Apple cuts Cinema Displays prices
Apple today announced that it has made its award-winning line of widescreen flat panel Cinema Displays more affordable by reducing the price of the 20-inch model to just $799 and the 23-inch HD model to just $1,499.
In addition, Apple's new 2.7 GHz Power Mac G5s and 1.67 GHz 17-inch PowerBooks now feature built-in support to directly drive Apple's 30-inch Cinema HD Display.
"Apple's Cinema Displays now start at just $799, making widescreen flat displays affordable to even more people," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Even Apple's groundbreaking 30-inch Cinema HD Display, with its over four million pixels, is now made more affordable with standard support built into some PowerMac G5 and PowerBook configurations."
Apple's flat panel display line, comprising the 20-inch Cinema Display, the 23-inch Cinema HD Display and revolutionary 30-inch Cinema HD Display, is designed to work with DVI-equipped Power Mac G5 desktops, PowerBook G4 notebooks and Windows-based computers, and offers the widescreen design (16:10 ratio) coveted by creative professionals who want access to more screen real estate. The 30-inch Cinema HD Display has a 2560-by-1600 pixel resolution and the 23-inch Cinema HD Display has a 1920-by-1200 pixel resolution, ideal for editing High Definition Television (HDTV) content. The 20-inch Cinema Display flat panel offers a 1680-by-1050 pixel resolution, more than enough space to edit full size images with plenty of room for on-screen palettes.
Two systems now feature built-in support for Apple's 30-inch Cinema HD Display: the new 2.7 GHz Power Mac G5 and the 1.67 GHz 17-inch PowerBook. Users can also add support for the 30-inch Cinema HD Display as a build-to-order option on the new 2.0 GHz and 2.3 GHz Power Mac G5 systems, as well as the 1.67 GHz 15-inch PowerBook.
Apple flat panel displays provide a broad color gamut and maximum color quality using the industry's best wide-viewing angle technology of up to 170 degrees even when viewing images off-axis.
Apple Cinema Displays feature an all aluminum design with a very thin bezel, suspended by an aluminum stand with an adjustable hinge that makes tilting the display almost effortless. Each Cinema Display features two FireWire 400 ports and two USB 2.0 ports, and support the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) mounting interface standard.
Pricing & Availability
The 20-inch Cinema Display, 23-inch Cinema HD Display and the 30-inch Cinema HD Display are available through the Apple Store and at Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $799 (US), $1,499 (US) and $2,999 (US), respectively. Power Mac G5 build-to-order options for the Cinema Display line include the NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL with 256MB DDR SDRAM for an additional $350 (US) as well as a standalone kit for a suggested retail price of $599 (US) through the Apple Store.
In addition, Apple's new 2.7 GHz Power Mac G5s and 1.67 GHz 17-inch PowerBooks now feature built-in support to directly drive Apple's 30-inch Cinema HD Display.
"Apple's Cinema Displays now start at just $799, making widescreen flat displays affordable to even more people," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Even Apple's groundbreaking 30-inch Cinema HD Display, with its over four million pixels, is now made more affordable with standard support built into some PowerMac G5 and PowerBook configurations."
Apple's flat panel display line, comprising the 20-inch Cinema Display, the 23-inch Cinema HD Display and revolutionary 30-inch Cinema HD Display, is designed to work with DVI-equipped Power Mac G5 desktops, PowerBook G4 notebooks and Windows-based computers, and offers the widescreen design (16:10 ratio) coveted by creative professionals who want access to more screen real estate. The 30-inch Cinema HD Display has a 2560-by-1600 pixel resolution and the 23-inch Cinema HD Display has a 1920-by-1200 pixel resolution, ideal for editing High Definition Television (HDTV) content. The 20-inch Cinema Display flat panel offers a 1680-by-1050 pixel resolution, more than enough space to edit full size images with plenty of room for on-screen palettes.
Two systems now feature built-in support for Apple's 30-inch Cinema HD Display: the new 2.7 GHz Power Mac G5 and the 1.67 GHz 17-inch PowerBook. Users can also add support for the 30-inch Cinema HD Display as a build-to-order option on the new 2.0 GHz and 2.3 GHz Power Mac G5 systems, as well as the 1.67 GHz 15-inch PowerBook.
Apple flat panel displays provide a broad color gamut and maximum color quality using the industry's best wide-viewing angle technology of up to 170 degrees even when viewing images off-axis.
Apple Cinema Displays feature an all aluminum design with a very thin bezel, suspended by an aluminum stand with an adjustable hinge that makes tilting the display almost effortless. Each Cinema Display features two FireWire 400 ports and two USB 2.0 ports, and support the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) mounting interface standard.
Pricing & Availability
The 20-inch Cinema Display, 23-inch Cinema HD Display and the 30-inch Cinema HD Display are available through the Apple Store and at Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $799 (US), $1,499 (US) and $2,999 (US), respectively. Power Mac G5 build-to-order options for the Cinema Display line include the NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL with 256MB DDR SDRAM for an additional $350 (US) as well as a standalone kit for a suggested retail price of $599 (US) through the Apple Store.
Comments
Originally posted by rok
i have to say that $800 for a 20" flat panel sure sounds like a good deal to me, but i don't track these sorts of things, so maybe there are better displays out there for better prices. i will say i was blown away by some wintel laptop screens at office depot the other day. i actually had to do a double-take, as they looked as crisp, clear and glassy as crt's.
You do have to be careful when choosing flat panels because some are really bad, colour fault etc. Hopefully Apple's fixed the magenta problem on the 23"
Originally posted by MacCrazy
Hopefully Apple's fixed the magenta problem on the 23"
And releases a 23" iMac with the improved display
Originally posted by PB
And releases a 23" iMac with the improved display
Definitely, Apple now have competitive displays for the mini but they need a smaller display - 17" still. The second I have enough money I'm buying a new 20" display, maybe 23" if my G4 PB will support HD.
Originally posted by MacCrazy
Definitely, Apple now have competitive displays for the mini but they need a smaller display - 17" still. The second I have enough money I'm buying a new 20" display, maybe 23" if my G4 PB will support HD.
my local reseller is offering quite a decent deal on the Mac mini with an Acer 15" display... surprisingly, the VGA connection from the Mac mini to the Acer 15" is not too bad, i think they chose the monitor well...
Originally posted by rok
i have to say that $800 for a 20" flat panel sure sounds like a good deal to me, but i don't track these sorts of things, so maybe there are better displays out there for better prices. i will say i was blown away by some wintel laptop screens at office depot the other day. i actually had to do a double-take, as they looked as crisp, clear and glassy as crt's.
No, equal displays with better prices. The DELL
UltraSharp 2005FPW 20.1-inch Wide Aspect Flat Panel LCD Monitor has exact same specs and cost 486.85 (as of today, on dell.com). The one difference between the dell and apple is dell monitor does not have firewire and also it's brightness controls leave a lot to be desired. Other than that, it has same specs. In fact, dell has dropped it's price faster than apple. I bought this monitor for my dual 2.5 Ghz for a little over $600. (that was in december of last year). It's now selling for 486, which is a little under $200 price drop.
Originally posted by wnurse
No, equal displays with better prices. The DELL
UltraSharp 2005FPW 20.1-inch Wide Aspect Flat Panel LCD Monitor has exact same specs and cost 486.85 (as of today, on dell.com). The one difference between the dell and apple is dell monitor does not have firewire and also it's brightness controls leave a lot to be desired. Other than that, it has same specs. In fact, dell has dropped it's price faster than apple. I bought this monitor for my dual 2.5 Ghz for a little over $600. (that was in december of last year). It's now selling for 486, which is a little under $200 price drop.
is the colour as good, on CRTs you can get a mismatch, I'm just curious.
Originally posted by MacCrazy
is the colour as good, on CRTs you can get a mismatch, I'm just curious.
The colors are very good. I seen Apple 20 inch displays in stores and have played around with them but i obviously did not buy one. I'm not a graphic artist but i am sure there will be some who will say the Apple display is a little better. What i would say is that the dell is excellent. If you think the apple display is a little better and that factor is really important to you, i'd say go for the apple. The Dell works for me.
Originally posted by wnurse
No, equal displays with better prices. The DELL
UltraSharp 2005FPW 20.1-inch Wide Aspect Flat Panel LCD Monitor has exact same specs and cost 486.85 (as of today, on dell.com). The one difference between the dell and apple is dell monitor does not have firewire and also it's brightness controls leave a lot to be desired. Other than that, it has same specs. In fact, dell has dropped it's price faster than apple. I bought this monitor for my dual 2.5 Ghz for a little over $600. (that was in december of last year). It's now selling for 486, which is a little under $200 price drop.
Keep in mind that those are prices achieved only through coupons and instant discounts - the 2005FPW normally goes for $749, and there's no guarantee you'll find those extreme sale prices all the time.
Don't get me wrong - it's still an undeniable factor when buying a display. It's just that the prices are close enough now that you can at least rationalize a 20" Apple display if you value build quality, appearance, and/or Firewire ports.
Originally posted by Commodus
Keep in mind that those are prices achieved only through coupons and instant discounts - the 2005FPW normally goes for $749, and there's no guarantee you'll find those extreme sale prices all the time.
Don't get me wrong - it's still an undeniable factor when buying a display. It's just that the prices are close enough now that you can at least rationalize a 20" Apple display if you value build quality, appearance, and/or Firewire ports.
yes, yes and yes. I'm saving my money now!
Originally posted by Commodus
Keep in mind that those are prices achieved only through coupons and instant discounts - the 2005FPW normally goes for $749, and there's no guarantee you'll find those extreme sale prices all the time.
Don't get me wrong - it's still an undeniable factor when buying a display. It's just that the prices are close enough now that you can at least rationalize a 20" Apple display if you value build quality, appearance, and/or Firewire ports.
Dell always has sales. Dell is like Marlo Furniture (a little inside joke for thoese people who have marlo furniture company in their states. Every week marlo furniture has the greatest sale in its history).
You should never pay full price for a Dell monitor. I have never known Dell at any point not to have a sale on its monitor and if it happens, wait a day or two and it will go back on sale again.
We WILL see a 23" iMac before this design runs it's course.
We may not see another AIO "iMac" design if the mini continues to do well. The next iMac just might lose it's head.
Originally posted by wnurse
Dell always has sales. Dell is like Marlo Furniture (a little inside joke for thoese people who have marlo furniture company in their states. Every week marlo furniture has the greatest sale in its history).
You should never pay full price for a Dell monitor. I have never known Dell at any point not to have a sale on its monitor and if it happens, wait a day or two and it will go back on sale again.
That's like DFS in the UK, or B&Q - continuous sales!
The 23" ACD, on the other hand, is awful. Dell, HP, Viewsonic and Samsung have very competetive products in the 23"-24" class. I think Apple actually has a worse quality rep than any of these four in this size class; it is soundly beaten in features, and even after the price cut it's only tied with HP and still a lot costier than the Dell.
Originally posted by wnurse
No, equal displays with better prices. The DELL
UltraSharp 2005FPW 20.1-inch Wide Aspect Flat Panel LCD Monitor has exact same specs and cost 486.85 (as of today, on dell.com). The one difference between the dell and apple is dell monitor does not have firewire and also it's brightness controls leave a lot to be desired. Other than that, it has same specs. In fact, dell has dropped it's price faster than apple. I bought this monitor for my dual 2.5 Ghz for a little over $600. (that was in december of last year). It's now selling for 486, which is a little under $200 price drop.
Here in the UK the Dell 2005FPW sells for £542....... now we can get the Apple for the same price.... no need to buy Dell anymore.
Originally posted by wnurse
No, equal displays with better prices. The DELL
UltraSharp 2005FPW 20.1-inch Wide Aspect Flat Panel LCD Monitor has exact same specs and cost 486.85 (as of today, on dell.com). The one difference between the dell and apple is dell monitor does not have firewire and also it's brightness controls leave a lot to be desired. Other than that, it has same specs. In fact, dell has dropped it's price faster than apple. I bought this monitor for my dual 2.5 Ghz for a little over $600. (that was in december of last year). It's now selling for 486, which is a little under $200 price drop.
It's been pointed out before, but bears repeating: while the Dell may use the same LCD panel, it does not use the same backlighting system, which has enormous influence on contrast and color integrity.
Moreover, Dell's quality control has at times been less than rigorous, meaning that you might get a really sweet display for your money, and you might get something with more dead pixels than you like (but fewer than Dell considers replaceable), or uneven color and illumination.
Personally, at the new price point, I think it's worth it to shell out a little more for a monitor which has something going into it other than "how can we we can shave another 3 cents off this thing?"
I just bought a 20in Cinema Display last week.
Now the price has dropped by 200EUR.
Apple has offered retroactive refunds for recent buyers before.
I hope they will do it again
As for the 23" iMac G5, someone else speculated (before the iMac G5 launch) that such may be the plan. Having acquired a 20" iMac G5 and browsed the 17" versions at various Apple stores, a 23" would make a great system that much better, being HD not the least attractive feature. However, the price point may prove to be too high for the consumer and the market size too small to justify the expense.
OTOH there are some nice features of a 23" iMac G5: HD display, larger form-factor would provide improved cooling and/or could make room for add-on components (like a TV tuner).