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Macbook vs macbook pro screen quality.

sam10685

sam10685

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Does anyone that has a 13" macbook regret not getting a 15" (or 17") macbook pro due to the better screen quality in the macbook pro?
 
Yes and no. I don't want to deal with the bigger computer but I'm really starting to get annoyed with this screen. No reason I should have to keep my head perfectly still so i dont see complete color changes/the negative effect on my screen.
 
Not in the slightest.

For what I use my computer for, the 13" screen is fine in quality, and absolutely perfect in form factor.
 
Yes, I am one of them. I've owned a 13" first gen. MacBook and currently eyeing a 13" aluminum MacBook, but I prefer the larger, higher quality screen on the 15" MacBook Pro. I just can't afford the price right and I need a new machine soon. The heavier weight and larger dimensions were never issues for me when I owned a 15" Titanium PowerBook G4.

This is not to say that the 13" aluminum MacBook screens are bad—they're good, just not as nearly good as the ones on the 15" models. They are much better than the display of my old 2006 MacBook (mostly from the wider horizontal viewing angle), and much better than the ones on my friends' PC laptops. I've been spending a lot of time at the Apple Stores critiquing the displays 🙂

So I can easily live with the current 13" MacBook screen, even though I rather have the 15" one.
 
Personally I'm glad we have another thread on this subject, since the other four threads that have been floating around on it the past few days will slowly be working their way off the first page of the forums soon. Heady stuff!

For the record, I went the other way (MBP15 -> UMB) for the size and weight advantages, and don't see a major problem. My personal opinion is that, for 90+% of the people out there, the screen quality is just fine.
 
I like the portability of the MB, and I don't mind the screen in the slightest. The MB is perfect for my needs.
 
The MB is the right size. If you look at a good MB and MBP side by side you can tell that the MBP is more vivid and has better viewing angles and less black negative. It's silly Apple doesn't build MB's like it builds MBPs with a better panel as they cost quite a bit.

However, the people who really complain about the MB screen may have gotten one like I did. It is bleeding and flickers and is just kind of a mess. So, I think some people comparing are comparing MB lemons to good working MBs and MBPs. If your MB screen really is bad you should go to a store that has MBs on display to compare. You may really have a bad display.

It's a very tough decision for me as well. The size of the MB is just right so I sacrifice the screen quality.
 
sam10685 said:
Does anyone that has a 13" macbook regret not getting a 15" (or 17") macbook pro due to the better screen quality in the macbook pro?
Click to expand...

I regret getting the 13" macbook but don't want a MBP.

The 13" form factor is what I want. Stick a MBA screen in this sucker and it would be perfect.

Until that happens the MBA is closer to what I want than a MBP and is why I got a MBA over a MBP.

I think we're a fairly rare case though. Apple knows it's market well. I think the majority of Macbook buyers come from PC notebooks that were cheapo pieces of junk and probably had a screen worse or just as bad. So the majority of MB owners are happy as clams about the quality of the screen. If it ain't worse, it is good enough.
 
Macman756 said:
I actually LIKE the smaller screen, I had a hard time going from 12" PB to the 13.3" Unibody.
Click to expand...

Interesting... 🙂 I have a 5-year-old 12" powerbook and want a bigger screen (that also is a good quality screen.) Is it easy to tell a difference in the 13.3" from the 12.1"?
 
sam10685 said:
Interesting... 🙂 I have a 5-year-old 12" powerbook and want a bigger screen (that also is a good quality screen.) Is it easy to tell a difference in the 13.3" from the 12.1"?
Click to expand...

I feel it is. I came from a 12" G4 iBook, and when I used it to grab a couple files off of a few weeks ago, the 4:3 screen felt so cramped and small compared to the 16:10 screen on the Al-MB.
 
I had a MB and exchanged it for a MBP. I couldn't stand how bad the screen looked compared to the MBP and my wife's Rev B MBA. I had no problems with the size, it was the quality that made me change. The viewing angles were just terrible.
 
The MBP screen is better than the MB. But I like the MB size better. Its still a step up from the plastic MB. A MBA screen on the MB in a 11.1inch form would be my dream machine.😉 I have both the new MB and MBP and can say that the MB is my favorite because of size.
 
Awesome! Thank you guys! (By the way, I'll probably get a MB... want a bigger screen than my PB but not too big and the screen quality sounds like it's ok for what I'll be doing.)
 
I had a MacBook for a day before switching back to the MacBook Pro. The screen on the MacBook is really poor. The Pro, the colours are richer and there isn't a big gradient going across the screen.

Depends how picky you are I guess..
 
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