New 20 incher NOT sharp-CRT blows it away
I got the new 20" cinema display and I may have to bring it back. Actually, so far I hate it. The picture is fuzzy. What I don't know is, is it just the way LCD's look, seeing how I never used one. I am am comparing it side by side with my Sony 19" CRT.
The main proble is small to medium text. In Adobe Illustrator and Microsoft word, 12, 14 and even 24pt type looks much fuzzier than on my CRT. Also, if i draw a circle in Illustrator on both displays, the Cinema display shows much more pixel evidence than the CRT.
I'm a graphic designer, and need to have an accurate crisp rendering on screen. Reviews of Apple LCD's always say they are amazingly crisp. I don't know why they say that. Maybe the new 20" isn't as sharp.
From a glance the image looks great, but reading a document in Word with 12pt type at 100% in max resolution doesn't even come close to the matching qualty of my CRT. I want to love this display, I just don't get. I've messed with the font smoothing settings to no avail.
What's the deal? Do I need to stick with a CRT?
<img src="confused.gif" border="0">
The main proble is small to medium text. In Adobe Illustrator and Microsoft word, 12, 14 and even 24pt type looks much fuzzier than on my CRT. Also, if i draw a circle in Illustrator on both displays, the Cinema display shows much more pixel evidence than the CRT.
I'm a graphic designer, and need to have an accurate crisp rendering on screen. Reviews of Apple LCD's always say they are amazingly crisp. I don't know why they say that. Maybe the new 20" isn't as sharp.
From a glance the image looks great, but reading a document in Word with 12pt type at 100% in max resolution doesn't even come close to the matching qualty of my CRT. I want to love this display, I just don't get. I've messed with the font smoothing settings to no avail.
What's the deal? Do I need to stick with a CRT?
<img src="confused.gif" border="0">
Comments
Apple displaye are very good and crip. A LCD cannot be blurry by definition.
If you don't want your 20inches screen, give it to me ;-)
p.
-I tried the font smoothing options, it doesn't help
ALSO, I noticed a faint red line on the right side of all letterforms and objects. If I draw a square in Illustrator, the right edge of the square has a red shadow, 1 pixel wide. I notice this most in the Apple menus. The vertical lines of letters have a slight red cast. Does this happen on your Apple flatscreens.
Here are some pics of my cinema display. I can take closeups if you'd like...
<a href="http://homepage.mac.com/vangorkomm/apple/PhotoAlbum45.html"; target="_blank">My 20" Cinema Display</a>
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RosettaStoned
<strong>I new people would think I was wrong. It is set on the default (highest) resolution. I have fooled around with the display settings. It's the anti-aliasing (font smoothing) that's the problem. It makes the type especially, appear blurry and the consistency of the letter forms changes as you change the point size.</strong><hr></blockquote>
System Preferences -> General -> Font Smoothing Style -> Medium (Best for Flat Panel)
<strong>
I can take closeups if you'd like...
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RosettaStoned</strong><hr></blockquote>
YES, please do. Also if possible could you take a shot of the display sitting beside the tower. I want to see the display's physical size in relation to the tower
<img src="confused.gif" border="0">
<strong>
The main proble is small to medium text. In Adobe Illustrator and Microsoft word, 12, 14 and even 24pt type looks much fuzzier than on my CRT. Also, if i draw a circle in Illustrator on both displays, the Cinema display shows much more pixel evidence than the CRT.
</strong><hr></blockquote>
I expect the fuzziness may be due to the anti aliasing (font smoothing). I believe on a LCD this can be done at the sub pixel level, giving black text a slight coloured 'shadow'.
In my experience LCDs do show more pixel evidence, simply because they are so sharp. The pixels are less noticeable on a CRT as they tend to blur into each other. I guess there's a balance to be struck with LCDs. You either have text sharp, in which case you can notice the pixels, or you use font smoothing, in which case you can notice some fuzziness.
Even so, I'd try and check out some other Apple LCDs to see if there is a genuine fault with your display or DVI-ADC adapter.
[ 02-01-2003: Message edited by: RodUK ]</p>
<strong>
YES, please do. Also if possible could you take a shot of the display sitting beside the tower. I want to see the display's physical size in relation to the tower
Why so much interest in a display with a ADC and 1 year warranty
<strong>
Why so much interest in a display with a ADC and 1 year warranty
Hey...it doesn't hurt to see
Re: your questions in the other thread that was locked. The 'i's in my menus don't look different, but the 'l' in 'File' is definitely thicker than the 'l' in 'Help.' If you look closely, you can see that the 'l' in 'Help' sits right on one column of pixels and doesn't use any sub-pixels, whereas the 'l' in 'File' sits on two columns of pixels and the sub-pixels on the outside of the 'l' are used.
<strong>
I expect the fuzziness may be due to the anti aliasing (font smoothing). I believe on a LCD this can be done at the sub pixel level, giving black text a slight coloured 'shadow'.
In my experience LCDs do show more pixel evidence, simply because they are so sharp. The pixels are less noticeable on a CRT as they tend to blur into each other. I guess there's a balance to be struck with LCDs. You either have text sharp, in which case you can notice the pixels, or you use font smoothing, in which case you can notice some fuzziness.
Even so, I'd try and check out some other Apple LCDs to see if there is a genuine fault with your display or DVI-ADC adapter.
[ 02-01-2003: Message edited by: RodUK ]</strong><hr></blockquote>
Yes, but font smoothing would NOT be happening on lines drawn in illustrator or even the normal OS. Its only applied to text. OS X does smoothing of text, but in no way does smoothing of graphic objects.
You've got a bad LCD.