Apple has stopped selling third-party monitors.
LG UltraFine was one among the third-party items Apple offered on its website before to last week’s Peek Performance event. If you were looking for an approved Apple display at the time, the $4,999 Pro Display XDR was the only other alternative available.
But if you want one, you’ll now have to purchase it elsewhere. The LG choice was no longer available on Apple’s official website with the release of the Studio Display, Apple’s ‘entry-level’ monitor. Ebay is also out of supply, but if you really want one, there’s a good chance you’ll find one there.
Instead of purchasing the brand-new Studio Display, this is an excellent alternative. There is, of course, the matter of the Studio Display’s initial price of $1,599. The additional expense seems to be focused on the quality of the construction and accessories rather than the panel itself, which on paper looks to be almost identical to the LG model that was cancelled (and the recently discontinued 27-inch iMac).
However, there are some distinctions. In addition to being 100nits brighter at 600nits, the Studio Display’s features aren’t to be sniffed at. To keep conference calls focused on you, it comes with a 12-megapixel ultra-wide webcam capable of Center Stage. It also has a “studio grade” microphone array and a six-speaker array with four woofers and two tweeters.
While it’s up to you to decide whether or not these additional features are relevant to you, the increased value is undoubtedly there. If the prior rumour of a 24-inch model comes to truth, it does not seem like Apple will sell anything cheaper any time soon.
Indeed, a Studio Display Pro with mini-LED technology is more likely to appear. Ross Young, a display expert, claims that a huge mini-LED screen is in the works, and although he did originally assume that this was an update of the 27-inch iMac, since Apple insiders have said that no larger iMacs are planned, he has reconsidered what the addition of a CPU and camera may be.
For now, we don’t know how much this imaginary device would cost, but considering that the only existing Apple products using mini-LED technology—the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and 14/16-inch MacBook Pros—start at $1,099.