Apple Studio Display 2 expected to come with these upgrades

It's long overdue.

Recently, it has been reported that a new Apple Studio Dispaly is expected to come out soon. It is expexcted to come out alongside the new M5 Mac mini and M5 Mac Studio, or alongside the higher-end MacBook Pro. Either way, it is expexcted to come at some point in 2026.

The Studio Display was often cited as too expensive and not worth the value when it came out just over 3 years ago. The SDR, 60Hz, 5K panel was seen as nice, but not worth the $1600 that Apple was asking for it. It was essentially the same display as the now near-decade old $1300 LG UltraFine 5K, but just with a nicer webcam and an A13 Bionic.

Now, Apple is expected to bring 120Hz ProMotion, HDR, and an A19 chip. All of these things would bring it up to speed with the rest of the high-end (in this price bracket) monitor market. If the price stays the same at $1600, this will be a much more compelling product, as the ProMotion refresh rate adds a lot of value.

It is nice that they are bringing the 120Hz tech on Macs from the MacBook Pro now to the monitors, as you notice the refresh rate more on the bigger screen. It can also make animations easier to create, as Apple will need to target only a few refresh rates to make it look smooth.

The HDR in the panel will look nice and allow for colors to pop better. This could also make it better for professional color graders, who need more color accurate displays closer to this price. The A19 chip is not necessary, as the A13 was already very overkill just to drive the webcam, but either way, it is good that Apple is focusing on making the webcam better on the display.

The Apple Studio Display 2 looks like it will be a much better value than its predecessor with its new features. We will have to wait and see what Apple does soon.