Display experience MBA vs cMBP

[Divegent]

Hi, I currently own an upgraded cMBP (2009, 2.53 C2D, 8 GB, 128 GB SSD, new battery), and performance wise it's great, but I take it to university a lot, so it feels a bit heavy. Therefore sometimes I only take my iPad mini, because it's lighter, but I don't have a full laptop then of course. Now I'm thinking about selling my MBP and iPad to get a 13" MBA.

Although it will be technically faster with the PCIe-SSD and the i5-chip, I don't think i will notice any difference in every day usage. But that's not my point. I just want to ask how the screen experience from the MBA will be, coming from a 2009 MBP. The resolution is slightly higher, I know, but is it noticeable? And how are the viewing angles and colors compared to the MBP? And how does the aluminium bezel affect the viewing? I just love the black one of the MBP.

The haswell rMBP also goes through my mind of course, but I dont know if it's worth the extra money, while the laptop is a bit heavier.

Thanks!

 

[cookies!]

You will notice the higher resolution every day. The colors are pretty much the same, IMO. You can calibrate those better using online profiles.

 

[ValSalva]

The biggest change, if you plan on getting the 13" MBA, is the extra screen real estate from the increased resolution. The displays are the same size but the resolution on the MBA is greater.

Everything will appear smaller so if your eyesight is a problem or you are concerned about strain you should try to see a MBA in person before buying.

The retina display is amazing. And it's even sharper the non-native higher resolution it can be set to that is equal to the 13" MBA. This is because of its higher pixel density. It's heavier than the MBA though, but not by much.

 

[hbksabhi]

What about Image retention problem and Glare from screen

 

[Lakailb87]

What about Image retention problem and Glare from screen

Less glare than a cMBP screen, it's less glossy

 

[aixporter]

Unless you really need the screen real estate, I would personally recommend the CMBP over the MBA.. although if you had the money or can wait for haswell, jump for the rMBP. At 1280x800.. the screen looks even better than its 15" rMBP counterpart.

 

[magbarn]

Yes, the screen resolution is higher, but at least when compared to the 2012 MBP 13, the 2013 MBA 13's colors are washed out in appearance. Reason why is the MBP lower res display has a much better color gamut (means it can display many more colors without dithering as much) than the MBA's. If you're a typical facebook/safari/word/pages user it shouldn't make much of a difference. When editing pics, I find the color on the MBA to be off-putting.