The Apple Pro Display XDR brings 6K to the Mac for $4999

AppleInsider · June 3, 2019 6:58PM

The Apple Pro Display XDR brings 1000 nit brightness and calibrated color to professional users seeking the best possible display.

Apple's Pro Display XDR has four Thunderbolt 3 ports on the back. The display is 32 inches, with a 6015 x 2284 resolution, which Apple calls a 6K Retina Display. Every LED in the backlight is calibrated from the factory, with modulation of each LED with an array of custom lenses and reflectors for true HDR.

To manage reflected light, Pro Display XDR has an anti-reflective coating. It also has an optional matte option that the company calls nano-texture, with glass etched at the nanometer level for low reflectivity and less glare. Bezels are 9mm thick.

Apple's Pro Display XDR at WWDC 2019

The entire rear lattice pattern acts as a heat sink to keep the display cool. It can display 1000 nits of brightness indefinitely, according to Apple, with a 1600 nit peak. The display has a 1,000,000 to 1 contrast ratio. Refresh rate is 60Hz.

Apple says that the fully laminated display has a super-wide angle with high-fidelity color and contrast at 89 degrees off-centerline in every direction, with 1.65% typical reflectivity.

The Mac Pro can handle up to six Apple Pro Display XDR units at the same time.

The rear of the Apple Pro Display XDR, with stand at WWDC 2019

The stand on the display is reminiscent of the iMac G4 arm, with the addition of rotation. The stand is optional and removable. Also available is a VESA mount adapter.

The Pro Display XDR retails for $4999. The Pro Display with nano-texture glass retails for $5999. The Pro Stand is a separate $999 feature, and the VESA mount adapter is $199.

AppleInsider will be reporting live throughout WWDC 2019, starting with the keynote on Monday, June 3. Get every announcement as it happens by downloading the AppleInsider app for iOS, and by making sure to follow us on YouTube, Twitter @appleinsider, Facebook and Instagram.

sawdustman50 · June 3, 2019 7:05PM

Did I hear an extra $900 for the stand?😱

blah64 · June 3, 2019 7:06PM

To manage reflected light, Pro Display XDR has an anti-reflective coating. It also has an optional matte option that the company calls nano-texture, with glass etched at the nanometer level for low reflectivity and less glare. Bezels are 9mm thick.

This part is exciting as hell. Not because I'm in the market for a $5000 display, but because is shows that Apple is aware of the issues with reflective screens, there is tech that they like that helps, and there's hope that similar tech will eventually migrate its way down to their laptops - even if only as a BTO option. I don't expect it right away, but I finally have hope that someday I'll be able replace my 2012 MacBook Pro, which is still to this day the best/fastest Apple laptop without a mirrored display.

edited June 2019

strangedays · June 3, 2019 7:11PM

Sawdustman50 said:

Did I hear an extra $900 for the stand?😱

I use a VESA mount and arm from a third-party. There will always be options, and Apple's will usually be premium in quality & price.

oseame · June 3, 2019 7:15PM

$999 is insane for the stand. VESA mount it is then...

vukasika · June 3, 2019 7:18PM

$5000 Display LMAO!!!!

edited June 2019

ipilya · June 3, 2019 7:22PM

I truly believe that this monitor is an excellent piece of kit for the pro-media producer market.... but I am so sad that there is not an option for us developers... or non-media producers... I hate using LG - there have been just way to many issues... please Apple!!!!

mr lizard · June 3, 2019 7:22PM

AppleInsider said:
The stand on the display is reminiscent of the iMac G4 arm, with the addition of rotation. The stand is removable, and has an optional VESA mount adapter

The stand does not ship as part of the display. It’s a $999 optional extra.

edited June 2019

sflocal · June 3, 2019 7:23PM

vukasika said:

$5000 Display LMAO!!!!

Please show me a competitor's monitor with the exact same specs, color calibration, display size, TB3 ports, screen coating for less and see if you're still laughing.

netrox · June 3, 2019 7:25PM

But there is a display offering for that for $39K.... and yet we have a bunch of people whining about the $5K Apple display that exceeds the specs of $39K display?!?! Amateurs.

strangedays · June 3, 2019 7:29PM

vukasika said:

$5000 Display LMAO!!!!

Plenty of cheaper plain monitors out there. If you can't afford it, you likely don't need it.

jasenj1 · June 3, 2019 7:30PM

There was an audible groan in the room when they announced the $999 stand. Devs recognize a Pro display costs Pro money, but that much for a stand? Too much.

edited June 2019

polymnia · June 3, 2019 7:33PM

vukasika said:

$5000 Display LMAO!!!!

I have a $5000 Eizo on my desk right now. Pros will invest this much in an essential piece of equipment.

Now, my Eizo has a built-in color calibration device set to fine-tune the factory calibration every 80 hours or so, which this doesn't have (unless I've missed something)...but It looks like an amazing tool that I'd love to put on my desk next to a next generation Eizo.

not_anton · June 3, 2019 7:36PM

ipilya said:

I truly believe that this monitor is an excellent piece of kit for the pro-media producer market.... but I am so sad that there is not an option for us developers... or non-media producers... I hate using LG - there have been just way to many issues... please Apple!!!!

It is called iMac 27", a full computer at half the price of that display. Perfect developer machine if you don't need graphic professionals' gimmicks and whistles.

cogitodexter · June 3, 2019 7:45PM

There were some pretty obvious and audible less-than-impressed reactions to the price of the stand from the audience - clearly they expected it to be included in the price of the monitor and to be told that you have to pay extra - for either the stand or the VESA adaptor as its alternative seems like something of a slap in the face. I don't suppose Apple would have expected that reaction from what would otherwise be expected to be die-hard fans.

Personally 32" isn't remotely big enough for that price - I would have preferred a screen at least 43" and preferably curved for the viewer to sit in the sweet spot to make it really immersive. Certainly the resolution of the screen is utterly pointless at that small size - nobody is ever going to be able to make full use of it: nobody's eyes are that good.

I'm going to stick with my dual 4K 43" setup - together they cost about £1500. Whether I buy the Mac Pro itself is down to budget, although I probably will as it definitely has the grunt to do what I need it to do (my 2013 Mac Pro is now running out of steam, 5 years on). The price of the computer is reasonable considering how long it will likely last, but the screens... as beautiful as the engineering is, I couldn't possibly use them.

edited June 2019

maciekskontakt · June 3, 2019 7:50PM

And from human ability and experience what does this reolution give you on that size of monitor? Reminds me marketing of millins of colors video cards in the past while average human eye and brain can recognize only about 300,000. Having more pixels does not mean we can see them. There is angular resolution and human senses limits are still there. Pretty soon we will have to walk room to see details in one spot of large screen. Is this how it is supposed to work?

pylons · June 3, 2019 7:51PM

That's a very interesting development. For someone looking to buy a high-resolution monitor there are alternatives which are both higher resolution and cheaper (the 8K Dell 3218K comes to mind). However there is not much competition in this segment, so this is very welcome, in particular the high contrast and anti-glare specs.

bobolicious · June 3, 2019 7:52PM

not_anton said:

ipilya said:

I truly believe that this monitor is an excellent piece of kit for the pro-media producer market.... but I am so sad that there is not an option for us developers... or non-media producers... I hate using LG - there have been just way to many issues... please Apple!!!!

It is called iMac 27", a full computer at half the price of that display. Perfect developer machine if you don't need graphic professionals' gimmicks and whistles.

...I would have been very happy to see a 4K 27" Thunderbolt 3 display (with multiple inputs) 'for the rest of us' - for some a single iMac screen is not enough, nor will an iMac work for those using portables aka target display which may give some yet another reason to hang on to legacy iMacs...

I understand the term 'professional' is someone who is paid for their work (vs home use) and not necessarily a video author, so is there a huge gap between a 23" 4K LG and this beast? I also always wondered why the LG 27" never had portrait rotation given the effort to provide a lift in the stand.

I hope the 32" industrial design proves compelling in person - while I understand the need for cooling, my first reaction to the images shown was less than positive in that regard... I find the 30" & 27" Cinema Displays beautifully elegant in simplicity by comparison... Has Apple lost their industrial design 'taste'? Something I assume SJ had a rare gift for...

edited June 2019

eric_wvgg · June 3, 2019 7:52PM

@appleinsider got a review of the new LG 24" ultrafine planned?

"retina" grade 5k displays on the market: 0 (27" ultrafine appears to be discontinued)

magnificent

wizard69 · June 3, 2019 8:13PM

Interesting monitor but charging $1000 extra for a stand is a real dick move on Apples part. Sadly it looks like the marketing crew at Apple still hasn’t come to terms with the reality of the business world outside of their little bit of California.

strangedays · June 3, 2019 8:17PM

wizard69 said:

Interesting monitor but charging $1000 extra for a stand is a real dick move on Apples part. Sadly it looks like the marketing crew at Apple still hasn’t come to terms with the reality of the business world outside of their little bit of California.

Or, they know what they're doing since they're working at the most successful computing and publicly traded company in human history, and you're "Wizard69" on a rumors site. Just a thought.

The Apple Pro Display XDR brings 6K to the Mac for $4999

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