I wouldn't worry, if enough people complain to Apple about this then Apple can just release a firmware update to address the issue and send more power to the LED backlighting.
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The new 17 MBP - My observations
- Thread starter mmoran27
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I wouldn't worry, if enough people complain to Apple about this then Apple can just release a firmware update to address the issue and send more power to the LED backlighting.
I should mention i calibrated my battery even though in the manual it now doesnt mention anything about doing it like it does with other MacbooksHowever on Apples site it says you should, even with this 2009 Model.
How do you "calibrate a battery"? Any links?
Also, how do you use your 17" -- do you basically use it without the power connection, and then connect the laptop to power so it can recharge? Don't people usually use laptops connected to the power?
LEDS are incredibly simple. More power = brighter, as long as you dont go over their maximum rating theirs no issue, i wonder if Apple used the same power rating LED backlighting mechanism as in the 15" though, which is why its dimmer.
Did the apple employee confirm that the 17" was a matte while the 15" was the usual glossy? He should have.
I just assumed that the maximum wasnt an artificial limitation, or isnt that far from the maximum output of the LEDs
I'm going to have to disagree about the screen quality. I had the 15" unibody MBP and now have the 17" unibody, glossy, and the screen noticeably better IMO. Also, I can still read this text looking at it from the widest possible angle. There is also A LOT less backlight leakage, almost none to be honest.
Sorry, forgot to mention that both 17s at the store had the glossy screen. The guy said that the stores will not be carrying the mattes.
i agree
however, my fans will not go hardly above 2000. i've seen my cpu at 94 c. is that normal??
i know my fans do work, i downloaded smc fan control to cool things down, but shouldn't they change on their own?
I have a 15" Santa Rosa 2.4GHz MacBook Pro with the LED-backlit screen. (matte) -- I have been super pleased with the brightness, clarity, sharpness, and color depth of the display.
My concern is that the new 17" matte may not be up to par with the previous 15" LED-based matte screens (my 15" 2007 matte MBP is BRIGHT). There is talk that the matte screens (the 17" unibody aniglare) is "dim, washed-out, etc", but it's clear that the glossy ones do not exhibit these issues.
I'm in the serious contemplation of upgrading to a 17" -- I had planned on the matte screen. I'd like to see if anybody has actually had hands-on experience to do a side by side comparison of the glossy vs antiglare 17" and actually can report a verdict, and sound credible with an answer this question.
Thanks
My concern is that the new 17" matte may not be up to par with the previous 15" LED-based matte screens (my 15" 2007 matte MBP is BRIGHT). There is talk that the matte screens (the 17" unibody aniglare) is "dim, washed-out, etc", but it's clear that the glossy ones do not exhibit these issues.
I'm in the serious contemplation of upgrading to a 17" -- I had planned on the matte screen. I'd like to see if anybody has actually had hands-on experience to do a side by side comparison of the glossy vs antiglare 17" and actually can report a verdict, and sound credible with an answer this question.
Thanks
I actually wanted to buy one.
I was thinking about getting one.
There were several in-store models and the screens were all dimmer than the 15 inch macbook pro.
I still think its excellent and the display is beautiful its just too dim for me.
For that resolution I would rather have a 24 IPS 24 panel.
I was thinking about getting one.
There were several in-store models and the screens were all dimmer than the 15 inch macbook pro.
I still think its excellent and the display is beautiful its just too dim for me.
For that resolution I would rather have a 24 IPS 24 panel.
I also did a side-by-side 17" vs. 15" at the Apple Store today. Same conclusion as several others here: the 17" had a dimmer screen than the 15" with both at full brightness. That wouldn't be a deal breaker for me, though.
Judging by the atrocious light bleed on both the 15" unibodies I had, less light would have been a whole lot better (not that it helped much to dim the screen).
The 17" screen is head and shoulders above the 15". It's perfectly matched to the excellent lighting levels of my 24" Apple LED display and how it compares with a 15" presently sitting in the Apple Store doesn't really have any relevance. At home I'm using the 17" four levels down from full brightness and any suggestion that it looks dim would be preposterous.
I'm referring to the glossy – I haven't seen the matte.
The 17" screen is head and shoulders above the 15". It's perfectly matched to the excellent lighting levels of my 24" Apple LED display and how it compares with a 15" presently sitting in the Apple Store doesn't really have any relevance. At home I'm using the 17" four levels down from full brightness and any suggestion that it looks dim would be preposterous.
I'm referring to the glossy – I haven't seen the matte.
Yes -- we know. Everybody says the glossys are plenty bright with no problems. It is the matte I am concerned about. Thanks
Huh? What are you basing that on? It's just as likely, if not more, that the circuit powering the LEDs is hardware limited at the max setting. It wouldn't make any sense to design the regulating circuit to handle higher current than necessary. Also, the higher the current the LEDs are driven at, the more the efficiency will drop and therefore the higher the heat production will be. It would be nice if it could be a simple matter of a firmware tweak, but assuming the designers/engineers gave it any thought then it is most likely a hardware limitation.
Also upgrading from the 15" Unibody here are my muses:
Im actually surprised at how strong it is, it feels so solid, i was expecting it to be flimsyer than the 15" but it simply isn't.
The screen is absolutely amazing, perhaps they are using two different screen brands because the Original Poster here mentioned that theres was quite dim, but mines much brighter than the 15" Unibody, its so bright it actually hurts my eyes when set to maximum literally! Perhaps the OP should review their automatic brightness based on environment settings.
Also on the screen the full High Definition resolution is simply stunning, i know on laptop screens there isnt much point watching HD movies because theyre smaller than 40 inches, but you can still notice a massive quality difference when watching 1080 movies compared to normal DVD's. Its really nice
I got 9 hours out of my battery using the 9400 card with Airport activated, Surfing the Web on Safari, listening to music on itunes, burning a few DVD's in toast, encoding some movies in handbrake and installing Windows 7 and uploading some new content to my site on CyberDuck, which i would say is about medium intensiveness on battery drain so i'm really impressed. I should mention i calibrated my battery even though in the manual it now doesnt mention anything about doing it like it does with other Macbooks
Finally I should mention its no bulkyer than the 15" and no more difficult to carry around, it actually feels smaller on your lap than the 15" in terms of size because theirs less bezel around the screen
Yes.....upgrading because the the 4 or 5 month old mac is old technology, time for a new one.