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Retina macbook screen - brightness

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whitedragon101

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 11, 2008
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I already published preliminary analysis of the Retina MacBook Pro’s display. In short brightness is down a bit - Anandtech
Click to expand...

The brightness of the new rMBP is down from the standard screen. Its about the same as dropping 2-3 units of brightness from max on a standard MBP, which is significant.

So the question :

Is there any chance of an extra bit of brightness in one of the yearly updates or will apple stick with this screen exactly as it is until the next 3 year refresh?
 
All parts change from model to model, and even within a model. For example, earlier MBPs Apple used HDs from a multiple of vendors, some better than others, and it was just a lottery as to which you ended up with.

I know from personal experience, the MBP screens got brighter with each successive model. The same is likely with the RMBP too. But that said, while the RMBP's screen isn't as bright as the current MBP, it's by no means dim. The MBP is maybe a 2-3 ticks brighter, and at top brightness the MBP will burn out your own retinas unless you are in the noon sun, no shade.
 
According to the Anandtech review, the rMBP display is 20% dimmer than the earlier MBP.
 
This is anecdotal of course, but coming from a 2011 MBP, I think it's plenty bright, and usually have it turned down a bit.
 
To add to this, if you haven't seen it in person, it's very dim. This doesn't bother most people; don't assume you're in the majority. However, it was so dim that it drove me to buy the 2012 cMBP version with anti-glare. If you're used to the high brightness, do NOT switch yet.
 
skitzogreg said:
To add to this, if you haven't seen it in person, it's very dim. This doesn't bother most people; don't assume you're in the majority. However, it was so dim that it drove me to buy the 2012 cMBP version with anti-glare. If you're used to the high brightness, do NOT switch yet.
Click to expand...

thats not quite right.

I have a 2008 15" Macbook Pro, a 2010 13" MBP, a 2011 17" MBP, and a 2012 15" rMBP... while yes at max brightness the rMBP is not quite as bright, its very close and very bright. I really only could notice it wasn't as bright by comparing them side by side.
 
I've visited 3 different Apple Stores and played around the with rMBP for quite awhile. One of the first things I noticed was the dimmer display but I didn't see it being a big problem. After comparing the uMBP and the rMBP by going back and forth between the display tables (and looking like an idiot), I can say that the brightness difference didn't stand out. However, the crispness and beauty of the retina display does in fact stand out.

Perhaps the lower brightness helps to maintain the battery life at ~7 hours, as stated by Apple. Eh?

tundoo
 
I have a mid-09 MBP 15, a 2012 MBA 13 and a rMBP at home currently.

I don't notice any difference in brightness between the two MBPs but the rMBP that I received has some noticeable yellow gradient areas as well, so I would be more concerned about quality control on the new screen than brightness.
 
whitedragon101 said:
The brightness of the new rMBP is down from the standard screen. Its about the same as dropping 2-3 units of brightness from max on a standard MBP, which is significant.

So the question :

Is there any chance of an extra bit of brightness in one of the yearly updates or will apple stick with this screen exactly as it is until the next 3 year refresh?
Click to expand...

Exactly how would anyone but Apple know what they will do in subsequent refreshes?
 
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