Apple Releases Studio Display Firmware Update to Fix Speaker Issue

[Spaceboi Scaphandre]

You're clearly not a photographer.

Many people are, and can instantly see and appreciate the difference when editing/post-processing image files for printing.

And, as I mentioned earlier, the Studio Display image quality is much better than the one on my 5K iMac sitting next to it, even though the resolution is the same for both.

The Studio Display is not intended for gamers.

You’re right I’m not a photographer. But I know someone who is

This is Murwin. On the PCMR Discord he’s a regular on our Mac channel. He does freelance photography and provides the server insight on Mac usage for creative professionals. Here’s his take on the Studio Display:

 

[netnothing]

It’s a Studio M1 ultra. So far their recovery help is worthless. They require a second monitor which is insane considering they sell the Studio display along with the Studio mac. 🤦‍♂️ Way to fail, apple.

Man that stinks, I hope you get it resolved. I read the support article and it's pretty crazy that you either need another display or another machine to fix it. You'd think they could have it go into some recovery "display only" mode that would allow it to at least work as a display.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

You’re right I’m not a photographer. But I know someone who is

This is Murwin. On the PCMR Discord he’s a regular on our Mac channel. He does freelance photography and provides the server incite on Apple IT for creative professionals. Here’s his take on the Studio Display:

View attachment 2039139

There are at least two videos on YouTube (one is MaxTech) that literally do side-by-side comparisons of the LG Ultrafine and Studio display. The latter was better.

 

[nvmls]

Please post a picture of your Studio Display next to your mini-LED MBP so we all can see that it's not even close.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

just look at the iPad Pro 9.7 to 12 inch, again at medium brightness in a controlled lighting setup. They’re indistinguishable for the most part.

You're right. I bought them both at launch and had them side by side. Very very tough to see a difference unless you're trying to see one by making the room conditions purposely better for mini led. However the conditions I had to put the room in were conditions I would not normally use.

 

[Spaceboi Scaphandre]

There are at least two videos on YouTube (one is MaxTech) that literally do side-by-side comparisons of the LG Ultrafine and Studio display. The latter was better.

>MaxTech

Bruh, that is one of the last people I would take seriously for tech comparisons, next to iJustine. That man is a Youtube clickbaiter who does not have proper equipment.

 

[-BigMac-]

ProMotion (120hz) isn’t present because there isn’t enough bandwidth on Thunderbolt.

Incorrect.
5k/120hz on thunderbolt 1.4 is possible with DSC.

 

[usidore_blue_wzrd]

I see there's a lot of energy in the discussion about the Studio Display. I just wanted to chime in that I really appreciate the high effort end-to-end color management that Apple provides, which is overlooked everywhere else. I can work in DCI, sRGB, or specific P3 colorspaces for print, photography, etc and get reliable results, with the monitor, macOS, and applications all aware of the colorspace automatically without any hassle.

It's an actual nightmare to manage this otherwise.

I also appreciate the fact that Studio Display is not ugly, and the 5k resolution works really well @ 27" within macOS. 4k @ 27" left all the UI elements a bit too big for my liking, and scaling to virtual 5k wasn't entirely satisfying for text sharpness. I understand that Windows handles scaling completely differently, but Windows scaling mechanism comes with its own laundry list of caveats, and macOS works cleanly with no caveats as long as you play by the DPI rules (or you're satisfied with the size of the UI at the native resolution of your display). I ultimately prefer everything to just work and the money doesn't really matter.

I'm happy with the Studio Display overall, and I'm glad that Apple is doing firmware updates and is supporting their product in the field.

 

[Icaras]

When I go to System Settings > General > Software Update, I only receive the message "Your Mac is up to date." Where can I find my monitor's firmware version? Maybe it installed the update in the background without me noticing, since I do have automatic updates on?

UPDATE: I found my firmware version using the System Information app. Looks like my monitor is still on the previous build of 19F77, but the Software Update section of the Settings app keeps saying that my Mac is up to date. Not sure what to do?

Same here. Not sure what to do next at this point.

 

[theorist9]

I am starting a club.

It's called the "we just want "dumb" apple displays, no camera, no iPhone guts".

$1199 = 27"
$899 = 24"

Who is in?

Sure, but for pricing:

The 2020 27" iMac's base price was $1800, so if half of that was for the display and half for the computer, I'd say $900 for the 27". Then proportionally by area, we have:

24" = $700 (consistently, this is also half the $1300 starting price of the 24" iMac, rounded up to the nearest $100)
27" = $900
32" = $1300

And make the stock stand height-adjustable.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

>MaxTech

Bruh, that is one of the last people I would take seriously for tech comparisons, next to iJustine. That man is a Youtube clickbaiter who does not have proper equipment.

I don’t like the channel either, but as stated it was literally a side-by-side comparison on camera. Even through video the contrast of the Studio display was much better. Same with the other video.

 

[Spaceboi Scaphandre]

Sure, but for pricing:

The 2020 27" iMac's base price was $1800, so if half of that was for the display and half for the computer, I'd say $900 for the 27". Then proportionally by area, we have:

24" = $700 (consistently, this is also half the $1300 starting price of the 24" iMac, rounded up to the nearest $100)
27" = $900
32" = $1300

And make the stock stand height-adjustable.

Now that is more like it.

Also the 27 inch and above need 120hz ProMotion or else it's outclassed by gaming monitors at the same size and price range.

 

[currocj]

Thankful for not buying this first version.

waiting on 120 Hz for me. A DisplayPort in would be nice too

 

[citysnaps]

I see there's a lot of energy in the discussion about the Studio Display. I just wanted to chime in that I really appreciate the high effort end-to-end color management that Apple provides, which is overlooked everywhere else. I can work in DCI, sRGB, or specific P3 colorspaces for print, photography, etc and get reliable results, with the monitor, macOS, and applications all aware of the colorspace automatically without any hassle.

It's an actual nightmare to manage this otherwise.

I also appreciate the fact that Studio Display is not ugly, and the 5k resolution works really well @ 27" within macOS. 4k @ 27" left all the UI elements a bit too big for my liking, and scaling to virtual 5k wasn't entirely satisfying for text sharpness. I understand that Windows handles scaling completely differently, but Windows scaling mechanism comes with its own laundry list of caveats, and macOS works cleanly with no caveats as long as you play by the DPI rules. I ultimately prefer everything to just work and the money doesn't really matter.

I'm happy with the Studio Display overall, and I'm glad that Apple is doing firmware updates and is supporting their product in the field.

Spot on about the color; especially from a fellow photographer. And nice to hear comments from people that actually *OWN* a Studio Display. The SD has superb image quality and is an excellent value.

As I mentioned earlier, the SD is not for gamers.

 

[aorr]

Man that stinks, I hope you get it resolved. I read the support article and it's pretty crazy that you either need another display or another machine to fix it. You'd think they could have it go into some recovery "display only" mode that would allow it to at least work as a display.

So after it failing numerous times to "fix" itself, I got on the phone with Apple and was trying to explain the issue. The help lady didn't have any ideas so she went to a senior person. While I was waiting for her the display suddenly got the install to work and is now fixed. It only took about 6 install/update cycles for it to resolve itself. *facepalm*

 

[roguefury]

As a spreadsheet enthusiast, should I wait to buy this thing?

 

[ponzicoinbro]

I got confirmation the firmware update fixed the bug.

My school friend is a manager of a tech store so he confirmed everything.

So I ordered immediately and I pick up my lovely shiny ASD tomorrow afternoon.

 

[ponzicoinbro]

Spot on about the color; especially from a fellow photographer. And nice to hear comments from people that actually *OWN* a Studio Display. The SD has superb image quality and is an excellent value.

As I mentioned earlier, the SD is not for gamers.

It’s about 88-90% AdobeRGB And about 99% P3, so for photography and graphics design it is as good as it gets for 5K monitors.

I tested HDR on it. The colors are great but obviously true HDR displays have higher nits and can show more shadow detail. It’s not a super big difference. If I do any HDR workflow on the Studio Display I can preview the work on my HDR television.

 

[-BigMac-]

Spot on about the color; especially from a fellow photographer. And nice to hear comments from people that actually *OWN* a Studio Display. The SD has superb image quality and is an excellent value.

As I mentioned earlier, the SD is not for gamers.

120hz isnt just for “gamers”

The higher refresh rate, more fluid animations, lower mouse response time.. all adds to the comfort and experience of using the display, and most likely better productivity as a result.

Apple is all about experience, and I am yet to hear from a person that complains about a more fluid, better responsive monitor (which has all other specs identical)

 

[netnothing]

So after it failing numerous times to "fix" itself, I got on the phone with Apple and was trying to explain the issue. The help lady didn't have any ideas so she went to a senior person. While I was waiting for her the display suddenly got the install to work and is now fixed. It only took about 6 install/update cycles for it to resolve itself. *facepalm*

That's good to hear!! So you didn't have to do anything? It just kept trying while sitting on that screen? Hey, at least it's better than a trip to the Apple store!

 

[-BigMac-]

That's good to hear!! So you didn't have to do anything? It just kept trying while sitting on that screen? Hey, at least it's better than a trip to the Apple store!

Barely.
Can atleast pick up some more goodies at the Apple store while you wait.

Not very exciting staring at a blank screen at home, while not being able to work.. or worse yet.. missing out on valuable MacRumors commenting time

 

[GMShadow]

So much blind hate for this product. I’ve had mine since day 1 and it’s been exactly what I’ve wanted for years.

It looks amazing, I’ve had no audio issues (though glad there’s new firmware), and the webcam now looks as good as any other built in webcam Apple ships in Macs, only with Center Stage (usefulness of that feature is debatable).

The only other 5K display on the market is ugly to look at, is 6 years old, and still costs $1,299. 4K is not the same as 5K. Hi-PPI/Retina is glorious. $1,599 is expensive but any $1,000+ display is a luxury item and I’m happy to have it.

I paid $1485 for a 27" 5K display at the end of last year, and I got a Mac inside it too.

 

[turbineseaplane]

ProMotion (120hz) isn’t present because there isn’t enough bandwidth on Thunderbolt.

Incorrect
Works fine using DSC tech, which Apple already uses with the XDR

Please folks -- let's get our info correct here.
Let's "navigate the knowledge" if you will.

 

[Danfango]

I'm happy. The SD is like getting LASIK but without shooting lasers into your eyeballs.

Also mine just works so far no problems. It crashed once since I got it on release day but I had far more problems with my old desktop PC and an Iiyama resulting in crawling around under my desk several times.

 

[roguefury]

120hz isnt just for “gamers”

The higher refresh rate, more fluid animations, lower mouse response time.. all adds to the comfort and experience of using the display, and most likely better productivity as a result.

Apple is all about experience, and I am yet to hear from a person that complains about a more fluid, better responsive monitor (which has all other specs identical)

I can confirm. When I roll into work, several of the desks have 120hz wide screen monitors. I like to use spaces for different tasks. When I swipe, the transition from space to space is buttery smooth. It actually makes my home iMac look and feel janky (2019). Of course the wide screen monitors aren't retina, so there's that.