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Glossy is reflective Antiglare is fuzzy. Is there a 3rd way coming?

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whitedragon101

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 11, 2008
1,349
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Glossy screens are sharp but reflective, matte is fuzzy but less reflective.

Is there a potential 3rd way on the horizon that gives the best of both?
 
Not that I know of. But, Apple's glossy isn't just glossy, it's glassy. Regular glossy isn't nearly as reflective as the glass-covered display. Regardless, I'll take the anti-glare that's not all that fuzzy over the glassy/glossy that's very much reflective.
 
You don't hear people complaining about the "glossy" screen on their iPhone 4. Just position it so that there's not a light reflecting off the screen. You know, don't hold it that way. Problem solved.

;)
 
Who are you...Goldilocks?
Go to the store, check the screens out, and choose which you like better. Apple is not going to cater further to your particular optical requirements.
 
Detrius said:
You don't hear people complaining about the "glossy" screen on their iPhone 4. Just position it so that there's not a light reflecting off the screen. You know, don't hold it that way. Problem solved.

;)
Click to expand...

Thats much easier to do with a phone than a laptop on a desk. Just have to change the angle of your wrist for the phone, but your desk setup may not be as simple to change.

I went with AG :p I don't notice any of the "fuzzyness" that you speak of.
 
I thought the AG looked fuzzy at first too...but that's only when it's sitting next to the Glossy in the store...now that I have it at home, it's perfect.
 
eawmp1 said:
Who are you...Goldilocks?
Apple is not going to cater further to your particular optical requirements.
Click to expand...

Low resolution CRT-> high resolution CRT
Rounded CRT -> flatscreen CRT
CRT -> LCD
LCD -> TFT LCD
CFFL Backlight -> LED Backlight


But now technology stops. I don't think so. The matte vs glossy display question has driven people to madness, as each has major strengths and pitfalls. A display with the strengths of both would be the ideal.

There will be many people working on this problem as its solution will be worth a lot of money. Just wondered if anyone had seen anything in the lab stage that looks promising for the future.
 
ceshimm said:
how about glossy screen + matte screen protector.
Click to expand...

Those typically don't work so well, and usually look fuzzier than the matte screens.

OP, the only problem with there being a 3rd option, is that the AG screens avoid glare by diffusing light, which makes it appear slightly "fuzzy". In order for it not to be fuzzy, the screen has to be smooth, which in turn lends to glare
 
whitedragon101 said:
The matte vs glossy display question has driven people to madness, as each has major strengths and pitfalls.
Click to expand...

What, exactly, are the "major pitfalls" of the AG display? Please enlighten me. IMHO, the AG is ideal. It's not fuzzy, that's a red herring. The only genuine complaint I've seen regards aesthetics. That's a personal preference issue, not a technology limitation. To my eye, I prefer the silver bezel over the black border.
 
What do you mean 'fuzzy'? There is absolutely nothing 'fuzzy' about my screen on my previous 1400x900 Matte 2008MBP and there is absolutely nothing 'fuzzy' about my screen on my 1680x1050 Matte 2010 uMBP.
 
whitedragon101 said:
Glossy screens are sharp but reflective, matte is fuzzy but less reflective.

Is there a potential 3rd way on the horizon that gives the best of both?
Click to expand...

There's nothing fuzzy about the antiglare screen, nor is it "less reflective", it's completely NON reflective. If you think the antiglare screen is fuzzy, you need to explain that better here as to what you are talking about.
 
diablo2112 said:
What, exactly, are the "major pitfalls" of the AG display? Please enlighten me. IMHO, the AG is ideal. It's not fuzzy, that's a red herring. The only genuine complaint I've seen regards aesthetics. That's a personal preference issue, not a technology limitation. To my eye, I prefer the silver bezel over the black border.
Click to expand...

I prefer the look of the silver bezel as well. I just dont understand why people prefer the black bezel, the original powerbooks and earlier macbook pros all had silver bezels. To me the black border looks awkward.
 
singhjeet29 said:
What do you mean 'fuzzy'? There is absolutely nothing 'fuzzy' about my screen on my previous 1400x900 Matte 2008MBP and there is absolutely nothing 'fuzzy' on my screen about my 1680x1050 Matte 2010 uMBP.
Click to expand...

The anti-glare part of the LCD is actually a coating that goes on the screen to reduce the reflections from external light sources. That coating diffuses the internal LED's, which create a slight slight fuzzy appearance.

to the OP: Don't worry about it, once you get it home you don't notice it ever again.
 
jjahshik32 said:
I prefer the look of the silver bezel as well. I just dont understand why people prefer the black bezel, the original powerbooks and earlier macbook pros all had silver bezels. To me the black border looks awkward.
Click to expand...

The black border's look nice, its nice when you're watching video's etc. Black is never a bad colour for a border. That being said I love my Silver Bezel, it makes my MBP look like a tank :p
 
thejadedmonkey said:
The anti-glare part of the LCD is actually a coating that goes on the screen to reduce the reflections from external light sources. That coating diffuses the internal LED's, which create a slight slight fuzzy appearance.
Click to expand...

You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about, that's completely wrong.
 
If anything, imo the glossy displays makes text and images blurry/fuzzy.

I love my 13" macbook pro but lately I've been really missing the antiglare display as the antiglare led backlit displays looks so much more vivid and cleaner.
 
thejadedmonkey said:
The anti-glare part of the LCD is actually a coating that goes on the screen to reduce the reflections from external light sources. That coating diffuses the internal LED's, which create a slight slight fuzzy appearance.

to the OP: Don't worry about it, once you get it home you don't notice it ever again.
Click to expand...

Someone beat me to the explanation :)

The above is what I mean by fuzzy.

The difference between the two screens is what is placed over the LCD:

Antiglare - A plastic diffuser that is placed over the LCD panel. This means it diffuses (but not eliminates) incoming light but it also diffuses outgoing light, this makes it appear slightly fuzzy. Also by diffusing outgoing light the output of one pixel will bleed slightly into another making true blacks and punchy colours harder to achieve.

Glossy - A glass plate is laid over the LCD panel. This means there is no distortion of the light coming from the panel creating a sharp looking picture. But the glass reflects external light like a mirror, a major drawback.


I wasn't trying to get into the age old glossy vs matte debate. I was more wondering if there was anything around that would end it.

Technology X = Sharp picture, Deep blacks, Reduced/eliminate reflections
 
whitedragon101 said:
Antiglare - A plastic diffuser that is placed over the LCD panel. This means it diffuses (but not eliminates) incoming light but it also diffuses outgoing light
Click to expand...

You're confusing a diffuser with a true, anti-glare coating. Indeed, a "diffuser" does what your suggest, and the aftermarket applied films for glossy displays accomplish this function.

However, a proper anti-glare coating doesn't function this way at all. It involves the very careful deposition of a thin film of precisely controlled thickness and index of refraction, often multiple layers, to take advantage of the destructive interference of the wavefronts of the reflected light from the various film/film and film/glass interfaces. This literally cancels the glare or reflection.

In the watch hobby, a good, AR coating on a watch crystal is essential to allow a clear view of the watch face, especially dark-faced watches. It can cost $200-$300 for a coating job on a watch crystal. IMHO, the AG coating on the MBP screens is a screaming bargain for what it does.
 
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