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Matte Man here with a totally unbiased take!

Personally, I think matte is preferable nine times out of ten, however that’s principally if we’re talking mobile tech. Reflections bug the living #### out of me. If I can place a screen in such a way that I control whether reflections are bothersome or not (almost never the case for my tics) then the superior contrast and colours of “shiny” are nice. I have this, somewhat, in my desktop setup but still run dual matte screens. One is an LG the other a Studio Display. There is a pretty stonking difference between their matte quality but either is better than shiny for me as my office is too well-lit for me to avoid reflections.

Choice is prime! I am content that Apple offers it for those that prefer it.
 
I’m an artist, and the Nano Texture screen is a big HELL NO for me. Since 2018, the iPad Pro has been my main content creation & media consumption device. In those 7 plus years, I have never had an issue with glare. But even if i did, I still wouldn’t get an iPad Pro with a nano texture screen. First of all, i don’t care what anyone says to the contrary, it DOES dull the vibrancy of the colors. To me, that defeats the entire purpose of the OLED screen… to get the brightest most vibrant colors with the inkiest of blacks. The colors on the nano texture screen are dull dull dull and the blacks are grey! Doing that to an OLED screen is sacrilegious. Also, the nano texture gets dirtier & scratches more easily. Who wants to deal with that? Not me. I always get the 1 TB model for the storage, but I’ll never get it with a nano texture screen. Ever. To those that like it, you do you. Enjoy. But not for me.
 
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I’m an artist, and the Nano Texture screen is a big HELL NO for me. Since 2018, the iPad Pro has been my main content creation & media consumption device. In those 7 plus years, I have never had an issue with glare. But even if i did, I still wouldn’t get an iPad Pro with a nano texture screen. First of all, i don’t care what anyone says to the contrary, it DOES dull the vibrancy of the colors. To me, that defeats the entire purpose of the OLED screen… to get the brightest most vibrant colors with the inkiest of blacks. The colors on the nano texture screen are dull dull dull and the blacks are grey! Doing that to an OLED screen is sacrilegious. Also, the nano texture gets dirtier & scratches more easily. Who wants to deal with that? Not me. I always get the 1 TB model for the storage, but I’ll never get it with a nano texture screen. Ever. To those that like it, you do you. Enjoy. But not for me.
Those are good points for iPads having NT, but it has different applications for digital artists who use Macs with a Stylus.
 
Love the nano 13” m4 I’ve got. I use it each and every day, 10-14 hours a day (yeah, I know, I’ve got no life) and it’s awesome. I never trade back to glossy if I can help it.
- writing is better
- reading with glaring overhead office lighting is much better
- reading outside is soooo much better
- it feels easier on my eyes, the sharpness of the glossy 11” m4 hurts my eyes 🤪
- the Smart Keyboard doesn’t print into the screen (big surprise, I really was expecting that)
- the nano screen is surprisingly durable, I do baby it, I admit, but still accidents happen, it is used every day for hours with a pencil and stil there are no scratches

Disadvantages?
- no screen protector possible, that’s hard for me
- colors are not as vibrant (but I don’t notice/ care much about that)
- it’s expensive. really expensive. Moronic to be honest. Would I buy it again? Absolutely, without thinking even for a second about it. And pay for with without blinking.
 
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it’s expensive. really expensive. Moronic to be honest.
Well, yes and no… I mean, it’s only $100, right? If I decided NT would be beneficial, I wouldn’t hesitate to spend $100 more to get it. The problem is you need to pay the huge premium for a 1TB model just to be in a position where you can pay the $100 for the NT! For my work, 256gb is plenty (heck, I’d ne fine with 64-128gb), so that does make NT really expensive for me.
 
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Glare on the standard screen is an ongoing issue whether people will acknowledge it or not. The colors of that great screen are washed out in many many use cases due to the reflections. OLED isn’t just about deep blacks. it’s about the range of grey that can be reproduced and that is still very much apparent on the nano textured screen.

My two primary use cases are as a companion to my computer at work and as a reading/writing/drawing device at home. At work the nano makes the device usable at all angles, including angles that are much more comfortable for writing, without the glare from overhead lights that makes a glossy screen unusable.

At home my primary use location gets direct morning sun which again makes a glossy screen unusable in many positions. Whereas the nano remains completely usable and comfortable to read and write on at any angle in any seating position.

Again, it is much more akin to working with a nice piece of paper rather than a mirror. By far my favorite part of the device and I doubt I’ll own another ipad without it.

FWIW I find fingerprints much less noticeable than on the glossy display because there is no reflection to make them visible.
 
Well, yes and no… I mean, it’s only $100, right? If I decided NT would be beneficial, I wouldn’t hesitate to spend $100 more to get it. The problem is you need to pay the huge premium for a 1TB model just to be in a position where you can pay the $100 for the NT! For my work, 256gb is plenty (heck, I’d ne fine with 64-128gb), so that does make NT really expensive for me.
Exactly. As I said before, if this were a $100 option on the 256GB model or the iPad Air, it would be popular.
 
Exactly. As I said before, if this were a $100 option on the 256GB model or the iPad Air, it would be popular.
Absolutely this.


I still have the 11‑inch iPad Pro (the M4 generation), which my wife now uses. I bought the 13” nano because I needed a larger device but also wanted the compact “nano” form factor—an expensive compromise.

I did put a Paperlike screen protector on the 11‑inch iPad, but the rubber edge of the Smart Keyboard quickly rubs away the nano‑dot texture. At €20 per protector, those costs add up fast.

My primary reason for preferring the nano texture is how I work. I often lay the iPad flat on a meeting table to sketch plans and ideas with colleagues. Under standard overhead lighting the screen can be hard to read, and I also like to step outside between meetings to clear my head. With up to eleven back‑to‑back meetings a day, those short breaks are essential for staying productive.

Now I’m using a 13‑inch iPad Pro that has the nano‑texture screen. Given how useful this surface is for my workflow, Apple should make the nano screen more widely available—even if it carries an extra disclaimer about its fragility and specific intended uses.

Added:
My wife isn’t interested in the nano‑texture; I placed a tempered‑glass screen protector on the 11‑inch M4 instead. It reflects everything, but she mainly uses it to binge‑watch series while doing laundry. It’s a bit disappointing to see the M4’s processing power underutilized, yet that’s how many iPads end up being used.
What small percentage of iPads are used up to 14 hours a day, how many iPads are tapping into the full performance it can deliver?
 
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My wife isn’t interested in the nano‑texture; I placed a tempered‑glass screen protector on the 11‑inch M4 instead. It reflects everything, but she mainly uses it to binge‑watch series while doing laundry. It’s a bit disappointing to see the M4’s processing power underutilized, yet that’s how many iPads end up being used.
What small percentage of iPads are used up to 14 hours a day, how many iPads are tapping into the full performance it can deliver?
Tempered glass ruins the experience in my opinion, the antiglare coating in the standard glass is one of the best in the market (and was much improved since the M4) but a tempered glass protector makes the iPad look like a mirror
 
Tempered glass ruins the experience in my opinion, the antiglare coating in the standard glass is one of the best in the market (and was much improved since the M4) but a tempered glass protector makes the iPad look like a mirror

Exactly why I removed the last screen protector I used and haven't returned to them.
 
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It's the contrary for me, I find them more visible on the nano because lights reflects on them.
I mean, I have two of them here in front of me and it’s not even close. There is much more light reflected on the glossy screen which makes the fingerprints much more noticeable. The nano disperses the reflections minimizing them while the glossy screen highlights the gap between the content and the prints on the surface of the glass. Nano makes the ipad usable at a flat angle even in direct sunlight or with bright overhead lighting. Again, like a piece of paper.

IMG_0007.jpeg
 
I mean, I have two of them here in front of me and it’s not even close. There is much more light reflected on the glossy screen which makes the fingerprints much more noticeable. The nano disperses the reflections minimizing them while the glossy screen highlights the gap between the content and the prints on the surface of the glass. Nano makes the ipad usable at a flat angle even in direct sunlight or with bright overhead lighting. Again, like a piece of paper.

View attachment 2575188
Like a glass protector.
IMG_0264.jpeg
 
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For me, the definition and colors of the nanotexture display are worse. Blacks are gray. It's like having a low-quality IPS display.

IMG-0213.jpg


IMG-0214.jpg
nnno
Blacks are still as black as always on the Pro iPads with tandem mini LED screens.
It appears as grey, but black is and remains black.
Minor technical difference but still, blacks remain black.
 
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I’ve never seen a screen protector that compares to the nano screen.
Are your photo from a ‘commercial’ for the product? Zhenya’s photos are real experience.
Many matte screen protectors do just as well as the nano in terms of combatting reflections. I have several brands that are excellent at that. The idea that nano is far superior at that is just lack of enough experience by nano fans. Probably due to the experience with Paperlike, which is lousy at combatting glare.
Where nano IS superior is in delivering that plus the lack of grain in bright backgrounds, which those really matte screen protector do poorly at because they introduce grain (contrary to Paperlike which introduces very little grain)
 
Many matte screen protectors do just as well as the nano in terms of combatting reflections. I have several brands that are excellent at that. The idea that nano is far superior at that is just lack of enough experience by nano fans. Probably due to the experience with Paperlike, which is lousy at combatting glare.
Where nano IS superior is in delivering that plus the lack of grain in bright backgrounds, which those really matte screen protector do poorly at because they introduce grain (contrary to Paperlike which introduces very little grain)

I don't think anyone is arguing that there aren't protectors that combat reflections as well (or even better), the argument is there aren't any that come close to being as anti-reflective while offering the same clarity/minimal impact on image quality; I tried a bunch, and couldn't find any, and I don't think they exist. If you know of a brand that can compete, let us know.
 
I don't think anyone is arguing that there aren't protectors that combat reflections as well (or even better), the argument is there aren't any that come close to being as anti-reflective while offering the same clarity/minimal impact on image quality; I tried a bunch, and couldn't find any, and I don't think they exist. If you know of a brand that can compete, let us know.
Absolutely, that's what I said. Nothing offers both lack of grain and and excellent anti-glare capability of nano. With screen protectors you need to choose clairity or anti-glare.
What I wanted to say is that some people say with screen protector you see nothing under direct sunlight contrary to nano. That's false, at least with some protectors. But you need to give up clarity.
Paperlike is king of clarity, very close to nano, but really bad with light reflections, honestly Paperlike should not be used to prevent reflections, but mainly to protect the screen, have more friction with the pencil (but the paper fell is not amazing, not much better than nano itself) and protect from finger prints (the biggest factor for me).
In terms of matte there are several brands that offer extremely good antiglare screen protectors for very cheap (under $10) but they are very grainy (if you buy them, use dark mode as much as possible, including extensions like Noir on Safari to avoid seeing white staff, because it's going to be grainy).
I don't think it's possible to have both clarity and good anti-glare with screen protectors, you need to choose one.

Having said that, Apple has done a great job with tandem oled in terms of anti-reflective coating in the standard glass. Today I watched a Netflix series with my girlfriend on the Samsung S8 ultra and man that thing is a mirror. Moving to the iPad pro M4 for the follwoing episode was such a nice improvement and totally fine indoor. That's why I don't want to mess with screen protector on tandem oled. But anything M2 or earlier definitely has a screen protector.
 
had my nano texture a few weeks and love it. my next macbook pro will have it as well. best way forward for me imo
 
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