Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Screen blooming on the new Pro's
- Thread starter maka344
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If you were sensitive to this and were hoping for a fix I don't think you will be in luck - I think it's inherent in the mini-LED screen technology.
Not sure if you are worried about this from online reviews or through experience. For me the blooming is not noticeable day to day unless I actively look for it in certain situations (dark room and very high contrast area) and overall the screen is the best laptop screen I've ever used.
Not sure if you are worried about this from online reviews or through experience. For me the blooming is not noticeable day to day unless I actively look for it in certain situations (dark room and very high contrast area) and overall the screen is the best laptop screen I've ever used.
Blooming is a bi-product of LED/LCD screens, some may have it less than others based on the panel lottery, but it is what it is.
I never understood the blooming problem with mini-LED personally, on a normal LCD the whole screen is blooming lol
Anecdotally, there seems to be less blooming on the 14" M3 MBP than the 14" M2 MBP. It's still there, but it's much reduced. Separately, blooming around the notch has been fixed, i.e. on the M2, if you hide your cursor under the notch right at the edge, you'll see some blooming around the notch; on the M3, I don't see any.
I think this issue has been mythologized much like other Apple perceived hardware foibles. I've never seen any screen blooming on any of my Apple silicon laptops. The only device where I did actually see blooming is my ipad 12.9 M1, which I use in dark environments. Under normal lighting conditions I never see any blooming. The quality of the M3 screens is much improved over M1 (which I sold). Both in terms of brightness and -- somehow nobody is talking about it -- pixel response.
I own both the 12.9 iPad Pro and an M3 16in MBP. The screen on the MBP has far less blooming in my opinion. I hardly notice the blooming and I am very sensitive about my screen quality.
For the OP - if you're bothered by the blooming enough to not purchase, I believe the rumours are that OLED screens will arrive on the MBP around 2025/2026. That's in line with the usual cycle for a major refresh (where the chassis/display/non SOC components) are updated roughly every 4 or 5 years. Personally I'd pull the trigger now if you're in the market, they're awesome machines and the blooming is really minimal thanks to the high number of dimming zones. I truly don't even notice it on the MBP, whereas on the Pro Display XDR its quite obvious.
This is just a byproduct of the technology, much like screen burn in with OLED.
Try your content at the store prior to purchase, I have a 12.9 ipad pro m2, and while its noticeable if I'm looking for it, its does not distract or annoy me in any way during normal use.
