Apple discontinues Thunderbolt Display, no replacement announced

13

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 65
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    kevin kee said:
    I am still waiting for someone to complain that Apple just killed 'Thunderbolt'. :D
    I wouldn't joke about that.  I would not be shocked if that happens in the near future.  
  • Reply 42 of 65
    thedbathedba Posts: 762member
    Many here and other forums are disappointed that Apple hasn't offered a Thunderbolt display yet. There may be a few good reasons for this.

    1) It takes two display port 1.2 cables, supported by the current TB2 standard to drive 5K at 60Hz. They're not going to ask users to hook up their Mac to an external monitor using 2 cables.

    2) No Mac on the market today offers TB3. This will probably change this fall. 

    3) They're not going to offer anything beneath 5K. The 4K market is being flooded with cheap alternatives as we speak. 

    There may be other reasons to this. Just have to be patient. 
    nolamacguy
  • Reply 43 of 65
    pepe779pepe779 Posts: 84member
    WTH is going on at Apple. Some of their recent HW and SW decisions have been rather hard to understand and sometimes I really wonder if Tim Cook knows where the company is going, especially from the long term perspective.
    kermit4krazytallest skilwozwoz
  • Reply 44 of 65
    pepe779 said:
    WTH is going on at Apple. Some of their recent HW and SW decisions have been rather hard to understand and sometimes I really wonder if Tim Cook knows where the company is going, especially from the long term perspective.
    81% of Apple's revenue comes from iPhone and iPad, 9% comes from Mac sales.  The Macs and the Thunderbolt display are nothing more than a pet project at this point so I suspect Tim doesn't lose much sleep worrying about this decision.  It's too bad, Apple could be expanding out a lot more in the laptop, accessory, and services areas instead of mostly focusing on their bread and butter products.
    tallest skil
  • Reply 45 of 65
    cropr said:
    My guess is that the sales of the Thunderbolt displays are disappointing.  There are a lot of competing 4K monitors (dell, Philips, Asus, LG, ...) on the market at half of the price.
    There's a fix for disappointing sales: make a better product. It's the same argument we're always making for why every other tech company doesn't make as much profit as Apple. 
  • Reply 46 of 65
    sevenfeetsevenfeet Posts: 465member
    thedba said:
    Many here and other forums are disappointed that Apple hasn't offered a Thunderbolt display yet. There may be a few good reasons for this.

    1) It takes two display port 1.2 cables, supported by the current TB2 standard to drive 5K at 60Hz. They're not going to ask users to hook up their Mac to an external monitor using 2 cables.

    2) No Mac on the market today offers TB3. This will probably change this fall. 

    3) They're not going to offer anything beneath 5K. The 4K market is being flooded with cheap alternatives as we speak. 

    There may be other reasons to this. Just have to be patient. 
    Apple has exited markets before (Xserve, all printers).  I would think that if Apple decided to forever get out of the external monitor business that they would say so.  But let's just speculate that they are going to replace it.  What features would it have?  I think that Apple wouldn't just come out with a 4K/5K monitor unless they had something unique or class leading to add.  That might be a feature like True Tone, which debuted on the 9.7" iPad earlier this year.  If you made an entire monitor with that tech, then this could be a differentiator that might especially be appreciated in the Pro markets.

    Of course, there are other tech details to be ironed out.  You'd think a new display would have Thunderbolt 3 and that uses the USB-C interface.  How will that support older Macs with Thunderbolt 1/2 connectors? (I'd expect Apple to release it's own dongle like the ones already available).  Even with TB3, a 5K external monitor would still be saddled with two video cables since the DisplayPort video standard in TB3 inexplicably can't do 5K on a single wire.  That means that Apple has to do a dual wire solution like everyone else or do something proprietary.  I'm betting on the later with Apple publishing its solution to the DisplayPort standards committee.

    Doing a 4K is still possible since that would come in at a more approachable price point.  But I agree that 5K is a must if you're going to play at all.
    edited June 2016
  • Reply 47 of 65
    pepe779 said:
    WTH is going on at Apple. Some of their recent HW and SW decisions have been rather hard to understand and sometimes I really wonder if Tim Cook knows where the company is going, especially from the long term perspective.
    81% of Apple's revenue comes from iPhone and iPad, 9% comes from Mac sales.  The Macs and the Thunderbolt display are nothing more than a pet project at this point so I suspect Tim doesn't lose much sleep worrying about this decision.  It's too bad, Apple could be expanding out a lot more in the laptop, accessory, and services areas instead of mostly focusing on their bread and butter products.
    But the fact that most of their (falling) profits come from iPhones doesn't mean that's where they should focus most of their effort. In fact, the current iPhone climate and falling sales should be their incentive to adjust their priorities to more quickly refresh their core Mac business while they still can. 
    wozwoz
  • Reply 48 of 65
    karmadave said:
    Plenty of affordable 4K monitors on the market. While I would like to see Apple release a 4K (or 5K) monitor there are plenty of options on the market. Reminds me of when Apple abandoned printers. Users complained but found lots of suitable options...
    There are plenty of affordable everythings on the market. By that logic Apple, could get out of every market. It's just a cop out for them simply dropping more product lines. 
    jasenj1wozwoz
  • Reply 49 of 65

    john.b said:
    Apple has long since stopped giving a f*ck about Mac hardware. And not just the TB Display, the minis are left to languish for years and now the Mac Pros have achieved the same status.  I'd rather see a company with the massive resources of Apple shutter the entire Mac lineup than to see them just mail it in year after year. 
    Then on what platform would developers design new iPhone and iPad apps? Apple's failure to prioritize their Mac business for years has been incredibly shortsighted. Annual sales of Mac hardware may be small compared to iPhone sales, but the installed base of Mac owners must be huge. It's just that many of us have been WAITING for a compelling new product to upgrade our aging Macs. 
    wozwoz
  • Reply 50 of 65
    nolamacguynolamacguy Posts: 4,758member
    cropr said:
    My guess is that the sales of the Thunderbolt displays are disappointing.  There are a lot of competing 4K monitors (dell, Philips, Asus, LG, ...) on the market at half of the price.
    There's a fix for disappointing sales: make a better product. It's the same argument we're always making for why every other tech company doesn't make as much profit as Apple. 
    your argument doesnt make sense -- youre complaining because they made the best one you wanted, but youre also saying sales were poor because it wasnt a good enough product. which is it? an awesome monitor you wanted, or a product that isnt good enough compared to others?

    just more whining.
  • Reply 51 of 65
    mac_128mac_128 Posts: 3,454member
    sevenfeet said:
    thedba said:
    Many here and other forums are disappointed that Apple hasn't offered a Thunderbolt display yet. There may be a few good reasons for this.

    1) It takes two display port 1.2 cables, supported by the current TB2 standard to drive 5K at 60Hz. They're not going to ask users to hook up their Mac to an external monitor using 2 cables.

    2) No Mac on the market today offers TB3. This will probably change this fall. 

    3) They're not going to offer anything beneath 5K. The 4K market is being flooded with cheap alternatives as we speak. 

    There may be other reasons to this. Just have to be patient. 
    Apple has exited markets before (Xserve, all printers).  I would think that if Apple decided to forever get out of the external monitor business that they would say so.  But let's just speculate that they are going to replace it.  What features would it have?  I think that Apple wouldn't just come out with a 4K/5K monitor unless they had something unique or class leading to add.  That might be a feature like True Tone, which debuted on the 9.7" iPad earlier this year.  If you made an entire monitor with that tech, then this could be a differentiator that might especially be appreciated in the Pro markets.

    Of course, there are other tech details to be ironed out.  You'd think a new display would have Thunderbolt 3 and that uses the USB-C interface.  How will that support older Macs with Thunderbolt 1/2 connectors? (I'd expect Apple to release it's own dongle like the ones already available).  Even with TB3, a 5K external monitor would still be saddled with two video cables since the DisplayPort video standard in TB3 inexplicably can't do 5K on a single wire.  That means that Apple has to do a dual wire solution like everyone else or do something proprietary.  I'm betting on the later with Apple publishing its solution to the DisplayPort standards committee.

    Doing a 4K is still possible since that would come in at a more approachable price point.  But I agree that 5K is a must if you're going to play at all.
    The only difference here is that unlike printers, and servers, monitors tend to represent the computer. So if someone has a Mac Pro, or a mini, that's likely all anyone is going to see of the Apple presence on the desk. but that's a relatively small part of Apple's business. On the other hand, it makes for a complete system when a laptop is plugged into it -- maybe fewer laptop users are using external monitors these days, or at least Apple's?

    i tend to think this is a move designed solely to clean out inventory of a monitor that is not selling well, nor should it considering the other options and older tech. But Apple's not going to announce they have a new one on the way because then at inventory will move even more slowly. They're probably discontinuing it, as the factory that makes it is being retooled for the new monitor.

    im in the fence about True Tone, as I tend to think of these monitors being used for graphic artists and video editing, where you wouldn't want color shifts. But if it's just a sensor, then I suppose it's a good option for an environment using the larger monitor mainly for word processing. But it's not like an iPad which is designed to be used more like paper.
    wozwoz
  • Reply 52 of 65
    32" is the new 27". I am hoping that Apple will announce a new design in a larger format soon.
  • Reply 53 of 65
    So ya, Apple announces that it no longer will produce this display - "get it while you can!"
    People buy them now because they were wanting one, or needing one, but now they have to before they can't anymore. Then they sell all of the existing stock while they ramp up production on the new one.
    At the Macbook announcement they will announce them and tell you how great the new displays are.
  • Reply 54 of 65
    I'm always amazed by things like this. Apple has about 60,000 employees. About half of them are working on the retail side, and the other 30k or so work for corporate. There weren't 100-200 people they could dedicate to designing and engineering a replacement display, oh, at some point over the past 5 years?? The company also has more money stockpiled than any other company on earth. Yes, I know that most of it is overseas, but the same goes for all the other huge companies too. They could have freed up some funds, is all I'm saying. 

    Slowly but surely they're dropping more and more product lines to make room for more iPhone SKUs. They act like a rose gold phone is a big deal. No, a new Mac mini would be a big deal. A new Macbook with two ports would be a big deal. A new Macbook Pro with user-serviceable parts would be a big deal. A new version of Aperture would have been a big deal. A new Mac Pro would be a big deal. A new Thunderbolt display would have been a big deal.

    Sorry, just been frustrated with Apple lately. I still love them, but I need a new Macbook Pro to replace my aging 2011 13" that I got new for $1,100 and then upgraded to a 1TB SSD and 16GB RAM myself, but I can't afford to pay Apple $2,500 for something new but comparable. 
  • Reply 55 of 65
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    macxpress said:
    How do we know TB Display sales weren't disappointing from the get go?
    How COULD it have been? You said so yourself:
    And people who think the TB display was expensive, well it is, but remember you're getting far more than just a display. You also get a full docking station with Gigabit Ethernet, USB, Audio, charging cable, stereo speakers, iSight camera, etc. Its not just a simple display.
    Now that higher resolution displays exist, the ONLY THING THAT NEEDED TO HAPPEN was obvious. Why didn’t they do it?
  • Reply 56 of 65
    mj webmj web Posts: 918member
    No problem connecting my iMac 27" 5K with a Dell 27" 4K via MDP. Apple is dropping the ball on everything nowadays. Buy another brand!
  • Reply 57 of 65
    hmlongcohmlongco Posts: 533member
    For those looking for a new monitor or a replacement, I'd definitely recommend the new 34UC98 34-Inch curved LED Thunderbolt Monitor from LG. I bought the 34UC98 three weeks ago, replacing an aging Apple Cinema display, and I absolutely love the new monitor. The curve is fairly gentle, but there's still enough to bring the text near the edges of the screen closer to your eyes, effectively placing it the same distance away from your eyes as text in the center of the display. I'm not sure curved screens make sense for home theater-sized 65" displays, but I'm now sold on them for desktop monitors. The 34UC98 has more of a matte display finish than did Apple's glossy Thunderbolt and Cinema Displays, and as such it's much, much, much easier on my eyes. No more glare from overhead lights and outside windows. The sharpness, to my eyes, is equally comparable. Definitely worth checking out... http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019O78DPS/ref=as_li_tf_tl?tag=161803-20&ie=UTF8
  • Reply 58 of 65

    Apple is losing its strongest asset 
     - a loyal and passionate group of fans of apple products. 

    Lately there has been a trend of abandoning good solid working products (eg Aperture) and moving towards just making everything more iOS like and fancy than of any real value. Feels like their  focus is more on making products thin and sending animated messages  than what really makes a difference. And their products did use to make a difference ... It's losing that sadly. 

    Removing the the MagSafe power connector and a MacBook with just one USB C port. Hmmm ... The laptop is super thin but what about carrying all those extra accessories? No thunderbolt? Now I should reinvest in drives with USB C interface?

    Years of building your Workflow and library on Aperture with thousands of photographs.... and it's just killed and Photos is no where near what Aperture had offered. 

    Picture  galleries on me.com. .. Gone 

    iWork ... Gone And even after having pages, numbers and Keynote... they are no worthwhile updates. 

    And now the Thunderbolt Displays....

    There features like handoff but hey I'm on iOS 9 and why can't I still  add a contact in a group on iOS ? Isn't that very basic ... I can do it on Mac, iCloud but not on iOS...

    Makes me wonder what's going on in Apple lately. 

    Sorry for the rant folks .. I am not happy. There is no other company which can capitalize more on what they already have. They just seem to be lost and blind in their success.  

    I cannot trust Apple anymore.  :(











    tallest skil
  • Reply 59 of 65
    volcanvolcan Posts: 1,799member
    hmlongco said:

    The 34UC98 has more of a matte display finish than did Apple's glossy Thunderbolt and Cinema Displays...
    My 30" Cinema Display has a matte screen not glossy. That said, the actual display quality is not exactly even. From the sides to the middle the color and brightness varies a bit. I used to think it was a fantastic monitor until I got an iMac 5K which blows it away in sharpness and color quality. If they do make a new large monitor >30" it would be cool if it matched the new Mac Pro. Anyone in the market for a Mac Pro wouldn't be able to resist buying the monitor as well. That is one thing I really appreciate about my old Mac Pro, it looks spectacular with the matching monitor.
  • Reply 60 of 65
    It would by high end only if it is glare-free. Glossy crap is not usable by proffessional graphic makers. They use high end EIZO or NEC that beats Apple "high end" on color quality, adjustements and precision easily. You probably talk about high end for average Joe consumer that pays attention to styling and fashion rather than picture precision. And not it is not about if it is 4k or 5k resolution. All of professional monitors have that already and it does not mean anything (number of pixels). It is about glare and visible color acuracy.
    edited June 2016
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