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Who really needs a Retina screen? or is it just the new cool thing

whoknows87

whoknows87

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Aug 8, 2012
676
31
S.Florida
There was a lot of hype when the rMBP 15 was introduced and now the same thing is happening with the 13 and I hear talks of people wanting an Air with Retina.... does the average user really needs a Retina screen? is it worth the premium price.... I would think the Retina Models are targeted to a specific select group of users not everyone....
 
They're for people who like clearer screens and better images. Some people, however, just want people to think of them as rich or cool. It does have some real use though if you are at your computer most of the day or work with images/video a lot.
 
i like the retina display because of increased in readability on small fonts.
 
Heck no!

No one needs it; if we did, how did we get along before 2012?

If you are a graphic designer or a pro photographer...you still don't need it.

But if you have an extra $600 burning a hole in your pocket and your ego is somehow entangled with the computer you carry and the car you drive; if you just want to one-up everyone else, it makes sense to get it, and to endure all of the v1.0 growing pains it implies.

Pioneers get the arrows; settlers end up with the land. I am content to let "Retina" trickle down to other models, and when I am ready to buy again in 2016 it will be a standard feature rather than a waaaaaaaay-overpriced option that really doesn't buy you much.
 
No one needs USB 3.0, but it's nice to have if you're already spending a boatload of cash on an Apple product.
 
If u hadta ask then u don't need it.

I like to go up to the Sydney bridge, but to me only worth $45, no more.
 
QuarterSwede said:
Once you're used to a retina screen on an iOS device (especially the iPhone) you notice every display that isn't one.
Click to expand...

really lol I had an iPhone 4 and now the 5 and switched from a MBP to an Air they all look the same to me , but then again i wear glasses :D
 
TomCat said:
No one needs it; if we did, how did we get along before 2012?

If you are a graphic designer or a pro photographer...you still don't need it.

But if you have an extra $600 burning a hole in your pocket and your ego is somehow entangled with the computer you carry and the car you drive; if you just want to one-up everyone else, it makes sense to get it, and to endure all of the v1.0 growing pains it implies.

Pioneers get the arrows; settlers end up with the land. I am content to let "Retina" trickle down to other models, and when I am ready to buy again in 2016 it will be a standard feature rather than a waaaaaaaay-overpriced option that really doesn't buy you much.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I had an "extra $600 burning a whole in my pocket" so I got it and it rocks. Although, after reading the rest of your comment, I realize I'm a serious douche bag. Thanks for the reality check; 2016 will be here before you know it.
 
TomCat said:
No one needs it; if we did, how did we get along before 2012?
Click to expand...

We got along using lower res screens - that we didn't need because if we did, how did we get along before 2006?

Well, we got along using even lower res screens on PowerPC Macs - that we didn't need because if we did, how did we get along before 1992?

Well, we got along using earlier Macs. And before that, Apple ][s.

And before that we got along just fine without computers at all.

We've also gotten along without antibiotics, chemotherapy and heart bypass operations. We got along without HDTV, stereo TV, colour TV and TV at all. We got along without DTS movies, Dolby Digital, Dolby Stereo, Panavision, colour movies, talkies, and movies at all.

We got along without indoor plumbing. Without toilet paper. Without outhouses. Without heat. Without electricity. Without telephone or telegraph. Without gas lighting. Without candles. And even, at one point in our history, without the wheel and fire.

Virtually everything we take for granted today and consider indispensable is something we once had to do without - in many cases within the lifetimes of people still alive today.

And you, well you seem to get along quite well without having a valid point to make.
 
ive got retina on my iphone, and i can see a difference with my ipad 2 but my mbp looks perfectly fine, looks as good as my phone to me
 
It would be great to have but I certainly don't need it. Up until a year ago screen resolution was pretty low on my list of concerns when selecting laptops/desktops. For the privilege of having a retina screen, I'd be willing to pay up to $100 as an upgrade option but no more than that if all else were equal.

Once you're used to a retina screen on an iOS device (especially the iPhone) you notice every display that isn't one.
Click to expand...

I have an ipad 3 and have had an iphone 4 and never once have I compared either of the two to a computer display and found it lacking. Maybe its because I perceive the two as completely different animals. I've played around with color profiles on my MBA and while it might not be retina quality I'm extremely satisfied with the 1440x900 resolution. The text is crisp, the contrast is good and I find that I don't pull out the ipad 3 nearly as much. If there is one thing I envy in a retina notebook it's color accuracy.
 
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Retina is not worth to me. When I do serious work its on an attached display. Current display is fine for my non work uses. To each their own.
 
As was demonstrated to me when I got an iPhone 3G to replace my Motorola backflip eailer this week the screen looks terrible compared to the retina display on my ipod touch. Like when I play with a iPad 3rd generation or retina MacBook Pro for a somewhat extended period of time the screen on my iPad 2 or my family's white MacBook for about half an hour.
 
Yes

It's a cool thing, and a preview of what's to come.

Revolutionary? No.

Evolutionary? Yes.

And the early models are going to cost a bit more.

I can't really argue against them for any other reason than price, because the screens certainly are stellar.

But need it? If you're a visual, digital artist, sure.
 
TomCat said:
No one needs it; if we did, how did we get along before 2012?
Click to expand...

You could argue the same for pretty much anything. We got along before computers. We got along before cars. We got along before electricity. Etc etc etc... It's evolution. No one needs the retina screen in the iPad 3 and the iPhone 4/4S/5, but it's a great improvement over the non retina iPad 2 and iPhone 3GS, is it not? It's become standard now. And it will eventually become standard on computers as well.
 
As someone who does work with video a lot, I don't really want a retina display at all. It's not going to make my work any better or improve my workflow, so I just don't see a need for it. If I were just using my computer for Facebook and Word documents, yes it would be great to have just because it's beautiful. I appreciate retina on my iPhone, which I just use for Facebook, games and cell phone stuff.
 
Truth is I didn't notice a HUGE difference at first, like with my iPad3rd, I was like "sure its nice, but meh" now EVERYTHING else looks like garbage (my monitor at work is basically a blur). It really is as though every other (non-r) display is now out of focus.
 
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