nice. i have a 20" cinema. i can't imagine having 30.

can they run auto-cad???

mdler - the computer itself runs applications (such as autodad), not the display. considering the new displays are PC-compatible, it would be possible to connect one to your PC, running autocad.

Im trying to be funny

From what have read you comprimise screen resolution when hooking up to a PC where an plugging into an Apple you can red-line the thing.

I think I saw that on a review over at CNET on the 23" under pro's and cons.

this might be a bit 'wrong' sounding, but i dont like having just one huge monitor. I like the feel of having two 19" monitors slightly wraped around my field of view. true, autoCAD isnt really for 2 monitors w/ the image split in the middle, so it does have its advantages....

oh hell, who am i kidding? that thing is sweet.

Won't you need a massive video card to run that resolution? What is the resolution anyhow?

2560 x 1600 pixels (optimum resolution)

(I clicked the image and went to "tech spces")

Wow...massive.

"Driving Force
The 30-inch Cinema HD Display is so big, it requires the next level of graphics technology. The NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL graphics card delivers, with the most advanced graphics engine available for Mac. This card, designed specifically to support the dual link DVI connection, delivers 2560 by 1600 resolution. Even better, it can drive two 30-inch displays, giving you the ultimate creative canvas. This $599 card will be available as a built to order option and as a standalone kit in August 2004."


two 30 inchers?! damn.

$ 3,300 ---> wait for a year..it ll go 2400

(remember my son: size DOES matter).

That screen just kicks massive ass!

apparently Apple has went to a standard 100ppi resolution rather than 72, so everything is crisper and easier on the eyes...

and speaking of easy on the eyes, that monitor is fucking gorgeous

this is why i love apple. they make beautiful products with superior technology that backs up their industrial design. i found the old cinema displays so much better than other displays on the market. this one keeps them ahead of the pack.

from the WWDC keynote:
"features DVI interface, dual USB 2 and dual FireWire 400 ports, VESA wall mounting options, and improved brightness and contrast. The 20" and 23" models will also work with PCs and will be available in July, for $1,169 and $1,799 respectively. The 30" will be available in August for $2,999, however it will only work with the $549 NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL graphics card, which is a required add-on. This card can drive 2 30" displays, for a total of 8.2 million pixels!"

8.2 million pixels. That's just obscene. I need!!

That's just AWSOME! I love that. I love apple, and f***ing good Jonathan Ives.

from the tech page,

windows: grassy hillside, blue skies

mac: grassy hillside with tress, a quaint house, impossibly majestic mountain range, blue skies with a subtle haze.

mac is better

that is a nice monitor...two would kick ass

but i refuse to be thoroughly impressed until i have an interactive hologram floatng in mid-air right before my eyes. that is what i am saving my money for. its bound to happen...it already is happening i believe.

tis a beautiful thing. if only you could get a good piece of architectural software to go with it. my boss has the idea that archicad is the bee's knees. i guess a 30" monitor might even make archicad better..

Ah, finally they make stuff compatible with PCs! Now if they'd just open a few more doors...

actually, most (hardware) items found on a apple computer are windows compatible and probably made for windows to begin with. I wish people would realize that once and for all. Apple does not make anything for their computers (hardware wise), rather they send off their ideas to one of the 3 huge asian companies that make computers for all the other co. (HP, Dell etc)

Personally I think the design is a little lame. Technical aspects aside, (which are incredible, granted) I think the form is pretty comparable to a lot of pc flat screen monitors. The design is a little more resolved, but nothing revolutionary.

db,

is that thing about 100 ppi true? where did you read that?

I don't know if that would really make everything crisper, it seems like it would just mess up most web layouts shrinking the images that are made to 72 ppi.. the text readability would likely increase.. interesting.

pencrush - i disagree with your design critique. i think the key in apple's brilliant designs is restraint. the difference between the design of apple products and other computer manufacturers can be seen most clearly in the material applications and details.... or lack of superfluous details. it's a mystery to me why no other computer manufacturers have even come close to matching the quality of apple's product design.

another amazing (but unfortunate) aspect of apple's designs are the fact that they can come out with products so beautiful and innovative, then follow it up with an updated design a year later making the recently admired designs look ancient.

I guess that 100 ppi thing wouldn't mess up most web page layouts, depending on the code.

I read the info on the apple website and it wasn't really clear. Is the monitor displaying at 72 ppi? Most lcd display now list the actual number of units in a display that turn on or off or change color to display an image, say 1280 x 1024, which is different than actual display resolution. For example if I make an image that is 100 x 100 pixels at 150 pixels per inch, at full scale it will display roughly 200 x200 on a monitor. Would that same image show up full size on a 100 ppi monitor at 150 x 150, or would it display at roughly 200 x 200 with using more of the physical display units in the apple monitor.

sorry I know I'm boring everyone with this crap, but if anybody knows, I'd be really curious to find out.

Paul,

I think you're right. I guess the difference between a blue G3 and a beige wintel box was so large that the more subtle improvements on the apple hardware is more about refining an already superior product.

ciiw,

i hear ya. for a while at another job i was the it's darling [respected layers and stuff] so he gave me 2 x 21" monitors to microstation on.

d'ya think anybody has thought of making these huge monitors curved? it seems logical: curved in plan, i mean, so the screen would always be perpendicular to your eyesight as the size increases and you need to turn your head a little. i like that 'wrap around' feeling on a screen.

boy am i sick.

At a paltry $20,000.00 USD one might wonder which market might benefit from such a device. Weighing enough to justify a $675.00 shipping charge (150 lbs.), this is one monitor that might actually be too heavy to get into the house without some help. 
http://reviews.designtechnica.com/firstlook21.html

There's also this option if you have up to $125,000 to spend. Info

hey paul.....

do i smell another competition in the works?......would be nice if you put up one of these monitors and we would promise to send you complements every morning........

Have you lost weight?

is that a new haircut? it looks nice.

...er...well...ok....2 compliments a day but ONLY if you up the prize to the X-Top - Expandable Multi-Screen -5-over-5- Integrated Multiple Monitor LCD Display WITH the spare screen AND the extended 4 year warranty AND of course....the hard shell travel cases....so we can make it mobile and stay connected to archinect....