I haven't seen a Xoom in person, but I readily noticed a difference in youtube videos with the Xoom sitting next to the iPad 1. The Xoom's screen looked washed out and dull compared to the vibrant colors of the iPad's display. The higher pixel density and other features attracted me to the Xoom, but the overall screen quality is a deal breaker. 99% of your interactions with the device are with the screen, so there really should be no compromises in that department. Anyone know what type of LCD panel the Xoom uses?
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Anyone consider the Xoom but notice the washed out screen?
- Thread starter Justin Luck
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A lot of reviews have pointed out the xoom doesn't have the same IPS display or view angles compared to the iPad, though it's a lot better than many other screens.
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Me, definitely. I also don't like the black coated metal back. Silver would have been much nicer, imo.
Not really. The Xoom screen looks fine. There is a problem with auto brightness being a bit too conservative. Side by side I can tell you both the iPad 1 and the Xoom look gorgeous.
I tried it out at best buy, and the Xoom did not impress me. I have to used a lot of Android devices, but nothing about it seemed smooth or intuitive.
As for the screen, did not seem bright at all, but then I did not mess with the prefs to see if brightness was turned up.
As for the screen, did not seem bright at all, but then I did not mess with the prefs to see if brightness was turned up.
I guess there is some element of subjectiveness. I am looking a both of them right now side by side at 100% brightness, and they both look great. I wouldn't say one looks better nor that the Xoom looks "washed out". But then again I can't really say I notice the higher resolution of the Xoom either. Maybe I need glasses...
I guess there is some element of subjectiveness. I am looking a both of them right now side by side at 100% brightness, and they both look great. I wouldn't say one looks better nor that the Xoom looks "washed out". But then again I can't really say I notice the higher resolution of the Xoom either. Maybe I need glasses...
And viewing angles?
I guess there is some element of subjectiveness. I am looking a both of them right now side by side at 100% brightness, and they both look great. I wouldn't say one looks better nor that the Xoom looks "washed out". But then again I can't really say I notice the higher resolution of the Xoom either. Maybe I need glasses...
From Andy Ihnatko:
From Steve Kovach:
Anandtech:
In fact Anandtech has a whole bunch of pictures side by side and you can clearly see the difference:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4191/motorola-xoom-review-first-honeycomb-tablet-arrives/2
The absolutely essential things any tablet has to nail, are the screen visual quality, it's responsiveness and smooth-flowing, lag-free OS.
That, I guess, is where the real magic is
That, I guess, is where the real magic is
The Xoom display quality is really bad
So I will make this short? No one in my area had the Xoom. I had to take a five hour trip out of my way. Well... It was supposed to be a forty minute trip but I got lost. It was Googles fault. Anyhow. I got it, booted it up, and the first thing I noticed is the crap display quality. Why it is set on 50% brightness, as default I will never understand. The text was blurry. Almost as if you are waiting on it to rasterize properly, but it never does. Colors were very washed out, and viewing angles were horrible.
The O.S was awesome, but black and white photos had a blue tint to them, it was just horrible. I love everything about the xoom except the display. I took it back within an hour of having it. Their were also display lines running down the screen. No, it's not a bad unit, they are all like that. Look closely on a white image. It's like they worked out a manufacturing deal with the dollar store to produce displays for them.
I don't know what to get now. iPads are great except no flash. Big deal breaker for me. All the other tablets are not appealing to me except for notion ink Adams, but they are a new startup company, and they don't have a real customer support center yet, or even a phone number if you are having hardware issues. Word is they expanded, but it will be months before they set up centers and train staff effectively. I'm bummed.....
So I will make this short? No one in my area had the Xoom. I had to take a five hour trip out of my way. Well... It was supposed to be a forty minute trip but I got lost. It was Googles fault. Anyhow. I got it, booted it up, and the first thing I noticed is the crap display quality. Why it is set on 50% brightness, as default I will never understand. The text was blurry. Almost as if you are waiting on it to rasterize properly, but it never does. Colors were very washed out, and viewing angles were horrible.
The O.S was awesome, but black and white photos had a blue tint to them, it was just horrible. I love everything about the xoom except the display. I took it back within an hour of having it. Their were also display lines running down the screen. No, it's not a bad unit, they are all like that. Look closely on a white image. It's like they worked out a manufacturing deal with the dollar store to produce displays for them.
I don't know what to get now. iPads are great except no flash. Big deal breaker for me. All the other tablets are not appealing to me except for notion ink Adams, but they are a new startup company, and they don't have a real customer support center yet, or even a phone number if you are having hardware issues. Word is they expanded, but it will be months before they set up centers and train staff effectively. I'm bummed.....
Maybe you could wait for the 10" Samsung Galaxy Tab, to see what that's like - although, they may be in the same boat at Motorola, after reading what their CEO(or whatever) said recently.
So true. Add to that a decent selection of apps.
Android will continue to find success with smartphones due to heavily subsidized pricing on long term contracts, but in the tablet world were very few want a contract things look challenging .
Your expectations and acceptable limits on things must be quite low then, because when I held a Xoom the other day, the screen was not as bright, didn't have good viewing angles, and was laggy (in relative terms). As for the design, it looks fat and ugly, and the OS is a convoluted mess, trying to be a desktop replacement and failing miserably. These devices are not meant to be desktop or even laptop replacements - they are their own thing, and need to be as simple to use as possible.
If Playbook had a 10inch display I would probably jump on that even though it's not android. They even got some sweet 3D apps coming out for it, but 7inches is to small for Me. The samsung is actually supposed to have a 3D display, but that's after the honeycomb 3.0 upgrade, and that would kill the eyes. Not a big fan of samsung at all.
I was fine going back to my 3GS after having the 4 for two weeks. Yes its lower quality but I can't say that it bothers me. The tablets are the same way. While the Xoom's may be lower quality that doesn't mean that it will bother someone.
It is duller but I find it much easier on my eyes. I'm also very impressed with the UI on this thing. Much more like a real computer than an iPod. That being said I will probably return it because of the lack of flash and necessary apps