macOS 26.1 Beta Hints at Pro Display XDR 2 With Center Stage Camera

[fathergll]

True - the question is what are people actually waiting for? We've seen some big advances on laptop/tablet-sized screens (from Apple and others) but the world of 5k3k and 6k panels doesn't seem to be offering anything substantially better than the Studio Display or the Pro XDR.

The Studio Display is substantially the same 5k panel - just a tad brighter - as a 2017 iMac - and I don't see anything dramatically better at 5k3k resolution with - say - a (burn-proof) OLED panel, local dimming or high-frame-rate on the market.

There are now a couple of interesting 6k/32" options much cheaper than the Pro XDR - but AFAIK nothing with any sort of local dimming, even the limited number of zones on the XDR.

Last I looked, Apple don't make display panels - obviously they've found some way of sourcing new tech "custom" panels for the iPad and MacBooks, but do they sell enough desktop displays to commission a novel panel? Esp. since they'll probably only work on Macs with TB5 interfaces.

The issue is that the currently users have two options from Apple. Once is a 6k they cannot afford and aimed at niche pros so they are then left with a 27" which really at its core is a 2014 iMac monitor. Yes it has gotten P3 and brightness improvements in the past decade but its still at its core a 60hz 218 ppi 27" 5k screen that can't display HDR so users are naturally going to see their Macbooks which is Mini-LED 120hz and think that would justify the price and hold them over for many years wheras spending a lot of money on something that is at its core a monitor tech nearing 11 years at this point seems to be an issue for most.

The monitor industry is mostly geared towards PC/Gaming so 4k high response time has been the focus which is the complete opposite of Apple as they are in their own world with high PPI displays which is why there has been no advancements outside of Apple. We are now just seeing the competition come out with lower quality versions of what Apple has been doing at bargain prices which is a very good option for people.

As you noted Apple doesnt sell many desktop displays and this monitors is something they are not focused on as Apple isn't in the traditional display business. Their displays are more Mac specific accessories.

 

[tenthousandthings]

True - the question is what are people actually waiting for? We've seen some big advances on laptop/tablet-sized screens (from Apple and others) but the world of 5k3k and 6k panels doesn't seem to be offering anything substantially better than the Studio Display or the Pro XDR.

The Studio Display is substantially the same 5k panel - just a tad brighter - as a 2017 iMac - and I don't see anything dramatically better at 5k3k resolution with - say - a (burn-proof) OLED panel, local dimming or high-frame-rate on the market.

There are now a couple of interesting 6k/32" options much cheaper than the Pro XDR - but AFAIK nothing with any sort of local dimming, even the limited number of zones on the XDR.

Last I looked, Apple don't make display panels - obviously they've found some way of sourcing new tech "custom" panels for the iPad and MacBooks, but do they sell enough desktop displays to commission a novel panel? Esp. since they'll probably only work on Macs with TB5 interfaces.

Apart from the Pro Display XDR, there is only one 5K or above panel with local dimming, and it is not yet available: the ASUS ProArt 8K (which ASUS has indicated will be priced around US $8,500).

That panel (and backlight) is made by AUO (Taiwan, a.k.a. AU Optronics or AUO Display+), and the panel (and backlight) in the Pro Display XDR is probably also made by AUO. [There was speculation in 2019 that it was made by LG Display, but that was never confirmed and is probably incorrect, given what we know now.]

So there’s a likelihood that the next Pro Display XDR will contain this same unreleased 8K panel with AmLED backlight — in many ways it’s the successor to the 2019 XDR. It was originally listed with 4,096 zones, but that is really about the silicon and firmware driving the display. ASUS ended up supporting 4,032 zones, but Apple could use its own silicon and firmware to support up to 4,500 or so.

Finally, TFT Central also lists a mysterious 27" IPS Black 5K panel from LG Display with HDR 1000 and a Mini LED backlight with 1,560 zones. I think it’s probable this is what we’ll see in the Studio Display 2. There is a solid rumor from a reliable source to that effect. You’ll notice LG has not released a 5K version of the new 6K in the “UltraFine evo” line, I think both Apple and LG could use this in 1H 2026.

 

[CWallace]

God forbid Apple actually innovated and brought something to market that pushed the boundaries. But no - better to keep milking existing technology to death and charge obscene amounts for accessories and stands.

Apple did innovate with the Pro Display XDR, which remains unmatched in terms of specs for it's class (32" 6K). It's unique in the marketplace and Apple surely had to pay whomever developed the custom panel for it a lot of money not just for the displays, but likely also invested heavily in the production factory itself since the sales volumes were never going to be enough to convince a panel OEM to develop it on their own. Hence why it costs so darn much compared to lower-spec "commodity" 6K displays from Dell and LG and even there, it took those companies a half-decade to ship them after Apple released the PDXDR.

 

[zedsdead]

Apple did innovate with the Pro Display XDR, which remains unmatched in terms of specs for it's class (32" 6K). It's unique in the marketplace and Apple surely had to pay whomever developed the custom panel for it a lot of money not just for the displays, but likely also invested heavily in the production factory itself since the sales volumes were never going to be enough to convince a panel OEM to develop it on their own. Hence why it costs so darn much compared to lower-spec "commodity" 6K displays from Dell and LG and even there, it took those companies a half-decade to ship them after Apple released the PDXDR.

People don’t understand that there are zero options out there that match the Pro Display specs, namely brightness at 6k 1000 nits. That new LG panel does not either, and nothing even matched the Studio Display at 5K 600 nits. No displays have the glassy overlay either that Apple uses. It’s time for Apple to make a larger prosumer option. We’ve had 27” since 2009.

It’s frustrating that Apple has not made any advancements in this space since the 2017 iMac basically, so we should finally be getting something soon. Although I doubt it the studio version will be bigger than 27”.

 

[tim@ipad]

Nice. Will there be an update to the Studio Display as well?

 

[Pezimak]

I said Apple are not going to sell a separate better monitor then the Pro Display XDR, MacBook Pro XDR’s screen exempted as it isn’t separate, if they give it a FaceTime camera and speakers I will be taking a look! I am split between 2 27” ones or one 32”, 2 27’s will obviously give me more screen real estate but at the cost of taking up space on my desk.

 

[avro707]

The new camera alone would justify a $20,000 price!

Currently they are joking with the prices they are charging for XDR. $1000 for a stand?

Hence why I use two 5K screens on my main Mac Pro setup. I’ll probably go non Apple 6K on the other. I would get two 6K screens for the price of one Apple 6K.

 

[Pezimak]

People don’t understand that there are zero options out there that match the Pro Display specs, namely brightness at 6k 1000 nits. That new LG panel does not either, and nothing even matched the Studio Display at 5K 600 nits. No displays have the glassy overlay either that Apple uses. It’s time for Apple to make a larger prosumer option. We’ve had 27” since 2009.

It’s frustrating that Apple has not made any advancements in this space since the 2017 iMac basically, so we should finally be getting something soon. Although I doubt it the studio version will be bigger than 27”.

The only computer screens that beat the Pro Display XDR are the MacBook Pro ones, but obviously at reduced resolution. Pro Display is unique at the 32” class.

 

[Pezimak]

Happy Apple is making multiple monitors, but what I want is a 32" version of the next Studio Display.

Mini LED, 120HZ, 5K, 32”, keep the speakers upgrade the webcam, charge 2500 or less for it. Oh and PLEASE give it more then one sodding input port!

 

[mabaker]

That‘ll be 9999 in todays Dollars. Stand sold separately.

 

[coolerkid]

Is anyone really using these displays for zoom calls? It looks like there's a ton of extra chips inside just for the webcam. I'd rather they removed the camera and speakers. Anyone buying this monitor is likely buying high end speakers too, and can buy a high end webcam too if they need it. Focus on lowering the cost and come with a single, height adjustable stand that can be removed to work with VESA that doesn't cost $499 or $999. I love the Studio Display, but Apple is really annoying with these monitors.

 

[Agent007]

Price for the stand...$3000. But, Apple will throw in a refurbished Apple Polishing Cloth!

I almost priced my joke stand at $1,299 but I felt $1,499 better reflected the hyperbole I was going for. You went WAY high on your joke stand - my fake stands will outsell yours 10:1.

 

[kiranmk2]

But the problem is that worldwide no ultrawide 218PPI is existing.
Or perhaps Apple has installed its own ultra-wide 218 PPI panel production line in the basement of the Pentagon, making this project so top-secret that no one in the world has heard anything about it.



Not very likely, is it?

There wasn't a 3.5" 326 ppi screen in existance before Apple requested one for the iPhone 4 either. I don't think there were any 6K monitors before the Pro XDR Display. There were no 11" tandem OLED panels before the M4 iPad Pro. If Apple wants to procure something, companies will build it.

 

[Dark-Signature]

There wasn't a 3.5" 326 ppi screen in existance before Apple requested one for the iPhone 4 either. I don't think there were any 6K monitors before the Pro XDR Display. There were no 11" tandem OLED panels before the M4 iPad Pro. If Apple wants to procure something, companies will build it.

Oh, you're not quite right there. Are you familiar with Display Week, the trade show that takes place once a year where panel manufacturers from around the world present their latest developments? Among other things, a “double OLED” display was presented there about a year before Apple christened it “Tandem OLED.” It was similar with 6K panels.

And I'm also very, very sure that when the iPhone 4 with the first Retina display was released, there was a corresponding summit (Display Week didn't exist at the time, but there were probably other events) where prototypes of such displays could be seen. Apple is by no means operating in a vacuum.

You may remember Apple's plans to build its own production line for micro OLEDs (e.g., for the Apple Watch, and possibly also for the Apple Vision Pro), but Apple abandoned these plans because it is not quite so trivial to set up such a factory with all the necessary cutting-edge technological expertise. In the case of the Apple Vision Pro, Apple then turned to Sony.

 

[tenthousandthings]

There wasn't a 3.5" 326 ppi screen in existance before Apple requested one for the iPhone 4 either. I don't think there were any 6K monitors before the Pro XDR Display. There were no 11" tandem OLED panels before the M4 iPad Pro. If Apple wants to procure something, companies will build it.

Apple has power and influence as a buyer, but they aren’t guiding development. Samsung Display, LG Display, AU Optronics, BOE, and others all compete for Apple’s business.

Investment in these technology advances starts in the big-money products (phones), then goes into laptops/tablets, and only later into high-resolution desktop computer displays. That’s what happened with IPS, and it’s what is happening now with OLED — the silver lining of the wait for desktop users is that the new technology is mature by the time it arrives. Most of the problems with it have been resolved.

Right now, both Samsung Display and LG Display have prototypes of desktop tandem OLED panels they’d love to sell to Apple.

 

[kiranmk2]

Right now, both Samsung Display and LG Display have prototypes of desktop tandem OLED panels they’d love to sell to Apple.

And Apple has the power to say "yes, we'd love a retina tandem OLED for a desktop display, but we'd like it in 21:9 ratio" All the panel manufacturers know how to make 21:9 panels (for a while, this was the only ratio QD-OLED monitor panels came in).

Sadly, I don't think Apple has any intention of going ultrawide...

 

[kiranmk2]

Oh, you're not quite right there. Are you familiar with Display Week, the trade show that takes place once a year where panel manufacturers from around the world present their latest developments? Among other things, a “double OLED” display was presented there about a year before Apple christened it “Tandem OLED.” It was similar with 6K panels.

And I'm also very, very sure that when the iPhone 4 with the first Retina display was released, there was a corresponding summit (Display Week didn't exist at the time, but there were probably other events) where prototypes of such displays could be seen. Apple is by no means operating in a vacuum.

You may remember Apple's plans to build its own production line for micro OLEDs (e.g., for the Apple Watch, and possibly also for the Apple Vision Pro), but Apple abandoned these plans because it is not quite so trivial to set up such a factory with all the necessary cutting-edge technological expertise. In the case of the Apple Vision Pro, Apple then turned to Sony.

I'm very familiar with SID Display Week. But I'm also familiar with how manufacturers have close relationships with their best customers to listen to what their future needs are and start developing technologies to meet them, that they can then sell to others as well. In all these examples, I can't imagine many manufacturers would have spontaneously started development of these technologies (>300 ppi displays, 6K panels, tandem RGB OLED panels) if their customers had not come to them with a need ("we want a display with a resolution high enough that you can't see the pixels at typicaly distance", "we want panel that can achieve >200 ppi at 31-32" size", "want an OLED for our tablets/Macs that can reach 1000+ nits and have a good lifetime").

Once manufacturers start to achieve these technologies, they can start to tout their abilities around at trade shows to attract further customers.

I can see more of a maufacturer-led push to show off completely new technologies that they have bet on taking off in the future (e.g. when OLEDs were still under development, or microLEDs).

 

[tenthousandthings]

I'm very familiar with SID Display Week. But I'm also familiar with how manufacturers have close relationships with their best customers to listen to what their future needs are and start developing technologies to meet them, that they can then sell to others as well. In all these examples, I can't imagine many manufacturers would have spontaneously started development of these technologies (>300 ppi displays, 6K panels, tandem RGB OLED panels) if their customers had not come to them with a need ("we want a display with a resolution high enough that you can't see the pixels at typicaly distance", "we want panel that can achieve >200 ppi at 31-32" size", "want an OLED for our tablets/Macs that can reach 1000+ nits and have a good lifetime").

The attitude that I think needs to be challenged is this idea that Apple can somehow fast-forward the industry’s development if they wanted to. You can see it in the comment I replied to in #51 above, and the third-party response in #73. That manner of thinking ignores the risks of failure involved in the process, risks that are mitigated by the scale of high-volume products like phones, while low-volume products like 32" 8K (or 6K) display panels with 4,608 (8x576) backlight zones or 27" 5K dual-mode 120Hz/240Hz displays don’t justify the risks involved. Let alone the long and difficult science leading to Dream OLED, where the problem of the B in RGB (blue, the shortest wavelength) is finally mitigated (if not entirely resolved) via what LG Display is calling “hybrid tandem” OLED.

I’m not saying that was you, it wasn’t, but that is the mindset myself and others were objecting to when pointing out that such panels simply don’t exist at present. Apple can’t magically circumvent the industry and force a high-risk, low-volume product to market at a low price point. So the new Pro Display XDR with 4,608 backlight zones is going to be very expensive, even though none of the technologies involved are new. If it comes to market at all — ASUS struggled with the silicon and drivers, settling for 4,032 zones in the end — Apple likely would use their own silicon and drivers and be able to utilize the full 4,608 zones available, but Apple also may have abandoned the whole project and bought into Dream OLED instead. AUO Display+ took a huge risk in developing that panel and backlight, not Apple.

 

[innerproduct]

so for those of you that actually know something about the panels industry : is there any indication that there are candidate panels that make for a meaningful upgrade of the current xdr? That 32” panel that asus uses has way to high ppi for a desktop display. Would much rather have a 36-40 ” for 8k.
Seems to me the current xdr is still the best you can get despite being 5 years old.

 

[tenthousandthings]

so for those of you that actually know something about the panels industry : is there any indication that there are candidate panels that make for a meaningful upgrade of the current xdr? That 32” panel that asus uses has way to high ppi for a desktop display. Would much rather have a 36-40 ” for 8k.
Seems to me the current xdr is still the best you can get despite being 5 years old.

I’m no expert, but the first thing to do is to separate IPS from OLED. Also, don’t dismiss the importance of visual clarity in the realms of design, art, motion, color, and even science — many people here are focused on text, which is understandable, but there’s a whole world of differentiation beyond that.

With regard to IPS: That 32" 8K AUO panel and its 4,608-zone (8x576) backlight with new, improved mini LED technology is far and away the most likely candidate. ASUS uses integrated chips (IC) to independently control the zones, and Apple would likely do the same using their own silicon. AUO (unconfirmed, but virtually certain given what we know at this point) produces the panel and 576-zone backlight for the current Pro Display XDR, so they are the natural choice to produce the second generation.

BOE demonstrated a 32" 8K/4K dual-mode IPS panel, but there was no indication of it *not* having edge backlighting, so it’s probably not an XDR candidate.

LG Display also has a 27" 5K IPS Black panel with a mini LED backlight with 1,560 zones, so that’s likely to be J527, Studio Display XDR.

On the OLED front, I’d expect further revelations during the trade shows in early 2026, but actual products still seem like a year or two away. Regardless, it’s still the only real hope for reasonable, mainstream pricing of Retina ProMotion desktop displays with true-black HDR. MacBook Pro will get it first in 2026, but the Pro Display might not be far behind?