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Can't decide on glossy or matte

J

juliancs

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Hi folks

I'm trying to decide between the two for my 17". I'm doing mostly work in Logic, playing some games, and the usual internet/movies.

I've heard that the glossy screen has better colours and is brighter, but how bad are the reflections? I use my laptop indoors pretty much 99.99% of the time, but quite a lot at night. I'm worried about the glare of a light in it. How bad is it? Maybe I'll get used to it?

I've seen the pics of both and the glossy seems to look great. Any advice? 🙁
 
If you have an Apple store nearby I would high suggest you take a look at the differences in person. I prefer the glossy screen but some pref the matte. I know that sounds obvious but unless you see it in person you won't be able to make up your mind no matter what responses you get here. All that will do is confuse you more.
 
I find the colors very nice and bright with the glossy display. As for the reflection, I sometimes put my MBP on our kitchen table and a big window is just behind me. In that particular case, I need to move from there or move down the blinds to cut light.

It's a personal preference and what you mostly do with your MBP in my opinion
 
Well I have a 17" now, older one so it's matte. I have seen the glossy and like it, but again, am not sure about the reflections. I don't want to have to sit in the dark. I spend 10-12 hours on logic projects a day and am staring at the screen a lot!
 
juliancs said:
Well I have a 17" now, older one so it's matte. I have seen the glossy and like it, but again, am not sure about the reflections. I don't want to have to sit in the dark. I spend 10-12 hours on logic projects a day and am staring at the screen a lot!
Click to expand...

You just answered your own question, go with Matte
 
juliancs said:
Hi folks

I'm trying to decide between the two for my 17". I'm doing mostly work in Logic, playing some games, and the usual internet/movies.

I've heard that the glossy screen has better colours and is brighter, but how bad are the reflections? I use my laptop indoors pretty much 99.99% of the time, but quite a lot at night. I'm worried about the glare of a light in it. How bad is it? Maybe I'll get used to it?

I've seen the pics of both and the glossy seems to look great. Any advice? 🙁
Click to expand...

I thought the matte MBP didn't exist anymore, or do you mean the antiglare option?

I have an older MBP, which is still matte, and I'm really happy with the matte screen. If you're really going to sit behind it all day I'd recommend the anti-glare option.
 
If you're mostly using the machine in the dark, I'd go with the glossy. I hate glossy and wish the industry did away with it, but if I'm going to give you an objective opinion, then it's that you won't see reflections while working in the dark. It will give you some trouble in daylight as well, but it really depends on where you sit, and what's behind you.


I don't like how you need to work around the problems of using a glossy display, which is why I'd prefer matte. However, you know your work environment better than I do.
 
If the environment is very bright, like during a normal sunny day, I can see my reflections also on windows with a white/clear background. With black it is a mirror. Black? What I suppose should be black, because I haven't seen the Black since I started using this display. I only see the Black when everything else is black. I am not even sure I could see the Black again in a night with full moon.

Seriously, for me this display is unusable in normal light conditions. I consider it usable only in the night.

My advice is to actually see it before buying because it might be very annoying. There are people who love it, but for others, like me, is a cause of serious pain.

thistle
 
IMO the glossy is horrible. I have a 17" matte screen and side by side with the NEW 15" glossy screen the matte looks far better. The reflections in the glass screen would cause me to become an alcoholic. It is that bad.
 
Manimalle said:
I thought the matte MBP didn't exist anymore, or do you mean the antiglare option?
Click to expand...

The anti-glare option on the 17" is exactly the same as matte, it's just a different name for the same type of screen.

As for which one you want, it's a decision only you can make for your eyes. There are people on this board that'll say one or the other is far superior. Personally, I can't stand glossy screens, and avoid them at any cost. Others prefer glossy screens and don't mind the reflections.

It's down to personal preference.
 
I can't see my eyes! My eyes!

juliancs said:
Hi folks

I'm worried about the glare of a light in it. How bad is it? Maybe I'll get used to it?
Click to expand...

You want to pay that much for something to get used to it? If it wasn't for the horrible glare everyone would go for glossy and if anti-glare was available for the 15" as it is for the 17" now, you would find the majority using anti-glare. I was just in the apple store to see if they had an anti-glare 17" on display but they didn't. I took a look at the glossy screen and it just made my eyes go nutty nuts! I found that I was repositioning myself and the screen to see certain things the whole time. Do it right the first time I say and get anti-glare.
 
Now that I have glossy, I would never go back to matte! The difference is absolutely amazing!
 
Liquidpics said:
[...]If it wasn't for the horrible glare everyone would go for glossy and if anti-glare was available for the 15" as it is for the 17" now, you would find the majority using anti-glare. [...]
Click to expand...

Among the dozens of classic MBP I've seen, only one was glossy. In the shop where I bought the MBP, they told me they had never ordered a glossy classic MBP. But Apple sales data are different: the majority of the users preferred glossy MBP. So they chose super-glossy.

I am waiting to see how many people will buy the 17" with the glossy display.
 
I have the glossy 17" on order. I went to the Apple Store prior and checked out side by side an old 17" with matte and the new 15", honestly the "glare" wasn't distracting for me at all. I think the matte (or "anti-glare") makes the whole computer aesthetically ugly...you may argue function over form, but it's still ugly. This is coming from a guy who is not a professional or graphic designer. 😛

You need to go in and see for yourself. I will be using Logic as well but if you aren't a graphic designer it might not matter as much. The point is yes you will be looking at the screen a lot, but your ears will be doing most of the workout haha. Who knows this is just my opinion.
 
I've had glossy on my macbook pro for almost 2 years now. Love it.

The store is a hard place to tell because of so many lights around. In general there's not usually so many points of light to cause glare.

I've never had a glare issue.
 
Just get the glossy - if you hate it, get the MatteBook Pro matte screen installation from that one place whose name escapes me at the moment.

The matte screen is just bloody hideous on the Unibody. Ughhhh. For 3k the thing better look damn good, and I'm sorry but the matte screen hackjob looks terribad.
 
Never had a glossy laptop before my current MBP....LOVE IT. By manipulating the brightness you will almost never have a reflectivity issue unless you are working on a VERY dark background. Even then, the magic of the human mind takes over and filters out the reflection so you rarely notice. Of course if your boss shows up behind you, a reflection may be a good thing😉😛

The colors are more vibrant and accurate than any matte screen I have ever used, including the whites which always look grey on a matte.
 
i work with Logic Studio a lot and i've always worked with matte monitors. I see no reason to change since it doesn't affect my workflow singificantly. As a preference, I do find glossy annoyingly shiny. From what I can gather with working on PT HD and Logic Studio, the matte version just doesn't get in my way and I don't have to angle the monitor screen when I am working remotely from my studio. During instance when I've had to borrow the glossy screen equipped lappies of others, I just find that I have to squint and labor a lot more than I have to in order to edit waveforms and make fine adjustments on the DAW mixer environment.

Still, I get the work done. I just want my working to be less of a hassle so I stick to what I know WORKS consistently. besides, color doesnt matter in logic, your music still sounds the same.
 
juliancs said:
Hi folks

I'm trying to decide between the two for my 17". I'm doing mostly work in Logic, playing some games, and the usual internet/movies.

I've heard that the glossy screen has better colours and is brighter, but how bad are the reflections? I use my laptop indoors pretty much 99.99% of the time, but quite a lot at night. I'm worried about the glare of a light in it. How bad is it? Maybe I'll get used to it?

I've seen the pics of both and the glossy seems to look great. Any advice? 🙁
Click to expand...

This debate comes up every now and then. It is a personal preference. That being said, we consumers have been deluged with Park Avenue advertising blitzing on these glossy screens. They will tell you they are better in most ways. You just gotta get one. Indeed 99 per cent of screens now are glossy. Just 10 years ago ALL screens were matte - then screen makers wanted to cut costs so glossy was invented. Glossy screens cost MUCH less to produce. It's a matter of economics - with the deteriorating U.S. economy, computer makers are having a tough time. Realistically, what percent of people in this country can afford a fully decked out 17" Macbook Pro with matte screen? Getting a little of course here but you get the message. Like others have said here go to an apple store and compare the two machines side by side.
 
I have a matte MBP. Kinda wish I went for the glossy now though, the colours look much more vibrant.
 
I think anyone who makes another glossy vs matte thread should be shot.

That being said, just get the glossy. Its more attractive, the screen specs are better, and its something new. Like Glass CRTs before it, you may really like the glossy display. You can always take it back within 15 days.
 
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