Something to look forward to: At its March 8 event, Apple paired the brand new Mac Studio desktop with a new monitor. Apple is positioning the Studio Display as a more affordable alternative to the Pro Display XDR, with both new features and compromises.
The new Apple Studio Display is a 27" 5K retina screen with a resolution of 5120 x 2880 pixels at 218 pixels per inch. While it isn't as big as the 32" Pro Display XDR released in 2019, nor does it offer HDR, the Studio Display starts at $1,600 as opposed to the Pro Display's $5,000.
Another aspect of the Pro Display's infamous sticker shock is that its stand comes separately as an optional $1,000 add-on. Fortunately, the Studio Display does includes a stand, and prospective buyers can actually select three different models.
The Studio Display introduces a 12-megapixel camera with a 122-degree field of view and Apple's Center Stage feature. It also comes with a six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofers and wide stereo sound. The speakers support spatial audio for Dolby Atmos and Siri.
The Studio Display is compatible with machines running macOS Monterey going back to the 2017 iMac Pro. It also supports third generation or later iPad Pros along with the new fifth generation iPad Air.
With the combination of the Studio Display and the Mac Studio desktop, Apple may have just effectively replaced the 27" iMac as that model has not received a complete revamp as the smaller and more colorful 24" iMac. After the event, the bigger iMac no longer shows pricing information on Apple's website. Depending on what features customers choose, the new combo could be $1,000 more expensive than the iMac with a similar screen and similar memory, but a more powerful M1 processor.