Apple sued over display quality

Written by Brett Thomas

May 21, 2007 | 14:32

Tags: #8-bit #cinema #display #macbook #macbook-pro #panel #pro

Companies: #apple

It's long been the consumer impression that Apple has one thing in spades over the Windows OS - graphic arts. Indeed, Apple's displays have been considered some of the best in the world, from their 30" cinema down to the 13" Macbook. Apple makes no bones about it, either, letting people know in is advertisements about its superior display quality. But a recent lawsuit filed against the company says that may not be true - at least in the notebook line.

The class-action lawsuit targets the new glossy displays that Apple has included with its recent Macbook and Macbook Pro lines since the product refreshes last year. According to advertising, Apple claims the new displays have "blacker blacks" and "whiter whites" than ever before, asserting that the contrast ratio on the screen is superior to that of other notebook displays. However, the lawsuit alleges that these screens actually show heavy dithering, illustrated by graininess and sparkling effects.

Furthermore, the suit claims that Apple was aware that its displays are substandard, but marketed them as the superior product anyway. When complaints began to surface in Apple's forums, posts were deleted or heavily moderated. Many people were told they were "imagining the defects" or "being too picky" about the quality of the display.

According to the actual documents, it apparently isn't the display that's so busted as OSX. Apparently, these users claim that if you install Windows XP on your Macbook, you'll achieve superior graphics performance, particularly when looking at gradients. The claim says that OSX is the culprit of software dithering, making the display show "millions of colours that don't really exist." It's an interesting claim, to be sure.

As an owner of a Macbook myself, I have to say I think these guys are all wet. Apple uses a true 8-bit panel, and it really does look beautiful. If you have a bunch of glare, the gloss isn't really that great - but I'd say it's probably the best looking portable display I've used. But my opinion isn't the only one that counts here, so why don't you share yours in our forums?
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