If you’ve been itching to populate your desk with an Apple Thunderbolt Display or two, I suggest you hop to it. Apple has officially announced that it is discontinuing the only standalone display in its lineup. You can still find the Thunderbolt Display available for purchase for $999, but they’re not making any more of them. Once they clear out existing stock, that’s it. Kaput. Done.
Perhaps even more surprising is the fact that the Thunderbolt Display hasn’t been updated since its introduction in 2011. When was the last time that Apple kept a product around for five years without refreshing it? They could have at least thrown on a new paint job and added one extra port to make it new and shiny again.
In an official statement, an Apple spokesperson indicated that if people are still interested in having an external display for their Macs, they can choose from “a number of great third-party options” instead. The thing is that those “third party options” aren’t being sold in Apple Stores. I guess it’s off to Best Buy or Amazon for you!
The hope that many an Apple fan has now is that the discontinuation of the Thunderbolt Display does not represent its death. They’re hoping that it will once again be resurrected but in a 5K form. That rumor has been swirling around for a while already. Maybe it will finally come to pass.
Via BGR