Where Apple hype shows some cracks
Remember this post of mine, written but a week or two ago? I was at a loss when trying to compare Apples to apples, so to speak. I was looking at Apple monitor specs and just couldn’t figure out why their price was so high, other than the design. It turns out that my sticking point, the color bit depth, is a good measuring stick. It’s no wonder Apple doesn’t state it in its specs, and its sales people have no idea what it is.
This article from Beta News should tell you why. Looks like the MacBook displays have only 6 bits of color per channel, according to a lawsuit filed in California. Granted, there’s some difference between the Apple Cinema Displays and MacBook displays, but still, I wouldn’t be surprised if the ACDs only have 8 bits of color per channel, which would make them completely average in terms of overall specs. Then the only thing differentiating them from the competition would be their design, and I don’t know about you, but my wallet says no to paying several hundred dollars more for nicer design and run-of-the-mill specs.
It’ll be interesting to follow this lawsuit, and see how it turns out. I hope it’ll lead to more transparency in Apple’s advertising, and to the proper listing of color bit depth for each of its displays.
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All laptop LCDs are 6-bit. In fact, all LCDs only have three colors, red, green, and blue. The “millions” of colors you see are a visual trick. The same thing is done with ink-jet printing. Ink-Jet printers have 4, 6, or maybe 8 inks, yet they produce a wide range of colors; nope the inks are not mixed. In fact, they use a dithering technique (pattern of dots) to perform a visual trick to get the color you want. Its all about color theory. As long as you see the color you want, what’s the difference?
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 5:24 pm
Hardly so, “Steve”. (I normally delete comments where the poster doesn’t identify himself properly, but I let this one through.) The point is that I dislike hype, and want to know what I’m paying for. I want to know the exact specs, so I can compare and make an informed purchase decision. I’m not sure where you get the idea that all laptop LCDs are 6-bit — I’d like to see an established reference for that.
The fact is that there are 8-bit, 10-bit and even 12-bit displays out there. I want to see Apple state the truth about their own bit depth, plain and simple.
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 6:15 pm
My eyes prefer Apple Cinema Displays over just about any other monitor.
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 7:16 pm
Guys, guys, before we all start drooling over Apple design, let’s remember I’m trying to keep the arguments rational. Yeah, my eyes love Apple stuff too, and I drool over the design just like the rest of you, but I just want some hard facts before I plump down my hard-earned cash. Is that too much to ask?
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 7:20 pm
I wasn’t referring to design; I’m talking about staring at a monitor for 8+ hours per day and not getting a splitting headache from eye strain. Aren’t all Apple Cinema Displays and iMac displays 24-bit LCDs?
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 7:48 pm
The fact is that there are 8-bit, 10-bit and even 12-bit displays out there.
I’d like to see an established reference for that
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 8:41 pm
Neil, they aren’t, not to my knowledge. They can display the equivalent of 24-bit color overall, but no monitor has 24-bit color depth per channel. I guess if you multiply 8 bits of color per channel x 3 (R+G+B), then you get 24 bits, but what the folks from California are saying in their lawsuit is that the the MacBook displays only do 6 bits of color per channel. I guess that works out to 18 bits overall.
Craig, have a look at the post I linked to in the starting paragraph of this one. You’ll find links to LaCie monitors that have 10-bit and 12-bit color depth. They are significantly more expensive. But at least LaCie states its color bit depth, and Apple doesn’t. And there are other high-end monitors from other brands with 10-bit and 12-bit color depth. They run into the thousands of dollars.
Again, what I want is some transparency in advertising.
Comment — May 21, 2007 @ 11:14 pm
[...] By the way, that review is also available here on my blog. Also check out this other post about MacBook displays I wrote yesterday. [...]
Pingback — May 22, 2007 @ 10:46 am
[...] for sure. Besides, it wouldn’t do to forget the controversy that erupted last year about the MacBook displays, where Apple was accused of falsely stating they can display “millions of colors” (8 [...]
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