Been patiently waiting for a return for years, my wallet is ready!
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 Said to Be Working on Lower-Priced External Monitor to Succeed Thunderbolt Display
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
700 dollars and I wont even give a second thought.
Apple has started early development of a lower-priced external monitor that would be sold alongside its high-end Pro Display XDR, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The display would be a consumer-oriented successor to Apple's previous Thunderbolt Display, introduced in 2011 for $999 and discontinued in 2016.
Thunderbolt Display
The report claims that Apple's new lower-priced display will feature reduced brightness and contrast ratio compared to the Pro Display XDR, which is priced at $4,999 before factoring in an optional $999 stand:There is no word on the size, resolution, or other specs of Apple's lower-priced display yet, but the Pro Display XDR is equipped with a 32-inch 6K display, while the Thunderbolt Display had a 27-inch panel with a QHD resolution of 2560x1440. The display would likely have far thinner front bezels than the Thunderbolt Display.
Article Link: Apple Said to Be Working on Lower-Priced External Monitor to Succeed Thunderbolt Display
No way it will be that cheap, but I expect it will be cheaper than twice that.
At least two USB-C ports...one for my MacBook Pro and the other for my M1 Mac mini..
Perfect World..
The $999 thunderbolt retina display will need at least a MagSafe and two USB-C port for sure.
If it uses a QHD (2560x1440) panel, then true. They could literally just re-release the old Thunderbolt Display, but with TB3 instead of TB2+Magsafe.
I however believe it will be a 5K Retina (5120x2880) panel, likely with MiniLED backlighting, and that I do not see coming in at $999 considering LG charges $1299 for their 5K display with plastic casing and no MiniLED.
Apple retina display is not a new tech and certainly, the cost of production has decreased over the years and mini-LED is not far from being as cheap as conventional LED backlight.
It doesn't care. It's clearly saying "I'm it". Look at the way it just barged in front of the two iMacs, sticking the edge of its stand over the edge of the desk like it owns the place.
The box on the right is clearly thinking of jumping. Don't blame it really.
lol, $2k for the “lower-priced” display
I guess the target audience is people who also bought AirPods Max? Only the difference is: you can get a lot of over-ears, including from Apple’s own Beats brand. You cannot, however, easily get a Retina Display.
So for years now, Apple’s messaging seems to have been “if you want Retina on an external display, get the LG, starting at $800”. Then they added “oh, and of you don’t want Retina, we’ll get rid of the old text rendering code to make you truly want Retina”. And now they’re adding “you can also get the display from us, starting at four figures”, I guess?
I guess the target audience is people who also bought AirPods Max? Only the difference is: you can get a lot of over-ears, including from Apple’s own Beats brand. You cannot, however, easily get a Retina Display.
So for years now, Apple’s messaging seems to have been “if you want Retina on an external display, get the LG, starting at $800”. Then they added “oh, and of you don’t want Retina, we’ll get rid of the old text rendering code to make you truly want Retina”. And now they’re adding “you can also get the display from us, starting at four figures”, I guess?
My thought is that Apple has not been a 'low price' competitor for as long as I can remember and I just don't see them going there now. I see this monitor as being 'Retina' type so anything less than 4k@24" (currently ~$800) 5k@27" (currently ~$1200) or 6k@32" (currently ~$5000) resolution/size just won't happen. I can't imagine Apple will reduce the DPI to less than Retina levels (i.e. a 4K@>~24", 5k@>27", etc.), mostly because those options exist and are filled by low price competitors (everyone else). The gap in price for 'Retina' monitor is between the ~$1200 and ~$5000 range and I think we can expect a $2000-$3000 monitor from Apple. So I'll split the difference and guess they'll release a $2500 monitor but I'm hoping for something more like $2000, and won't be surprised when it's actually $3500.
For some time, the 27” Thunderbolt Display seemed rather inexpensive / competitively priced at $999. Perhaps because I remembered that the 30” Cinema Display that was released in 2004 retailed for $3299 upon release. But oh man did it look glorious back then.
Can’t wait to see what Apple releases this next go around and whether it’s any closer to affordable than the 32” XDR (my bet is north of $1999 if its 32” but we’ll see.)
Can’t wait to see what Apple releases this next go around and whether it’s any closer to affordable than the 32” XDR (my bet is north of $1999 if its 32” but we’ll see.)
Oh plenty of people were complaining about it's price compared to Dells and HP displays that were one-third or other OEM displays that were half the price.
One more thought: if the gap between current Retina level (aka 'Apple-acceptable') monitors is $1,500-$5,000, simply splitting the difference gives us a $3,250 monitor. Simple me says if they go Ultrawide they will compare it to two LG5KUFs at a total price of ~$2,600. Starting there as a base price, and if they add in a few new 'one more things' like a camera, TB hub, HDR, SD slot (?), mini-LED, or maybe even onboard dedicated graphics (which was a rumor several moons ago), I could easily see them get to an ask of $3,250. Frankly, that is expensive enough for me to say no thanks but low enough for me to pine over it each day. I see the real problem being that these monitors will not reduce in price over time like models from Dell, LG, Samsung, etc. do. Apple makes a monitor and sells it for the initial price for the life of the item. Because Apple is not in the monitor business, there aren't new/next-year models driving down the price of last-year models. So what? Well, I think we might be looking at a $3,250 monitor that I juuuust can't justify buying.
In the day $999 for the thunderbolt monitor seemed over priced. If the came out with the price of $999 now...they would knock it out of the park...
If you ignore the 32" thing, it would seem to me that a base 27" iMac, for $1800, has more technology and circuitry inside it than an equivalent Thunderbolt Display would have. So, you might think that would set the bar for the maximum they'd charge for a 27" Retina display.
Then again, Apple charges $1000 for a stand for their existing 32 inch monitor. The stand probably isn't very much more sophisticated or costly than the stand that is included with that $1800 iMac. That leads me to believe that the aluminum is the expensive part, and the panel and other electronics in that iMac is only worth about $800...
Then again, Apple charges $1000 for a stand for their existing 32 inch monitor. The stand probably isn't very much more sophisticated or costly than the stand that is included with that $1800 iMac. That leads me to believe that the aluminum is the expensive part, and the panel and other electronics in that iMac is only worth about $800...
Nope. 9to5Mac had an opinion piece today that Apple needs a branded display cheaper than the Pro XDR to compliment the M1 Mac Mini, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, but they just noted the Bloomberg report from January that Apple is working on such.
I have a feeling if it happens, it will use the same 24" 4K panel that we all expect to be in the new iMac as the 31.5" 6K panel rumored for the "big brother / iMac Pro" model will likely be too big and too expensive for a standalone monitor.
I have a feeling if it happens, it will use the same 24" 4K panel that we all expect to be in the new iMac as the 31.5" 6K panel rumored for the "big brother / iMac Pro" model will likely be too big and too expensive for a standalone monitor.