Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Studio Display Gets Rare All-Time Low Discount at Best Buy, Available For $1,299.99

Nope. I bought two of them and returned them the week after.
The webcam was a real joke and the dual-display settings are non-existent (speakers, brightness in sync, etc.). You have to use too many workarounds of 3rd-party solutions for something that should have been supported by Apple.

Also, the bezels are a too big, but I wouldn't have returned them for this reason.
 
  • Love
  • Like
Reactions: gusmula and turbineseaplane
azentropy said:
Inferior ppi ruins it for me. 4K at 27" just isn't the same. Once you are used to the higher ppi it is really hard to go back. Either everything is too big and you lose real estate at true 2x or you have to have to do odd scaling in which text is inferior. Of course it is really dependent on what you do.
Click to expand...
I would agree. I wish Apple would do screen scaling like Windows. For some reason, Windows seems to scale better. I don't remember the technical reasons why, but there's a word for what they do.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
  • Love
Reactions: gusmula, arkitect, turbineseaplane and 2 others
vertsix said:
Pretty bad deal still. I got a 1400nit, 4K 160Hz, miniLED monitor for $700 on Amazon. Actually better spec than the Pro Display XDR for a fraction of the cost.

INNOCN 27M2V Review

The INNOCN 27M2V is a 27-inch, 4k monitor with Mini LED backlighting. Competing mainly with the Cooler Master Tempest GP27U, it has 1,152 local dimming zones to ...
www.rtings.com
Click to expand...
Other than refresh rate, what do you think is a better spec on this than the XDR? It has vastly fewer pixels, lower peak brightness, not glossy, inferior build quality, no Thunderbolt and associated hub, and (at least the InnoCN I had) pretty lousy firmware and menus.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: TheWatchfulOne, _Mitchan1999, rumz and 5 others
EugW said:
Yes, the hypothetical 30" 5120x3200 display I mentioned is 16:10.

I'm currently running a 28.2" 3840x2560 3:2 display. However, its 164 ppi is a little low. While the 21" minimum seating distance is OK for me since I usually sit at 22" or so, I would prefer a pixel density of ~200 ppi. That is the sweet spot IMO.
Click to expand...
I also have the the 28.2" Huawei MateView and it's amazing.
 
  • Love
  • Disagree
  • Like
Reactions: icanhazmac, gusmula and turbineseaplane
Serious question here: Are most of you who use the Apple display graphic designers, photographers or other artists of some sort? I only ask because I do a lot with photography as a hobby, and work on my mac 8-10 hours/day, but for study/lesson planning and presentation creation. I use a $200 32" Samsung monitor. I'm in my 50's and my eyes don't fatigue. My el-cheapo monitor does just fine for me. I just can't get my head around what makes a 27" monitor worth so much to so many people.

Please know, I'm NOT dissing on anyone or the monitor. I just assume that many of you have jobs or hobbies that really benefit from better resolution, color rendering, motion, etc.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gusmula, Chuckeee, Victor Mortimer and 3 others
indychris said:
Serious question here: Are most of you who use the Apple display graphic designers, photographers or other artists of some sort? I only ask because I do a lot with photography as a hobby, and work on my mac 8-10 hours/day, but for study/lesson planning and presentation creation. I use a $200 32" Samsung monitor. I'm in my 50's and my eyes don't fatigue. My el-cheapo monitor does just fine for me. I just can't get my head around what makes a 27" monitor worth so much to so many people.

Please know, I'm NOT dissing on anyone or the monitor. I just assume that many of you have jobs or hobbies that really benefit from better resolution, color rendering, motion, etc.
Click to expand...
I use the LG Ultrafine, 27" 5K, which has the same resolution as the Studio Display. I use it mainly for programming and I also have an LG 32" 4K monitor, but I preferably use the smaller 5K monitor as it works better for my eyesight.
 
  • Like
Reactions: indychris
Nice! ...was looking for a deal on this specific display.
To add to my MBP in my signature below.

Just purchased it, under 12 months, interest-free.

I buy everything this way; Interest-Free over 12, 18, 24 months, or more.
Why NOT, use the cost of money, on their dime. 😎
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jumpthesnark
krspkbl said:
where is the 42" - 144/240Hz display? a lot of TVs are ditching 120Hz and moving to 144hz now. If you want a good monitor you can get 240-360Hz. I have my eye on a 240Hz OLED and it's <$1000. Probably will upgrade from my old 144hz monitor soon :)
Click to expand...
Which one? Got a link?
 
Stenik said:
I also have the the 28.2" Huawei MateView and it's amazing.
Click to expand...
To be honest I don't think the Huawei MateView is amazing. However, I do think it's quite decent for the price.

1. I like the 3:2 aspect ratio, at least for this size class of monitor. It's good for viewing documents.
2. It does not always support 4K streaming over USB-C, and you don't get the full resolution over HDMI.
3. There is light falloff going from the centre towards the edges. It is easily measurable in reviews and I noticed this in real life too, but I have gotten used to it.
4. My unit has no backlight bleed to speak of, and that made me very pleased.
5. It works great over USB-C through a plugable Thunderbolt 4 hub, with no sleep or wakeup issues.
6. The 164 ppi is a bit on the low side. 200 ppi is my preferred pixel density.
7. Colour calibration was totally off out of the box. So, I bought a SpyderX Pro calibrator and after calibration the colours look very good (although I'm not a photographer or colourist or anything like that). Still, this illustrates the fact that their QA is not great, considering they advertise that their colours are accurate out of the box:

High colour accuracy5
∆E<2

5. ΔE<2 indicates the average color standard value in the DCI-P3 color gamut, and ΔE<1 indicates the average color standard value in the sRGB color gamut. Data from Huawei labs. The color level may vary depending on screen usage duration and testing methods.

watchmainspring said:
60hz. What a joke! Is this 2014? 2004?
Click to expand...
For higher end monitors not designed for gaming, this is quite common. If you look, you'll find that many pro monitors that cost twice as much are also 60 Hz.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: _Mitchan1999, HVDynamo and Jumpthesnark
  • Like
Reactions: cczhu and G5isAlive
JDHiro said:
The winning config here is the standard glass with height adjustable stand for $1,699 IMO.

Apple Studio Display Standard glass Tilt- and height-adjustable stand Silver MYJF3LL/A / MK0Q3LL/A - Best Buy

Shop Apple Studio Display Standard glass Tilt- and height-adjustable stand Silver at Best Buy. Find low everyday prices and buy online for delivery or in-store pick-up. Price Match Guarantee.
www.bestbuy.com
Click to expand...

Ummmm, I'd suggest the VESA one for $1299... and then one can spend maybe $30-$100 to get dirt-cheap, third-party VESA mount to do all of the things that cost hundreds extra in Apple mounts... like either of these for < $60...

Vesamounts.jpg


There's also the kind to connect to the back lip of a desk too if one wants a floating, rotatable ASD that takes up pretty much no desktop space at all.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
  • Love
  • Sad
Reactions: TheWatchfulOne, _Mitchan1999, Chuckeee and 3 others
EugW said:
To be honest I don't think the Huawei MateView is amazing. However, I do think it's quite decent for the price.

1. I like the 3:2 aspect ratio, at least for this size class of monitor. It's good for viewing documents.
2. It does not always support 4K streaming over USB-C, and you don't get the full resolution over HDMI.
3. There is light falloff going from the centre towards the edges. It is easily measurable in reviews and I noticed this in real life too, but I have gotten used to it.
4. My unit has no backlight bleed to speak of, and that made me very pleased.
5. It works great over USB-C through a plugable Thunderbolt 4 hub, with no sleep or wakeup issues.
6. The 164 ppi is a bit on the low side. 200 ppi is my preferred pixel density.
7. Colour calibration was totally off out of the box. So, I bought a SpyderX Pro calibrator and after calibration the colours look very good (although I'm not a photographer or colourist or anything like that). Still, this illustrates the fact that their QA is not great, considering they advertise that their colours are accurate out of the box:

High colour accuracy5
∆E<2

5. ΔE<2 indicates the average color standard value in the DCI-P3 color gamut, and ΔE<1 indicates the average color standard value in the sRGB color gamut. Data from Huawei labs. The color level may vary depending on screen usage duration and testing methods.


For higher end monitors not designed for gaming, this is quite common. If you look, you'll find that many pro monitors that cost twice as much are also 60 Hz.
Click to expand...
I totally agree. I would definitely prefer an Apple 6K display at around 200 ppi with 16:10 aspect ratio and no bezels. But it simply doesn't exist. That's why I think Huawei MateView is the best option for now for general productivity work. I do love the fact that it's completely bezel-less on all 4 sides. What's up with those HUGE bezels on Apple's monitors?
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: gusmula, turbineseaplane and EugW
PsykX said:
Nope. I bought two of them and returned them the week after.
The webcam was a real joke and the dual-display settings are non-existent (speakers, brightness in sync, etc.). You have to use too many workarounds of 3rd-party solutions for something that should have been supported by Apple.
Click to expand...
You can control brightness of dual monitors independently right from the keyboard, but you can't control both together at the same time. Is this what you mean?

HobeSoundDarryl said:
Ummmm, I'd suggest the VESA one for $1299... and then one can spend maybe $30-$100 to get dirt cheap, third part VESA mount to do all of the things that cost extra in Apple mounts.
Click to expand...
I bought a cheap VESA mount for my 27" iMac back in the day. That was a mistake. The cheap ones suck, and the expensive ones, are... well... expensive, and they still don't look as good as the native Apple one.

If I were going to buy an Apple monitor, and wanted height adjustability, I'd probably just get the $400 Apple stand.

That said, the stand for the 32" Pro Display XDR is just crazy expensive.
 
  • Like
Reactions: G5isAlive
EugW said:
Hopefully we're going to get a 29-30" update soon. At that size, it'd be something like 5.5K, but I'd actually prefer the same 5K as before. That'd be similar to a pixel doubled/quadrupled version of the Apple 30" Cinema HD Display.

An Apple 5120x3200 30" display would be totally awesome at 201 ppi.
Click to expand...
Wouldn't be 'Retina' at that ppi rating, so won't happen.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: _Mitchan1999, Victor Mortimer and Jumpthesnark
vertsix said:
Pretty bad deal still. I got a 1400nit, 4K 160Hz, miniLED monitor for $700 on Amazon. Actually better spec than the Pro Display XDR for a fraction of the cost.

INNOCN 27M2V Review

The INNOCN 27M2V is a 27-inch, 4k monitor with Mini LED backlighting. Competing mainly with the Cooler Master Tempest GP27U, it has 1,152 local dimming zones to ...
www.rtings.com
Click to expand...
That's a 4k and not a 5k display - you're just creating noise here.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: _Mitchan1999, takasugi, notai and 4 others
EugW said:
You can control brightness of dual monitors independently right from the keyboard, but you can't control both together at the same time. Is this what you mean?


I bought a cheap VESA mount for my 27" iMac back in the day. That was a mistake. The cheap ones suck, and the expensive ones, are... well... expensive, and they still don't look as good as the native Apple one.

If I were going to buy an Apple monitor, and wanted height adjustability, I'd probably just get the $400 Apple stand.

That said, the stand for the 32" Pro Display XDR is just crazy expensive.
Click to expand...

Both of those I screen grabbed have better than 4-star ratings in abundance on Amazon... as do many others. Apple's choices are both expensive and limiting, meaning one must choose only specific things they can do vs. having the flexility to position the monitor in any way.

I just did a check on Amazon, sorted "price high to low" then flipped through pages to locate single monitor, "normal" mount options, in stock and with more than a few reviews and the most expensive one I can find cost $49 more than Apple's mount choices... and it does height, swivel and tilt with no base to take up desk space (desk lip connection type).

To each his own of course but if I was a buyer, I'd buy VESA for ASD to have great flexibility without the super-premium pricing for limited flexibility. And even if I wanted to fault "cheap" arm options, I could spend approx. as much for ONE Apple mount arm option to get ALL Apple mount options in a single purchase.
 
Last edited:
No self respecting pro would use this now… why restrict yourself to a screen when the whole world can be your screen using Vision Pro.

Apples screens are some of the best in this price category… some from 20 years back are still better than some modern screens.
 
  • Haha
  • Like
  • Disagree
Reactions: gusmula, klasma, Victor Mortimer and 2 others
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back