While the all-in-one computer wasn’t a surprise, the missing stand-alone display that was expected to get debuted along with the new computer was for many. As it turns out, there is a reason that Apple didn’t announce a stand-alone display, and, more importantly, why the iMac with Retina 5K display can’t be used as an external display right now. According to a tweet published by TechCrunch‘s Matthew Panzarino, the new iMac can’t be used as an external display, unlike previous models within the iMac lineup which could be used as such thanks to the feature known as target display mode.
MacRumor is saying that this probably due to the limitation of current bandwidth, specifically the limitations therein. The DisplayPort 1.2 specifications that Apple utilizes with their newest iMac with Thunderbolt 2 is simply not capable of handling the bandwidth needed for 5K video, especially over a single cable.
“Doing it right will require waiting until DisplayPort 1.3 in Thunderbolt 3 on Broadwell’s successor, Skylake, which isn’t supposed to come out for at least another year — and Intel is even worse at estimating ship dates than I am, so it’s likely to be longer. […]
I’d estimate — granted, I’m wrong a lot — that Apple won’t ship a standalone 5K display until at least 2016, and it won’t work with any of today’s Macs, including the 2013 Mac Pro.“
So are you disappointed by this news ?
[via MacRumors; Matthew Panzarino (@panzer); Marco Arment]
