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macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Apr 28, 2011
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What are the differences of the MBA and MBP 13 inch screens, if any?

What about the hi-res 15" MBP?
 
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One is covered in glass, the other isn't.

One has a high-resolution for it's size, the other doesn't.

The 15 inch MacBook Pro screen is more or less the same as the 13 macbook pro in terms of quality, although the 15 hi-res will have a higher pixel density and appear sharper.

All are TN screens and suffer from colour degradation at certain viewing angles.

To me the glossy models look better, but it's fairly subjective, and I don't do any print work, so it's more or less irrelevant to me.
 
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13" MBA has a way better resolution than the 13" MBP.
in terms of quality the 13" MBP is probably slightly better.

I'm in design, love the glass display, but hate the weight of the 13" MBP.
 
I prefer less glossy displays, due to glare, so I think the 13" MBA screen is better than the standard 15" MBP display. It is less glossy.

On the other hand the matte high res display that you can optionally purchase with the 15" MBP is the best display I've ever seen.
 
MBA vs. MBP 13" displays
- MBA has better resolution (significant advantage)
- MBP has better colours (colour gamut to be more specific)
- MBP might have slightly better viewing angles
- MBP is extremely glossy, because it has a glossy display AND a glass in front of the display which causes horrible glare. MBA has a glossy display too, but it's much less distracting, because there's no glass.

MBP 15" hi-res matte
- Clearly the best display of the lot, as it has all the upsides: good resolution, good colours and a non-reflective matte display.
 
Except resolution, MBP 13" screen is better than MBA screen.
And hi-res matte 15" screen is better than MBP 13" screen.

Hi-res matte 15" is the best TN screen I've ever seen.
 
15" by far, it has better color reproduction and range when using color managed apps, larger viewing angle, and larger easier to read fonts.

high dpi is over rated unless you can scale the ui and with lion you can not.
 
Can people stop spreading false myths. It's starting to getting annoying and its just not true.

First of all the the MBP13 is using different panels from different manufacturers. They all have different color gamuts!

Second my panel from samsung actually has a crap color gamut thats way below average. It's something like 70%. I believe any panel that the MBA's are using would blow this out of the water in terms of color gamut alone. Let's not even start about the resolution. People are easily deceived by the glossy screen covered by glass that camouflage all the defects.

Third I doubt you would notice the difference in color reproduction in any panel of any macbook anyway. Differences are so small that it becomes a matter of preferences. Only IPS is noticeably better.

So yeah I want this false information to stop because its just not true.
 
We have a 15" (samsung) AG HR, a 13" (samsung) Air, and a 11" LG in our house.

Now, the 11" is actually the best as it's resolution is the highest (I believe ) which makes it more sharp IMO.

Next up is the 15" (very nice). Then the 13.

But really, they are all so close as it would be accurate to say that there is no difference at all. They all are equally bright and look almost identical in their qualities. You just have to calibrate them to your liking.

(note: the 13,11" LG/Samsung difference is also non-existent)
 
The 15" MBP should have a better screen than any of the airs. However, I cannot stand the ultra glossy laptop displays (but I do like the iMacs and Cinema Displays). I find the ultra glossy notebook displays unusable in an outdoor environment or any really well lit environment. Others don't mind it.

I agree with the posts about the hi-resolution Macbook Pro 15" screen being Apple's best notebook display.
 
the 15" MBP screen (1440x900) beats the 13" MBA screen. i have them both and i just recently returned a MBA for a mbp 15" because of the beautiful screen. the 13" MBA screen looks/feels cheap... it felt like someone took the life out of the screen. the 15" mbp screen... no high-res screen... is ALIVE... colors more vibrant... and i don't get a headache( true story) . watch a 1080p vid on both the screens at a apple store... you will see how much more crisp the 15"MBP screen is... i don't even have the high-res screen for the MBP however, i don't even regret it because I'm so glad that its million times better than my MBA screen. seriously... apple messed up.
 
the 15" MBP screen (1440x900) beats the 13" MBA screen. i have them both and i just recently returned a MBA for a mbp 15" because of the beautiful screen. the 13" MBA screen looks/feels cheap... it felt like someone took the life out of the screen. the 15" mbp screen... no high-res screen... is ALIVE... colors more vibrant... and i don't get a headache( true story) . watch a 1080p vid on both the screens at a apple store... you will see how much more crisp the 15"MBP screen is... i don't even have the high-res screen for the MBP however, i don't even regret it because I'm so glad that its million times better than my MBA screen. seriously... apple messed up.

Meh I think Apple screwed up offering crappy resolutions on the 13" Macbook Pro and based model 15" MBP.
 
Meh I think Apple screwed up offering crappy resolutions on the 13" Macbook Pro and based model 15" MBP.

the resolution on 13 pro is garbage i agree.. but the 15" inch screen has the same resolution as MbA 13" however the 15 looks alive and more vibrant than the 13" . one of the reasons why i chose to sacrifice portability over productivity.
 
All interesting debates. There is a similar thread going on in the MBP forum.

A good amount of MBA forum says the MBA has the better or is matched.

Most of the MBP guys say the MBP.

Hmmm... :p
 
If you ask me, all MacBooks (Pros and Airs) have better than above screen by notebook standard, but crummy by external display standard. That has more to do with TN than anything, but I am often struck by how much better iPad and external IPS LCD looks compared to my MacBook Pro (15-inch antiglare high-res).
 
MBP has a perfect screen, MBA has faulty screen (gradient at the bottom)

Yes...

The MacBook Pro's screen is definitely a lot better than the MacBook Air's.

Yes the MacBook Air's have High Resolution Screens, but they don't come near the Display Quality or Color Gamut that the MacBook Pro's have.

Hints the name "Air" light portable that gets the job done. "Pro" for professionals that need more color accuracy and better over all display quality.
 
Oh god this is old. Anyone that may not be aware, ignore this user.

He's not wrong tho, probably his least inflammatory post on the matter too XD, most if not all have that gradient, but if you need great color reproduction even if it didn't have the gradient you wouldn't want the display in the air.
 
Oh god this is old. Anyone that may not be aware, ignore this user.

+1. He's already locked many a thread. As a rule of thumb, most people believe the MBP's have better color gamut than the airs.


I love my air--can't complain about it at all.
 
+1. He's already locked many a thread. As a rule of thumb, most people believe the MBP's have better color gamut than the airs.


I love my air--can't complain about it at all.

Yes the Air's are awesome, I was playing with one today at the Apple Store.

They are great for their purpose (being a very quick ultra portable for everyday tasks), people should not compare an Air to a Pro or vice versa.

They are two very different machines for different types of work.
 
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