PICTURES: 13" MacBook vs 15.4" MacBook Pro vs 17" MacBook Pro

[elppa]

Photos like these are useless. Notice how each computer is in a completely different place in relation to the camera, thats not a good comparison.

Also, who watches their computer so far off center?

Viewing angle can often be a good indicator of the quality of the panel.

I'd argue that in neither photo are the two machines “in a completely different place in relation to the camera”, this is particularly the case for the first image. The Air has deeper blacks, richer colours and the backlight is brighter.

Anyway, the fact remains that the MacBook has a feeble screen compared to the Air and Pro. If you don't believe the photos, then go and compare in real life. The MacBook screen is not bad, it's perfectly workable, but it's not in the same class as those used in the higher end products.

Here's another comparison, from gizmodo again, this time head on:

Pro vs MacBook

 

[The Samurai]

Am I the only one who doesn't see a difference in screens between the three?

 

[elppa]

Sums it up

Am I the only one who doesn't see a difference in screens between the three?

From earlier:

The aurora is a great background. It can easily hide the crappy display.

 

[Minimoose 360]

OP, your 17" must have the 9C89 panel which is known to have a bluish tint, it can be fixed with calibration I think..

 

[thiagos]

OP, your 17" must have the 9C89 panel which is known to have a bluish tint, it can be fixed with calibration I think..

Really? How? Can someone post the exact steps and calibration numbers so I can get it similar to the other panel?

Thanks in advance.

 

[amitdoc2b]

Really? How? Can someone post the exact steps and calibration numbers so I can get it similar to the other panel?

Thanks in advance.

your screen doesnt have a bluish tint.. its just that background on ur desktop is bluish purple in color so they are assuming ur tint is blue. the blueness on the left is more prominant cuz the colors are more vibrant on the 17" umbp.

 

[andrew upstairs]

For some reason, I always think the 15" isn't much bigger than the 13", and the 17" isn't much bigger than the 15". Therefore, the 17" MBP isn't big at all. Well, it's still 17" diagonally, so I must be wrong.

I actually just went from a 17" PowerBook, to a unibody MacBook, to a unibody MacBook Pro, all in the last week.

The 13" seemed really small but I liked it. Then I traded that in for a Pro and now the 15" seems HUGE.

It's over 2" difference between the 13" and the 15", and less than 2" from the 15" to the 17".

I don't even know what I'm going on about.

I like them all.

 

[Mikey B]

Photos like these are useless. Notice how each computer is in a completely different place in relation to the camera, thats not a good comparison.

Also, who watches their computer so far off center?

My sentiments, exactly. I've done comparisons with my MB and a friends MBP and the differences is no where as dramatic as those photos make it out to be. By all means, the Pro's screen is better than the MB, but I just don't get why it has such a bad rap. Like any screen, you should calibrate it to your liking and, IMO at least, the MB screen is quite good. Not the best screen ever, but not the piece of garbage so many people try to make it out to be.

 

[kabunaru]

Bunch of haters of the MacBook here.

 

[uiop.]

Bunch of haters of the MacBook here.

Psh...only the poor peons get MacBooks.

Jk.

 

[skwirl341]

My sentiments, exactly. I've done comparisons with my MB and a friends MBP and the differences is no where as dramatic as those photos make it out to be. By all means, the Pro's screen is better than the MB, but I just don't get why it has such a bad rap. Like any screen, you should calibrate it to your liking and, IMO at least, the MB screen is quite good. Not the best screen ever, but not the piece of garbage so many people try to make it out to be.

I definitely notice it a lot in person. You have to look at the MB screen at just the right angle or it looks washed out. I find myself constantly moving myself and the screen. The MBP doesn't have that problem.

 

[TheSVD]

awesome, i wanna macbook now
and lol at the 17" screen res, bloody nutsss!

 

[PeterQC]

Bunch of haters of the MacBook here.

Just put a black background on your desktop and I'm ready to bet you 20 bucks you can't get a consistent black value, whatever the angle your looking at it. The MacBooks screen are THAT bad. I've been ignoring every black wallpapers I could find, only because it would look like crap. But I have nothing else to say about the rest of the computer. They are great.

 

[Abstract]

My sentiments, exactly. I've done comparisons with my MB and a friends MBP and the differences is no where as dramatic as those photos make it out to be.

Then I guess all those photos that show the inferiority of MB screens under very realistic, and common scenarios are just photoshopped.



Having said that, for the laaaaarge majority of applications, the screen looks 99% as good as the MBP when you're looking at it head-on. It's just that you don't get as much differentiation in tones nearest to pure black, so things that are actually dark grey appear completely black (i.e. not visible) instead. This would affect things like movie-watching, and perhaps gaming (first person shooters, I reckon). This is why the examples of the poor black levels shown in the photos always use movies on the screen, not MS Word or Firefox.

I actually just went from a 17" PowerBook, to a unibody MacBook, to a unibody MacBook Pro, all in the last week.

The 13" seemed really small but I liked it. Then I traded that in for a Pro and now the 15" seems HUGE.

It's over 2" difference between the 13" and the 15", and less than 2" from the 15" to the 17".

I don't even know what I'm going on about.

I like them all.

That's cool.

I was just trying to make a bad joke that the 17" MBP must not be big, since by my "logic", its not much bigger than a 13" MB.

To be honest, the 17" MBP really does look unwieldy, but perhaps it's because I'm currently using a 13" MB, and this is actually the largest laptop I've ever owned.


Why did you give up the 17" MBP to the 13" MB, and then go to the 15" MBP? Is the 17" MBP that much more difficult to carry than the 15" MBP??

Photos like these are useless. Notice how each computer is in a completely different place in relation to the camera, thats not a good comparison.

Yes, but it's at the same viewing angle.

Also, who watches their computer so far off center?

I watch movies on my computer from an angle sometimes when I put my computer on my night-table at the side of my bed, and watch a film. Also, if I watch a movie with my girlfriend, it happens.

 

[andrew upstairs]

Why did you give up the 17" MBP to the 13" MB, and then go to the 15" MBP? Is the 17" MBP that much more difficult to carry than the 15" MBP??

Well, the 17" was a 5-year-old PowerBook. It was just time to upgrade. The MacBook was a significant upgrade. I traded it in for the Pro because I wanted Firewire and an express card slot.

I think I would actually prefer the 13" screen if it had the same specs as a Pro.

I agree that there's not a huge difference between the 15" and 17", but after getting used to the MacBook, the 15" now seems massive.

 

[thesmoth]

Then I guess all those photos that show the inferiority of MB screens under very realistic, and common scenarios are just photoshopped.



Having said that, for the laaaaarge majority of applications, the screen looks 99% as good as the MBP when you're looking at it head-on. It's just that you don't get as much differentiation in tones nearest to pure black, so things that are actually dark grey appear completely black (i.e. not visible) instead. This would affect things like movie-watching, and perhaps gaming (first person shooters, I reckon). This is why the examples of the poor black levels shown in the photos always use movies on the screen, not MS Word or Firefox.




That's cool.

I was just trying to make a bad joke that the 17" MBP must not be big, since by my "logic", its not much bigger than a 13" MB.

To be honest, the 17" MBP really does look unwieldy, but perhaps it's because I'm currently using a 13" MB, and this is actually the largest laptop I've ever owned.


Why did you give up the 17" MBP to the 13" MB, and then go to the 15" MBP? Is the 17" MBP that much more difficult to carry than the 15" MBP??



Yes, but it's at the same viewing angle.



I watch movies on my computer from an angle sometimes when I put my computer on my night-table at the side of my bed, and watch a film. Also, if I watch a movie with my girlfriend, it happens.

If they are at ****** viewing angles for the macbook then they obviously are not realistic or representative. Strong lack of understanding and knowledge on your part.