So I am planning on getting a 12" powerbbok very soon and have heard some things about the screens being poor.
any truth to this? is it just nitpicking? Us damn computer nerd always complain if it isnt perfect ya know!
so what are your thoughts/experiences?
Comments
Originally posted by Amorya
I'm happy enough with mine. Brightness is the only complaint - it's slightly dimmer than I'd like sometimes. Otherwise, it's a heck of an improvement over my last laptop, a Pismo.
Which generation do you have? I have one of the first generation and the screen is not that good. The Wallstreet Powerbooks (6 years old now!) have a much better display.
My main complain is the very poor viewing angles in the 12" Powerbook. Brightness is not great, but not as bad as the angles. Furthermore, it is very difficult to calibrate this display with the provided software (which in Panther is pretty good), nor with other software like SuperCal. And the response of the screen while moving windows, is not good either. Although the DVD playback is OK, when you try to move an open window, the window edge in the direction you move it almost dissapears. This perhaps means that the response times of these displays are just horrible, but I am not sure.
Originally posted by earthtoandy
So I am planning on getting a 12" powerbbok very soon and have heard some things about the screens being poor.
any truth to this? is it just nitpicking? Us damn computer nerd always complain if it isnt perfect ya know!
so what are your thoughts/experiences?
the screen is fine unless youre one of those people that demands an unrealistic battery life and a screen brighter than the sun.
I just wondered if there was anything worth serious concern.
both the complaints so far seem mild. dont matter too much. like i said just wondered if there was any other serious concern.
thanks for the comments
Originally posted by earthtoandy
I just wondered if there was anything worth serious concern.
both the complaints so far seem mild. dont matter too much. like i said just wondered if there was any other serious concern.
Well, if viewing angles, a somewhat weak brightness (and this is subjective to some extend--under home lighting the night I keep the brightness at about 5-6 notches from 16 total) and response times are not a problem for you, then there are no other serious concerns with those displays. At least I cannot see anything serious.
Viewing angle is great here - no complaints. Horizontally it's almost unlimited. Vertically is a bit less good, but that's easily adjustable.
damn its a sexy computer... just touching the keys makes me happy. I how a new rev comes out in the next few months though. would be nice to see a little more juiced g4 in it
I had a 12" iBook before so that is my only point of reference for a laptop.
Screen is plenty bright enough for my needs. At night when I have the room lights turned down, I have to turn down the screen brightness.
Agree with Amorya about the viewing angles.
I think the 12" is a great size for a portable. I travel a lot and it is very easy to use on a plane and other tight quarters. Since it's not your only machine, I wouldn't be too worried. Everyone is different though so it would be worth a look. Plenty of 'em around.
Good luck.
The machine is awesome. I do think the display is quite dim though. When I bring home my work machine (Winbloz notebook) the screen is extremely bright compared to my 12" PB. When the PB display is at 100% brightness, it's only about 1/2 as bright as the HP NC4010 using normal settings (about 75% brightness).
When I'm using the machine at night (with all the lights turned off) I usually keep the PB brightness at about 3 bars. It's plenty bright during those times. During the day, I have to crank up the brightness to 100% for it to be good for me...
Your mileage may vary
Originally posted by earthtoandy
i just wish i could get the backlit keyboard with the 12". that would be perfect
Yeah, I wonder why they didn't include that feature with the 12er, would have been nice. The screen could have been brighter and less grainy, something on the lines of Sony's Xbrite technology. It?s good enough though, especially when you connect it to an external monitor.