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Retina Macbook Pro Screens Really Dark?

M

MrManwelo

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 13, 2010
92
0
Received my Retina Macbook Pro just 2 days ago and i really like it. Screen is great (except for how bad old apps look) but there is one problem that I've started to notice.

Dark shades are indistinguishable on the screen, meaning dark scenes in videos are very, very dark.

I tried this monitor black point check:http://www.drycreekphoto.com/Learn/Calibration/monitor_black.htm

Most screens should see a difference from 5 to 8. I don't see any difference until 14. Surely this is wrong? Is this the same for everyone with a Retina or is my hardware at fault?
 
If the screen is at full brightness I see it from 6, very clear from 7. But then switching back to this forum gives me eyestrain from the blinding white background!

That's better, brightness now set at five blobs, which is fine for indoor use in the evening.
 
tillsbury said:
If the screen is at full brightness I see it from 6, very clear from 7. But then switching back to this forum gives me eyestrain from the blinding white background!
Click to expand...

i'm rocking full brightness...

are you using a retina?
 
yes retina jokes.

But seriously, can anyone with a Retina Macbook pro tell me what they're getting, please?
 
MrManwelo said:
yes retina jokes.

But seriously, can anyone with a Retina Macbook pro tell me what they're getting, please?
Click to expand...

I am away from my rMBP so I can't test this, but I haven't notice the problems you describe in the week and a half I've been using it.

Judging from Anandtech's review and the results for the LCD analysis for black levels and contrast, it seems that the rMBP does very well so black levels should not be a problem.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6023/the-nextgen-macbook-pro-with-retina-display-review/5
 
yes, i read the review as soon as it was published, so I was not expecting this to be a problem, but it really is. I was watching videos on YouTube running simultaneously on my RMBP and my 2009 13" MBP. The 2009 MBP has much better clarity in the dark areas.
 
full brightness on rMBP i can see after 9
But their is lot's of light around the room
I think if you watch a movie, the room will be dark, so you will see starting from 6 (will try tonight)
 
Teo Morabito said:
full brightness on rMBP i can see after 9
But their is lot's of light around the room
I think if you watch a movie, the room will be dark, so you will see starting from 6 (will try tonight)
Click to expand...

Same for me, in my bright room, at full RMBP brightness, I start to see grey at "9". My Dell laptop was like 10 or 11.

I cannot say I have noticed this to be an issue for me in any scenario so far.
 
do a search. A few weeks ago someone posted the same problem....not really sure how they fixed it.
 
Consider changing your gamma setting to see if you can find something you like. System preferences -> Displays -> Color -> Calibrate and turn advanced options on. Gamma is one of the last panels. I typically do the test under my normal lighting conditions, since that's how I'll be seeing the display the most. If you have a specific test (such as a movie or photo that you know how you want it to look), then keep it up in the background during the test and watch it change as you mess with the settings.
 
MrManwelo said:
yes, i read the review as soon as it was published, so I was not expecting this to be a problem, but it really is. I was watching videos on YouTube running simultaneously on my RMBP and my 2009 13" MBP. The 2009 MBP has much better clarity in the dark areas.
Click to expand...

Can you post some links with the youtube videos you were watching? I can test this out a little later in the day.
 
cmChimera said:
Can you post some links with the youtube videos you were watching? I can test this out a little later in the day.
Click to expand...

I was watching the Rudamental video 'Feel the Love' on Safari in 1080p on both. It's not a particularly dark video, but the darks were indistinguishable in some instances like at 2.40 it zooms in on the guys face. I could see definition in the beard on the old Macbook. It's just all black on the new Retina Pro.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oABEGc8Dus0
 
MrManwelo said:
I was watching the Rudamental video 'Feel the Love' on Safari in 1080p on both. It's not a particularly dark video, but the darks were indistinguishable in some instances like at 2.40 it zooms in on the guys face. I could see definition in the beard on the old Macbook. It's just all black on the new Retina Pro.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oABEGc8Dus0
Click to expand...

Which old MacBook did you have, and what version of OS X was it running?
 
Early 2008 15" MBP 2.4 Penryn (4.2) on Snow Leopard 10.6.8 visible at 9
Late 2011 15" MBP 2.4 i7 (8.2) on Lion 10.7.4 visible at 6
Mid 2012 15" rMBP 2.3 i7 (10.1) on Lion 10.7.4 visible at 7

All tested same time at full brightness, same lighting conditions. FWIW my 2.3 base Retina is not much dimmer than my Late 2011 MBP.
 
Queen6 said:
Early 2008 15" MBP 2.4 Penryn (4.2) on Snow Leopard 10.6.8 visible at 9
Late 2011 15" MBP 2.4 i7 (8.2) on Lion 10.7.4 visible at 6
Mid 2012 15" rMBP 2.3 i7 (10.1) on Lion 10.7.4 visible at 7

All tested same time at full brightness, same lighting conditions. FWIW my 2.3 base Retina is not much dimmer than my Late 2011 MBP.
Click to expand...

Better grab my jacket, looks like I'm off to the Apple store! (which btw is miles away)
 
MrManwelo said:
Is this the same for everyone with a Retina or is my hardware at fault?
Click to expand...
Based on your post, I'd take it into an Apple Store.

If you cannot do that, due to distance, then call them and ask to have it replaced. What you are reporting is most definitely not normal.

Brightness on the MBPr is excellent.
 
This probably won't help, but on my mid 2010 13" macbook pro I start seeing a difference at 3. Good 'old fashioned' apple tech, never lets you down!
 
I know you were asking about Retinas, but I thought I would add that my non-Retina also has darker contrast. The backlighting is quite bright, but the contrast is too high, the colors look very rich and deeper, but darker than my 2009 MBP. I took it back and the replacement was exactly the same. So I changed the gamma from 2.2 to 1.8, problem gone.

I just did that test on that link you provided. With my gamma at 1.8, I saw it at 5, at 2.2, I saw it at 9. So changing the gamma for me made a huge difference, but even at a gamma of 2.2, a 9 is within the normal range. I just prefer the 1.8 setting.
 
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Queen6 said:
I have the benefit of comparing my Retina, you can also try at the Apple store only the lighting will be far too bright, did you test as recommended in a dimly lit room, as there are a couple of 9`s in less than perfect conditions.
Click to expand...

Yes I tried it in complete darkness. It made a little difference, but only reduced it to about the 'step 12' mark.

What did you get with your rMBP?

----------
Aodhan said:
I know you were asking about Retinas, but I thought I would add that my non-Retina also has darker contrast. The backlighting is quite bright, but the contrast is too high, the colors look very rich and deeper, but darker than my 2009 MBP. I took it back and the replacement was exactly the same. So I changed the gamma from 2.2 to 1.8, problem gone.

I just did that test on that link you provided. With my gamma at 1.8, I saw it at 5, at 2.2, I saw it at 9. So changing the gamma for me made a huge difference, but even at a gamma of 2.2, a 9 is within the normal range. I just prefer the 1.8 setting.
Click to expand...

Putting the gamma to 1.8 i see it at Mark 8! It's an improvement.
 
I just tried that test on my calibrated (using a Spyder3 Pro) rMBP and was able to see the grey box around 8 or 9. When I set my display to the default "Color LCD" profile that shipped with the computer, I couldn't see the grey box until around 14.

Also, I'm not sure if computer browsers have any effect on the color of that animation. I was viewing the animation in the Chrome Beta the first time around. I just went back to the page and downloaded the blackramp.gif and viewed it in Preview. In fullscreen, I was able to see the grey box even earlier around 5 or 6.
 
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