why is mbp17in less grainy then 15in

[baybegirl]

i've been trying to decide wether im going to keep my mbp..because of the grainy display

how come the 17in is less grainy? ..people are saying the cause of the grain is because of the graphics card on the 15in..but if thats the case..shouldn't the 17in exhibit the same exact grain as well?...

if its because of the graphics card ill keep the mbp...in hopes it will be fixed with an update

but if its not the graphics card and the 15in lcd itself i'll have to sell it...do people think this is just a characterisitic of the 15in lcd and i'll just have to live with it?

 

[Apple Corps]

And where is it shown that the 17" is less "grainy" than the 15"???

I have a new 15" C2D and could not be happier with it thus far.

 

[a9mike]

Is this possibly a case in which *your* laptop has a defective screen? I have seen the screens on the 15s and 17s, both look absolutely brilliant... gloss or matte.

 

[baybegirl]

well if u look through the forums and the posts about the grainy issue you will notice that people who have both machines have said that the 17in is less grainy..and i've seen this at the apple store as well...it's probably cuz you don't even notice the grain in the first place..but it is there..seen it on all my 15in mbp that i had to go through ..and all at the apple store.

 

[dollystereo]

Very sensitive eyes, I think.
No granny display here, very hot computer instead.
MPB CD 2.0GHZ

 

[Apple Corps]

well if u look through the forums and the posts about the grainy issue you will notice that people who have both machines have said that the 17in is less grainy..and i've seen this at the apple store as well...it's probably cuz you don't even notice the grain in the first place..but it is there..seen it on all my 15in mbp that i had to go through ..and all at the apple store.

An incredibly SMALL and not statistically significant sample size to begin with. Beyond that, I imagine that the number of 15" models sold is much higher than the 17" - bound to get a few more gripes. I have a very discerning eye as my professional work utilizes high definition (1080p) video and ultra high resolution photographs, so it is not "cuz" I don't notice defective screens. Perhaps there are a lot of good screens out there.

My point is to exercise some caution in extrapolating some issues from the forums as being wide spread.

 

[wmmk]

can you take a picture? not a screenshot, an actual picture. anyway, my 15" MBP is not grainy whatsoever.

 

[baybegirl]

the grain issue has been widely talked about on these forums..and on apple.com...you'll see pagessss about this..all i noticed was that the grain issue has not been brought up among those who own a 17in mbp..and those who read about the grain issue were initially worried about it..then they got their 17in and said it is not present on the 17in as much as the mbp 15in....all i wanted to know was why this is...ok?
people been debating about it being a x1600 problem..but then in that case doesn't the 17in use the same card...so i'm wondering if it's cause the 15in uses a lower quality lcd...
this is mainly a question for those who notice it... it's just a matter if your eyes got bothered by it or not.....if it doesn't then good for you!

 

[Apple Corps]

the grain issue has been widely talked about on these forums..and on apple.com...you'll see pagessss about this..all i noticed was that the grain issue has not been brought up among those who own a 17in mbp..and those who read about the grain issue were initially worried about it..then they got their 17in and said it is not present on the 17in as much as the mbp 15in....all i wanted to know was why this is...ok?
people been debating about it being a x1600 problem..but then in that case doesn't the 17in use the same card...so i'm wondering if it's cause the 15in uses a lower quality lcd...
this is mainly a question for those who notice it... it's just a matter if your eyes got bothered by it or not.....if it doesn't then good for you!

I run my corporation on a number of Macs and have had great luck in the purchases - a few returns needed but excellent service from Apple when required. You may want to reread my post - it is more responsive to your question than you may think - there ARE EXCELLENT 15" C2D MBP out there - many of us have them.

 

[baybegirl]

i didn't ask..do people have good mbp's...that is NOT my question...it doesn't matter to me whether ur lcd is grainy or not..if you see it or if you don't...but why is the 17in not as grainy as the 15...im not asking IF it is..but why it is...so next time just answer the question

 

[geehk]

all i noticed was that the grain issue has not been brought up among those who own a 17in mbp..and those who read about the grain issue were initially worried about it..then they got their 17in and said it is not present on the 17in as much as the mbp 15in....all i wanted to know was why this is...ok?
people been debating about it being a x1600 problem..but then in that case doesn't the 17in use the same card...so i'm wondering if it's cause the 15in uses a lower quality lcd...
this is mainly a question for those who notice it... it's just a matter if your eyes got bothered by it or not.....if it doesn't then good for you!

I agree with you. I had the C2D 15" and took it back. This was one of the things I noticed and found it irritating. To me, it seemed purely like the anti-glare coating was more coarse on the 15". If you get up close it has a 'mineral like' shimmer. I also think the quality of the coating contributed towards a poor viewing angle which I found distracting. I waited 3 weeks for the 17" instead. The 17" screen seemed 'grain free' in comparison - in fact when viewed whilst off it seemed to have a slightly gloss quality to it rather than the obvious matt coating on the 15". I found some 'colour banding' on the 15" and lots on the 17" but that's another story. It's not about the resolution of the pictures you view, you can see this problem against a white background (isn't a digital snap camera higher Res than 1080p? (although bayesian) ) but it would be great to find out if all the 15" are the same or some better than others by virtue of their LCD (same batch/supplier?). If you are going to stare at it for hours a day for a few years it might as well be good, right? The grain looked more physical to me rather than a firmware/dithering bug. Some people are treating this subject like a UFO sighting though - I guess they haven't seen it! I would say the 17" looked much better all round, but the 'colour banding' (see thread) spoiled it for me. I'll wait until I see a 'grain free', 'colour banding' free MBP, then I'll jump on the wagon (again). As far as I'm concerned the screens on the new models are not as good as most people (& 'Pro's) expect.

 

[Apple Corps]

baybegirl - your question was why is the 17" less grainy - my original response points out "I imagine that the number of 15" models sold is much higher than the 17" - bound to get a few more gripes". If you could holster your temper and reflect on that response you might understand that many more 15" MBP will = more gripes. The 17 " was released later and traditionally they do not sell nearly as many as the 15" version - ergo FEWER gripes. Your predicate is that the 17" is less grainy and it is way too early to tell that as boldly as you state it - as if it were fact.

 

[PDE]

baybegirl - your question was why is the 17" less grainy - my original response points out "I imagine that the number of 15" models sold is much higher than the 17" - bound to get a few more gripes". If you could holster your temper and reflect on that response you might understand that many more 15" MBP will = more gripes. The 17 " was released later and traditionally they do not sell nearly as many as the 15" version - ergo FEWER gripes. Your predicate is that the 17" is less grainy and it is way too early to tell that as boldly as you state it - as if it were fact.

Well, it's very simple. Just go to any store with both the 15 and 17 models and compare. I've done it at the Soho and 5th ave apple stores and at Tekserve and is completely obvious that the 17 has MUCH less grain than the 15mbp. Don't believe me? Just check for yourself - you can't miss the difference.

 

[Apple Corps]

PDE - my experience has been just the opposite - as well as that of four other people on this thread with NO COMPLAINTS concerning their 15" screens (C2D I assume) - so it may not be as simple as you suggest. You may have experienced the issue with what was on display at two stores at a point in time - I can't comment as I was not there. Others may have experienced it as well. But many of us have 15" screens that are fine - thus a different perspective about the 17" being less "grainy" - you can't get less grainy than what we have on our 15" C2D.

I guess time will tell how much of an issue this is or is not.

 

[Transeau]

Is this possibly a case in which *your* laptop has a defective screen? I have seen the screens on the 15s and 17s, both look absolutely brilliant... gloss or matte.

Agreed. I have now owned 6 Macbook Pros and 2 Macbooks. (2x 15" CD MBP's, 2x 17" CD MBP's, 2x 15" C2D MBP, 2x CD MB's) Not a single one was returned or replaced because of an unacceptable screen.

I think this whole "grainy" thing is in peoples heads. One person posted something about not liking the matte finish and that it was grainy - and it gets stuck in peoples heads. They start looking for it and suddenly it appears where it was fine before.

I know most people inspect a new notebook when they receive it but this is stupid. People are getting their new notebook and going down a list "known defects" and trying to prove every one of them.

Grainy screen - Matte screens have always been grainy. It's how the light is diffuse.
LCD not flush - It's a 1" thin notebook, metal, no internal frame. The flex. flex it back! That's the price to pay for a notebook that is 1~5lbs lighter than all the others
Heat - IT'S A FREAKING DUAL CORE! The 2.0GHz Core Duo dissipates 65Watts. Try holding a 65W light in you lap - then call GE and bitch that it's too hot.
Noisy - see above. fans are needed.

CPU Whine - well, this is/was a problem. I'm glad they figured that out.
LCD Whine - same as above.

Okay, stepping down from my soap box.

 

[geehk]

I think this whole "grainy" thing is in peoples heads. One person posted something about not liking the matte finish and that it was grainy - and it gets stuck in peoples heads. They start looking for it and suddenly it appears where it was fine before.

Not sure if we are brainwashed that easily! My eyes are in my head and they told me there was 'grain' - simple. My 15" MBP C2D (matt) grainy and my 17" MBP C2D (matt) not grainy. Reality is a wonderful thing Maybe Apple sent their highest scoring batch to California! People have their reasons to complain (or praise) and that's why they are comparing notes on these helpful forums. If you haven't seen a faulty screen then you can't say it's 'in peoples heads', that's making too many assumptions on other peoples integrity. We wouldn't say that yours had the same problem too but you just couldn't see it, that would be rude and I hope you see what I mean - with all due respect...

Without feedback there would be no basis for improvement - we all need a bit of constructive criticism sometimes, no?

 

[stealthman1]

I think this whole "grainy" thing is in peoples heads. One person posted something about not liking the matte finish and that it was grainy - and it gets stuck in peoples heads. They start looking for it and suddenly it appears where it was fine before.

Agree completely. I haven't read all the threads, but I still haven't seen a photograph of this grain, just a 'simulation'. I've seen dozens of MBPs and they've all been beautiful.
Good gosh! I just realized if you get really close to the screen you can see all these pixels! What crappy construction!
First they all ranted that Glossy was too reflective, now Matte is too 'Mattey'!