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Anti-Glare 15" MacBook Pro Review
- Thread starter kolax
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The biggest problem with Apple glassy screens is the glass in front of the glossy screen. While the screen itself breaks light at certain angles and frequencies in order to lower the mirroring the glass is really a plain mirror.
You can check that yourself by looking at the screen from an angle while something bright with straight lines is reflecting in it (some shelf or so). You will see two (!) mirrored images, one obvious (glass) and one less obviousy that shows straight lines slightly jagged.
Saying that usually you should not get as distracted by the glass/mirror image as the OP describes he is. Normally your eyes focus on the screen content and thus blend out any present mirror images from the glass, because those mirror images are somewhere out of focus behind you.
What *is* distracting though are any moving object behind you or when the screen/table slighly shakes. Good 'ole nature wants you to recognize and concentrate on anything moving in your eyesight, even when it's out of focus, and that distracts or at least needs your brain to work out "Is there any danger? Ah, no, nothing there that wants to eat me!"
To the OP: Could you please post a picture of a dark image on the screen with a light-source behind your position while you make the photo (so that the bright light does not force your camera to blend out dark tones).
Please try to direct the light-source towards the Macbook so that we can see how much of the dark screen gets affected by the light. Thanks in advance!
You can check that yourself by looking at the screen from an angle while something bright with straight lines is reflecting in it (some shelf or so). You will see two (!) mirrored images, one obvious (glass) and one less obviousy that shows straight lines slightly jagged.
Saying that usually you should not get as distracted by the glass/mirror image as the OP describes he is. Normally your eyes focus on the screen content and thus blend out any present mirror images from the glass, because those mirror images are somewhere out of focus behind you.
What *is* distracting though are any moving object behind you or when the screen/table slighly shakes. Good 'ole nature wants you to recognize and concentrate on anything moving in your eyesight, even when it's out of focus, and that distracts or at least needs your brain to work out "Is there any danger? Ah, no, nothing there that wants to eat me!"
To the OP: Could you please post a picture of a dark image on the screen with a light-source behind your position while you make the photo (so that the bright light does not force your camera to blend out dark tones).
Please try to direct the light-source towards the Macbook so that we can see how much of the dark screen gets affected by the light. Thanks in advance!
"The last generation was all silver" That's why the silver frame fitted in just well. Seeing also the keys were silver. But now that the key are in black.. and the 'original' unibody MacBook Pro also has a black frame. That's why I find the silver frame, with the unibody design to be somehow out of place.
But yet again, that's only my point of view.
I've also been always interested in Macs. My University had Macs all over the place. But just never had my own. Plus, I never really said that the black frame looked weird when they first came out. And I don't care if it looks like the previous generation or not..
Sounds like you got over your glassy uMBP pretty quickly. This is a quote from your other thread;
I agree with your current sentiments; I reckon the matte uMBPs look amazing, and they are much easier on they eyes than the glassy panel. I just don't understand why they don't offer it on the 13" MBP and the MBA.
Kilamite - what config is your machine? I'm also buying a Mattbook this week, 15". I was wondering what its operating temperatures are, how it generally feels to touch etc?
My old, now completely dead crackbook, used to get unbelievably hot. I work in hot conditions, so I was hoping that they sorted out the heat issues associated with the earlier intel notebooks.
My old, now completely dead crackbook, used to get unbelievably hot. I work in hot conditions, so I was hoping that they sorted out the heat issues associated with the earlier intel notebooks.
I can help answer that. Look at my sig for spec of my MBP.
In "better battery life" mode (9600M) i get from 30-35 degrees Celsius at 2000rpm on both fans. That's just browsing internet, mail open, playing a tune in iTunes and nothing else.
If I at the same time play a flash 10 movie in another browser the temp rises to around 45 degree Celsius.
The MBP will still feel cool to the touch.
If I open Photoshop CS4 Trial and do some painting (while still having the other apps running) the temp will rise to around 50-55 degrees Celsius.
Now kicking the fans to 4500RPM will keep the MBP at around 50 degrees Celsius.
The MPB still doesn't feel hot at all. You can hear the fans at 4500RPM but it's not an annoying sound, just a gentle humming of air flowing.
Now if you put the MBP to the test and put in "Higher Performance" mode to enable the 9600GT and open up a game (i play World or Warcraft) you will see the MBP rise to 80-85 degrees Celsius and higher with fan speeds set to 2000RPM. I kick the fans to min. 4500RPM before starting the game and that will keep the MPB to temperatures around 70-75. Especially the left side (which I suspect is where the GFX-card is located) of the MBP will feel hot to the touch. Keeping you fingers at the WASD keys for long periods of time can be uncomfortable. I highly recommend using a external keyboard for long playtime.
hope that helps abit.
In "better battery life" mode (9600M) i get from 30-35 degrees Celsius at 2000rpm on both fans. That's just browsing internet, mail open, playing a tune in iTunes and nothing else.
If I at the same time play a flash 10 movie in another browser the temp rises to around 45 degree Celsius.
The MBP will still feel cool to the touch.
If I open Photoshop CS4 Trial and do some painting (while still having the other apps running) the temp will rise to around 50-55 degrees Celsius.
Now kicking the fans to 4500RPM will keep the MBP at around 50 degrees Celsius.
The MPB still doesn't feel hot at all. You can hear the fans at 4500RPM but it's not an annoying sound, just a gentle humming of air flowing.
Now if you put the MBP to the test and put in "Higher Performance" mode to enable the 9600GT and open up a game (i play World or Warcraft) you will see the MBP rise to 80-85 degrees Celsius and higher with fan speeds set to 2000RPM. I kick the fans to min. 4500RPM before starting the game and that will keep the MPB to temperatures around 70-75. Especially the left side (which I suspect is where the GFX-card is located) of the MBP will feel hot to the touch. Keeping you fingers at the WASD keys for long periods of time can be uncomfortable. I highly recommend using a external keyboard for long playtime.
hope that helps abit.
Well, the glossy MBP, the colours are richer, and a matte will never look as rich as a glossy one. But, the reflections were just too irritating - when I do work, there is windows around, and I really hate having to angle down the display to stop reflections.
Don't get me wrong, the glossy screen is brilliant. But having glass on top of a glossy panel really isn't a good idea in terms of reflections, and that's why I got the matte one.
Mine is the 2.8GHz model. It is really cool, right now, I am listening to music, browsing the web etc and the temp is 48'C. In a warm room, that temperature would be around 55'C. When encoding video, temps will never get above 80'C. The whole unit, even when the CPU is at 80'C, is still cool.
It will get warm, but compared to the original MBP, it'll never be hot enough to half cook an egg
That actually makes it look like my PowerBook G4. It's basically all silver with black keys so for me it's not out of place at all. It is based on what you are used too.
I didn't say you personally said that. I said there were other people who said it when the unibodies first came out which is probably why Apple gave us a silver frame for the matte option. I'm sure it was also to differentiate the glossy from matte but it did also give people who didn't like the black frame another option.
Well, the glossy MBP, the colours are richer, and a matte will never look as rich as a glossy one. But, the reflections were just too irritating - when I do work, there is windows around, and I really hate having to angle down the display to stop reflections.
Don't get me wrong, the glossy screen is brilliant. But having glass on top of a glossy panel really isn't a good idea in terms of reflections, and that's why I got the matte one.
Mine is the 2.8GHz model. It is really cool, right now, I am listening to music, browsing the web etc and the temp is 48'C. In a warm room, that temperature would be around 55'C. When encoding video, temps will never get above 80'C. The whole unit, even when the CPU is at 80'C, is still cool.
It will get warm, but compared to the original MBP, it'll never be hot enough to half cook an egg
I have to agree. I struggled with glossy vs anti-glare for a month before ordering my new 17" MBP a few weeks ago. I think I drove the Apple Store guys nuts showing up a few times a week and monopolizing two MBP's by putting them side by side and running through applications. My two cents worth......
I really wanted to like the glossy screen. For me, the aesthetics are better with the edge to edge glass and the black border. I have to agree with those who say the machine looks better with the black keys and black border. I think that must be the look the design team was focused on. And there is no doubt that under optimal conditions the glossy screen can look beautiful. Colors appear more saturated and blacks are deeper just as everyone says and brightness appears to be a notch higher than the anti-glare screen. But.....
Colors can look over saturated when placed next to the anti-glare screen just like many people have noted. Greens and reds are especially unnatural which shows up in caucasian skin tones and pretty much every sort of outdoor photo.
Glare is a real problem for me. While I acknowledge that a slight change in screen angle can eliminate most reflections from say a window behind you, it often results in picking up new reflections from the aluminum finish of the machine itself or the backlit keyboard. Even when you have a light background on the main screen area, the glassy black border picked up reflections from everything in the room including the shirt I was wearing and my hand movements. If you're only watching movies, or browsing You Tube videos this is probably not a big issue. But I watch movies on my home theater not a 17" laptop screen. If you're editing still or moving images, it's a huge PITB.
The anti-glare screen on the other hand is more subdued. There is less initial "wow" factor from colors that "pop" and blacks are excellent but not as good as the glossy screen. But, colors are also much closer to reality and the output you get from a photo printer.
In addition, glare is just about totally eliminated which frees you up to work anywhere with the MBP in any position you choose. Since a lot of my editing takes place with my back to a 12' row of windows, this is huge for me. I admit that the anti-glare screen does not fare well outdoors in direct sunlight. But then again the glossy screen isn't exactly like E-ink in direct sun either. And, I've used a laptop outside about two times in my entire life so that wasn't a consideration for me.
Also, for 90% of my use the anti-glare screen just seems easier on my eyes for text. There is zero dodging and squinting to deal with reflections on the screen with the super small fonts that result from the high resolution of this screen. It's just more comfortable under a wider range of conditions for long periods of use.
As for aesthetics, I don't really like the aluminum bezel as much as the black border. But, I will trade looks for comfort and accuracy any day.
So in conclusion, if you're looking to make a fashion statement or using your MBP primarily for entertainment, I would think that the glossy screen is the best choice. If on the other hand, you spend hours per day editing images or doing other work related tasks, you're better off with the slightly less pretty, more accurate, and more comfortable anti-glare screen.
Do you think that the MacBook Air looks weird? It has a silver bezel and black keys.
I'm not a vein person (ok, maybe I am, I own a mac ) and this is the first time I've really seen pictures of the UBMBP without a glassy screen, and WOW!
I might look into selling my MBP and getting a UB 13" if they ever give a non-glassy option on it!
) and this is the first time I've really seen pictures of the UBMBP without a glassy screen, and WOW!I might look into selling my MBP and getting a UB 13" if they ever give a non-glassy option on it!
this is my first mac, and i was debating between glossy or anti-glare... i went with anti-glare, and ill never look back, whoever doesn't think the matte looks good, trust me i had the same opinion until i got one... its gorgeous, and not having any glare is amazing.
For those of you who have seen both in person does the anti-glare option look fuzzy to you? The Apple store is a little far from my house and non of my friends have the anti-glare version so I was hoping you guys can let me know. Thanks.
For those of you who have seen both in person does the anti-glare option look fuzzy to you? The Apple store is a little far from my house and non of my friends have the anti-glare version so I was hoping you guys can let me know. Thanks.
I guess you'd still have to see it by yourself to decide. But yeah, just saying.
I can confirm this since I weighed both machines on a shipping scale (pretty accurate suckers). The AG weighed in at 5.0lbs, while the regular glass/glossy was at 5.5lbs.
Comparing my 13" MBP to my 15" AG MBP, weighing both in my hand they felt almost exactly the same.
+1 for AG. I just bough 2.8 GHz AG fro my daughter and the screen is plain beautiful! Just as good if not better than my other daughter's early 2008 MBP (the last MBP with a standard AG screen). I was gonna buy the 2.66 GHz version, but to get it with an AG screen I would have had to order from Apple and pay MA tax (6.25%) since AG is a standard option only on the high end MBP. Instead I drove up to Salem NH (30 min from my house) and got the 2.8 GHz for about $100 more than the 2.66 GHz would have cost me. Not bad for getting a faster processor, more video RAM and a bigger HD
Anti-glare just doesn't seem right without the edge to edge glass. Really seems like they shaved $ on this retrofit. I mostly use mine in the comforts of home where lighting is what I want it to be. I'll take a 15" glossy. The silver bezel seems too G4.
So you won't buy an anti-glare version unless it has a sheet of glass over it?
Clever..
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Hey good thread Kilamite. I have recently removed the glass front of my late 2007 iMac and IMO the screen looks much better now. Its not matte obviously but it removes a lot of the glare and mirror effect i was getting with it on.
Cheaky. Not a question of cleverness.
There are more visually pleasing ways of providing an anti-glare alternative to the glossy displays than frankensteining a unibody to accommodate a matte display. A real innovation would have been to use something from these guys...or any number of their competitors.
http://www.berlinerglas.com/htdocs_en/home/index.html
Apple should take a page out of Patton's book..."advancing constantly". They are merely holding the line with the dated matte/bezel combo.
Perhaps they're just waiting to accumulate enough $50 Anti-glare R&D contributions before they roll out the next big thing. THAT is clever.