Apple’s 27-inch, mini-LED display was expected to replace the $4,999 Pro Display XDR or possibly bridge the gap between the $1,600 Studio Display and the premium display. Unfortunately, the latest report suggests it has been canceled, leaving fans to speculate about why this highly anticipated product might never arrive.
Display Supply Chain Consultants CEO Ross Young, a typically reliable source of Apple supply chain information, shared the news via a subscriber-only tweet. 9to5Mac was first to pick up the story, noting that Young said despite suppliers shipping some of these advanced panels last year, the finished product has been “killed off.”
This was foreshadowed by an earlier tweet by Young in reply to a question about Apple Pro displays. The brief response was, “It isn’t good.” This is heartbreaking news for Apple fans, following years of rumors that this long-sought-after product would finally arrive in 2023.
A lower-cost 27-inch Apple Pro Display XDR could be a hot item since the current 27-inch Apple display has not received the amount of praise Apple displays usually enjoy. The Studio Display’s lack of 120Hz Promotion and mini-LED left MacBook Pro users frustrated at the prospects of an external monitor with lower specifications than the built-in display.
Leaks and rumors began circulating about a lower-cost mini-LED screen in 2021 after Apple’s mini-LED ProMotion 12.9-inch iPad Pro arrived. Apple’s biggest iPad Pro had a better display than most MacBooks and Mac computers. Unless you could afford the $4,999 Pro Display XDR, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro was the best Apple offered.
When the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models launched in the fall of 2021, the demand for a new Apple Pro display was greater than ever. In the spring of 2022, the Studio Display arrived but failed to meet the needs of professional Mac owners, who had to turn to third-party solutions.
Apple has demonstrated that it can overcome supply chain problems. It minimized the crunch felt by most manufacturers during the pandemic. For some reason, an update to the Pro Display XDR isn’t a priority. In late 2022, rumors of a new Apple mini-LED display coming in early 2023 continued, but it seems unlikely we’ll see it this year, if ever.
Could Apple’s focus on its high-end Reality XR headset impede progress on other product lines? Or does Apple expect everyone to replace their monitors with a head-mounted display that connects wirelessly to their Mac and extends MacBook displays to room-filling proportions?
We might have the answers about the Apple Reality Pro as early as June, but it seems the wait for a new Apple Pro display will be much longer.
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