Will Apple’s new monitor deliver an integrated graphics chip?

It’s almost time for Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC), so that means plenty of rumours are flying around.

The latest one, from 9to5 Mac, suggests that Apple will be refreshing its external display in a big way this month.

The website “heard” that stock of the old external Thunderbolt display is running out and that there are seemingly no plans to replenish it.

Its own sources have shed light on a successor though, saying it would likely feature a 5K resolution (5120×2880) for starters. This brings it up to the same standard as the iMac 5K, of course.

However, the boldest claim is that Apple plans to integrate a dedicated graphics chip into the display.

The reason for the feature is so that the 5K display is fully compatible with as many Macs as possible, the website claimed. After all, an immense amount of pixel-pushing power is needed for a screen like this.

One advantage of this approach is that Macbooks can still be as slim and light as possible, as a discrete graphics card doesn’t need to be integrated into the system. Instead, when serious work/gaming needs to be done, you simply plug it into your monitor.

It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen a graphics card outside a computer, as Razer’s External Graphics Dock and Asus’s ROG XG Station 2 both offer external solutions for laptops.