Apple Dropping 17" CRT Displays, Does Going All Flat Panel Include The iMac?

MacUser UK broke the news this morning that Apple will be discontinuing its last remaining CRT display, the 17" Apple Studio Display. More significantly, MacUser points out that Apple will be the first computer company to exclusively offer flat panel monitors. According to the article:

Reliable sources report the company has decided to no longer make monitors based on CRT (cathode ray tube) technology and will sell only flat-panel displays from now on. The company will announce a LCD replacement for the tube-based 17-inch monitor either next month or in July. It is expected the new flat-panel display will be an equivalent in size to the 17-inch monitor, but it is possible it could be slightly bigger in viewable area. The company is confident it has enough inventory of the 17-inch Studio Display to meet demand until it announces a replacement.

There is more information in the MacUser UK piece, and we recommend you check it out. C|Net also reported on the issue, and included this:

Apple has "good reason to switch to LCDs," said NPD Intelect analyst Stephen Baker. Nearly half of all the Apple monitors sold at stores are LCD models, which account for more than 70 percent of the companyis retail display revenue, he said.

"Obviously, through Appleis own analysis of its sales, most of the customers are going for the LCDs," said Technology Business Research analyst Tim Deal.

The C|Net article is also a good read.