Neo Display Thoughts?

[CSAppleFan]

Hi everyone, I recently purchased a Neo. I love everything about it except the display. The design and feel of it are my favorite out of any current Mac.

Sometimes it seems fine and other times it appears blurry or not crisp/clear. I think the brightness of the display is more than enough.

I do have an M5 iPad Pro and have been accustomed to MBA's and MBP's. I'm thinking my eyes might just be too sensitive to quality difference.

Has anyone else had this experience yet with the Neo's display?

 

[teralpar]

Here's a lengthy discussion thread related to your topic here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/why-i-returned-the-macbook-neo.2479098/

 

[I7guy]

The screen in the neon is fine for my purposes.

 

[dborja]

I got a Neo for my wife. She's coming from a 2018 MBA and uses Windoze PCs at work. She has not complained about the display and the NEO meets her personal computing needs. The Neo is no iPad Pro, MBA nor MBP. It caters to its target audience - and quite successfully, I might add.

I'm sorry if I sound like I'm trolling - that is not my intent. I just find it amusing that there are quite a few threads here that are complaining about what the Neo is not. The Neo fills a niche just like the MBA and MBP do theirs.

 

[lookn4wifi]

I was concerned I would find the Neo's display too inferior to my M1 12.9 iPad Pro's promotion display. Maybe I don't have a discerning eye for computer screens, but my perception of the Neo's screen is it's fantastic.

 

[CSAppleFan]

I got a Neo for my wife. She's coming from a 2018 MBA and uses Windoze PCs at work. She has not complained about the display and the NEO meets her personal computing needs. The Neo is no iPad Pro, MBA nor MBP. It caters to its target audience - and quite successfully, I might add.

I'm sorry if I sound like I'm trolling - that is not my intent. I just find it amusing that there are quite a few threads here that are complaining about what the Neo is not. The Neo fills a niche just like the MBA and MBP do theirs.

I'm not really complaining about it just stating my opinion from my usage of it so far through my eyes. I guess my eyes are only meant for the better displays 🙂

 

[dborja]

I'm not really complaining about it just stating my opinion from my usage of it so far through my eyes. I guess my eyes are only meant for the better displays 🙂

I didn't take your post as complaining. I do understand that you are observing the display quality differences among the Neo, MBA and MBP just as I did. And I am pleasantly surprised at the sound quality of the Neo vs what I expected. 🙂

 

[Apple_Robert]

Your problem is you are expecting M5 iPad Pro results from the Neo. Lower your expectation and you will be fine. I go back and forth between the same two devices all the time and it's not a big deal for me.

 

[Zazoh]

We’re all wired a bit different. I only eat high end ice cream - I can taste the difference. But at 63 sounds and visual acuity ain’t what it used to be. I can seamlessly go from one pixel density to another and don’t notice a difference. I have tinnitus so who knows what frequencies I’m dropping.

 

[JamesMay82]

I’ve only seen the Neo in videos and photos but am I right to assume it’s almost similar to the MacBook Pros from 2010 ?

I like the no notch look and think it looks great

 

[4sallypat]

We’re all wired a bit different. I only eat high end ice cream - I can taste the difference. But at 63 sounds and visual acuity ain’t what it used to be. I can seamlessly go from one pixel density to another and don’t notice a difference. I have tinnitus so who knows what frequencies I’m dropping.

You are like I am - love the high end whiskeys, flying business class, and high quality over quantity at my older age.

Love the Neo display - crisp and sharp for my eyes.

At 62, I am just happy to be able to see enough to fly planes because if my Aviation Medical Examiner found my eyesight to be less than ideal, I'd lose my flying privileges.

 

[tomtad]

I’ve only seen the Neo in videos and photos but am I right to assume it’s almost similar to the MacBook Pros from 2010 ?

I like the no notch look and think it looks great

Better than that as it's a Retina display

 

[Tackyfacky]

Mine has backlight bleed at the top where the bezel seems to be pushing on the display a bit more. Tried to make the picture fairly accurate. Only noticed it because I use that Tahoe Night background. That aside, I did compare with an old 2013 MBP and I wouldn't consider it a noticeable improvement (if it is at all), but that display is still pretty good relative to modern laptops.

 

[snipr125]

I’ve only seen the Neo in videos and photos but am I right to assume it’s almost similar to the MacBook Pros from 2010 ?

I like the no notch look and think it looks great

About the same as the 2012 - 2015 MBP displays, SRGB with no P3 colour gamut. Neo display is brighter though at 500 nits, but its pretty much 10 year old display tech.

 

[icymountain]

I do have an M5 iPad Pro and have been accustomed to MBA's and MBP's. I'm thinking my eyes might just be too sensitive to quality difference.

Did you try to adjust the scaling in the settings to get true retina resolution, not scaled ?

 

[Queen6]

Try Notebook Check they always include a calibrated icc file. As for the Neo have looked at dozens across Apple Stores and approved resellers. Have no issue with the sRGB display, as with all mass produced products there will be a level of variance.

Q-6

 

[Queen6]

Mine has backlight bleed at the top where the bezel seems to be pushing on the display a bit more. Tried to make the picture fairly accurate. Only noticed it because I use that Tahoe Night background. That aside, I did compare with an old 2013 MBP and I wouldn't consider it a noticeable improvement (if it is at all), but that display is still pretty good relative to modern laptops.

View attachment 2628380

Return and ask for a replacement as you have the proof in your hands.

Q-6

 

[conmee]

The Neo is similar in panel technology and color accuracy to the original 2012-2015 Retina displays and similar in brightness to the 2016-2020 Intel MBP Retina displays. It has nearly the same pixel density as the 2012-2019 displays (219ppi vs 220ppi). The lack of P3 color usually results in less saturated/more muted colors. But for a lot of people that actually looks better to their eye.

@CSAppleFan If the screen is looking occasionally blurry or not sharp, have you tried adjusting the display resolution? macOS Default resolution is 1408x881 on the Neo which is a fractional scaled resolution to provide more content on the screen. But the setting just to the left of Default is 1204x753 which would be the sharper integer scaled resolution at the expense of more content on screen. You can also try going the other direction if your eyes are good and selecting the More Space setting to have even more content on screen which will also likely be small enough that it will retain sharpness (to your eye) despite the scaling.

More Space = 1637x1024 (Might look sharper with more screen content, but everything is smaller so need good vision)
Default = 1408x881
Left of Default = 1204x753 (Might look sharper with less screen content, but everything is larger and easy to see)
Larger Text = 1024x640

2026 MBNeo: 219PPI, 500nits, sRGB, 60Hz
2015 iMBP15: 220ppi, 300nits, sRGB, 60Hz
2019 iMBP15: 220ppi, 500nits, P3, 60Hz with True Tone
2019 iMBP16: 226ppi, 500nits, P3, 60Hz with True Tone
2026 MBA15: 224ppi, 500nits, P3, 60Hz with True Tone
2026 MBP16: 254ppi, 1000nits, P3, 120Hz HDR with True Tone

Of course, if you're used to a ProMotion display with P3 and HDR capability and higher ppi, there's a clear difference. But most folks are giving the Neo display praise, especially in the context of a $699/$599 computer.