A More Affordable High-End Apple Monitor Could Launch Soon

If you’re a Mac user on the hunt for an excellent external monitor, there’s cause for optimism. According to numerous rumors, the company is working on a top-quality Mac monitor, and that idea has just received a massive boost in the form of a new report from journalist Mark Gurman.

Gurman is considered to be one of the most accurate and reliable Apple tipsters. In his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says he “strongly believes” Apple will launch an external monitor for its latest Macs, suggesting it could happen relatively soon.

“A lower-cost monitor, I think, would be a hot seller for those looking to add a larger screen to their new MacBook Pro without spending the equivalent of a luxury car down payment on the Pro Display XDR,” Gurman states. “At this point, the cost of building that monitor has likely come down, and with a few tweaks and perhaps a slight drop in brightness, Apple might be able to get to a similar quality monitor (at a slightly smaller size) at perhaps about half the price.”

It’s an interesting point, not least because it follows a report from another reliable informant just last week about Apple’s monitor plans. Twitter leaker Dylandkt explained they believe Apple is working with LG on up to three external monitors, coming in 24-inch, 27-inch, and 32-inch sizes.

The larger two will feature Apple’s 120Hz ProMotion tech and a mini-LED panel like the latest MacBook Pro, while the 32-inch model could even have a custom Apple Silicon chip to manage its pixels and backlighting. That the 24-inch model is apparently lacking these features suggests it could be a more affordable option — and is potentially the same one described in Gurman’s newsletter.

Gurman himself previously claimed in January 2021 that Apple was working on a lower-cost external display, so his latest newsletter reiterates his belief in that eventuality. That lends weight to Dylandkt’s assertions thanks to Gurman’s reputation for accuracy.

When Apple launches a series of new products, it likes to launch them all together — think the complete iPhone 13 range being unveiled at the same time. That implies that if Dylandkt is correct and Apple is indeed working on three monitors, there’s a good chance they’ll all be revealed simultaneously.

And that has implications for Apple’s Mac Pro. The Pro Display XDR is a high-end 32-inch monitor, just like the product leaked by Dylandkt. If Apple has an affordable monitor in the works (as per Gurman’s latest newsletter) and also a Pro Display XDR replacement (via Dylandkt), it surely also has an update to the Mac Pro planned, seeing as the 2019 model launched alongside the original Pro Display XDR. In other words, all these products could make their debut at the same time. That would be quite the showstopper event for Apple fans.

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