If you're in the market, Amazon has the 27" Apple Studio display base model (tilt adjust only w/ standard glass display) at $250 below full retail. This is better than their Education pricing ($1499) or even their refurbished pricing ($1359) for a brand new display.
I've had my refurb for a week and love how nicely it docks with my 15" MacBook Air, but for $10 savings to get a brand new one, I'll be sending it back and getting one from Amazon (also for the 5% cashback on my Amazon card too).
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0...th=1&psc=1
53 Comments
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That said, it's going back to Costco. Yes, it's a great display. It's just not a $1350 great display. I couldn't justify the $$.
I've tried this for 2 weeks and here's why I took it back to Costco and gotten the Samsung M8.
Pros:
- Overall picture quality is spot on, can't complain there
- Super fast response time coming out of "idle". I have my Apple Watch set to unlock the Mac M1 desktop, and the display came on a second or 2 before the computer was unlocked using my Apple Watch. Needless to say, I love the response using Thunderbolt 4 cable.
- Sound came out of the speakers are amazing, no non-Apple monitors even came close.
- Built-in web cam is nice for making FaceTime video calls or Teams calls
- Build quality is just well Apple quality, enough said.
Cons:
- Biggest downside of this display is no support for multiple computers input. I have to constant switching the TB4 cable between Mac laptop and Mac desktop. It is super annoying.
- Out of the box, my Mac M1 mini didn't support 4K resolution natively even when I did the "hold Options key and click the resolution "More Space" icon to reveal all the resolution. I had to install BetterDisplay app (paid for it in the end cuz I like it) to get all the resolutions up to 5K.
- The Mac scaling factor is a bit strange, I was able to use 4000ishx2200ish resolution and native 5k of course. However, the text came out too small that it becomes unusable. Yes I could've gone lower resolution but that kind of defeat the purpose of having this monitor.
Conclusion:
The fidgeting and fumbling around to make it work with my setup on a daily basis adding the price of the unit were just deem too much to bear. Besides, the price factor only accelerated my return.
I settled for the Samsung M8, updated firmware and used the Smart Calibration feature using my iPhone and SmartThings app to calibrate the color. I then eye-balled some adjustments with my iPad Pro to get it close to the color in the iPad. Super happy thus far with the Sammy with crisp text, bright enough display, smart apps/streaming, most importantly, support multiple inputs with just a click on the remote closed the deal. Did I mention a fraction of the cost comparing to the Studio Display?
The Sammy display I got via Best Buy for an open-box Excellent condition for $345. This is the M80B (not the refresh M80C) which I like better due to 2 USB-C (one 1 upstream and 1 downstream) and 1 micro HDMI.
Hope this is helpful for some prospective buyers in the market for this display to make an informed decision.
I've tried this for 2 weeks and here's why I took it back to Costco and gotten the Samsung M8.
Pros:
- Overall picture quality is spot on, can't complain there
- Super fast response time coming out of "idle". I have my Apple Watch set to unlock the Mac M1 desktop, and the display came on a second or 2 before the computer was unlocked using my Apple Watch. Needless to say, I love the response using Thunderbolt 4 cable.
- Sound came out of the speakers are amazing, no non-Apple monitors even came close.
- Built-in web cam is nice for making FaceTime video calls or Teams calls
- Build quality is just well Apple quality, enough said.
Cons:
- Biggest downside of this display is no support for multiple computers input. I have to constant switching the TB4 cable between Mac laptop and Mac desktop. It is super annoying.
- Out of the box, my Mac M1 mini didn't support 4K resolution natively even when I did the "hold Options key and click the resolution "More Space" icon to reveal all the resolution. I had to install BetterDisplay app (paid for it in the end cuz I like it) to get all the resolutions up to 5K.
- The Mac scaling factor is a bit strange, I was able to use 4000ishx2200ish resolution and native 5k of course. However, the text came out too small that it becomes unusable. Yes I could've gone lower resolution but that kind of defeat the purpose of having this monitor.
Conclusion:
The fidgeting and fumbling around to make it work with my setup on a daily basis adding the price of the unit were just deem too much to bear. Besides, the price factor only accelerated my return.
I settled for the Samsung M8, updated firmware and used the Smart Calibration feature using my iPhone and SmartThings app to calibrate the color. I then eye-balled some adjustments with my iPad Pro to get it close to the color in the iPad. Super happy thus far with the Sammy with crisp text, bright enough display, smart apps/streaming, most importantly, support multiple inputs with just a click on the remote closed the deal. Did I mention a fraction of the cost comparing to the Studio Display?
The Sammy display I got via Best Buy for an open-box Excellent condition for $345. This is the M80B (not the refresh M80C) which I like better due to 2 USB-C (one 1 upstream and 1 downstream) and 1 micro HDMI.
Hope this is helpful for some prospective buyers in the market for this display to make an informed decision.
LG high end monitors are pretty premium though, but I have to give credit where credit is due.
Spec wise, it was made to be only slightly better than LG 5k monitor, so it is better, but maybe buy LG 5K if money is a concern. Of course, you don't get the Apple magic ecosystem for absurdly more money
Our team wasn't too impressed, especially with the lower refresh rate and short thunderbolt cable
We haven't made a decision yet
edit: to be clear, LG manufactured this monitor. looks appears to almost be an upgrade to their 5k display.
I do have some concerns. their original 5k has burn-in issues. their new OLED TV doesn't have burn-in issues due to improvement in software.
the question is, did LG or Apple implement the burn-in mitigation software in these Apple Displays?
edit 2: the original LG 5k was developed with Apple, so maybe compatibility wouldn't be an issue. regardless for me, I'm tapping out. just read there is no hdr
I'm going to look for a 4K display with high refresh rate and hdr that plays nicely with both Mac and PC
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LG high end monitors are pretty premium though, but I have to give credit where credit is due.
Spec wise, it was made to be only slightly better than LG 5k monitor, so it is better, but maybe buy LG 5K if money is a concern. Of course, you don't get the Apple magic ecosystem for absurdly more money
Our team wasn't too impressed, especially with the lower refresh rate and short thunderbolt cable
We haven't made a decision yet
edit: to be clear, LG manufactured this monitor. looks appears to almost be an upgrade to their 5k display.
I do have some concerns. their original 5k has burn-in issues. their new OLED TV doesn't have burn-in issues due to improvement in software.
the question is, did LG or Apple implement the burn-in mitigation software in these Apple Displays?
- Biggest downside of this display is no support for multiple computers input. I have to constant switching the TB4 cable between Mac laptop and Mac desktop. It is super annoying.
LG high end monitors are pretty premium though, but I have to give credit where credit is due.
Spec wise, it was made to be only slightly better than LG 5k monitor, so it is better, but maybe buy LG 5K if money is a concern. Of course, you don't get the Apple magic ecosystem for absurdly more money
Our team wasn't too impressed, especially with the lower refresh rate and short thunderbolt cable
The "quality" bit is more than just the (LG) display panel. It's also the look of the thing (LG's models look like crap with cheap black plastic; the Apple display is beautiful aluminum). It's also the other parts - integrated firmware updates with MacOS; better camera; far better speakers. All that figures into "quality".
The "quality" bit is more than just the (LG) display panel. It's also the look of the thing (LG's models look like crap with cheap black plastic; the Apple display is beautiful aluminum). It's also the other parts - integrated firmware updates with MacOS; better camera; far better speakers. All that figures into "quality".
This isn't an OLED display, so burn in isn't an issue.
edit: also, your none issue thunderbolt cable... how much is an apple 3m thunderbolt 4 cable?
Based on what I read online about the LG Ultrafine 5k model, I would never dream of buying one. LG doesn't care.
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