Disable ambient light sensor (auto-dimming)?

[pcguru83]

Hey guys, just a quick question:

I've noticed that the ambient light sensor in the MBP can be somewhat sensitive. Sometimes an action as simple as moving my hands up to the keyboard (from the side) triggers the "auto-dimming" feature of the screen and it slightly reduces the brightness of the screen, then quickly returns. This is rather bothersome.

I've got the option under Keyboard and Mouse "Illuminate keyboard under low-light conditions" unchecked, but the screen still dims if you cover the speakers. I've also got the option under Energy Saver "Automatically reduce the brightness of the display before sleep" unchecked as well.

I'm at a loss here. Is there not a way to disable this auto-dim feature? A Google search didn't turn up much of anything. Surely there must be a way...

 

[pcguru83]

Well, I'll answer my own question for anyone else who is curious.

The setting for disabling the ambient light dimming can be found under System Preferences-->Displays. On the main Displays settings window is an option "Automatically adjust brightness as ambient light changes". Uncheck this box and you're good to go.

 

[smpaudio]

Well, I'll answer my own question for anyone else who is curious.

The setting for disabling the ambient light dimming can be found under System Preferences-->Displays. On the main Displays settings window is an option "Automatically adjust brightness as ambient light changes". Uncheck this box and you're good to go.

Hi there-

First, thanks for answering your own question!

Unfort. the steps above do not disable it for me- swiping my hand over the speakers on either side still make the display dim. Most annoying! But a Google for "mac disable dimming" brought up a few things.

There's a page that describes how to do it via the command line:

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20070217052629138

And then I also found an app (I prefer apps over command-line hackery)...

http://mac.softpedia.com/get/System-Utilities/zonEnergy.shtml

I can't vouch for their effectiveness but it seems worth a shot. It would also be interesting to know if there's anyone out there who actually LIKES the auto dimming; at least in its current, hyper-sensitive iteration. Seems in general a good idea, just nobody bothered to actually test it in the real world. Like everything with Apple I think they will eventually get it right.

 

[ronwasserman]

Thank you! This was driving me CRAZY.

 

[baypharm]

I like the auto-simming feature. Never have any trouble with it. And it keeps my battery from draining too quickly. At night I like how it dims to match ambient light. Stops glare on the eyes.

 

[ammusk]

Correct me if I am wrong but I remember disabling this option in the System Preferences.

And yes, I am one of those guys who like it disabled.