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With the same rationale some people could say it is better to have a 6.2" device like a z1 Ultra instead of a "tiny 5.1" s5, and others could say a 3.1" Galaxy Trios is the right phone for their needs.

This is the reason why when I make comparison I try to use objective data like color gamut, sunlight readability and color precision.

Fair enough, but I disagree with evaluating all screens as if they are the same size. I was sick of the iPhone screen size, no matter how good of a screen it is.
 
Now. Maybe even last year. Prior, hell no. AMOLED was terrible then. The S3 screen is utterly atrocious.

The iPhone 5 screen is still competitively sharp, bright and, well calibrated. The S3 screen, released the same year as the iPhone 5, gets piss poor marks whenever added to a Displaymate comparison.

I am not talking about technical/intellectual comparison. I am talking real world preferences in general. Most people would still prefer the vibrant , deep black and over saturated color of the amoled.
 
Why are people insisting that 300PPI is a constant? It's not. It's under certain lighting and viewing conditions. If you hold your phone closer than 12", this number doesn't hold. If you view it in light that is different than office light, this number also doesn't hold. Could the person who said he could see pixels in the iPhone screen have been viewing it close to his face? Certainly, and therefore it's more likely that he'd see pixels on the iPhone screen rather than the S4 screen. If he was viewing it at night, when the lights are off and there are no other sources of light, could individual pixels be clearer to the naked eye? I'd say it's quite likely given that there isn't any light reflecting off the screen that could blur his view.

What I'm saying is the 300PPI number only holds under certain conditions. Simply for people who hold their phones close to their face, it doesn't hold, so people parading this 300PPI number around are actually the ones falling for a marketing gimmick.

I'd say it's highly likely that Apple increases the pixel density of the iPhone screens in the coming iterations. The technology is a couple of years old now and it's very stable, the yield on production would be high enough. They're conservative but they're not so obtuse as to sacrifice the quality of their goods to satisfy some previous marketing. It would be a good thing for everyone involved if they increased the quality of their displays.

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I don't think Apple has lost its cool yet. Between Samsung and Apple, I'd say it's Samsung who's running out of steam at present. Apple's problems mirror Microsoft's where they had to satisfy their legacy customers with every update, thus forcing them to be conservative and reactionary rather than being proactive. In a sense, because Apple are making so much money, they don't have to take unnecessary risks. That's why they're moving into the big screen phone market three years after everyone else.

But this is also reflected in disappointing iPad sales, relatively. They have not pushed the boat out far enough recently.

However, I have high hopes for the iWatch, the leaks look very interesting software-wise so I hope the hardware is impressive and successful.
 
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I am not talking about technical/intellectual comparison. I am talking real world preferences in general. Most people would still prefer the vibrant , deep black and over saturated color of the amoled.

In recent history yes, that is probably true. Prior, AMOLED looked terrible and the hyper saturation, dimness and funky blueish hue was nothing to envy.

Let's not engage in revisionist history and pretend AMOLED was anywhere close to LCD, because it wasn't.
 
You could not be more wrong. GOSH! You do not hold a Note 3 as close to your face as a small device. That is also true for S4. I will say it again: I can see the pixels on my 5s and I hold that tiny screen very close while laying sideways reading in bed. You know the Retina term is a matter of pixel density at a distance, right?
You have very very good eyesight I think. I've just attempted to see the individual pixels on my iPhone 5 and can't see them. I've never even felt the need until now and think you may be over analysing the phone if you find yourself doing that.

I'm sure there are screens out there that are better than the one on the iPhone. Does the average Joe on the high street really care though? I like seeing comparisons to phones but when it gets to the point of putting the phone under a microscope to look for pixels, we really need to find a new hobby lol. :p
 
I can see the pixels, too. Not everyone has perfect vision. I had Lasik years ago and test at 20/10. I may see things that others don't.

At 326 ppi, the iPhone is "retina" for most people at 12 to 15 inches, but some of us have better than average vision, and it isn't "retina" for us unless we push it further away than our normal viewing distance.

When I hold the Nexus 5 at the viewing distance that feels comfortable to me, I don't see the pixels around the edge of text and icons, but when using the iPhone at the viewing distance that feels comfortable to me, I do. If I hold the iPhone farther away, I don't see that any more. I hold my iPhone about 11 inches away from my eyes. I just measured to be certain. The Nexus 5 I hold a little further away because it's larger.

For pictures and video, you wouldn't notice the difference in a higher resolution screen at 4 inches, but for text, the iPhone could benefit from at least a 720p screen.

I'm sorry but I don't believe you. Nothing personal, I don't trust anyone saying he could see pixels on a 4" display with more than 300 PPI at normal usable distance. Never
I have a perfect visus, I have it checked twice a year (every six months), because it is a requirement for my job, so I could be defined like a "better than average" human being in that aspect.
And I say again,I can't see pixels on my iPhone, I can't see pixels on my Lumia (340PPI), I can't see pixels on my Nexus 7 DURING NORMAL USAGE, unless I WANT TO SEE THEM (and still is very difficult to do).
Everyone saying something different is just trying to denigrate the iPhone in favor of some other device.
 
Why are people insisting that 300PPI is a constant? It's not. It's under certain lighting and viewing conditions. If you hold your phone closer than 12", this number doesn't hold. If you view it in light than is different than office light, this number also doesn't hold. Could the person who said he could see pixels in the iPhone screen have been viewing it close to his face? Certainly, and therefore it's more likely that he'd see pixels on the iPhone screen rather than the S4 screen. If he was viewing it at night, when the lights are off and there are no other sources of light, could individual pixels be clearer to the naked eye? I'd say it's quite likely given that there isn't any light reflecting off the screen that could blur his view.

What I'm saying is the 300PPI number only holds under certain conditions. Simply for people who hold their phones close to their face, it doesn't hold, so people parading this 300PPI number around is actually the ones falling for a marketing gimmick.

I'd say it's highly likely that Apple increases the pixel density of the iPhone screens in the coming iterations. The technology is a couple of years old now and it's very stable, the yield on production would be high enough. They're conservative but they're not so obtuse as to sacrifice the quality of their goods to satisfy some previous marketing. It would be a good thing for everyone involved if they increased the quality of their displays.

Man, this should be stickied. Is it an advantage to be able to see a completely sharp picture even when holding the device very close? Of course it is.
 
Or they hold their phone closer than 12" to their face.

The 300PPI number is not magic, it's a number based on test conditions, with many caveats.
 
Those phones with a 1080p display can play full HD video natively. The iPhone 5/5S has to downscale it. That could be one criteria for saying that a phone with a 1080p screen is better.

A 1080P movie on a 4" device (or even on a 5") ? I'm sorry mate but we have different ideas on how to enjoy a movie :D
I use at least a tablet for that. On the smartphone I could see a YouTube video or review a movie just shot with the camera, and I don't need a 1080P display for that.

Different user, different needs.

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Here is an example of what I see with text on the iPhone 5 vs the Nexus 5. What I'm describing when I say I see can pixels is aliasing on text and icons.

As you can see, text is noticeably sharper on the Droid DNA when compared to other displays.

At a normal viewing distance I am able to see this difference in use. I don't see aliasing on the Nexus 5 at all. It looks super sharp to me. The iPhone 5 also looks super sharp if I push it away from my face a little past where I normally use it at, but at where I normally use it at, I am constantly noticing aliasing around text. I didn't use to notice it, but after seeing a 5-inch 1080p screen I'm always aware of the aliasing.

original.jpg

Gizmodo, the world worse Apple basher site on the web, is your source ? Give me a break ...
I can assure you that what I see on my iPhone is much better than that crappy slightly out of focus image you linked.

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Fair enough, but I disagree with evaluating all screens as if they are the same size. I was sick of the iPhone screen size, no matter how good of a screen it is.

I can agree with you on that. I would like a slightly bigger iPhone 6 too. I just hope Apple won't sell an huge device like most of the droids are. Something with similar form factor of Moto X would be perfect.
 
Gizmodo, the world worse Apple basher site on the web, is your source ? Give me a break ...
I can assure you that what I see on my iPhone is much better than that crappy slightly out of focus image you linked.
Indeed. I have never had blurred text like that on my iPhone either. It was either tested on a phone that had a fault or it was exaggerated for the benefit of the article. The retina screen might not have the specs to be the outright best screen of any phone ever, but its a good screen nonetheless. Its crisp, has good saturation and is perfectly good for everyday general use.

Gizmodo has given me the impression it reports way more negative stuff about Apple, but when they report something positive, they get jumped upon by their readers which is rather ironic. :)
 
I am not talking about technical/intellectual comparison. I am talking real world preferences in general. Most people would still prefer the vibrant , deep black and over saturated color of the amoled.

And the "most people" statement is based on what ? Your personal preference ? Lol ....
 
Here is an example of what I see with text on the iPhone 5 vs the Nexus 5. What I'm describing when I say I see can pixels is aliasing on text and icons.
Can I ask under what conditions you see blurred text like that? I can't find anything on my iPhone 5 that shows blur like that. I have pretty good eyesight and am yet to need glasses at 31 years of age and have gone through emails, web searches, tapatalk, twitter, facebook and can't find an example that matches the blurred example you show here. :confused:
 
A 1080P movie on a 4" device (or even on a 5") ? I'm sorry mate but we have different ideas on how to enjoy a movie :D
I use at least a tablet for that. On the smartphone I could see a YouTube video or review a movie just shot with the camera, and I don't need a 1080P display for that.

Different user, different needs.

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Gizmodo, the world worse Apple basher site on the web, is your source ? Give me a break ...
I can assure you that what I see on my iPhone is much better than that crappy slightly out of focus image you linked.

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I can agree with you on that. I would like a slightly bigger iPhone 6 too. I just hope Apple won't sell an huge device like most of the droids are. Something with similar form factor of Moto X would be perfect.

I've never watched a movie on a phone. I won't even watch one on my iPad because I prefer my TV. However some people watch movies on their phone. I do watch TV shows on my phone/tablet and for that I'd prefer it to be in 1080p/720p if possible.
 
Indeed. I have never had blurred text like that on my iPhone either. It was either tested on a phone that had a fault or it was exaggerated for the benefit of the article. The retina screen might not have the specs to be the outright best screen of any phone ever, but its a good screen nonetheless. Its crisp, has good saturation and is perfectly good for everyday general use.

Gizmodo has given me the impression it reports way more negative stuff about Apple, but when they report something positive, they get jumped upon by their readers which is rather ironic. :)

Don't you know ? Gizmodo's senior editorialist was sued and his house stormed by the police after the stolen iPhone 4 prototype.
 
Indeed. I have never had blurred text like that on my iPhone either. It was either tested on a phone that had a fault or it was exaggerated for the benefit of the article. The retina screen might not have the specs to be the outright best screen of any phone ever, but its a good screen nonetheless. Its crisp, has good saturation and is perfectly good for everyday general use.

Gizmodo has given me the impression it reports way more negative stuff about Apple, but when they report something positive, they get jumped upon by their readers which is rather ironic. :)

Even though I think that the iPhone screen has now been surpassed by other phones, it is in no way a bad screen. Text is sharp and crisp. It's a bit like my first HD TV, it was HD ready with a resolution of 768. It wasn't a bad screen and images were pleasant. However my current TV is full HD and is better than my previous one. The previous one wasn't bad, just not as good as my current one.
 
Or they hold their phone closer than 12" to their face.

The 300PPI number is not magic, it's a number based on test conditions, with many caveats.

Are you really telling me you hold the phone this way ?
article-2376623-1ADDE3E5000005DC-656_634x475.jpg


Dude I'm convinced all of you are trying to bash the iPhone with no reason. You claim an exceptional visus and still you keep your phone at 4" from your eyes to use it ?
Rotfl ....

300 PPI is not a magic number, you are right. It is just a raw number to define a good display in terms of pixel density: anything below isn't good, anything above is good.
A phone, from 4" to 6", is designed to be used at about the same distance from your eyes, so the 300 PPI figure while not perfect is more than acceptable.
Unless you have to bash the iphone. In that case you can claim you usually keep your 5" device at 6" from your face so you need 400 PPI because you "see the pixels" :D
 
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Indeed. I have never had blurred text like that on my iPhone either. It was either tested on a phone that had a fault or it was exaggerated for the benefit of the article. The retina screen might not have the specs to be the outright best screen of any phone ever, but its a good screen nonetheless. Its crisp, has good saturation and is perfectly good for everyday general use.



Gizmodo has given me the impression it reports way more negative stuff about Apple, but when they report something positive, they get jumped upon by their readers which is rather ironic. :)


Same here. It might be similar to text from my original iPad Mini, but definitely not iPhone 4 - 5S.
 
Don't you know ? Gizmodo's senior editorialist was sued and his house stormed by the police after the stolen iPhone 4 prototype.
I wasn't aware of that no. I assume that you are being serious there lol. I do remember a few years back when that phone was taken, but didn't realise it had anything to do with that site. :)
Even though I think that the iPhone screen has now been surpassed by other phones, it is in no way a bad screen. Text is sharp and crisp. It's a bit like my first HD TV, it was HD ready with a resolution of 768. It wasn't a bad screen and images were pleasant. However my current TV is full HD and is better than my previous one. The previous one wasn't bad, just not as good as my current one.
That is very true I am sure. I think its all relative as what a phone lacks with one feature, it can make up with in others and that in itself is subjective. I've never really felt the need to compare phone screens side by side, nor have I used a different phone and instantly thought that the screen was better or worse. To techy people these things might be more important, but to people like me who only really take a mild interest and am an average user, screen quality isn't as high up the list. :)
 
You have very very good eyesight I think. I've just attempted to see the individual pixels on my iPhone 5 and can't see them. I've never even felt the need until now and think you may be over analysing the phone if you find yourself doing that.

I'm sure there are screens out there that are better than the one on the iPhone. Does the average Joe on the high street really care though? I like seeing comparisons to phones but when it gets to the point of putting the phone under a microscope to look for pixels, we really need to find a new hobby lol. :p

Why someone with a perfect eyesight should keep his phone at 5-6" from his eyes ?
That's insane ... You will have sore eyes in a few minutes.

This is how normal people use a phone:

People-using-smartphones.jpg
 
Are you really telling me you hold the phone this way ?
Image

Dude I'm convinced all of you are trying to bash the iPhone with no reason. You claim an exceptional visus and still you keep your phone at 4" from your eyes to use it ?
Rotfl ....

300 PPI is not a magic number, you are right. It is just a raw number to define a good display in terms of pixel density: anything below isn't good, anything above is good.
A phone, from 4" to 6", is designed to be used at about the same distance from your eyes, so the 300 PPI figure while not perfect is more than acceptable.
Unless you have to bash the iphone. In that case you can claim you usually keep your 5" device at 6" from your face so you need 400 PPI because you "see the pixels" :D

When I lie in bed face up or face down or to the side, the phone is closer than 12" to my face in all positions. I don't want to tire my arm out and look like a retard by holding the phone 12" above me, I hold it up enough so that the light doesn't blind my eyes and my arms are resting somewhere. That usually leads to me being closer than 12". The same applies for facing down and to the side.

I haven't used an iPhone in years but I have an MBA, Apple TV and an iPad. I'm not an Apple basher. I like their products but I will criticise where I see fit because I'm not married to the company, and any way you spin it, having more pixels per inch on a display is relatively more beneficial. It might not be 99% of the time more beneficial, maybe not even 50%, but like I said, anyway you spin it, there are still going to be situations where having a screen with the pixel density of the S4's is better than the iPhone's.

It's funny seeing you change your definition of 300PPI from being something that people can't discern to now being 'not perfect' and nothing more than 'acceptable'. Your changing definitions say much more about your argument than I could. And when Apple increases the pixel density of their screens, it'll say even more about your argument.
 
I wasn't aware of that no. I assume that you are being serious there lol. I do remember a few years back when that phone was taken, but didn't realise it had anything to do with that site. :)

That is very true I am sure. I think its all relative as what a phone lacks with one feature, it can make up with in others and that in itself is subjective. I've never really felt the need to compare phone screens side by side, nor have I used a different phone and instantly thought that the screen was better or worse. To techy people these things might be more important, but to people like me who only really take a mild interest and am an average user, screen quality isn't as high up the list. :)

I agree although I don't think we are average users, we do come to forums to discuss phones so I think that makes us bit techy/geeky:D
 
I agree although I don't think we are average users, we do come to forums to discuss phones so I think that makes us bit techy/geeky:D
True. I am geeky to an extent, but most of the technical stuff goes over my head I must admit. I couldn't tell you the spec my phone is running off the top of my head but I do enjoy seeing what is coming out and sharing experiences here.
 
When I lie in bed face up or face down or to the side, the phone is closer than 12" to my face in all positions. I don't want to tire my arm out and look like a retard by holding the phone 12" above me, I hold it up enough so that the light doesn't blind my eyes and my arms are resting somewhere. That usually leads to me being closer than 12". The same applies for facing down and to the side.

I haven't used an iPhone in years but I have an MBA, Apple TV and an iPad. I'm not an Apple basher. I like their products but I will criticise where I see fit because I'm not married to the company, and any way you spin it, having more pixels per inch on a display is relatively more beneficial. It might not be 99% of the time more beneficial, maybe not even 50%, but like I said, anyway you spin it, there are still going to be situations where having a screen with the pixel density of the S4's is better than the iPhone's.

It's funny seeing you change your definition of 300PPI from being something that people can't discern to now being 'not perfect' and nothing more than 'acceptable'. Your changing definitions say much more about your argument than I could. And when Apple increases the pixel density of their screens, it'll say even more about your argument.
You can repeat it as many times you want, but it is still plain false. You can't see pixels on an iPhone during normal usage, unless you actually act like a retarded because you WANT to see them.
I didn't change anything I said. I always said that anything above 300-330 PPI on a smartphone is more than enough. Always said that.
Speaking about resolution without considering pixel density is useless.
You and others here are just trying to bash the iPhone in favor of your beloved S4 (that incidentally has an inferior panel as you can easily check on anadtech review), and I found very funny that you can claim you actually keep your smartphone so close to the eyes to see pixels. If you look at an LCD from 6" the pixellation is the last of your problems.
Will Apple raise pixel density in future iphones ? It could be, since they are surely raise resolution with bigger screens ... That doesn't change the matter: with 330 PPI on a smartphone you are not going to see pixels.

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I agree although I don't think we are average users, we do come to forums to discuss phones so I think that makes us bit techy/geeky:D

Surely being here debating about pixel density makes us techy :D
 
Normal people looking at the phone :

24948974-happy-young-man-looking-at-his-smartphone.jpg


stock-photo-cheerful-asian-man-using-smartphone-at-home-looking-on-screen-121977166.jpg


People trying to convince me they see pixels on normal usage:

Looking-at-Smartphone.jpg


Decide by yourself who has a problem.
 
When I lie in bed face up or face down or to the side, the phone is closer than 12" to my face in all positions. I hold it up enough so that the light doesn't blind my eyes and my arms are resting somewhere. That usually leads to me being closer than 12". The same applies for facing down and to the side.

Normal reading distances for people with 20/20 vision is 12-16". If you find yourself needing or liking to hold things closer, you should see your eye doctor. If you're in central Ohio, I can help you ;)

In terms of resolution, the current iPhone is fine. Most people who care about HD aren't "immersed" in any phone of any size, so it really doesn't matter. Look around at people watching movies on iPads and iPhones....they typically don't hold them in their hands thus they watch them 18-24" from their face on a desk or table or their lap, etc. making the need for higher resolution even less necessary.

Add in the fact that a large majority of users over the age of 40 have some impact to their vision call presbyopia yet don't wear glasses......yet. Instead they typically view their phones 16-21 inches from their face. Until they do, high resolutions won't benefit them.

Again, questions on vision or eyes/health, I'm happy to help.
 
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