If you look carefully you'll notice that the only difference between the $299 monitors and the Ultra HD monitor in term of design is a thinner bezel. Maybe it would have increased the price much more for virtually nothing to have a thinner bezel on their new screen. Also, they don't have any competitor for this screen, so they don't need to distinguish themselves from the competition like they do with the "borderless" 24" screen.

I personally don't find them cheap looking and I'd rather have a "plastic" looking bezel with a mate screen over a sleek looking screen with an all-glass shiny front.