iMac 20" looks as bad as macbooks screen?

[paetrick]

Need to know, many people have compared the new iMac 20" screen with the one on the macbook. I've seen the screen on the macbook (but not the the iMac). No TN panel I've ever seen is as bad as a Laptop screen (or the one on the macbook), but is the iMac as bad as the macbook screen?

I can handle the little "brightness" diff between top and bottom, but if it's like a LAPTOP screen I would never even consider it to be a desktop PC.

So you guys with 20" iMac (alum), is the screen just like a regular 250-300 dollar TN display or is it like a laptop screen ?

Thanks for answers !

 

[rainydays]

It's far better than the MacBook screen. It'd say it's comparable to most TN displays in that price segment yeah. The glass makes it look a bit nicer though in my opinion.

 

[paetrick]

It's far better than the MacBook screen. It'd say it's comparable to most TN displays in that price segment yeah. The glass makes it look a bit nicer though in my opinion.

Sounds great, is it compareable with the "popular" 22" hp?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/comphacker/1083182482/

If so, I'm buuying

 

[kaidomac]

I said the same thing to my wife today when we stopped by the Apple Store, but she didn't seem to think so. The 24" screen looks normal, but the 20" screen looks the same as her 13" MacBook's screen to me - kinda washed out, not quite as good. The 24" on the other hand was more on par with my 15" MacBook Pro LED screen.

 

[paetrick]

I said the same thing to my wife today when we stopped by the Apple Store, but she didn't seem to think so. The 24" screen looks normal, but the 20" screen looks the same as her 13" MacBook's screen to me - kinda washed out, not quite as good. The 24" on the other hand was more on par with my 15" MacBook Pro LED screen.

So it's a macbook screen compared to a normal TN display?, it doesn't even compete with normal cheap Tn displays?

 

[Sean Dempsey]

I said the same thing to my wife today when we stopped by the Apple Store, but she didn't seem to think so. The 24" screen looks normal, but the 20" screen looks the same as her 13" MacBook's screen to me - kinda washed out, not quite as good. The 24" on the other hand was more on par with my 15" MacBook Pro LED screen.

FFS.

I have a MacBook and a 20" imac SIDE BY SIDE right now as I type this and they are NOT EVEN CLOSE to the same. The 20" screen is far, far better.

 

[rainydays]

I said the same thing to my wife today when we stopped by the Apple Store, but she didn't seem to think so. The 24" screen looks normal, but the 20" screen looks the same as her 13" MacBook's screen to me - kinda washed out, not quite as good. The 24" on the other hand was more on par with my 15" MacBook Pro LED screen.

That isn't an issue with the screen though. It comes with a terribly calibrated profile.

That said, the viewing angles aren't that good though, so looking at it from an angle will make it look washed out.

 

[queshy]

This whole screen thing has been blown out of proportion.

When the new iMacs were released I was working at FutureShop and when I saw them come in I went to my manager and asked "Hey, if you want I can set it up for you!" and he was like sure (and I'm like sweeeet lol). I set up the 20" iMac and immedietley noticed the screen looking kinda washed out...the problem is that they ship it with a weird profile.

One of the other profiles that shipped with the machine was 10000x better, but I forget which one it was. It was really obvious that the other profile was better. The screen was pretty nice (although I don't like the glossy part of it).

The only reason I would refrain from the new iMac is because of the screen being glossy - it was gorgeous, but I could just imagine the reflection in my bright bedroom.

 

[DemNoir]

I have used that 22" HP and I like my 20"iMac better. The HP is more glossy than the iMac and has a strange rippling effect almost like your looking into an aquarium.

As others have said changing monitor profiles is essential, the one it ships with is awful. I'm having excellent results with the one posted in this forum by alloye. Properly calibrated, the screen is very good.

 

[paetrick]

I have used that 22" HP and I like my 20"iMac better. The HP is more glossy than the iMac and has a strange rippling effect almost like your looking into an aquarium.

As others have said changing monitor profiles is essential, the one it ships with is awful. I'm having excellent results with the one posted in this forum by alloye. Properly calibrated, the screen is very good.

Sounds great, just one more thing, I know that if you want to turn down the brightness on the screen even more you'll need shades or a program like shades -> Does this takes much CPU/RAM? , would be awful to use a louse programmed program just to turn down the screen to a brightness lvl my eyes can handle without hurting (very sensitive)...

Thanks !

 

[Virgil-TB2]

This whole screen thing has been blown out of proportion ... I set up the 20" iMac and immedietley noticed the screen looking kinda washed out...the problem is that they ship it with a weird profile.

One of the other profiles that shipped with the machine was 10000x better, but I forget which one it was. It was really obvious that the other profile was better. The screen was pretty nice (although I don't like the glossy part of it)...

I just got mine a couple of hours ago and only had time to turn it on for fifteen minutes or so before I left work and it looks pretty bad IMO. I am going to try playing around with the profiles tomorrow, but I am not impressed so far.

Although I have great confidence in Apple, it seems they are doing *so* much in 2007 that I think their quality is actually slipping a bit.

For instance I don't see how I will ever get used to the huge gradient in brightness between the top and the bottom of the screen. I read about this in the forum, but once you see it, it's pretty startling. The icons at the bottom are quite washed out, and the top looks like it has a tint on it like an car's windscreen. I spent almost the entire time I was using it tilting the monitor back and forth trying to see different parts of the screen.

So far I haven't heard of any solution for this either, just that you "get used to it" or stop noticing it after a while. Damn Greenpeace for making Apple move to the new screen!

Edit: I realised after I posted that this has nothing to do with the Greenpeace LCD issue. Different screen.