Rumored 27-inch mini-LED ProMotion display 'killed off' by Apple, analyst claims

A woman using the Apple Studio Display while sitting at a desk

(Image credit: Apple)

Apple has reportedly ditched plans for a 120Hz ProMotion and mini-LED version of the Studio Display, although it's possible that it could renew its interest in the project at a later date.

A new report by display analyst Ross Young says that Apple has "killed off" the monitor following previous delays. The display was thought to be a high-end alternative to the Studio Display without making customers go all the way to the 32-inch Pro Display XDR.

This news means that anyone not willing to pay Pro Display XDR money will need to look outside of Apple for the best Mac display for a while yet.

Gone, but not forgotten

In a post to his Twitter Super Followers reported on by 9to5Mac, Ross Young said "although some panels were shipped last year, Apple killed off the 27″ MiniLED display, at least for now."

That final point suggests that there could be the possibility of Apple resurrecting the 27-inch mini-LED monitor in the future, or perhaps some variation on the theme that has so far proven problematic for Apple.

The rumored monitor has been delayed time and time again if previous rumors are accurate. The latest came in February 2023 when Young said that he hadn't seen any suggestion that the display had entered mass production. That alone meant that it wouldn't launch anytime soon, but this latest news appears to put more nails in its coffin.

The display itself was set to be an impressive one thanks to the use of mini-LED technology as well as the 120Hz ProMotion capabilities already offered elsewhere.

ProMotion would allow the display to ramp all the way to a 120Hz refresh rate when fast-moving content was on-screen but then ramp down when it wasn't needed. The use of mini-LED technology would also have improved brightness, contrast, and more.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.