Review: The Apple Studio Display

When Apple loaned me a 2023 Mac mini to review, they also included an Apple Studio Display because, um, the Mac mini doesn’t have a monitor.

This is the first Apple monitor I’ve used since their old Cinema Display which connected via DisplayPort.

Now that I’ve been using it for a while, I want to share my thoughts. This is part review and part musing.

(All display images courtesy of Apple Inc.)

Like all Apple monitors it has a gorgeous display. Extremely even colors and illumination up to 600 nits. Solidly built, with a tilt/lift/spin mounting system that is a marvel of engineering.

Its default resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels makes it a Retina display. However, you can switch the display to 5120 x 2880 pixels to display a 4K or 5K image at 100% size.

I leave to others with more engineering skills to discuss the technical specs. However, this is a lovely screen to look at.

NOTE: Here’s an explanation of what makes a monitor a “Retina Display.”

NOTE: While the default resolution is 2560 x 1440, using System Preferences you can lower the resolution to:

• 1920 x 1080
• 1600 x 900
• 1280 x 720 (the lowest you can go)

I use these lower resolutions for webcasts to improve the interface readability of any software I am teaching, as well as require lower bandwidth for viewers.

Its speakers sound rich and have more than enough volume to overwhelm the space in front of the monitor; except, perhaps, for someone who wants the entire room to pulse to the beat of heavy metal.

I have the “standard glass” version. As I write this I see a reflection of a window overlooking a very bright outdoors. But the reflection, while a bit distracting, is not blinding. In an office environment these reflections are totally manageable. And, if you are really concerned, the nano-texture glass option should be considered.

For anyone who wants to make a “safe” choice in monitors, this is a safe choice. You won’t be disappointed by how it looks.

But, this isn’t the monitor for me. From my perspective, this monitor has two problems: First, it has too much. Second, it has too little.

THE STUDIO DISPLAY HAS TOO MUCH

This is not a display for students or people with limited budgets. Apple’s website describes this as “so much more than a display.”

I edit videos and mix audio. I already have a studio with high-end audio monitors – true flat-frequency monitors, not just speakers. I already have a high-quality web cam – a Sony DSLR with a $1,000 zoom lens feeding a 4K signal into my computer.

As a professional, why should I spend extra for a display that contains speakers, but not flat-frequency monitors?

Why should I spend extra for a display that contains a web camera that can’t be adjusted for framing, depth of field, exposure or any of the other subtle settings that convert a snapshot into a photograph?

NOTE: Yes, I know I can use an iPhone as a webcam. Same problem, though.

But, here’s my real problem: I need two of these, because I edit using a dual computer monitor setup and I need these monitors to match. Suddenly, I have two webcams, two speaker systems and two of whatever the A-series chip is doing inside the monitor.

This is two too many.

And the price doesn’t help. $1,599 (US) is a LOT of money for hardware that I don’t need and won’t use. What I need is a monitor like the old Cinema Display with a gorgeous display, Thunderbolt connectivity, and nothing else.

OH! I NEED TO MENTION THE PACKAGING

Normally, I don’t mention packaging. BUT…!

The Apple Studio Monitor is packaged in a cardboard work of art! I’ve never seen packaging as elegantly designed, beautifully crafted or amazingly assembled as this. It is origami writ large in cardboard. I don’t have words to adequately describe just how brilliantly cool this packaging is. Whoever designed this deserves an award (and a raise).

No styrofoam. No packing tape. No plastic bags. No twisty-ties. Just an unfolding cardboard masterpiece. Very, very well done, Apple! (The challenge will be packing this display back into the same box to ship back to Apple.)

THE STUDIO DISPLAY HAS TOO LITTLE

The people who can afford this monitor are professionals. People who need consistent, high image quality. People with large budgets and demanding clients.

Again, I edit video. The Studio Display should display HDR. Maybe not at the same level as the Pro Display XDR Monitor which displays HDR up to 1600 nits. But for $5,000, I’d probably consider an HDR monitor from Flanders Scientific instead of the XDR. More control at lower cost.

But I would like to use the Studio Display as an HDR10 proofing monitor. This would allow me to use it as a quality control monitor for finished HDR projects. Yes, I could – and do – hook up an HDR consumer television as a “proofing” device via HDMI. But I should be able to do the same thing with this display.

WAIT! WHAT ABOUT THE MONITOR STAND?

Yeah… about that. Before I got it, I was planning to take Apple to task for charging $400 for a monitor stand that goes up, down, left, right and tilts. Then it arrived. You should see this thing.

Like its packaging, the engineering of this stand is amazing. No wobble. No imprecise movements. It is a joy to use.

Except… I use VESA mounts for my monitors. VESA allows me to make more efficient use of my desk space. So all that lovely monitor stand engineering is wasted.

NOTE: Which is one reason Apply may have decided to charge for this separately. There is no sense sending an engineering marvel to people who won’t use it.

FINAL THOUGHTS

If you are getting your first computer monitor and want to get “the best” – it could be argued that this display is it.

But, if you already have a studio setup with audio monitors, video monitors, web cams – as many of us do – this monitor has bells and whistles that we don’t need. ESPECIALLY when we need to buy multiple matching monitors.

I would object less, I guess, if the price weren’t so high. I’m spending a lot of money for features I will never use. And not getting a feature that, for the price, I should reasonably expect.

If Apple offered this monitor without the webcam, without the speakers, and with some level of HDR for $800 – 1,000, I’d buy two in a heartbeat – with the VESA option.