[larsberg]

I've been assuming this is what Apple is going to do with the next MBP retina. Intel graphics when headless + a new Thunderbolt Display with built-in Nvidia or ATI card when "docked."

[ChuckMcM]

I've been wondering something similar. Since you can lock in the 'value add' of the display, and the current Cinema display with TB is pretty full of stuff anyway, that you'd get a display with built in GPU rather than a display which is being sent the pixels. Not sure how that compares bandwidth consumption wise but from the ability for drivers to not recognize non Apple hosts its a total win.

[mahyarm]

Your about $400 from an iMac at that point.

[bobbles]

Unless that iMac folds down into a macbook pro when you leave the house that's kind of irrelevant

[wilg]

Well, unless this display comes with a MacBook Pro, I think that's relevant.

[ckluis]

Partially agree. I assume Apple wants to go down the truly portable route and offer an addon graphics card in the size and shape of either an airport extreme or apple tv/mini. This would allow someone with a mini to stack a graphics card under it and have the graphics card inbetween the mini & any other screen.

[Shivetya]

I am/was hoping thunderbolt would provide me the equivalent of a docking station set up for Apple laptops. Hooking up one cable is an acceptable alternative to a docking station. My last Apple laptop setup required four plug ins, monitor, power, keyboard, and mouse. Yeah I know I could wireless the mouse/keyboard but that isn't the point.

[jfb]

Apple already sells a Thunderbolt docking station, with a very nice 27" display built in.

[roc]

Personally I think baking the GPU power into the displays themselves is the more Apple-y approach. As opposed to some sort of additional-stackable-boxes solution.

(Which I'd love to see; I just don't see Apple doing it.)

[grecy]

> Personally I think baking the GPU power into the displays themselves is the more Apple-y approach.

I don't agree.

Any Monitor with built in GPU won't make sense with the new Mac Pro, which (I think) will be the driving force for the new (likely 4K) Thunderbolt cinema displays.

[roc]

But without the GPU what Apple machines other than Mac Pros will decently drive a 4k display? [1]

Apple's left the Pro line to languish for so long, I can't imagine they'd let it limit their ability to differentiate in the larger display business.

[1] And of those upgraded MBPs that could hit 4k aren't going to be able to do it on two displays, which is quite popular.

[barrkel]

GPUs become obsolete way faster than monitors.

[roc]

Are you trying to say Apple wouldn't put GPUs in displays because it might accelerate the display upgrade cycle?

[tsmarsh]

It would be great if that docking station optionally included an awesome GPU. In the mean time, daisy chaining something like this on to the back looks very interesting.

[dmix]

> monitor, power, keyboard, and mouse

+ sound

Although I use USB hub so 1x usb.

[duaneb]

> addon graphics card in the size and shape of either an airport extreme or apple tv/mini

Wouldn't the latency remove any substantial merit?

[akandiah]

Sony has done this in the past. The add-on wasn't cheap.

[randyrand]

The only issue I see with this is that graphics cards become obsolete much faster than monitors do. I wouldn't want to replace my perfectly good monitor just because the graphics are too slow.

The obvious answer is a user replaceable card - but that hardly screams "Apple."

[MBCook]

This is what people are used to with laptops, so there is a form of precedent.

[bluedino]

Apple wouldn't care - look at the 'ancient' video card in the Mac Pro

[frou_dh]

    Checkout Option:
    
    [ ] That P stands for "Prosumer", not "Professional", until you add this monitor.
        + $1299

[vxNsr]

I would LOVE to see Apple's version of a laptop dock, so far we've only seen kinda ugly all-about-usability docks from the likes of lenovo, nothing aesthetically pleasing, so I think it would be really cool to see what Apple would come up with in this department.

For examples of slightly bad ideas look no further than the Thinkpad Helix -- it would work if there was no switch to undock and they could figure out a way to get rid of the whole flap thing...