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How does the new ALU MB screen quality compare to the MBA screen?

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Philflow

macrumors 65816
Original poster
May 7, 2008
1,276
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I know a couple of people have said the MBP screen looks better than the MB screen. That comes as no surprise to me, because generally speaking 15" screens perform better than 13" screens, especially with viewing angles (just my experience).

But actually I am not interested in viewing angles, I always sit straight in front of my laptop and don't mind tilting the screen for best looks. I am interested in (1) contrast, (2) vibrance, (3) brightness.

Now in my experience the Macbook Air has an excellent screen (I owned one). Both Notebookjournal and Notebook check measured the contrast and brightness to be the best in class for 13". Quote:
"Despite a glossy surface it only slightly reflects. The average brightness of 308 cd/m² is excellent. So, the MacBook Air is in spite of a glossy display surface absolutely fit for outdoor operation. The maximum contrast of 722:1 is also a top value. So, the display is rich in contrast."

Did anyone compare these screens next to eachother?
Did anyone find pictures of these screen next to eachother?

Does anyone know what panel the MB and MBA exactly use? (maybe this is visible in system info)

Thanks in advance.
 
i just went to the apple store tonight and, IMO, the air's screen looks better. While the new macbook's screen is a lot better than the previous generation's, it still looks a little washed out. Maybe you can calibrate it better, but out of the box, the air's still looks better.
 
I have been asking this question allot.

And from the responses so far, most people say the MBA old screen wins hands down.

However we haven't seen what screen will come on the MBA gen 2 / so it will be up to speculation if they are the same or better.

I personally want a new MB, but the screen has put me off.

SO now I am waiting to see what the new MBA will be like, hopefully if they have cured the noise and heat issues I may go that way.

But again, many of us would have been happy with the new MB if they offered an upgrade for the screen.
 
byke said:
And from the responses so far, most people say the MBA old screen wins hands down.
Click to expand...

Thanks. did they also say why? It seems like so many people are concerned with viewing angles, but I really don't care about that.
 
dibara2003 said:
i just went to the apple store tonight and, IMO, the air's screen looks better. While the new macbook's screen is a lot better than the previous generation's, it still looks a little washed out. Maybe you can calibrate it better, but out of the box, the air's still looks better.
Click to expand...

Bump the contrast on the machine, then compare again.

Though Apple's stock calibration profile does tend to suck for some machines.
 
Philflow said:
Thanks. did they also say why? It seems like so many people are concerned with viewing angles, but I really don't care about that.
Click to expand...

Based on the latest gen MB versus the last gen MBA
it appears the screen on the MB is sub par in comparison.

Again, I am not sure what screen will arrive on the 2nd gen MBA but we hope it will be even better.
 
I played around with one yesterday and tried a couple of different pre-made profiles. The new profiles seemed to help quite a bit. The contrast improved as well as color accuracy (the default profile is a bit muddy and warm). Color vibrancy looked very good. The screen has pop but it's not blown out.

Here is a funny tidbit of info. I remember quite a bit of chatter the past couple of years from professionals that said that glossy screens weren't any good because they had lots of glare, and they over accentuated colors. Fast forward to the present and now everyone is complaining that the MB doesn't blow out colors enough. :D I think the colors, contrast, and black levels are just fine. Believe me the screen is not dull not by a long shot.
 
I just compared the screens in the store.

the new macbook was really bad, very low contrast.
then came the new macbook pro, this was better already.
but the mba screen was perfect :)
 
MBA vs MB screen

I have a MBA and a new 2.4 MB.

I prefer the screen on the MBA over the MB.

When I first began to use the MB it seemed washed out and lacked contrast. I played with the brightness control but was never able to equal the screen display seen on the MBA which was sitting beside the MB.

I have used the MB now for about 7 hours and believe the issue has to do with screen viewing angle. With the MB it seems the optimum view is really restricted both vertically and horizontally. The MBA has a much better viewing angle in both directions. When sitting directly in front of the screen and only moving by head 3 to 6 inches in the vertical or horizontal plane the MB view changes in brightness and contrast a great amount but the MBA view seems more constant.

Not sure if this helps answer the question. If I was to pick the perfect notebook for my needs I would pick the MB with the MBA screen. Can I live with the MB screen? Probably, but will give it few more days of use to make the decision.

Gary
 
This might sounds crazy...

Is it possible to replace the MB screen with the MBA part? or even the Thinkpad X300 screen for 1440*900 resolution. They are all LED screens as far as I know, so the dimensions should fit.

I would actually pay a bit extra for a better screen. Any one with me?
 
Ding said:
This might sounds crazy...

Is it possible to replace the MB screen with the MBA part? or even the Thinkpad X300 screen for 1440*900 resolution. They are all LED screens as far as I know, so the dimensions should fit.

I would actually pay a bit extra for a better screen. Any one with me?
Click to expand...

That would be hard to know at this point. It really depends on the connectors on the displays as well as the mounting points. I had an X300 and you don't want that display. It is a very poor display.
 
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