WWDC 2020

When Tim Cook announced the new Mac Pro at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 2019) the audience broke out into cheers. The new high-end computer is aimed at creative professionals and starts out at $5,999. Apple also announced a 6K resolution reference monitor called the Pro Display XDR which starts at $4,999. What's insane about the new standalone display isn't the 10-bit color, 1,600 nits of brightness or 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio. It's the fact that it doesn't come with an actual stand to hold it up.

Read: Everything Apple announced at WWDC 2019

If you don't want to prop your Pro Display XDR up against a pile of books, you have two options -- and both will cost you more money. There's the Pro Stand for $999, the same price of the last external display Apple sold -- which by the way came with a stand. The only other option is to buy a $199 VESA mount adapter and attach it to a stand or rail.

The Pro Stand has an adjustable height with a travel of 120 millimeters. You can also tilt and rotate the display into landscape or portrait. When the price was announced murmurs of dissatisfaction could be heard throughout the audience.

James Martin/CNET

Obviously none of this is aimed at your average consumer. High-end reference monitors that are calibrated can cost $18,000 and more. And if you're going to get one, chances are you already have a VESA mount set up for an editing bay and won't need a stand.

A baseline Mac Pro with a baseline Pro Display XDR and the Pro Stand will cost you $11,997. That doesn't include tax or shipping and you'll have to wait until fall to get it.

This story was originally published yesterday.