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Retina screen for writing and reading

D

Divegent

macrumors member
Original poster
Hi, I currently own a cMBP and think about getting a MBA or rMBP. Do you think it's worth to take the Retina although I'm not working with pictures or videos often, but just for the much clearer text? Maybe it is an advantage when writing long essays etc?

Thanks
 
For me, the Retina display is most useful for photo and video work. Text is sharper but its very readable either way. If you are doing light work primarily, I'd suggest going with the MBA. You save both weight and cost. And now the 13" MBA has true all day battery life. That can be a real plus if you using hour laptop around campus or in class.
 
One the biggest advantages of the rMBP's is clear text. it's almost like reading text written on paper when you are at the usual viewing distance. IMHO the difference between text from the cMBP and MBA as compared to the rMBP is greater than is seen with photos.

And if you're writing and not doing CPU or graphics intensive tasks even the current rMBP's will give you great battery life. If you can wait until they are refreshed that battery life will just increase.
 
I have played with them in stores many times this year trying to decide just that, and I will be getting one in the fall. It is totally worth it for me.

I tried using an older iPhone the other day, and the fuzzy text reminded me how much I preferred a crisp screen.

If you write a lot, or if you a picky about font crispness like I am - and can afford to throw money at aesthetics - I think it makes sense.
 
Thanks for the answers. I just came back from the Apple Store (in Berlin, you know this one from the Keynote 😛) and compared both. Of course the retina screen is much better, but I decided to order the 13" MBA now, because of the weight and price difference. I really want to carry it around almost every day and get as much battery life as possible. Also I dont want to wait 3 months for the updated retina.

But I have to say that the colors on the Air weren't that great. Is it possible to noticeably improve this with calibration?

And, a bit off topic: i was surprised that the 11" Air looks much better in reality then on photos. I played with the idea of getting this one, too, but when you turn over to the 13" version you notice that it's not that much bigger, but looks better because of the screen/bezel ratio.

So my overall experience with displays from this store visit is: rMBP > 13 MBA > 11 MBA > 13 cMBP
 
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Photos look great but I'm a student and I'm always writing or reading something. Text looks amazing. The retina screen is supposed to be easier with the eyes. Everything feels great with this machine.
 
I can also confirm that I am getting subjectively less eye fatigue and much more pleasure from working with text on my rMBP 😉
 
I've written pretty much every day for 40 years. rMBP is the best writing implement ever.

I back-to-backed this issue as follows... When the rMPBs first came out, Apple had not yet updated iWork to retina resolution. I went to the store many times to test non-retina Pages on rMBPs. When Apple updated iWork, I returned, and continued testing, this time typing in the (new) retina version of Pages on rMBPs.

The difference is night and day.

And the same observation applies for Pages on a MBP vs. retina Pages on rMBPs...vast improvement in the retina hardware+software environment.

Trust me, if you're on your Mac (like I am) 10 hours a day, a lot of the time reading and typing, writing, editing, rMPBs are a godsend.
 
I've owned the 2012 Macbook Air and recently sold it to purchase a new one. I've been agonizing over the same issues you have(refurb rMBP or MBA) and decided to go with the rMBP. I realize it's the near the end of the rMBP product cycle, but buying one of these machines for about $1300 after tax is the best deal you'll get on a retina screen for awhile.

I am a student and would have loved the extra battery life in the new Haswell airs, but at the same time I spend 8 hours a day(most days) looking at the screen on my computer and I want to look at something stunningly beautiful. I've had the laptop now for about a week and have had zero problems with it. It's a bit smaller than air, but has a more substantial feel when you pick it up. The i5 handles everything I can throw at it(20 tabs in chrome, iWorks, photoshop, itunes, 1080P videos, and light gaming like Civ 5) and I'm excited to get more improvements when Mavericks comes out this fall(GPU accelerated UI graphics).

You can go with the Air, but now everytime I look at my girlfriend's MBA I see a huge silver bezel around a subpar screen(thanks for that retina screen). I love being able to bump my screen real estate up to the highest setting and have 2 or 3 different windows fully display(great for writing research papers cause I don't have to keep switching spaces like I did on the MBA). Overall I would give this laptop a 9/10 value proposition at a $1300 price tag.
 
PDFierro said:
This is the exact reason I'm waiting for the new rMBP. Big deal to us writers.
Click to expand...

Can you share with me what you're waiting on exactly? 🙂


To OP, I am a blogger and spend countless of hours on Facebook and my blog. I love the rMPB.. someone mentioned less eye fatigue.. and it's true. When I go to use my daughter's mbp, it's fuzzy and not all that great to read. The retina makes a big difference. 😛
 
MacGurl111 said:
Can you share with me what you're waiting on exactly? 🙂


To OP, I am a blogger and spend countless of hours on Facebook and my blog. I love the rMPB.. someone mentioned less eye fatigue.. and it's true. When I go to use my daughter's mbp, it's fuzzy and not all that great to read. The retina makes a big difference. 😛
Click to expand...

What do you mean? I'm on waiting on the new rMBP with Haswell, specifically. No way am I buying the one that is out now at this point.
 
PDFierro said:
What do you mean? I'm on waiting on the new rMBP with Haswell, specifically. No way am I buying the one that is out now at this point.
Click to expand...

I haven't done any research or read anything on the new one. Do you know where I can go to read about Haswell? 🙂 Thanks!
 
Divegent said:
Hi, I currently own a cMBP and think about getting a MBA or rMBP. Do you think it's worth to take the Retina although I'm not working with pictures or videos often, but just for the much clearer text? Maybe it is an advantage when writing long essays etc?

Thanks
Click to expand...

At this point I wouldn't use any other laptop to write or read on but my 15"rMBP. its really easy on my eyes.
 
TofSanity said:
At this point I wouldn't use any other laptop to write or read on but my 15"rMBP. its really easy on my eyes.
Click to expand...

So you think there is a big difference in the 13 and 15-inch rMBP? Because I compared both in the store extensively, and I didn't notice a huge difference in screen real estate. And the size/form factor of the 13-inch seemed much more ideal for writing.
 
PDFierro said:
So you think there is a big difference in the 13 and 15-inch rMBP? Because I compared both in the store extensively, and I didn't notice a huge difference in screen real estate. And the size/form factor of the 13-inch seemed much more ideal for writing.
Click to expand...

my son has a 13" Air that is noticeably smaller than my 15" rMBP. I never compared the 13" & 15" rMBPs because I wanted the 15" for me it's perfect. i needed the power and the additional RAM that the 15" had that the 13" didn't have at the time of my purchase. i carry it with me when i am out writing or working. it's in a bag with a Canon t3i, a few lens, books and what not. I don't find it too heavy. Like anything it's up to ourselves and wallets to decide.

For writing I feel a rMBP is the right way to go. I find that the screen doesn't tire my eyes over the hours of usage
 
well from a reading and writing point of view i would never leave the retina its been just around 17 days since I've got mine. I had to send it in for service recently and used my cMBp my eyes used to water. Plus images are crisper. Its like once you become a mac user you dont prefer working on windows much, same with once a retina user you dont feel like working on a non retina.
 
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