Studio Display Outputs At 1440p Resolution When Connected to 4th-Gen iPad Air and iPad Mini 6

Apple's new 5K Studio Display supports the 11-inch iPad Pro, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro (third-generation or later), and the new fifth-generation iPad Air, but it isn't officially compatible with the fourth-generation iPad Air or the new iPad mini because the USB-C ports on these devices can't achieve the required data throughput to output in the native resolution.
apple studio display blue

That has led some users to wonder what happens, if anything, when a fourth-generation iPad Air or iPad mini 6 is connected to the Studio Display. Apple has now confirmed to MacRumors that these two devices output to the 5K-capable display in a downscaled 1440p resolution. Suffice to say, other older, non-supported iPads with USB-C aren't capable of driving the Studio Display at 5K either.

Apple's new Studio Display is compatible with a range of Macs, according to Apple, including the following:

  • Mac Studio (2022)

  • 16-inch MacBook Pro (2019 or later)

  • 14-inch MacBook Pro (2021)

  • 13-inch MacBook Pro (2016 or later)

  • 15-inch MacBook Pro (2016 or later)

  • MacBook Air (2018 or later)
  • Mac mini (2018 or later)
  • Mac Pro (2019 or later)
  • 24-inch iMac (2021)
  • 27-inch iMac (2017 or later)
  • 21.5-inch iMac (2017 or later)
  • iMac Pro (2017)

Customers can order the Studio Display starting now through Apple's online store, with availability starting March 18, although delivery dates for both the new Mac Studio and its accompanying Studio Display have begun to slip well into April.

In the U.S., the Studio Display is priced at $1,599 with a tilt-adjustable stand and at $1,999 with a tilt- and height-adjustable stand. The monitor can also be configured with nano-texture glass and/or a VESA mount adapter.

Top Rated Comments

Pakaku Avatar
28 months ago

Why does anyone hook a laptop to a bigger display? To get more screen RE and/or to get more done. There are those who use iPads as their computer. Even the biggest iPad Pro offers a relatively tiny screen. Hook one to a bigger screen much like linking a laptop for the same general purpose.
Hooking it up for more desktop real-estate is a good reason, yet last I checked, the iPad doesn't get any extra real-estate and just mirrors its screen. Not comparable to a laptop in the slightest.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Haiku_Oezu Avatar
28 months ago

I would legitimately consider buying one with the stand to connect to my 2021 12.9 iPad Pro, but because the iPadOS only outputs a mirror image of the iPad display, it’s wasteful. I use my iPad Pro all day everyday and study quite a bit at home and would love the large screen size. I wonder, however, is it not more sensible to get a base iMac 24” at that point.
Technically iPadOS does support using a monitor as a second display, but it’s app to the apps themselves to support this so it only works with a handful of them (last time I checked)
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sebosz Avatar
28 months ago
Why would anyone want to mirror iPadOS on Studio Display?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PeteBurgh Avatar
28 months ago
I really hope that Apple specifically mentioning iPad compatibility for the Studio Display is a harbinger of better external display support in iPadOS. But I feel like I've become Captain Ahab hunting the white whale on this - iPads have had the technical capability to use external displays for ages now, without any sign of better software support.

It's become like the iPad Pro people hoping for Final Cut Pro (and other Pro apps) on the iPad - it makes a certain amount of a sense, but is this actually Apple's vision for the iPad? Do they really envisage the iPad as a Viticci's modular computer ('https://www.macstories.net/stories/modular-computer/'), or do they still imagine it as a much simpler device?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HobeSoundDarryl Avatar
28 months ago

Why would anyone want to mirror iPadOS on Studio Display?
Why does anyone hook a laptop to a bigger display? To get more screen RE and/or to get more done. There are those who use iPads as their computer. Even the biggest iPad Pro offers a relatively tiny screen. Hook one to a bigger screen much like linking a laptop for the same general purpose.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mkoesel Avatar
28 months ago
It’s good to have confirmation that it’s merely a bandwidth concern rather than the devices not being able to produce the proper signal or being explicitly blocked by the display somehow.

Theoretcally these two older USB-C iPads should be able to output @ 4K/30Hz to this display as well.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Announces 'Let Loose' Event on May 7 Amid Rumors of New iPads

Tuesday April 23, 2024 7:11 am PDT by
Apple has announced it will be holding a special event on Tuesday, May 7 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (10 a.m. Eastern Time), with a live stream to be available on Apple.com and on YouTube as usual. The event invitation has a tagline of "Let Loose" and shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
iPhone 15 Pro FineWoven

Apple Reportedly Stops Production of FineWoven Accessories

Sunday April 21, 2024 6:03 am PDT by
Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories, according to the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami." In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kosutami explained that Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories due to its poor durability. The company may move to another non-leather material for its premium accessories in the future. Kosutami has revealed...
Apple Vision Pro Dual Loop Band Orange Feature 2

Apple Cuts Vision Pro Shipments as Demand Falls 'Sharply Beyond Expectations'

Tuesday April 23, 2024 9:44 am PDT by
Apple has dropped the number of Vision Pro units that it plans to ship in 2024, going from an expected 700 to 800k units to just 400k to 450k units, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Orders have been scaled back before the Vision Pro has launched in markets outside of the United States, which Kuo says is a sign that demand in the U.S. has "fallen sharply beyond expectations." As a...
iOS 17 All New Features Thumb

iOS 17.5 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Sunday April 21, 2024 3:00 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 17.5 update for the iPhone includes only a few new user-facing features, but hidden code changes reveal some additional possibilities. Below, we have recapped everything new in the iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 beta so far. Web Distribution Starting with the second beta of iOS 17.5, eligible developers are able to distribute their iOS apps to iPhone users located in the EU...
iPad And Calculator App Feature

Apple Finally Plans to Release a Calculator App for iPad Later This Year

Tuesday April 23, 2024 9:08 am PDT by
Apple is finally planning a Calculator app for the iPad, over 14 years after launching the device, according to a source familiar with the matter. iPadOS 18 will include a built-in Calculator app for all iPad models that are compatible with the software update, which is expected to be unveiled during the opening keynote of Apple's annual developers conference WWDC on June 10. The lack of ...
Provenance Emulator

PlayStation and SEGA Emulator for iPhone and Apple TV Coming to App Store [Updated]

Friday April 19, 2024 8:29 am PDT by
The lead developer of the multi-emulator app Provenance has told iMore that his team is working towards releasing the app on the App Store, but he did not provide a timeframe. Provenance is a frontend for many existing emulators, and it would allow iPhone and Apple TV users to emulate games released for a wide variety of classic game consoles, including the original PlayStation, SEGA Genesis,...