Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Shoul I just get the standard definition, or go "HI-Def or nothing"?

DDar

DDar

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 9, 2007
293
0
Okay, well as most of you know I wanted to get a 17'' MBP with a 1920x1200 display andLED backlightin. Thing is, my family is adamamnt to the idea of buying it online due to some crap about 40% interest rates and it SOMEHOW making the laptop cost $1000 more and not $100.

Anyways, I'm going to be using this laptop mainly for digital painting, so a nice display is rather important to me... Do you think I should be stubborn and hope he can somehow get me th 1920x1200 laptop soon, or should I settle for the regular 17'' screen? Do you think the display is good enough to fit my needs, or will it disappoint?

(Keep in mind I live in Mexico and there are no Mac stores for me to go check myself)
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPod; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_0_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5B108 Safari/525.20)

settle for 17inch because I think (not sure) that the hd screens are really glossy so they have a reflection!
 
Well nether is really HD and not HD these terms are for televisions. What computers go by is more resolution = more work space but even this isn't totally accurate.
My advice is to get the standard 1680 x 1200 display as depending on your eye sight this works best for most on a 17 inch display but others personal opinions will vary as some people have better eye sight, some have worse.
I run MB 13 inch and to me the pixel/inch is spot on for the size of screen if the menus, text, icons were any bigger or smaller i don't think it would be well balanced.
 
since you mentioned digital painting, the more resolution (pixels) the better, as you get a bigger digital canvas. but it's a matter of personal preference, since you can always get an external monitor, say 24" or something to make it bigger...

if you do choose the HD display, the pixel density might be overwhelming, as the pixels are very packed close together. I run the MB 13" with no choice of HD or regular display, so I can't be sure. But the quality of the HD display is typically better, IMHO.
 
Well, yeah I know there's more space, but what I'm more worried about is the color display and other things like that. =S
 
DDar,
if you are willing to spend the extra money, DEFINITELY get the higher res screen. i work at a company that buys a lot of Apple computers. i myself use a 17" MBP with the higher res screen. i also know of someone who has the same model but with the 1680x1050 screen. there is a HUGE difference. not just in resolution but in display quality. for the most part, Apple cuts corners when it comes to their LCD panels they use. mostly in the notebooks. however, there are a few models that get the good ones. the 1920x1200 LCD that i have is one of them. i've seen them both in action and my screen is WAY bright, has WAY better contrast and colors compared to the standard 17" in display. i've seen tons of Apple notebooks come through here and i have been able to scrutinize them all. Bottom line: 1920x1200 screen = awesome. standard 1680x1050 screen = low quality, can be likened to a display on a $400 budget Lenovo notebook in my opinion.
 
Hey, do you guys think maybe I should just get a 15-inch MBP instead since it has LED lighting?
 
neiltc13 said:
You didn't explain what you wanted to use the computer for.
Click to expand...

Yes I did. :(
I plan on using it for digital painting with a Wacom tablet. I need it for my AP Portfolio. Sooo... color is rather important.
 
gabeoravitz said:
i'm not sure i would. mostly because of striping issue.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/501838/

as i said earlier, i see a lot of Macbook Pros come through here, and i too have already seen one with this problem. and the LCD panels aren't as nice.
Click to expand...

So, I should stick with the 17'', even if it's just the standard definition? Without LED lighting? Do you think the colors will be good enough?
 
gabeoravitz said:
probably, i've not seen a 17" have the striping issue.
Click to expand...

True, but will the colors be vivid and nice enough? I can't really compare screens, but aren't the standard LCDs somewhat dull? :(
Also, I've heard that standard LCDs fade over time. I'm going to be using this computer pretty much every day... I need it to last me more than a year, you know? Especially if I end up going to art school...
 
well, i hate to have to be so honest, but basically, if you don't get a Apple notebook with a good screen, then you're getting one that's total trash. that's how i see it. i'm picky and i want a good image. most Apples do NOT deliver that. i think it's unacceptable. the iMacs have a fantastic screen, my upgraded 1920x1200 is fantastic. but a lot of the other ones...YES they are dull. very dull. and within less than a year the screens DO fade and become dim. and not only that, as they get older, the time they take to wake up gets longer and longer. by "wake up", i mean, the screen lighting back up. after about a year or two it is bad. to the point where it doesn't light up all the way for about a full minute or two. and i have also seen it getting to the point where the backlighting is uneven and discolored. there also have been reports of "sparkly" looking screens due to Apple using low quality LCDs (low quality by $2,000 notebook standards at least). see below.

http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/05/18/lawsuit-over-mac-book-mac-book-pro-displays

it's something else i have personally experienced with a MBP. in my experience, the first and second gen MBPs had those LCDs, the thrid gens were MUCH better, but in the fourth gens, they went back to having issues. my advice: if there's any chance of you getting the upgraded 1920x1200 LCD in your 17", DO IT. don't risk it. because, at least with mine, it's a GREAT LCD panel. mine is a 4th gen 17" MBP with the upgraded, glossy 1920x1200 screen. much better than any of the others, both the standard 15s and 17s.
 
Unfortunately, with the way things are looking, there's chance of that happening, no matter how much I may want it. So yeah, I'm stuck between deciding on a 15'' LED or a 17'' standard. :(
 
As your doing digital painting, I'd recommend getting the 15 inch MBP, and then getting a 30 inch monitor, and hooking it up, that way you'll have a great canvas.
 
Okay guys, the only way I'd be able to get an external monitor would be if I got the baseline 15'' MBP, in which case I could get a 23'' Cinema Display (I have NO idea how I'd go about getting another type monitor here in Mexico...). However, I'd have to sacrifice the computer's processor and GPU power... Something that I REALLY don't want to do since I want my Mac to take on all my Photoshop painting and possible future SPORE playing without breaking a sweat... What do you guys think I should do?

(Btw, if any of you have suggestions for other, cheaper displays that are equally as good I'd be glad to hear 'em.)
 
DDar said:
Okay, well as most of you know I wanted to get a 17'' MBP with a 1920x1200 display andLED backlightin. Thing is, my family is adamamnt to the idea of buying it online due to some crap about 40% interest rates and it SOMEHOW making the laptop cost $1000 more and not $100.

Anyways, I'm going to be using this laptop mainly for digital painting, so a nice display is rather important to me... Do you think I should be stubborn and hope he can somehow get me th 1920x1200 laptop soon, or should I settle for the regular 17'' screen? Do you think the display is good enough to fit my needs, or will it disappoint?

(Keep in mind I live in Mexico and there are no Mac stores for me to go check myself)
Click to expand...

so order one from the mexico apple store. store.apple.com/mx

i live in mexico, and i know no retailer charges 40% interest for anything

there are no official apple stores in mexico, but there are plenty of stores that carry macs. ive never seen a hd17" in store before but you can see the standard ones. macs are sold in many many places but seriously, just order it from the macstore.

i dont know what the problem is....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back