MacBook Pro with Retina: not impressed

[haysoos123]

Had a go on a mates today and have to say wasn't impressed. While it was a nice machine power wise the screen just didn't wow me as much as hyped. When I first saw the iPhone 4 my 3GS instantly looked dated and fuzzy, I was blown away with the iPhone 4 screen. Was expecting this from the new MPB and it just didn't. Despite being showing some amazing photos he'd taken the screen just wasn't that awe inspiring.

Not sure what you were expecting. At the typical distance, a regular MBP already looks pretty good, I would agree. With a rMBP, we're rapidly approaching the best a normal, 2D display can be. I mean, what else could you expect? When you stop being able to discern pixels, it can't really get much better. It looks so much like it's right on the surface of the glass, instead of behind it like the old display. True, you can't turn up the brightness to eye-searing, but only crazy people use that setting.

The only flaws I see now are that it's still reflective, the viewing angles don't go all the way to 180 degrees without losing contrast/color accuracy, and direct sunlight decreases image quality. I bet when all those issues are fixed in the future, there will still be people who aren't impressed.

----------

Personally, I love the high-resolution but would have preferred it on a 17" screen.

Not enough people bought the 17", and for good reason. Have you ever lugged one around on a regular basis? It's just a little too big for your typical bag. This is all my personal opinion so of course not everyone agrees. For someone who would be the typical audience for a 17" laptop, it's just not for me. I do a lot of video work on the field (editing, viewing dailies), and I do NOT need additional weight to carry. Like anything, you could deal with it if you had to, but the additional screen real-estate was just not worth it.

 

[Carl Sagan]

Well... That leaves only one option - denial. I mean, seriously, how can you not see the difference...

You're breaking wheatons law. I never said you can't see the difference just that it's not as impressive as the hype would have you believe. When I first saw the iPhone 4 I was literally stunned. This was more like 'is that it?'...

Btw I'm not trolling! I've owned and used Apple products for nearly twenty years both personally and professionally!!

 

[Carl Sagan]

Let's all bear in mind that we are all entitled to our own opinion. It's not really fair to brand the OP a troll etc just because he has his own opinion.
Personally I've not had time to check out the retina screen yet, but will report back once I've had a look!

Thank you, really appreciate the constructive attitude.

 

[Davidkoh]

I have to partly agree. Even though I think the rMBP is the best computer out there at this time I don't really like what direction Apple is taking with the screens at the moment. They go for the really high res screens but scale it down. Sure, things looks clearer but at what cost? Screens that are heavy on the graphics card but with the same real estate. I see more usefulness in having a 1920x1200 native screen, more real estate and less hard on the GPU.

 

[Liquinn]

I have to partly agree. Even though I think the rMBP is the best computer out there at this time I don't really like what direction Apple is taking with the screens at the moment. They go for the really high res screens but scale it down. Sure, things looks clearer but at what cost? Screens that are heavy on the graphics card but with the same real estate. I see more usefulness in having a 1920x1200 native screen, more real estate and less hard on the GPU.

I agree with this to be honest.

 

[Pipper99]

Had a go on a mates today and have to say wasn't impressed. While it was a nice machine power wise the screen just didn't wow me as much as hyped. When I first saw the iPhone 4 my 3GS instantly looked dated and fuzzy, I was blown away with the iPhone 4 screen. Was expecting this from the new MPB and it just didn't. Despite being showing some amazing photos he'd taken the screen just wasn't that awe inspiring.

Anyone underwhelmed by it?

I'm very whelmed.

 

[NT1440]

I have to partly agree. Even though I think the rMBP is the best computer out there at this time I don't really like what direction Apple is taking with the screens at the moment. They go for the really high res screens but scale it down. Sure, things looks clearer but at what cost? Screens that are heavy on the graphics card but with the same real estate. I see more usefulness in having a 1920x1200 native screen, more real estate and less hard on the GPU.

Thats not the screen's fault, this current generation of GPU's simply werent designed with resolutions to high in mind so apple has ton a TON of work to make this work. The next gen GPU in the rMBP is going to make this machine the beast it was meant to be, Apple just has to take the first step (as they did with the MBA) to get the rest of the industry to kick into gear.

 

[jcpb]

Had a go on a mates today and have to say wasn't impressed. While it was a nice machine power wise the screen just didn't wow me as much as hyped. When I first saw the iPhone 4 my 3GS instantly looked dated and fuzzy, I was blown away with the iPhone 4 screen. Was expecting this from the new MPB and it just didn't. Despite being showing some amazing photos he'd taken the screen just wasn't that awe inspiring.

Anyone underwhelmed by it?

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1394429/

Water is wet. News at 11.

 

[flipnap]

is there some joke being played on us with this? i dont get these posts. i put the screen of the old 15mbp next to the retina (for real estate purposes-i already saw a MASSIVE quality difference) and what i saw blew me away. this isnt a matter of opinion. the retina screen is IMMENSELY better looking in color fidelity, resoltution and contrast.. I feel like if this isnt a troll thread than someone played a trick on you.. if its neither than i actually feel bad for you.

Please dont think im being rude. Im sure there are people who cant tell the difference between standard and high def, between OLED and LCD, between film and digital. But i have to say i have never seen a more significant improvement in screen tech than the retina.

Im utterly confused by these posts. Again, its not an opinion. High def 1080p is sharper than 480p. thats not an opinion. Whether you "like" it or not may be.

 

[Wafflausages]

I don't really see a difference between a mbp and rmbp unless I'm within a foot viewing distance. The only thing that is really noticeable is the colors.

 

[pmau]

You're breaking wheatons law. I never said you can't see the difference just that it's not as impressive as the hype would have you believe. When I first saw the iPhone 4 I was literally stunned. This was more like 'is that it?'...

Btw I'm not trolling! I've owned and used Apple products for nearly twenty years both personally and professionally!!

+1 ...

Yes, when I first held the iPhone 4 in my hands it was like:
"Wow, you can nearly touch the icons!"

There was no phone on the market with that appearance.

The simple fact that they sell an effective 1440x900 model that in fact looks better but is maxed out under very little pressure turns me off.

The screen might be great, but this is supposed to be a Laptop, not an iPad.

Either build something really amazing or stick with 1440x900.
I neat looking model of the same dimension is not useful.
At least to me.

 

[flipnap]

The screen might be great, but this is supposed to be a Laptop, not an iPad.

so.... laptops arent supposed to have good looking screens? these are the comments that confuse me..

 

[JohnGrey]

Had a go on a mates today and have to say wasn't impressed. While it was a nice machine power wise the screen just didn't wow me as much as hyped. When I first saw the iPhone 4 my 3GS instantly looked dated and fuzzy, I was blown away with the iPhone 4 screen. Was expecting this from the new MPB and it just didn't. Despite being showing some amazing photos he'd taken the screen just wasn't that awe inspiring.

Anyone underwhelmed by it?

I'm sorry you didn't find the experience to be what you were expecting. I felt the same way when I first got mine (I purchased about four minutes after the Apple online store opened back up on June 11 and received it a week later). The problem was that what I had built up mentally could not be expected of that display or any other.

But it's really something that sneaks up on you before you realize it. I have some difficulty using any other computer now that I'm used to the sharpness of the text rendering that's possible with the retina display. My office uses Windows-based machines, and to me they all look like a big, soupy mess, even with features like ClearType turned on. The difference is as noticeable to me as between ClearType text and non-aliased text.

 

[jcpb]

The screen might be great, but this is supposed to be a Laptop, not an iPad.

Either build something really amazing or stick with 1440x900.
I neat looking model of the same dimension is not useful.
At least to me.

When the LHC started operations, some of its naysayers wanted CERN to shut it down ASAP because OMG FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN!!!!!11 . A few extremely vocal naysayers mused about planning terrorist strikes against the installation.

Some people want the display tech to remain constant. They ******* hate change. Apple does it? A few of them go "SHAME ON APPLE, IM NOT BUYING ANYMORE APPLE BECAUSE I HATE THEIR NEW PRODUCTS!!!!!1" Calm down, will ya?

If technology doesn't move forward in large jumps like this MBPR's display, we would have massive problems with the food supply. The US Midwest corn belt isn't doing well this year because of unfavorable weather; lack of tech here can easily push us to the brink of famine.

 

[Pipper99]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1394429/

Water is wet. News at 11.

Don't forget this one!

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1408246/

 

[SurferMan]

I had one for about 3 weeks before having to return it to Best Buy because I felt awful purchasing from them when they were trying to scam me. I will be getting another as soon as my local Apple Store has them.

The screen is definitely not as mindblowing as the iPhone 4, but this is because there is a very big difference in the normal viewing distance of the rMBP compared to the iPhone. It's still a gorgeous screen, but definitely not as mindblowing as the iPhone 4 due to that distance.

However, I would have gladly paid the premium price even without the display for the flash storage, thinness, cooling system, and factory overclocked GPU.

Your right, and I think that's what the OP was trying to say as that was my thought as well. 3GS - 4/4S is a massive night and day difference. But b/c of the larger screen real estate and viewing distance, that "difference" just doesn't translate on laptops. It's still an excellent looking screen no doubt, but it didn't wow me over my 15" high res antiglare, when I was expecting that same wow factor from all the hype like upgrading from the 3GS. Like I said in another post it was more noticeable vs my 13", and was still a little noticeable over my high res antiglare screen just not as big a difference as I had expected giving the big dpi difference, seemed just barely a tad sharper and brighter.

Still a top notch screen no doubt.

My vision is better than 20/20 at 20/15, so maybe that's why I don't see that "big" difference I was expecting too? Still going to upgrade to rMBP 13 to replace the current one... if it actually ends up becoming true lol, hope it does.

 

[pmau]

When the LHC started operations, some of its naysayers wanted CERN to shut it down ASAP because OMG FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN!!!!!11 . A few extremely vocal naysayers mused about planning terrorist strikes against the installation.

Some people want the display tech to remain constant. They ******* hate change. Apple does it? A few of them go "SHAME ON APPLE, IM NOT BUYING ANYMORE APPLE BECAUSE I HATE THEIR NEW PRODUCTS!!!!!1" Calm down, will ya?

If technology doesn't move forward in large jumps like this MBPR's display, we would have massive problems with the food supply. The US Midwest corn belt isn't doing well this year because of unfavorable weather; lack of tech here can easily push us to the brink of famine.

????

Sorry ... I didn't mean to upset you.
Nurse Betty here will bring you back to your room...

I just meant to say that this (first, early adaptor) model of a Retina MacBook Pro is just a glorified 1440x900 and not really impressive.

The display is not Apple's invention. They just push hardware design to its limits and charge extra for it. This, and I mean the hardware, is not innovation.

 

[Renator]

Hmm... Blind or Just "Infirm"

Had a go on a mates today and have to say wasn't impressed. While it was a nice machine power wise the screen just didn't wow me as much as hyped. When I first saw the iPhone 4 my 3GS instantly looked dated and fuzzy, I was blown away with the iPhone 4 screen. Was expecting this from the new MPB and it just didn't. Despite being showing some amazing photos he'd taken the screen just wasn't that awe inspiring.

Anyone underwhelmed by it?

I've had my MacBook Pro w Retina for a month now and have never been more satisfied with every aspect of it. This post is just ridiculous.

 

[Davidkoh]

Thats not the screen's fault, this current generation of GPU's simply werent designed with resolutions to high in mind so apple has ton a TON of work to make this work. The next gen GPU in the rMBP is going to make this machine the beast it was meant to be, Apple just has to take the first step (as they did with the MBA) to get the rest of the industry to kick into gear.

What I don't understand is why Apple have been keeping its low resolutions for so long then jump to rendering at crazy high resolutions before the GPUs are ready to do that. They could have started with something the GPUs actually handle without a problem.

 

[jcpb]

????

Sorry ... I didn't mean to upset you.
Nurse Betty here will bring you back to your room...

I just meant to say that this (first, early adaptor) model of a Retina MacBook Pro is just a glorified 1440x900 and not really impressive.

The display is not Apple's invention. They just push hardware design to its limits and charge extra for it. This, and I mean the hardware, is not innovation.

Glorified 1440 x 900? I'm using it right now at 2880 x 1800, including Windows at only 100% DPI scaling.

"Why this Retina screen when the hardware isn't ready for prime time?"
"Why now? It lags like a mofo as is!"
"I don't like the direction Apple is going. Nothing is user replaceable."

Because it's more profitable adhering to the status quo than to be an exception to the rule. Apparently people are very unsettled by the mere fact that the MBP they know and love for years is getting slimmed down, and a lot of the legacy stuff they know and love for years are getting thrown out...

 

[tninety]

so brave

 

[DaffyDuck]

What I don't understand is why Apple have been keeping its low resolutions for so long then jump to rendering at crazy high resolutions before the GPUs are ready to do that. They could have started with something the GPUs actually handle without a problem.

Because if they used larger pixels they couldn't call it "Retina".

 

[sofianito]

Let's all bear in mind that we are all entitled to our own opinion. It's not really fair to brand the OP a troll etc just because he has his own opinion.
Personally I've not had time to check out the retina screen yet, but will report back once I've had a look!

+1

Whenever I express my opinion or add some humour, some rMBP or Apple fanboys fanatics get nervous...

 

[KPOM]

I think the issue is that there aren't very many apps or sites optimized for such a high resolution yet. That said, I wouldn't be surprised to see this change within a year. If Sharp and LG can make screens for Apple, they will eventually have enough capacity to make screens for others. Once that happens, more and more sites will have an incentive to optimize for "retina" resolutions.

 

[gentlefury]

I think the issue is that there aren't very many apps or sites optimized for such a high resolution yet. That said, I wouldn't be surprised to see this change within a year. If Sharp and LG can make screens for Apple, they will eventually have enough capacity to make screens for others. Once that happens, more and more sites will have an incentive to optimize for "retina" resolutions.

That is the only thing I can think of when the OP says blurry. MS Office or the like. Clearly the screen is not blurry, but non-optimized applications will be (which are most of them right now....early adoption anybody?)