This is totally correct. Just give us a drop in replacement for the cinema display/thunderbolt display with updated internals. I am still using my 2013 Thunderbolt Display and it works great, but I want to update it. Not for $2,500 though. I want it to be a docking station as much as a monitor.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple is Finally Making a Cheaper Display: What We Know
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
QD OLED is a new technology though, it has better color accuracy than the WRGB OLED panels you are referring to. You are right about burn in though, at this point we don't know how it will perform in that area. I just think it's an interesting technology until Micro LED arrives (which might take a long time).
There are so many great displays out there, but they all look ugly, which is beyond me. Why do we need to wait for an Apple display to not have this 'gamer aesthetic'.
i’m sure the op could have screen grabbed and done a terrible crop for themselves. if you don’t have the actual wall paper whats the point in even responding?
I think this is on the right track. Likewise, as TXSCOT mentioned in their post (sorry can't attribute this correctly for some reason):
What this boils down to is that the way that Apple competes in this market-space is by offering an integrated product that has speakers, webcam/etc, built in, instead of a clutter of extra wires.
Granted, Apple is 2 years late, but basically, ask yourself what would be the perfect display to have with a MBP docked for today's virtual telework environment.
This means we're not talking about the niche graphics-centric creatives market segment which is crafting 8K video content, but the parent working 9-5 using the corporate suit of MS-Office, Adobe, etc, as well as the similar home market.
As such, 4K-5K resolution is going to be a lot better than the QHD-level displays, but the real core of the justification is going to be centered around the internal-to-display integration of webcam, speakers, microphone ... the stuff that eliminates the wiring clutter mess that we left behind back in 2020 in our office cubicles.
To this end, simply selling a "brainless" iMac is a 95% solution. Heck, there's probably even a good number of folks who would accept it in the same enclosure complete with "chin", if that meant some I/O ports on the front.
On the contrary, the reason it bothers me is *because* I have good eyesight. I can see the subtle blurriness because when I'm trying to run my 27" 4k scaled to 3008x1692, the scaling is a non-integer factor and therefore suboptimal. When trying to run at the native 4k, the matte coating of the screen causes it's own form of blurring which is all the more noticeable because of how small text is. Yes, I can still see it and read it, but honestly...it looks like sh*t.
If that's what you truly think, then you are wasting your time in this sub. Apple would never produce a display at the standards you deem acceptable, and there is a very good reason for that.
Last edited:
I’m using it right now.
It looks good on my display in my background. And that’s without using any saturation or color filtering.
You should try it. It looks sharp.
Apple Max Display XDR is next, $8999 and it needs two stands, sold separately of course. No VESA option.
My favorite display setup was two of the apple 27" cinema displays side by side. Fantastic real estate shape/size combo. I'd love to try an ultrawide version, but knowing me I'd have to put a piece of tape down the middle so my dumb brain can use the fake bezel to separate my workspaces.
Apple Max Display XDR is next, $8999 and it needs two stands, sold separately of course. No VESA option.
But you can attach the $699 wheel kit to it. You know, like, just in case you want to wheel it around, which is about as much as I'd want to wheel around a MacPro Tower. Which is pretty much close to zero.
"consumer-oriented display could be priced at $2,500,"
Well, since there are absolutely no other consumer-oriented displays priced at $2,500, they would be the first and only in the market. Yay for them, whilst I go an purchase 2 27" monitors with better specs for less than than that. And for an extra needle in the ribs, I'll think of apple when i plug them into my HP G8 workstation that packs 4 times the power into one box for less than half the price of the mac tower. CPU rendering has its needs, and its not a $20k outdated workstation. Don't get me wrong, I love my iphone, I love my macbook, and the fact that its 7 years old and I can still use it the same as I did the day I bought it.
But geeze....
But you can attach the $699 wheel kit to it. You know, like, just in case you want to wheel it around, which is about as much as I'd want to wheel around a MacPro Tower. Which is pretty much close to zero.
"consumer-oriented display could be priced at $2,500,"
Well, since there are absolutely no other consumer-oriented displays priced at $2,500, they would be the first and only in the market. Yay for them, whilst I go an purchase 2 27" monitors with better specs for less than than that. And for an extra needle in the ribs, I'll think of apple when i plug them into my HP G8 workstation that packs 4 times the power into one box for less than half the price of the mac tower. CPU rendering has its needs, and its not a $20k outdated workstation. Don't get me wrong, I love my iphone, I love my macbook, and the fact that its 7 years old and I can still use it the same as I did the day I bought it.
But geeze....
I don't expect Apple to do it, but I would really like them to also add an HDMI input to it, so one can also connect a game console as well.
Otherwise it's a hard sell for me. If I'm buying a good, expensive screen, I don't want it to be only usable with my Mac.
Otherwise it's a hard sell for me. If I'm buying a good, expensive screen, I don't want it to be only usable with my Mac.
After 22 years, my Cinema Display went black (even tho the light stayed lit and there were no dead pixels beforehand). A new DVI to ADC Adapter A1006 didn’t do the trick, so today I have a classic 30” Cinema Display in its original box arriving. I would’ve considered something newer if Apple had made something reasonable available (that goes for a Mac Pro tower too). So, I’m hoping I can enjoy my new matte screen beginning later today. Still, it’ll be good to have a reasonable option in the future.
In my opinion, Apple already sells a low cost display and it just happens to include a computer. I think Apple would rather people buy the iMac than buy a Mac mini and a separate Apple branded display. I don't think we will ever see a display from Apple that is under $800, I don't think that Apple will let the current Mac mini combined with a low-cost display undercut the iMac.
Except that the iMac doesn't allow input (and AirPlay would add too much lag).
So I can't add a second display to a MacBook Pro. Which is just absurd — how are people supposed to use a MacBook Pro at a desk? On a stand? With a Pro Display XDR? Via AirPlay to an iMac? How?
No you don't, because nobody makes 220ppi monitors anymore. That's the entire point of why people are looking forward to a standalone Apple monitor, as even at $2500 it would still be good value, because there is no true alternative on the market right now, just 160ppi and lower made-for-Windows crap.
I really don't understand why people can't comprehend this. It feels like such an obvious thing, but apparently some people really cannot see a difference between true Retina and poorly scaled resolutions (or not scaled at all) resolutions. Such people are wasting their time if they think Apple will ever again release a low PPI display like that.
$2,500??!!?? It better be sweet for that price. What they really need is an actual affordable display. And it would be so easy for them to do. Just take the display from whatever the current crop of iMacs is and put it in a housing similar to the iMac. Add the appropriate ports and the internals to run it and sell it for a price much lower than the equivalent sized iMac. That way someone can add one as a second display on an iMac or MacBook or use one as the display for a Mac Mini.
Apple has not offered an affordable Apple-branded display since the 27-inch Thunderbolt display was discontinued in 2016, but that's set to change sometime in the not too distant future.
Right now, Apple only sells the $5,000 Pro Display XDR, but rumors suggest new standalone displays are in the works. We don't know a lot right now, but everything we've heard so far is aggregated in the guide below.
A Lower-Priced Display
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who often provides accurate insights into Apple's plans, there is a successor to the Thunderbolt Display in the works, which will be sold as a lower-cost consumer-oriented monitor alongside the Pro Display XDR.
The display won't be as expensive as the Pro Display XDR, and as a result, it will feature reduced brightness and contrast ratio in comparison.
It's possible that Apple is planning to release the display in two sizes, perhaps 24 inches and 27 inches. LG is allegedly working on new standalone displays that could be for Apple in 24, 27, and 32-inch sizes. The 24 and 27-inch models could be new lower-cost options, while the 32-inch model could be a Pro Display XDR followup.
Apple already makes 24 and 27-inch iMacs, so it would make sense for standalone displays to come in the same size options, and the Pro Display XDR is a 32-inch display. The 27-inch model and the 32-inch model are mini-LED displays with a 120Hz variable refresh rates, so if these LG Displays are being manufactured for Apple, we can expect the higher end versions to feature ProMotion and mini-LED technology.
We don't know anything about the display's design or specs at this time, but it's definitely in the works.
Pro Display XDR Successor
As mentioned above, Apple is working on a successor to the Pro Display XDR. It's expected to measure in at 32 inches like the current model, and it could continue to offer a 6K resolution.
A rumor from 9to5Mac has suggested that Apple is working on an external display that will include an A-series chip, offering GPU cores that could help power graphic intensive tasks. The Pro Display XDR successor is expected to have this A-series chip inside. The rumor is from mid-2021 and it said that Apple would use an A13 chip, but there are newer A14 and A15 chips that Apple could pick instead.
Possible Pricing
The Pro Display XDR successor will likely continue to be priced at around $5,000, and rumors suggest that the consumer-oriented display could be priced at $2,500, making it half the cost of the Pro Display XDR.
If there are actually three sizes coming, the 32-inch display could be $5,000, the 27-inch display could be $2,500, and the 24-inch display could be cheaper, perhaps somewhere around the $999 price point that Apple sold the Thunderbolt Display for.
Release Date
Apple has a lot of new Macs coming in 2022, including a refreshed Mac mini, a new MacBook Air, an smaller version of the Mac Pro, a revamped iMac, and a refreshed MacBook Pro, so it would make sense for the company to release standalone displays to go with this new wave of Macs.
That said, we have no word on when Apple's planned displays could see a launch, and it's not yet clear if we're going to see them in 2022.
Guide Feedback
Have questions about Apple's rumored displays, see something we left out, or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.
Article Link: Apple is Finally Making a Cheaper Display: What We Know
True that Apple doesn’t compete in the lower end market, but there’s no reason they can’t sell a display for WAY less. Just build what’s essentially an iMac but without the CPU and RAM and SSD and other unnecessary parts. If an iMac can be $1500 there’s no reason they can’t make a display for under $1000
The main reason those monitors are so expensive is their color accuracy, which is not a concern for average consumers and only needed by some professionals. If size and resolution are your only criteria, you can find a much better deal from third-party vendors.
Yeah, when the lowest end 24" iMac sports a resolution of 216 ppi, the bar for any standalone display is determined.
I think many understand, but are just hopeful of an affordable Mac mini w/Apple display solution.
Unfortunately, those days are over.