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Thunderbolt Display Regrets?

NEC displays have excellent ergonomic adjustments, a four year warranty and anti-glare too.... Built like tanks. My 24" NEC display weighs about as much as my 24" iMac.

Dell? Hmmm... :rolleyes:

The Apple Thunderbolt display has... well, it can be connected via a Thunderbolt port. ZZZZZZZZZ...
 
No complaints after 3 months. Love the TBD.

Also, I recall seeing refurb TBDs on Apple's website for $849. Helps with the cost and you still get a 1 year warranty and can buy AppleCare.
 
I'm in IT for a major airline, and so I spend a lot of time flying around the world to our branch offices, and to work on all the equipment/offices we have in terminals around the world.

SO not everything is uniform.

The ACD Thunderbolt display is easily the best monitor available IMO - but unfortunately we can't use it in our airline as it's a PC world in the frontline airline biz for the most part.

We generally employ larger than usual monitors for areas like reservations, call centre's and flight/officers offices. Our pilots are pretty determined to have the larger monitors when it comes to checking out the flight info for their next flight.

Anyways. I see many different monitor alternatives out there when purchasing and yes most of them are cheaper than an Apple, and it shows.

Granted most people I work with don't know the different between anything, and they don't care. They just want to be able to see what they are looking at. USB hubs, and extra ports on monitors don't mean anything to them. They can pilot a 747 across the world but they couldn't hook up a monitor to a computer if their life depended on it.

Again, just my opinion and my experience, but when I come home now to my TB ACD it's just such a relief cuz I appreciate the quality that sits in front of me.

I am guessing that some, not all, but some of the people here posting about other monitors have never used a TB ACD display before - and the reason it's not on their radar is because they are fine with their alternative monitor.

Nothing wrong with that.

If you re-read my post, you'll see there is no right or wrong to what monitor you use. Different people have different needs, and different expectations.

Now that I own two TB ACD's I won't be using any other brands for my personal use.
 
thekev said:
It's a very popular display, but I wonder where the better circuitry comment came from. A lot of the older Apple displays that I've seen did die from issues like inverter boards before the backlight faded out to the point of failure. Is the Dell more reliable? It seems to have the same panel number, but it's set up as a wide gamut display. In either case I'd run a profile on the display to get it as neutral as possible. If Dell does an exceptional job setting the levels, it may not be an issue.
Click to expand...

The reviews I've read and subjective comparisons suggest that it has better circuitry / image processing (to me, but I am not an expert in this stuff). They come with a calibration certificate / summary so they do make an effort in setting them up individually.
 
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McGilli said:
The ACD Thunderbolt display is easily the best monitor available IMO - but unfortunately we can't use it in our airline as it's a PC world in the frontline airline biz for the most part.
Click to expand...

It has one advantage over the others available at similar price points, and that is the thunderbolt hub. Apple's display longevity isn't really better. Warranty length is inferior, but from what I've read on here warranty service is quite good. Ergonomics are significantly worse. It's way too bright for me. I turn them to roughly minimum brightness. To be fair to Apple the contrast holds up a bit better at that level than the older ones (aside from the 30") did. Once you get around to the $1k mark, you've got some excellent choices, and most people never compare them. They just assume Apple is the best.

theSeb said:
The reviewes I've read and subjective comparisons suggest that it has better circuitry / image processing (to me, but I am not an expert in this stuff). They come with a calibration certificate / summary so they do make an effort in setting them up individually.
Click to expand...

There are levels of "calibration". Dell seems to have improved their testing methods over a few years ago. Note that some of those used to see a lot of complaints, now they see very very few complaints. They're quite popular. I don't know which is actually better, but I wouldn't make the mistake of assuming the Apple will be better because it's Apple. The mistake people seem to make is that pretty box = better constructed. If anything the Dell has better ergonomics. Wide gamut vs sRGB gamut means almost nothing to most people as long as you don't experience any weird colors. Apple probably needs to adjust their testing and calibration methods for the wider gamut of the ipads at this point. They're seeing an identical hiccup to what other manufacturers went through in 2009-2010 transitioning to Adobe RGB panels.

The Apple display is quite popular, but Apple seems to just be riding the improvements in lcd display consistency over the past few years rather than really adding anything to it. Wide gamut is a bit more finicky at times like I mentioned, but more recent reviews suggest that Dell is doing pretty well out of the box these days. For a long time I wouldn't have touched one, but I still feel that way about LED anything. I'd prefer something that works as intended over the latest thing.
 
Your needs and use cases are quite different to mine. Colour accuracy is not as important to me so I can't comment on it too much, apart from references to reviews. I love the ergonomics of my dell monitor and the fact that I can pivot it is indispensable. Some people complain that the anti-glare coating is too aggressive, but it's perfect for me.
 
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Great thread. I'm considering pairing my MBA 13" 2011 with a Thunderbolt Display as well. From what I've read here and elsewhere, my biggest concern is that the display doesn't always wake when you want it to, and/or that devices don't always get recognized or stay connected (external HDs, wireless mouse).

Is this a common problem with the Thunderbolt Display? Has it been resolved yet? And most importantly, how often does it happen?

I think it'd be a deal breaker if I have to unplug/replug or reboot the computer each time this happens.

Thanks.
 
onthecouchagain said:
Great thread. I'm considering pairing my MBA 13" 2011 with a Thunderbolt Display as well. From what I've read here and elsewhere, my biggest concern is that the display doesn't always wake when you want it to, and/or that devices don't always get recognized or stay connected (external HDs, wireless mouse).

Is this a common problem with the Thunderbolt Display? Has it been resolved yet? And most importantly, how often does it happen?

I think it'd be a deal breaker if I have to unplug/replug or reboot the computer each time this happens.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I have been using a TBD with my 2011 13" MBP for about three months. I don't use an external drive, so can't comment on that, but everything else syncs/connects right up when I connect the TBD. I just plug in the TBD and close the MBP lid, then start using my BT keyboard and mouse. Seamless every time.

The biggest thing I like about this is no more maintaining and syncing two computers.

I did read about some problems in this area early on, but I think MBP/MBA and Thunderbolt Display firmware updates have cured the biggest problems.
 
@Weaselboy, thanks for the feedback.

I stopped in on a Best Buy and couldn't resist an amazing open-box deal for the Thunderbolt Display. Pulled the trigger, and am quite happy so far. My only gripe for the moment is that it runs my Air fans pretty high. I'm looking at 4000+ RPM average, and that's just browsing, running iTunes, etc. (in other words, nothing heavy intensive). Kind of makes me concerned about the long term effects it'll have on my Air. I'll basically be using it at home far more than unplugging and going on the road. Can anyone comment on the effects of the Air running its fans so high for so long? It's keeping decent temps though, at 50-60 C.

Also, how can you tell which firmware you have for the TB Display? I ran a software update and it found nothing, so is the firmware up to date?

Thanks again, all.
 
onthecouchagain said:
@Weaselboy, thanks for the feedback.

I stopped in on a Best Buy and couldn't resist an amazing open-box deal for the Thunderbolt Display. Pulled the trigger, and am quite happy so far. My only gripe for the moment is that it runs my Air fans pretty high. I'm looking at 4000+ RPM average, and that's just browsing, running iTunes, etc. (in other words, nothing heavy intensive). Kind of makes me concerned about the long term effects it'll have on my Air. I'll basically be using it at home far more than unplugging and going on the road. Can anyone comment on the effects of the Air running its fans so high for so long? It's keeping decent temps though, at 50-60 C.

Also, how can you tell which firmware you have for the TB Display? I ran a software update and it found nothing, so is the firmware up to date?

Thanks again, all.
Click to expand...

If there are no software updates then you are fine and have the latest and greatest.

Just curious, but how much did you pay for the open box TBD at Best Buy?
 
onthecouchagain said:
@Weaselboy, thanks for the feedback.

I stopped in on a Best Buy and couldn't resist an amazing open-box deal for the Thunderbolt Display. Pulled the trigger, and am quite happy so far. My only gripe for the moment is that it runs my Air fans pretty high. I'm looking at 4000+ RPM average, and that's just browsing, running iTunes, etc. (in other words, nothing heavy intensive). Kind of makes me concerned about the long term effects it'll have on my Air. I'll basically be using it at home far more than unplugging and going on the road. Can anyone comment on the effects of the Air running its fans so high for so long? It's keeping decent temps though, at 50-60 C.

Also, how can you tell which firmware you have for the TB Display? I ran a software update and it found nothing, so is the firmware up to date?

Thanks again, all.
Click to expand...
do you run your laptop fully closed?

try cracking the lid just 1/4 inch. supposedly the fan intake is the keyboard area
 
iAppl3Fan said:
If there are no software updates then you are fine and have the latest and greatest.

Just curious, but how much did you pay for the open box TBD at Best Buy?
Click to expand...

It was 10% off for open box but the best thing was that it was already marked down to 949.

----------
danpass said:
do you run your laptop fully closed?

try cracking the lid just 1/4 inch. supposedly the fan intake is the keyboard area
Click to expand...

Will that do anything to the lid? Like wear it out in some way? If not I'll try that. I'm just wondering about what long term effects there are to always having the fans running.
 
onthecouchagain said:
My only gripe for the moment is that it runs my Air fans pretty high. I'm looking at 4000+ RPM average, and that's just browsing, running iTunes, etc. (in other words, nothing heavy intensive).
Click to expand...

The only time my MBP fans rev up is when I am on a site that uses Flash in some way. That seems to invariably heat things up and rev the fans. Are you on Flash sites when this happens?

Sounds like you scored a good deal on the display. :)
 
Most people do not need a wide gamut display. Even photographers who are most likely to get the most out of a wide gamut display usually do not need it. I'm a pro photographer who utilizes wide-gamut color spaces and my high quality sRGB display does everything I require in a monitor.

Wide-gamut capability typically adds a couple of hundred dollars to the cost of a monitor, so if you don't need it you can save some serious money sticking with an IPS standard gamut display.
 
Mojo1 said:
Most people do not need a wide gamut display. Even photographers who are most likely to get the most out of a wide gamut display usually do not need it. I'm a pro photographer who utilizes wide-gamut color spaces and my high quality sRGB display does everything I require in a monitor.

Wide-gamut capability typically adds a couple of hundred dollars to the cost of a monitor, so if you don't need it you can save some serious money sticking with an IPS standard gamut display.
Click to expand...

I don't pay as much attention to wide gamut vs sRGB, as it means much more in marketing than in practice. What I find matters is overall performance. It's not noisy/swirly due to bad circuitry. It can be adjusted to a brightness level that I can work with without losing too much contrast or proper conformation to a gamma 2.2 curve. It doesn't have a lot of color temperature variance from highlights to shadows. Good shadow detail, good uniformity in both luminance and color, adjustable stand, no flicker of any kind, stabilizes quickly when turned on, has a reasonably good LUT based system for calibration, screen coatings are not obnoxious.

I could probably go on with that list. I was trying to make the point that there are many things that can contribute to functionality that don't contribute to pretty marketing materials.
 
My Air fans run awfully high on a consistent basis doing the most basic things like browsing the web (no Flash sites) and playing iTunes and having a few other things opened like Calendar or Sticky Notes.

I don't really mind it that much, but when it's night time and it's quiet, the fans can be a bit of a nuisance.

I'm really disappointed by this. I love my Air, and I love my TBD. Not sure what to do... I have my eyes set at the Mac Mini, but it's a little frustrating because I already have accessories for the Air (bags, sleeve, the BookArc). This is one of those rare times when Apple's insistency on design hurts practicality. Wish the Air was vented better or something...
 
Prodo123 said:
Solution: VESA mount arm.
(costs more money though and I agree with your complaint)
Click to expand...

One of the many reasons I think most of the people who work at the Apple stores are idiots: I brought in my 27" iMac that I had added the VESA adapter to and use with the Ergotron arm. This is an adapter made and sold by Apple and an arm they sell on their website. They guy starting giving me a hard time about unauthorized modifications to my Mac! And he called the stand a "foot".
 
unfrostedpoptar said:
One of the many reasons I think most of the people who work at the Apple stores are idiots: I brought in my 27" iMac that I had added the VESA adapter to and use with the Ergotron arm. This is an adapter made and sold by Apple and an arm they sell on their website. They guy starting giving me a hard time about unauthorized modifications to my Mac! And he called the stand a "foot".
Click to expand...

I hear a nomination for the Darwin Awards...
 
bniu said:
Lol! Me too! I really regret the fact that I don't have a 2nd one!
Click to expand...

I'd like to know if you get neck pain when you get your second monitor :)

I love dual monitor setups, but I don't use it for photos, networking and other geeky stuff, even though it looks impressive, I would rather have dual 24" versions.

There doesn't seem to be anyone regretting it, which is a bonus :)
 
cameras / speakers / etc with dual TB displays?

bniu said:
Lol! Me too! I really regret the fact that I don't have a 2nd one!
Click to expand...

Question for those with a dual-TB display setup: can the Mac take advantage of the peripherals in both monitors intelligently? Can it use the left speaker of the left monitor for left sound, right of right for right, and the two speakers in the center for center sounds? That would be great. What about the cameras? Any apps that can use both for 3D or Kinect-like tracking? Can it use both ethernet ports? All the USB and both Firewire?

Thanks,

David
 
Having the speaker setup you are asking about was my biggest wish wish I got the two monitors but the answer is NO.

You can only have one of the monitors active at any one time.

I even started a thread in this forum about it - but the answer was still no.

So far, as far as I can find, the cameras work the same. Only one can be active at any time.

As for ports I have almost every port on the 2 monitors filled with FW800, USB2, ethernet and it has not been a problem for me at all...
 
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