Best screen resolution for Retina 13

[Muscle Master]

So guys.. what resolution do you think is best for the 13 inch retina. I think the "best for retina" setting is a joke! I would like to make good use of all the money I spent so I keep it at 1680 x 1050

Was wondering how others got theirs setup

 

[MBPDiva]

Forgive me for highjacking your thread to ask a dumb question. I remember the old days (2008) when the popular monitor size of choice was the 15 inch followed closely by the 17 inch. I wouldn't even consider the 13 inch monitor for any serious work. So why is the 13 inch monitor suddenly so popular now?

 

[robvas]

I use 1440x900 since that's what I was used to on my Air. Going higher makes things too small, I even tried 1920x1200

 

[B...]

Forgive me for highjacking your thread to ask a dumb question. I remember the old days (2008) when the popular monitor size of choice was the 15 inch followed closely by the 17 inch. I wouldn't even consider the 13 inch monitor for any serious work. So why is the 13 inch monitor suddenly so popular now?

Because computers are thinner and lighter now, thus people use them as more portable devices, so people choose the smallest display that is not too small (13" for most people).

 

[MBPDiva]

Because computers are thinner and lighter now, thus people use them as more portable devices, so people choose the smallest display that is not too small (13" for most people).

Oh, I see. Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[dlimes13]

I use 1680x1050. Crystal clear and great screen resolution. A 1920x1200 option would be nice (I know about SwitchResX, but I'd want the quality of 1680x1050).

 

[slicecom]

I would like to make good use of all the money I spent so I keep it at 1680 x 1050

You'd be making better use of all the money you spent by using it at the resolution it was designed for, which does't require interpolation and thus blurring.

 

[Muscle Master]

I use 1440x900 since that's what I was used to on my Air. Going higher makes things too small, I even tried 1920x1200

how did you set it to 1920x1200?

 

[bkends35]

Maybe it's just me but doesn't the "Best for retina setting" look crisper than all the other settings?

 

[ipodlover77]

1680x1050 here

 

[mmark77]

Best for retina for me

You'd be making better use of all the money you spent by using it at the resolution it was designed for, which does't require interpolation and thus blurring.

I also just use the default resolution and set all my default font sizes to either 9 or 10 pt. Basically the same thing as upscaling.

 

[vatter69]

I also just use the default resolution and set all my default font sizes to either 9 or 10 pt. Basically the same thing as upscaling.

How do you do that?

 

[robvas]

Maybe it's just me but doesn't the "Best for retina setting" look crisper than all the other settings?

Not really.

how did you set it to 1920x1200?

Use a program like QuickRes

 

[Muscle Master]

Maybe it's just me but doesn't the "Best for retina setting" look crisper than all the other settings?

not at all... not to mention it annoys me, could have bought a cMBP

 

[MikeyMike01]

Maybe it's just me but doesn't the "Best for retina setting" look crisper than all the other settings?

It does, but only if you switch back-and-forth to compare them.

 

[Macman45]

I've had mine for less than 24 hours ( 13" 3GHZ 512SSD) and am still using the "Best for retina" setting. I like the fact that I can adjust this for more real-estate if I wish, and I probably will for work purposes, but for now, I'm just enjoying that screen.

 

[stewacide]

I mostly use best-for-retina when web browsing and single-tasking (like now). If I'm heavily switching between programs to do something I'll bump it to 1440x900. Anything larger is way too large for me. I'm very used to 1200x800 from the Macbook I had before this one.

p.s. I use QuickRes so I can quickly toggle between the two settings.

 

[dehory]

1280x800 by default for its super crisp text. Switch using the excellent QuickRes to 1440x900 and 1680x1050 as usage necessitates. Anything bigger is impractically squinty, IME.

 

[mmark77]

Setting fonts smaller

How do you do that?

I just re-read my post and realized I wasn't too clear

Basically I set Xcode to 9pt (9.5pt at night) and Matlab to 10pt. I set Excel spreadsheets to 80% zoom. The system fonts still remain large so I am losing a bit of real-estate, but this works for me.

 

[leman]

It does, but only if you switch back-and-forth to compare them.

This is probably an optical illusion due to screen flashing and one resolution having bigger letters

 

[robvas]

I just re-read my post and realized I wasn't too clear

Basically I set Xcode to 9pt (9.5pt at night) and Matlab to 10pt. I set Excel spreadsheets to 80% zoom. The system fonts still remain large so I am losing a bit of real-estate, but this works for me.

I tried this but it doesn't help since I use an external monitor

 

[MikeyMike01]

This is probably an optical illusion due to screen flashing and one resolution having bigger letters

There's definitely a clarity difference. It's still a hell of a lot better than a normal screen though.

 

[slicecom]

This is probably an optical illusion due to screen flashing and one resolution having bigger letters

Nope. It's common sense. An interpolated image will never look as good as 1:1 pixel mapping. The only resolutions that the 13" rMBP are clear in are 1200x800 retina, or native 2400x1600. All other resolutions will be blurry. Some people can tolerate that level of blur, some cant.

 

[bkends35]

It does, but only if you switch back-and-forth to compare them.

Thats what I was doing

 

[MikeyMike01]

I've had mine for less than 24 hours ( 13" 3GHZ 512SSD) and am still using the "Best for retina" setting. I like the fact that I can adjust this for more real-estate if I wish, and I probably will for work purposes, but for now, I'm just enjoying that screen.

People harp on the Retina screen's quality (and rightfully so), but what gets often overlooked is that you can fit a tremendous amount on that screen at the high-resolution settings.