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Do the Macbooks have crappy screens?

P

pyromaniaque

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 16, 2008
267
0
Well..Ask your mother.
I'm debating on whether to get a Macbook or Pro, but what's holding me me back is screen quality and resolution.

Is the Macbook screen good enough for movies?

Does anyone have any pictures comparing it to the Macbook Pro?
 
I'm very happy with my MB screen, but then again I'm not a "pro" user. I don't think pictures do screens justice, they can seem better/worse than they really are. You really should see and compare them in person.
 
depends...

if ur just viewing dvds... then yah they're fine... just u won't get the "HD" experience due to the low res of the screen.
 
I prefer the MBP screen to the MB, but I own a MB. If I were to purchase again soon, I would definitely get the Pro. Go to a local reseller if you can and check out if you can live with the MB screen. On a purchase this significant, you owe it to yourself to check it out.
 
I picked up my unibody MacBook a little over a week after release. I had read on here how the screens weren't that great. I figured it was really no big deal, as folk are kind of picky in these parts.

That being said, after using this notebook for what must be nearing a near half year, I'd say the screen is the only thing I really can't stand about my MacBook.

It's not so bad when you're browsing, typing, anything like that. But, you mentioned movies.

It really is abhorrent when it comes to watching videos. It really makes me wish I had sprung the extra cash at the time and gotten the entry-level MBP (which has much better blacks and viewing angles).

The MB screen has really light blacks, and low contrast levels between the blacks. It makes watching dark scenes in movies quite a chore. I've fiddled with all my color settings, and even at optimum calibration it's still balls bad.

Worse yet, if I have my head at an odd angle (say on a pillow), sometimes I get odd inversion on some parts of the screen, just because of the angle one of my eyes is viewing it from.

If you don't need the 13.3-inch portability of the MB, then definitely go for the 15.6 MBP.
 
It's terrific if you haven't used a screen with incredible quality. For example, I came from a crappy Compaq laptop with a horrid screen, so I think the MacBook screen is stunning.

But, the MBA is definitely better, per say.

Though, people really blow it out of proportion. The MB screen does NOT suck, it's just inferior to others. I quite like it. A Corvette is inferior to a Lamborghini, but is it not still nice? ;)
 
I couldn't stand it.

Readers complain about the 20" iMac screen, but to me the contrast change of the 20" imac screen is not noticeable in everyday use. It's only noticeable if you do some tests or look very closely.

However, the lack of quality in the MB screen is very noticeable in everyday use. You shift slightly and the contrast changes.

The new MB screens are a bit better because of the LED and glass. They pop a bit more, but it's the same panel. The MBA screen is much better.

I returned my black MB last year because of this.

I will say it's probably not worse than most laptop screens.
 
I switched from a prior-gen MBP (15" 2.5) to a new MB last week - portability has become a premium for me.

The screen quality on this newest version for me, but viewing angle is exceptionally important. Looking from any angle other than straight on, I can definitely see how watching a movie would be painful.

For day to day use, so far I find it to be just fine.
 
pyromaniaque said:
I'm debating on whether to get a Macbook or Pro, but what's holding me me back is screen quality and resolution.

Is the Macbook screen good enough for movies?

Does anyone have any pictures comparing it to the Macbook Pro?
Click to expand...

If you calibrate the MacBook screen, it will look good enough.
The default colour profile is really a bad example. Apple should change their default colour profiles on their Macs.
 
pyromaniaque said:
Is the Macbook screen good enough for movies?

Does anyone have any pictures comparing it to the Macbook Pro?
Click to expand...

I don't think it's good enough for movies, and it's about the only major issue I have against my Macbook, but take a look at these pictures and decide for yourself.

MB on the left, MBP on the right:

macbooks1.jpg


MBP on the left, MB on the right:

IMG_4647.jpg


MB on the left, MBP on the right:

IMG_4649.jpg
 
Yes, it's good enough but it doesn't look all that great compared with the Air/Pro screens. I wish the Whitebook had the Air screen. I would buy it immediately if it did.
 
tubbymac said:
I don't think it's good enough for movies, and it's about the only major issue I have against my Macbook, but take a look at these pictures and decide for yourself.

MB on the left, MBP on the right:

macbooks1.jpg


MBP on the left, MB on the right:

IMG_4647.jpg


MB on the left, MBP on the right:

IMG_4649.jpg
Click to expand...

This looks much worse than it is - the results are definitely impacted by viewing angle, and those pics are showing a lousy angle for Macbook viewing.
 
My one certainly has. Not all of them seem to be as bad though. There are 2 other white macbooks in my flat and they are all different, but my one seems to be the worse.
 
raremage said:
This looks much worse than it is - the results are definitely impacted by viewing angle, and those pics are showing a lousy angle for Macbook viewing.
Click to expand...

Yea I would say the person who posted these pics is probably biased to the MacBook Pro.

To the OP, the screen will be fine. It's not the best in the world but it's not like you'll be like "oh my god I dont even wanna look at it"
 
go to a store and look. i knew that i wanted a Pro but i heard that this was an issue so i took a look at them. i noticed a big difference.

i think a better car analogy would be the difference between a Honda and an Acura, or a Toyota and a Lexus, Nissan and Infinity, ect ect.
 
In my experience, the screen on the pro and the air are better than the MB (as you might expect by price). That said, I've been really happy with my MB screen. The viewing angle in those images is ridiculous—who uses a laptop from the side? Though, even from an angle it looks nowhere near that bad to me. My wife and I occasionally watch movies in bed on my laptop and it's fine for both of us, without requiring us to lay inches apart.
 
raremage said:
This looks much worse than it is - the results are definitely impacted by viewing angle, and those pics are showing a lousy angle for Macbook viewing.
Click to expand...

The pictures show exactly how it looks. It's not like those pictures were photoshopped or anything. To claim otherwise is to be willfully ignorant of reality.

If it's such a lousy angle than how come at the exact same angle the MBP and MBA screens still look great? Could it be the viewing angles aren't lousy, but the screen is lousy? No, that would make too much sense.

shady825 said:
Yea I would say the person who posted these pics is probably biased to the MacBook Pro.
Click to expand...

I'm not really biased towards the MBP. Otherwise I probably would own one instead of a MB and a MBA. The only area I think the MB loses to the other machines is the screen. Everything else about the MB I prefer over the MBP. But I can't sit here and honestly say the MB is good for movies, because unless you have horribly low standards, even watching a movie on a 10 year old 13 inch CRT television you could pick up for $20 at a garage sale would result in better quality.
 
My girlfriend has a white MB (2.4 ghz, 2 gigs of ram, intel graphics) she got it 1 year ago. It is the newest model before the aluminum ones came out.

Can I use the screen profiles you guys posted above for her notebook, or are they custom for the UMB? Any links to good profiles for the whitebooks?

Thanks!

PS I hope next october when they update the macbooks they will put in the same screens as the air. It would make sense for apple to do this, since they would get a better bulk price on buying the same screens for both the air and the MB, instead of buying different types for each. This would also make people way happier since everyone is complaining about the UMB screens.

Give me that and USB 3.0 and i'll be happy.
 
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