iBook G3/G4 screen quality?

kanekane
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I originally posted this question under another thread but I figured I would just ask my question here instead. Here goes:



I currently have a Powerbook G3 "Pismo" and I find it's screen very dim and uneven in its colour display. I even find it hard to do basic webdesign on it because of the color unbalance.



So my question is this: how is the quality/brightness of the screen on the 12" iBook G3/G4? I'm thinking of replacing my Pismo with one of these you see...

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    republicrepublic Posts: 168member
    The best thing you could do is try one out if possible. If a store near you has one for demonstration, clock some time with it. In my experience, it does pretty well, and seems better indoors than out, but that's to be expected. Of course, the iBook G3 and G4 you speak of both have smaller screens than your PowerBook G3, but as long as it's good enough for you, then it should be just fine. Look out for dead pixels, of course.
  • Reply 2 of 10
    ps5533ps5533 Posts: 476member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by KANE

    I originally posted this question under another thread but I figured I would just ask my question here instead. Here goes:



    I currently have a Powerbook G3 "Pismo" and I find it's screen very dim and uneven in its colour display. I even find it hard to do basic webdesign on it because of the color unbalance.



    So my question is this: how is the quality/brightness of the screen on the 12" iBook G3/G4? I'm thinking of replacing my Pismo with one of these you see...



    its nice but they are pretty small... i can sell you my tibook 550MhZ for a competitive price to those? if you want? let me know [email protected]
  • Reply 3 of 10
    his dudenesshis dudeness Posts: 560member
    These flat screens on the Powerbooks don't degrage over time, do they? I've got a Wallstreet Powerbook now and the screen is as good as my wife's new Dell laptop, and my screen has no dead pixels.



    You haven't had your screen near any magnets or anything have you?
  • Reply 4 of 10
    murbotmurbot Posts: 5,262member
    They do "go" after a time. My last Pismo was starting to get some pretty significant shadowy spots, particularly in the bottom corners. It was frustrating, and I couldn't stop myself from being bother by them. Once I started to think about them, and really looked for them, it was over. I had to sell the old girl.



    My iBook G4 is much better, though it does have a few very faint shadows near the edges. I don't think many LCDs like this are perfect, though the PowerBook displays are definitely better.
  • Reply 5 of 10
    his dudenesshis dudeness Posts: 560member
    How do like your new G4 iBook? I'm hopefully going to get a new laptop in a few months and I'm undecided on that one with 14" screen or the 15" G4 Powerbook. See, I maxed out a 14" G4 iBook on Apple's website with 640 megs of RAM, Bluetooth, and Airport Extreme for just under 1900. The Powerbook I want costs 1999 and doesn't come with Airport and has 256 of RAM. I might splurge and get the Powerbook because of the bigger screen. My eyesight ain't what it used to be...
  • Reply 6 of 10
    kanekane Posts: 392member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by murbot

    They do "go" after a time. My last Pismo was starting to get some pretty significant shadowy spots, particularly in the bottom corners.



    That's the same problem I am having with my Pinko Pismo. And it's no fun. My friend has a 1GHz G4 Powerbook (Ti) and its screen is VERY nice. Bright, good colours and reasonably good viewing angles.



    Needless to say I am envious of his hardware.
  • Reply 7 of 10
    his dudenesshis dudeness Posts: 560member
    Uh oh, gay overtones, gay overtones!!
  • Reply 8 of 10
    pbpb Posts: 4,255member
    Quote:



    I've got a Wallstreet Powerbook now and the screen is as good as my wife's new Dell laptop, and my screen has no dead pixels





    Same situation here: Wallstreet at home, and wife has a Dell from work. It is unbelievable how good the Wallstreet display is after 5.5 years of almost everyday use. Bright and vivid colors, easy calibration. It must be one of the greatest TFT displays of its time, and not only, if you look around to todays Powerbooks and PC laptops (well, most of them).



    As for the 12" iBooks and Powerbooks, their displays are not that good. I find them rather dim and with washed out colors. Fortunately there is calibration, but don't expect miracles on the 12" displays (I am talking from experience on my 12" Powerbook). Only the 15" and 17" Powerbooks have good displays, and even those could be significantly better (I mean better viewing angles, brightness and color) for the price. Look for example this: it is from 2002, and, sadly, the situation remains the same until today in the Powerbook territory. But the PC laptops now can have Xbrite.
  • Reply 9 of 10
    his dudenesshis dudeness Posts: 560member
    That test was interesting. However, I am very very skeptical of the test procedures. I see too many people making tests only to say what a pile of crap Macs are. This seems to be on the rise the past year or so. Just look at Dell's whining and complaining as of late...



    But yeah, my Wallstreet's screen is still kicking after 7 years of use. I bought it a few months after they came out, and it's been on almost every day since, with the exception of my deployments.
  • Reply 10 of 10
    splinemodelsplinemodel Posts: 7,311member
    The CCD backlights do go after some time, dependent on usage and how much amps you're running through them (brightness). The LCD's themselves are pretty stable. Of course, there's no way to replace a backlight that's built into the display.



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