For those who have followed the small world of Apple since the end of the 20th century, the name Studio Display must be accompanied by a touch of nostalgia. It was the time of cathode ray screens and the transition to LCD, the panels at the time were content to reach 15 or 17 inches, and everyone was ecstatic…
We are now in 2022 and Apple is bringing a prestigious range back to life. The design is now thin, with discreet borders, and marked by the aluminum that the Cupertino giant is so fond of.
The connection is made by Thunderbolt. On the back of the screen, there are four ports in USB-C format: a Thunderbolt 3 for the incoming connection, which provides up to 96 W, and three USB-C ports (10 Gbps) for connecting other peripherals to the Mac connected, because the Studio Display is also a small hub… Thanks to him.
But back to the front. The years have passed and the panels (LCD) have grown, this one has a diagonal of 27 inches, which is honest without being eccentric. On the other hand, we can only be pleased with the billion colors displayed by the screen and its 5K definition (5120×2880 pixels, for a resolution of 218 pixels per inch).
If this UHD definition could push us to compare it to the Pro Display XDR, let’s not do it. The professional 6K display is much more efficient and designed to integrate into video production flows, in particular, which are extremely demanding in terms of color calibration and constant brightness. The Studio Display can’t fight, especially if you want to work in HDR, and we won’t blame it. It is sold from 1,749 euros, which is still a good sum, but it is much less than the 5,499 euros requested for the first model of Pro Display XDR.
Anyway, this 5K panel is given to display a constant brightness of 600 cd/2, we measured it at 549 cd/m2, which guarantees good working comfort, even in a bright room. The contrast isn’t great at 1130:1, but it’s quite decent.
Moreover, to talk about colors, we were able to verify that it does indeed cover 100% of the DCI-P3 space. It does so with a color rendering accuracy that should be commended, since the measured Delta E2000 is 2.01, which is almost the threshold where a trained eye can no longer tell the difference between the true value of a color and the one displayed.
We also had the chance to test the model equipped with nano-textured glass (250 euros more). This surface is just perfect whether you’re working with your back to a window or under neon lights that love to reflect everywhere.
Working comfort is also ensured by the True Tone technology which varies the heat of the panel’s lighting according to the ambient light. It should also be noted that the viewing angles are very good, and will allow you either to show projects on your screen without losing display quality, or to watch a film with several people… We had fun comparing the quality of its viewing angles to those of the TVs we’ve tested over the past twelve months, and the Studio Display scores more than 25% better than the average for those TVs.
If we do not advise you to throw your televisions to the nettles, this point is interesting. Apple is not content, in fact, to offer a simple monitor. There is an integrated A13 Bionic chip, which is in charge of two functions.
The first is support for the six speakers built into the display. There are four woofers for the bass, which embed the anti-vibration technology introduced for the first time in the 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro, and two tweeters for the midrange and treble. What does it sound like?
The sound produced is a pleasant surprise. Even by pushing it a little, there is no unpleasant distortion and the songs remain readable and detailed. The audio spatial effect is included, but seemed to us more difficult to feel. It must be said that not all songs compatible with this technology are equal. Nevertheless, if we wanted to consider this screen to watch a movie after work, we would not be wrong, especially if we are used to being satisfied with the speakers integrated into a television.
The second function that the A13 Bionic manages is the integrated camera at the top of the screen. Equipped with a 12 Mpix sensor and ultra wide-angle optics, it provides a viewing angle of 122°, which is ideal for using the Center Stage function, which allows you to move around moderately while remaining in the frame or several people stand in front of the screen while all remaining visible.
The quality of the videoconferences is quite good, both from a video and audio point of view. The speakers reproduce the voice of the interlocutor well, and the three microphones integrated into the screen pick up the sound of your voice well. They even allow you to invoke “Hey Siri”, or not to do so…
Obviously, the Studio Display is designed for the Mac Studio, to which it offers a pro screen, but not too much. But it also happily partners with other Macs (or iPads), as long as they have a Thunderbolt 3 or higher connector. Better still, once plugged into the mains, it can charge a 14-inch MacBook Pro in fast charging.
On the other hand, regulars of PC monitors will perhaps have a second or two of loss of contact with reality. The Studio Display does not offer any OSD. The control interface of this monitor is obviously macOS. Also, don’t look for an On/Off button, or sound settings. At last ! What were you thinking?
You can always console yourself by playing with a finger to adjust its inclination, and possibly its height, if you have chosen the most expensive foot. We just regret that it is not possible to switch the screen to Portrait mode, not to watch TikTok in large, but for some occasional uses such as word processing for example, or the graphic creation of Web pages.
Ultimately, the Studio Display is a bit alone in the narrow niche where Apple registers it. 27-inch 4K panels are numerous and much cheaper. But the competitors positioned on the 5K segment, LG with its UltraFine 27MD5KL-B, intended for Macs, and a few others perhaps, do not line up the same service for a price not much lower.