Apple Studio Display review: sharp 5K screen but an awful webcam, no HDR, local dimming, or variable refresh rate, and pricey at $1,600 plus a $400 height stand
if you can pay $1,599 iJustine/YouTube : NEW Mac Studio + Studio Display is UNBELIEVABLE! 🤯 Digital Photography Review : Apple Studio Display review: An excellent monitor at a steep price Matthew Panzarino / TechCrunch : An interview with three Apple executives about the Pro Workflows Team designing and developing the Mac Studio, Studio Display webcam quality issues, and more Tweets: Joanna Stern / @joannastern : You can be the judge of the webcam quality. More shots in my video: [Comparative selfies using an Apple Studio Display, a 14-inch MacBook Pro, an LG UltraFine 5K, and an iPhone 11 Pro] Ryan Jones / @rjonesy : Studio Display's cameragate has to be software. A13 + 12MP is the same as iPhone 11 Pro! I bet a last minute software update unintentionally screwed something up. Also explains how it slipped through. https://twitter.com/... @tldtoday : the people who are saying the studio panel is just a 27" 5K iMac panel are same people who didn't see the value that the 27" iMac was & called that “boring” They complained about the chin (it's gone now 🙃) the fact that it's been around for years doesn't negate how good it is @macrumors : Apple Studio Display Reviews: ‘A Confounding Miss’ https://www.macrumors.com/... by @hartleycharlton https://twitter.com/... Mark Gurman / @markgurman : The whole idea that Apple's only desktop display options would be a half-assed 27-inch panel for $1599 or a $6000 Pro Display XDR was always absurd. Of course an iMac Pro is coming. Joanna Stern / @joannastern : After telling Apple that my webcam was not performing as well as the 14-inch MacBook Pro, a 2-megapixel LG monitor and the iPhone 11, the company sent this statement: https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/... Alex Kantrowitz / @kantrowitz : When was the last time Apple hardware got a review like this? —> “The Studio Display's headline webcam feature works so badly that it's virtually unusable.” https://www.theverge.com/... @jerclarke : @VadimYuryev Huh, The Verge did a sensible thing, comparing it to M1 MacBook Pro, which to my eyes seems very comparable. As someone planning to plug it into a laptop, this is the comparison that matters most to me, though it really seems like it should be as good as M1 iMac and isn't. https://twitter.com/... Dan Seifert / @dcseifert : @markgurman first gen apple watch, first gen HomePod, LTE Apple Watch 3 Aaron Zollo / @zollotech : @ianzelbo @SamiFathi_ It's a webcam. Does anyone actually care that much? Typically home internet causes drops of low bit rates and no one sees the highest quality anyway. Plus, apple already said they found an issue and will resolve it. So it will improve soon. Parker Ortolani / @parkerortolani : Think about it this way. For $1499 ($100 less than the Studio Display) you can get an M1 iMac with an entire computer inside, a 6 speaker atmos system, an excellent webcam, a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, a Magic Mouse and a display that's almost as good. https://twitter.com/... @ianbetteridge : It's REALLY hard to understand how and why Apple shipped the camera in this state, software or not. https://twitter.com/... Tyler Stalman / @stalman : If Apple needs hand fixing the Studio Display camera, my LUTs are available for download https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/... Vadim Yuryev / @vadimyuryev : It's the same reason why the new 12MP Ultrawide selfie camera on the iPad mini 6 looked worse than the iPad Air 4's camera in terms of detail and sharpness. However, it does seem like there is a software issue with the Studio Display that's making it even worse. https://twitter.com/... Tyler Stalman / @stalman : I took a close look at the Apple Studio Display. Perfect if you care about quality more than specs https://www.youtube.com/... https://twitter.com/... Parker Ortolani / @parkerortolani : It's not that the Studio Display is bad. It's just way overpriced, even for an Apple product. Joe Rossignol / @rsgnl : Pro Display XDR users: I wish there was a webcam! Apple: Be careful what you wish for. https://twitter.com/... Chance Miller / @chancehmiller : Can someone point me to a 27-inch 5K display that is a better value and better build quality than Apple's Studio Display? Sebastiaan de With / @sdw : Webcam issues aside, the Apple Studio Display is exactly what people asked for: a beautiful standalone 5K display with some unique integrations Apple is famous for. Glad to still be super happy with my Pro Displays XDR - though jealous of that speaker + mic combo in the Studios. https://twitter.com/... Sebastiaan de With / @sdw : @reneritchie Hm, yeah, this is both bad processing and it's pretty clear that the image from the camera is also just not very good. Processing can only do so much. Sami Fathi / @samifathi_ : Hot take: the Studio Display is actually a great display with a great value but people just want something to complain about. @jerclarke : @VadimYuryev That first screenshot is disastrously disappointing! That said, her other comparison, with “studio lighting” shows why I want an Apple-tuned camera so badly. Look at the color nightmare of the Ultrafine 5k under good lighting! https://twitter.com/... Rene Ritchie / @reneritchie : @sdw I think Center Stage is a huge camera trade-off to begin with (cropping out of a wider capture?), so it's always going to be worse that the equivalent non-Center Stage camera, like on the iMacs or MacBook Pro, but the optics are identical on the iPad Air, albeit A14 ISP? Joanna Stern / @joannastern : I wanted to love you Apple Studio Display. I really did. But your webcam is bad and your display is no better than some more affordable displays. My review: https://www.wsj.com/... @daringfireball : [Tweaked the conclusion of the Studio Display review thus:] https://twitter.com/... Vadim Yuryev / @vadimyuryev : I think putting the Ultrawide camera into the Studio Display was a mistake. The reason it looks so bad is because it's taking a 12MP 1080P sensor and cropping in more than 50%. So it's essentially lower than 720P when cropped into the face. Bad choice, IMO. https://twitter.com/... @halidecamera : We can see some issues with processing in sample images from the Studio Display so far — easily fixed with a software update — but going by these shots it also looks like it's just not a very high quality camera system. https://twitter.com/... Quinn Nelson / @snazzyq : I hope it's just software like Apple says but holy crap what a swing and a miss. It looks worse than the 5K UltraFine that's almost 6-years-old. https://twitter.com/... @om : “Which brings us to the camera, which I find to be crushingly disappointing. Image quality is astonishingly poor, and Center Stage is glitchy.” writes @gruber in his review of Apple Studio Display. He is still “almost certainly buying a Studio Display.” https://daringfireball.net/... Quinn Nelson / @snazzyq : *ahem* [link to The Verge headline: Apple Studio Display review: nothing to see here] Rene Ritchie / @reneritchie : It's 2022, maybe this is just how we all actually look now? (JOKING!) iPad Air 5 12mp wide selfie cam vs Studio Display 12mp wide selfie cam (same optics, different A13 vs M1 ISP) Looks flat like iPhone XS/A12 Smart HDR issue to my eyes Least it's not side-mounted like Air... https://twitter.com/... John Koetsier / @johnkoetsier : Yikes ... considering canceling my order here. I will pay extra for Apple reliability, but it needs to be cutting-edge or near cutting edge >> Apple Studio Display review: nothing to see here https://www.theverge.com/... by @reckless @panzer : Unfortunately, one of the Studio Display's marquee features, its webcam, suffers from pretty bad performance issues. After I brought it up and sent samples, Apple said it was working on a ‘fix’ for this. Mark Gurman / @markgurman : Not sure how it was released with such bugs. Curious how long the software update will take — and is it really possible this could be a software *only* issue? https://twitter.com/... Steven Sinofsky / @stevesi : Rather disappointing reviews for Apple's new Studio Display. I was really thinking it would be the “no wires” Zoom setup because the camera quality would be on par with iPhone, plus no cables. Here @JoannaStern and @bheater. https://twitter.com/... Mark Gurman / @markgurman : When was the last time we saw this from a set of Apple product reviews? Never? [MacRumors: Apple Studio Display Reviews: 'A Confounding Miss'] Ryan Jones / @rjonesy : I have a million questions. How did this ship? Why is it like this? It's the same hardware... so how?! How much can software fix? Will they pause release? Will they silent rev in a few months? The best Apple strategy conundrum in years. https://twitter.com/... Nilay Patel / @reckless : I was also tasked with reviewing the new Studio Display which... well it's a 60Hz panel with no local dimming or HDR and that A13-powered webcam looks very bad. Very, very bad. https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/... Mike Rundle / @flyosity : Studio Display webcam seems pretty bad. So lame that Apple tried to squeeze out higher margins rather than actually make it good. https://twitter.com/... Christopher Mims / @mims : In the year of our lord Zoom 3, Apple would like you to pay $1600 for a monitor with a sub-par webcam https://twitter.com/... Rene Ritchie / @reneritchie : For multiple Studio Displays, you just get to pick which one you want to use as your mic, speaker, and camera, same as you would any external hardware Be super great if Apple let you pair them like HomePods for a wider sound stage though! Make that A13 work for a living! https://twitter.com/... Tom Warren / @tomwarren : it looks like the Mac Studio is a super impressive machine, but the Apple Studio Display? Not so much. The webcam is super bad, and Apple is promising a software update. The panel also appears to be the same 5K one Apple has been using for years https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/... Nilay Patel / @reckless : Apple tells me the webcam is buggy somehow and update coming but no timeline or details on what is actually buggy https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/... M.G. Siegler / @mgsiegler : The more things change, the more Apple's inability to create a decent web cam for the Mac despite having maybe the best camera and team in the world for the iPhone remains the same. https://twitter.com/... Asher Vollmer / @ashervo : Really bummed that this screen doesn't support HDR. Having an all-in-one solution to a thunderbolt dock, good speakers, good mic, and a good webcam would have been incredible... but obvsly none of that matters if the screen isn't even a little futureproof. https://www.theverge.com/... @panzer : The Studio Display has a decent 5k panel that scales pixel perfect (unfortunately it's 60Hz but that's a 5k thing) and, unless you compare it to the $5k Pro Display XDR, pretty solid image. https://twitter.com/... Ian Bogost / @ibogost : This is a bummer because I was willing to pay this exorbitant price but already consider the LG 5K ultra fine camera to be terrible and that display raises and lowers so I'm just going to buy some rocks instead and rub them together for my symbolic exchange. https://twitter.com/... @nkulw : In 2016 I bought a MacBook without paying attention and it turns out Apple will just put a webcam from 2006 in about anything and hope you don't notice https://twitter.com/... Joanna Stern / @joannastern : We made brackets and everything! https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/... Joanna Stern / @joannastern : Welcome to MONITOR MADNESS! The only way to determine if the Studio Display is worth $1,599. How do you play? Get five monitors. Cover them up so you don't know which is which. Recruit a professional colorist. Judge! My Studio Display video review: https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/... Steve Kovach / @stevekovach : Apple's $1,600 computer monitor looks like a rare miss from the company. https://www.theverge.com/... Sean Hollister / @starfire2258 : How did Apple let the Studio Display ship like this? Scathing review here, for good reason. https://twitter.com/... Nilay Patel / @reckless : Joanna found the same webcam issues with the Studio Display I did and got the same statement promising fixes in the future -> https://twitter.com/... Mike Murphy / @mcwm : “There are $379 TVs with more advanced local-dimming backlights than this.” https://www.theverge.com/... Monica Chin / @mcsquared96 : The display Apple wants you to buy with it, on the other hand, has...some more issues, as @reckless outlines in his review. Luckily, that's optional. https://www.theverge.com/... Mike Murphy / @mcwm : potato quality webcam in a $1,600 monitor awk https://t.co/95BnvA5YJr Nilay Patel / @reckless : The mic and speakers are great tho. Sadly displays are more of a visual product. :( Jason Snell / @jsnell : I reviewed the new Mac studio! It's a new Mac on my desk! https://twitter.com/... Luke Miani / @lukemiani : Just under 2 days before I'm excited to bring you guys thorough coverage of the Mac Studio and M1 Ultra chip. What info are you seeking most?
You can be the judge of the webcam quality. More shots in my video: [Comparative selfies using an Apple Studio Display, a 14-inch MacBook Pro, an LG UltraFine 5K, and an iPhone 11 Pro]
Studio Display's cameragate has to be software. A13 + 12MP is the same as iPhone 11 Pro! I bet a last minute software update unintentionally screwed something up. Also explains how it slipped through. https://twitter.com/...
After telling Apple that my webcam was not performing as well as the 14-inch MacBook Pro, a 2-megapixel LG monitor and the iPhone 11, the company sent this statement: https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
The whole idea that Apple's only desktop display options would be a half-assed 27-inch panel for $1599 or a $6000 Pro Display XDR was always absurd. Of course an iMac Pro is coming.
When was the last time Apple hardware got a review like this? —> “The Studio Display's headline webcam feature works so badly that it's virtually unusable.” https://www.theverge.com/...
I wanted to love you Apple Studio Display. I really did. But your webcam is bad and your display is no better than some more affordable displays. My review: https://www.wsj.com/...
@VadimYuryev Huh, The Verge did a sensible thing, comparing it to M1 MacBook Pro, which to my eyes seems very comparable. As someone planning to plug it into a laptop, this is the comparison that matters most to me, though it really seems like it should be as good as M1 iMac and …
I think putting the Ultrawide camera into the Studio Display was a mistake. The reason it looks so bad is because it's taking a 12MP 1080P sensor and cropping in more than 50%. So it's essentially lower than 720P when cropped into the face. Bad choice, IMO. https://twitter.com/..…
@ianzelbo @SamiFathi_ It's a webcam. Does anyone actually care that much? Typically home internet causes drops of low bit rates and no one sees the highest quality anyway. Plus, apple already said they found an issue and will resolve it. So it will improve soon.
We can see some issues with processing in sample images from the Studio Display so far — easily fixed with a software update — but going by these shots it also looks like it's just not a very high quality camera system. https://twitter.com/...
Think about it this way. For $1499 ($100 less than the Studio Display) you can get an M1 iMac with an entire computer inside, a 6 speaker atmos system, an excellent webcam, a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, a Magic Mouse and a display that's almost as good. https://twitter.com/...
It's the same reason why the new 12MP Ultrawide selfie camera on the iPad mini 6 looked worse than the iPad Air 4's camera in terms of detail and sharpness. However, it does seem like there is a software issue with the Studio Display that's making it even worse. https://twitter.c…
I hope it's just software like Apple says but holy crap what a swing and a miss. It looks worse than the 5K UltraFine that's almost 6-years-old. https://twitter.com/...
Webcam issues aside, the Apple Studio Display is exactly what people asked for: a beautiful standalone 5K display with some unique integrations Apple is famous for. Glad to still be super happy with my Pro Displays XDR - though jealous of that speaker + mic combo in the Studios. …
@reneritchie Hm, yeah, this is both bad processing and it's pretty clear that the image from the camera is also just not very good. Processing can only do so much.
@VadimYuryev That first screenshot is disastrously disappointing! That said, her other comparison, with “studio lighting” shows why I want an Apple-tuned camera so badly. Look at the color nightmare of the Ultrafine 5k under good lighting! https://twitter.com/...
@sdw I think Center Stage is a huge camera trade-off to begin with (cropping out of a wider capture?), so it's always going to be worse that the equivalent non-Center Stage camera, like on the iMacs or MacBook Pro, but the optics are identical on the iPad Air, albeit A14 ISP?
“Which brings us to the camera, which I find to be crushingly disappointing. Image quality is astonishingly poor, and Center Stage is glitchy.” writes @gruber in his review of Apple Studio Display. He is still “almost certainly buying a Studio Display.” https://daringfireball.net…
Unfortunately, one of the Studio Display's marquee features, its webcam, suffers from pretty bad performance issues. After I brought it up and sent samples, Apple said it was working on a ‘fix’ for this.
It's 2022, maybe this is just how we all actually look now? (JOKING!) iPad Air 5 12mp wide selfie cam vs Studio Display 12mp wide selfie cam (same optics, different A13 vs M1 ISP) Looks flat like iPhone XS/A12 Smart HDR issue to my eyes Least it's not side-mounted like Air... htt…
Yikes ... considering canceling my order here. I will pay extra for Apple reliability, but it needs to be cutting-edge or near cutting edge >> Apple Studio Display review: nothing to see here https://www.theverge.com/... by @reckless
Not sure how it was released with such bugs. Curious how long the software update will take — and is it really possible this could be a software *only* issue? https://twitter.com/...
Rather disappointing reviews for Apple's new Studio Display. I was really thinking it would be the “no wires” Zoom setup because the camera quality would be on par with iPhone, plus no cables. Here @JoannaStern and @bheater. https://twitter.com/...
I was also tasked with reviewing the new Studio Display which... well it's a 60Hz panel with no local dimming or HDR and that A13-powered webcam looks very bad. Very, very bad. https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...
I have a million questions. How did this ship? Why is it like this? It's the same hardware... so how?! How much can software fix? Will they pause release? Will they silent rev in a few months? The best Apple strategy conundrum in years. https://twitter.com/...
Studio Display webcam seems pretty bad. So lame that Apple tried to squeeze out higher margins rather than actually make it good. https://twitter.com/...
For multiple Studio Displays, you just get to pick which one you want to use as your mic, speaker, and camera, same as you would any external hardware Be super great if Apple let you pair them like HomePods for a wider sound stage though! Make that A13 work for a living! https://…
it looks like the Mac Studio is a super impressive machine, but the Apple Studio Display? Not so much. The webcam is super bad, and Apple is promising a software update. The panel also appears to be the same 5K one Apple has been using for years https://www.theverge.com/... https…
Apple tells me the webcam is buggy somehow and update coming but no timeline or details on what is actually buggy https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...
The more things change, the more Apple's inability to create a decent web cam for the Mac despite having maybe the best camera and team in the world for the iPhone remains the same. https://twitter.com/...
Really bummed that this screen doesn't support HDR. Having an all-in-one solution to a thunderbolt dock, good speakers, good mic, and a good webcam would have been incredible... but obvsly none of that matters if the screen isn't even a little futureproof. https://www.theverge.co…
The Studio Display has a decent 5k panel that scales pixel perfect (unfortunately it's 60Hz but that's a 5k thing) and, unless you compare it to the $5k Pro Display XDR, pretty solid image. https://twitter.com/...
This is a bummer because I was willing to pay this exorbitant price but already consider the LG 5K ultra fine camera to be terrible and that display raises and lowers so I'm just going to buy some rocks instead and rub them together for my symbolic exchange. https://twitter.com/.…
In 2016 I bought a MacBook without paying attention and it turns out Apple will just put a webcam from 2006 in about anything and hope you don't notice https://twitter.com/...
Welcome to MONITOR MADNESS! The only way to determine if the Studio Display is worth $1,599. How do you play? Get five monitors. Cover them up so you don't know which is which. Recruit a professional colorist. Judge! My Studio Display video review: https://www.wsj.com/... https:/…
The display Apple wants you to buy with it, on the other hand, has...some more issues, as @reckless outlines in his review. Luckily, that's optional. https://www.theverge.com/...