Please don't take this story personally if you have just bought a C2D MBP and you are happy with it - enjoy it and read no further!
I spent quite a few hours looking at reviews of the 15" and 17" MacBook Pro C2D on this site and others prior to making a purchase. My main concern was the quality of the MBP LCDs as many people have found them questionable - others seem to be in denial about the 'actual' quality of their MBP displays maybe because they are happy with the raw processing speed and the fact that it looks great - everyones expectations differ depending on what they use the machine for. I use the laptop for Photography, Colour Correction and Design whilst I'm on the move so I need a decent display. Like many, I'm an OSX user so my options on laptops are limited to Apple only! I need to use RAW software like Aperture or Lightroom which really means a MBP is the only option as it has a decent graphics chipset and good size screen.
I've had several Powerbooks before and found the screen pretty acceptable for viewing angle, colour rendition and detail - not perfect but OK. I did have one of the Powerbooks affected by white blotches and I'm familiar with usual uneven backlight issues. I'm not getting into glossy or matte issues - I need a neutral canvas for colour correction work on the move so I prefer matt.
I sold my last Powerbook to a friend and bought a 15" C2D MBP. In my opinion, I found the screen uncomfortable to look at due to odd viewing angle problems which could be due to the reflective quality of the anti-glare coating used. The coating also seemed to add a textured appearance to the screen - others call it grain. Unless your head is always completely perpendicular to the LCD, the appearance of the edges of the screen cannot be seen perfectly - it's annoying especially if you are judging photos for quality or doing design work etc..
I ran a program called LCD Test, it contains test charts for judging your LCD quality. I looked at the uniform grey background test charts (dark, medium and light). After the MBP warmed up, the Illumination across the display looked OK - left, right & top edges were slightly dark and the bottom edge was bright - like most laptops are. On looking at the RGB and CMY gradient charts it became very clear that the LCD showed strong Colour Banding
(the graduation between one colour and the next is not smooth enough to display the transition accurately). On some transitions, there appeared to be heavier (darker) bands where the LCD was just not coping well at all at a particular luminance level.
I returned the 15" MBP C2D back to the shop and tested another unit - I found the same thing! I decided to order a 17" MBP C2D (Matt) and waited three weeks to get it :-( I'm in Hong Kong and even though they are made just up the road, the first orders went to USA and Europe. I went into the shop today, apprehensively, to test it out and left as a disappointed / jilted mac lover with no computer!
The 17" MBP C2D LCD is a little better than the 15" for viewing angle and does not seem to have as much texture/grain. It does not look as matt as the 15", in fact it had a slight gloss/shine to it. On warming up the screen for 30 mins the backlighting seemed acceptable although a little darker than the 15" on left, right and top. Although the brightness on the 17" display seems a little less bright than the 15" the overall feeling was more comfortable on the eye. On running the LCD Test charts on the 17" the Colour Banding problem was pretty bad! I tried different colour profiles and adjusted gamma settings, resolutions and re-calibrated just to sure - no real difference!
In shock, I asked to run the test charts on the other macs including a final revision 17" Powerbook side by side. (Please see the results below) These findings were also reflected by the staff at the shop. They all knew the score, so many customers have said the same thing - like it or not, the new MBP LCDs have problems - and if the problems are 'within Apple specification' then they are low specification LCD's period. You either void the warranty and change the LCD yourself or hope and pray that apple changes their Laptop LCD supplier immediately ready for the next revision!
Come on Apple, admit it please! If the Intel C2D processors are costing you too much, don't skimp on the LCD to keep the MBP price down and think people won't notice! At least provide a top class LCD as a built to order option and support the people who rely on that option, hey, anodise it Black and call it the MacBookPro 'Ultimate' if you want, just deliver the goods as the core OS X users expect! If not the only option is to switch to Windows to have a real choice in laptops and that defeats the Apple OS X marketing campaign doesn't it?
This is a table of my findings - it's not scientific but it gives an idea of what to expect.....
Model................. | Viewing Angle |Colour Rendition |Colour Banding| Brightness
MBP 15" C2D Matt | Annoying.........| OK.................| Banded..........| Very Good
MBP 17" C2D Matt | Average..........| OK.................| Very Banded...| Good
Powerbook 17".....| Good............. | Good..............| Smooth..........| OK
Macbook 13" .......| Average..........| OK.................| Smooth..........| OK
iMac 20" C2D ......| Good..............| Excellent.........| Smooth..........| Excellent
iMac 24" C2D.......| Excellent.........| Excellent.........| Very Smooth...| Excellent
Maybe there are so many Windows users happy to have a cool looking MBP laptop afterall that no-one cares about screen perfection too much. The top end Apple Laptop should have a spec like the VAIO VGN-AR28GP even if it costs a more for the pro options.
I'm not sure what to do next - I need a Powerbook replacement that runs the latest OS X software fast! Any input for the banding issue would be most appreciated - your mileage may differ but I spent a good deal of time comparing all the machines I could - the shop staff were very understanding. I heard rumour of a Dithering problem with the ATI x1600 graphics card. I asked the shop about this and they said that the Apple Technicians told them the colour banding was due to the LCD characteristics only. I was hoping to apply a graphics card firmware update and take the 17" home there and then, but it seems more fundamental than that, unfortunately. If there is a fix, I would love to hear it!
The Color Banding problem I observed on the MacBook Pro's were similar to this, where you can see defined lines on a gradient like the display is not showing all colours - graphic card was set to display millions of colours:
![granger_MBP_C2D_band_example.jpg]()
If you want to download a test gradient and check yours click here> Granger Test or Gammut Test
All the best to everyone - sorry for the long post!
I spent quite a few hours looking at reviews of the 15" and 17" MacBook Pro C2D on this site and others prior to making a purchase. My main concern was the quality of the MBP LCDs as many people have found them questionable - others seem to be in denial about the 'actual' quality of their MBP displays maybe because they are happy with the raw processing speed and the fact that it looks great - everyones expectations differ depending on what they use the machine for. I use the laptop for Photography, Colour Correction and Design whilst I'm on the move so I need a decent display. Like many, I'm an OSX user so my options on laptops are limited to Apple only! I need to use RAW software like Aperture or Lightroom which really means a MBP is the only option as it has a decent graphics chipset and good size screen.
I've had several Powerbooks before and found the screen pretty acceptable for viewing angle, colour rendition and detail - not perfect but OK. I did have one of the Powerbooks affected by white blotches and I'm familiar with usual uneven backlight issues. I'm not getting into glossy or matte issues - I need a neutral canvas for colour correction work on the move so I prefer matt.
I sold my last Powerbook to a friend and bought a 15" C2D MBP. In my opinion, I found the screen uncomfortable to look at due to odd viewing angle problems which could be due to the reflective quality of the anti-glare coating used. The coating also seemed to add a textured appearance to the screen - others call it grain. Unless your head is always completely perpendicular to the LCD, the appearance of the edges of the screen cannot be seen perfectly - it's annoying especially if you are judging photos for quality or doing design work etc..
I ran a program called LCD Test, it contains test charts for judging your LCD quality. I looked at the uniform grey background test charts (dark, medium and light). After the MBP warmed up, the Illumination across the display looked OK - left, right & top edges were slightly dark and the bottom edge was bright - like most laptops are. On looking at the RGB and CMY gradient charts it became very clear that the LCD showed strong Colour Banding
(the graduation between one colour and the next is not smooth enough to display the transition accurately). On some transitions, there appeared to be heavier (darker) bands where the LCD was just not coping well at all at a particular luminance level.I returned the 15" MBP C2D back to the shop and tested another unit - I found the same thing! I decided to order a 17" MBP C2D (Matt) and waited three weeks to get it :-( I'm in Hong Kong and even though they are made just up the road, the first orders went to USA and Europe. I went into the shop today, apprehensively, to test it out and left as a disappointed / jilted mac lover with no computer!
The 17" MBP C2D LCD is a little better than the 15" for viewing angle and does not seem to have as much texture/grain. It does not look as matt as the 15", in fact it had a slight gloss/shine to it. On warming up the screen for 30 mins the backlighting seemed acceptable although a little darker than the 15" on left, right and top. Although the brightness on the 17" display seems a little less bright than the 15" the overall feeling was more comfortable on the eye. On running the LCD Test charts on the 17" the Colour Banding problem was pretty bad! I tried different colour profiles and adjusted gamma settings, resolutions and re-calibrated just to sure - no real difference!
In shock, I asked to run the test charts on the other macs including a final revision 17" Powerbook side by side. (Please see the results below) These findings were also reflected by the staff at the shop. They all knew the score, so many customers have said the same thing - like it or not, the new MBP LCDs have problems - and if the problems are 'within Apple specification' then they are low specification LCD's period. You either void the warranty and change the LCD yourself or hope and pray that apple changes their Laptop LCD supplier immediately ready for the next revision!
Come on Apple, admit it please! If the Intel C2D processors are costing you too much, don't skimp on the LCD to keep the MBP price down and think people won't notice!
At least provide a top class LCD as a built to order option and support the people who rely on that option, hey, anodise it Black and call it the MacBookPro 'Ultimate' if you want, just deliver the goods as the core OS X users expect! If not the only option is to switch to Windows to have a real choice in laptops and that defeats the Apple OS X marketing campaign doesn't it? This is a table of my findings - it's not scientific but it gives an idea of what to expect.....
Model................. | Viewing Angle |Colour Rendition |Colour Banding| Brightness
MBP 15" C2D Matt | Annoying.........| OK.................| Banded..........| Very Good
MBP 17" C2D Matt | Average..........| OK.................| Very Banded...| Good
Powerbook 17".....| Good............. | Good..............| Smooth..........| OK
Macbook 13" .......| Average..........| OK.................| Smooth..........| OK
iMac 20" C2D ......| Good..............| Excellent.........| Smooth..........| Excellent
iMac 24" C2D.......| Excellent.........| Excellent.........| Very Smooth...| Excellent
Maybe there are so many Windows users happy to have a cool looking MBP laptop afterall that no-one cares about screen perfection too much. The top end Apple Laptop should have a spec like the VAIO VGN-AR28GP even if it costs a more for the pro options.
I'm not sure what to do next - I need a Powerbook replacement that runs the latest OS X software fast! Any input for the banding issue would be most appreciated - your mileage may differ but I spent a good deal of time comparing all the machines I could - the shop staff were very understanding. I heard rumour of a Dithering problem with the ATI x1600 graphics card. I asked the shop about this and they said that the Apple Technicians told them the colour banding was due to the LCD characteristics only. I was hoping to apply a graphics card firmware update and take the 17" home there and then, but it seems more fundamental than that, unfortunately. If there is a fix, I would love to hear it!
The Color Banding problem I observed on the MacBook Pro's were similar to this, where you can see defined lines on a gradient like the display is not showing all colours - graphic card was set to display millions of colours:
If you want to download a test gradient and check yours click here> Granger Test or Gammut Test
All the best to everyone - sorry for the long post!
