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Considering the cost for the display and the warranty this amounts to paying over 600.00 a year to have the display. You decide if it's worth that. If you get one of these and plan to keep it awhile get Applecare. I've also noted some variation of brightness along the edges. The display is beautiful and provides a ton of real estate on a single display.However this display did not age well. I've owned the Apple Cinema 30" display for several years now and I kept Applecare on it until the warranty ran out. It now has a problem refreshing the screen quickly enough so there is a bit of ghosting that goes on. After that it's probably time to buy a new one.
They are great when they work, anger inducing when they do not. Many people had similar issues with this or similar models. But my experience with the hardware has been mixed. Looking online caused me to realize I was not the Lone Ranger. The motherboard on my powerbook failed after 2 and a half years. Powerbook power adapters have been notorious for failure. Two years ago I bought a 23" flat screen Apple monitor. Dead as a doornail.
Not good for a $900 item. So be warned and be careful. I am an Apple fan, as I think their software is the best. It has been lightly used but when I came back from a trip recently it would not turn on. I had a Mac Mini and the DVD drive died after a little more than a year.
I was concerned that Apple would discontinue the 30" like they did the 23" without warning, so went ahead and treated my self to an early Christmas present, best decision I ever made, this screen is magnificent, just the real-estate upgrade from my 23" makes me happy everyday and afterall its all about being happy, I rate this a buy buy buy
Now go ahead an click that buy button. I don't think folks at Dell and HP are even aware of SWOP. The Apple display, OTOH, complies with strict SWOP standards (Specifications for Web Offset Publications). It's clean, it's beautiful, it looks like a piece of modern art. Sure there are less expensive displays, with better connectivity, and HDCP decoding, but when hooked up to a Mac this thing produces a bright, uniformly backlit, color accurate, sharp image that no other monitor can match straight out of the box.
'Nuff said. In essence, SWOP requires that the photo you took with your DSLR be reproduced exactly (color-wise) on the display and on the print copy. You will find that to come close to this image quality on a Dell or HP monitor, you will have to invest in a colorimeter, since these displays do not come calibrated from the factory (which is partly why Dell and HP are able to sell their displays for less). If you own a Mac, especially a Mac Pro (like I do), this is the display is for you. Dell and HP monitors tend to have over-saturated colors meant to impress the casual user or the devil-may-care gamer who cares little about color accuracy and more about the "pop" factor.
And then there is the look of the Apple display.
The colors of landscapes and colors of skintones just pops so much better with the Apple.The monitor seems to run hotter than the hanns though, my guess is the apple monitor burns more energy.Conclusion is, the hanns is great value for money, but if you have an additional 1k plus to burn, and really need the increased tonal range and color, then go for the apple. You won't regret it. This is quite a significant increase in pixels. The apple has 2500x1600 while the hans has 1900x1200. As a wedding photographer, I spend lots of time in front of a monitor.This monitor came from an upgrade of the hanns 28" monitor which is a steal of a deal at $330.The apple monitor is substantially more expensive. This monitor is used primarily for photoshop, and also wow gaming. Even the refurbished one is 1400 after tax, which is 4-5 times more expensive than the hanns.Comparatively, the resolution increase of the apple 30" over the hanns 28" is impressive. Initially I thought that pixel density doesn't matter, but for photoshop editing, this clearly makes a difference.
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