The thought of a monitor software update might still seem strange to some of us, but that's the world we live in and the Apple Studio Display has a new one to call its very own.
Apple's 27-inch, 5K monitor might not be for everyone, and at $1,599 few would argue that's a bargain. But if you're someone who wants a 5K display at this size you could definitely do worse. And the software updates can actually come in pretty handy, as this version 16.4 release shows.
According to Apple's release notes — release notes for a monitor! — this update does a couple of things, but the main one is an improvement for people who need to recalibrate their displays regularly.
In-field recalibration is a go
Apple's release notes don't always tell the full story about a software update, but they're pretty clear here. The company says that the 16.4 version of its Studio Display software "adds support for in-field recalibration of the display using Pro Display Calibrator." It then goes on to add that it "enables specific color workflows that may require custom calibration by an in-house spectroradiometer."
The release notes then link out to an Apple support page about how that's done, but at the time of writing it doesn't seem to actually work. Hopefully, that'll change in the near future.
Recalibration can come in handy for obvious reasons, especially for those who are working with images and videos that require accurate color reproduction. For those people, this will no doubt be a welcome addition to the Studio Display's arsenal of pro tools.
The release notes also suggest that there are "minor stability improvements" in this release, too.
Of course, those who really want the best Mac monitor around should still look elsewhere. The Pro Display XDR is the way to go, but it's far from cheap. Thankfully there are plenty of Pro Display XDR alternatives on the market.
