. I recently got a replacement for my 3 year old 30" Cinema (thank god I bought AppleCare) because I had some shadows on the sides. The guy at my local AASP told me that this isn't a known issue with the Cinemas.
I honestly don't know, I recommend buying AppleCare though (not needed if you buy the display with a computer).

Since I'm not in the graphics department, I can't tell you anything about the colour levels of the display.

Would I buy a 30" again? For 1000 quid, yes because there are no better options for this price.
Would I have to pay the 1800€ again that I paid back in 2007 I probably won't.
Don't get me wrong, it's still a gorgeous display, but the lack of input kind of pisses me off. That's the only bummer I see with the display. Apple is constantly moving away from DVI (the Pro is their only computer with a DVI output) and I mind paying a hundred Euros or Pounds or whatever for a crappy adapter only to connect a second 30" screen.
Display port is the way to go and the 30" Dell has both DP, a panel that keeps up and even beats the ACDs one and has a reasonable enclosure (not full aluminium though). What I don't like about all other displays is their colour. Black bezels simply look like crap. Time for manufacturers to go back to silver displays.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[2contagious]

Hey, thanks for your reply
Can you tell me if (when viewing a solid colour full screen) you see any differences in backlighting? The two models I saw at the Apple Store in London had backlight uniformity issues :/