[opus_az]

The new iMacs have sparked some debate about the black frame around the display. I've heard things said like the cinema displays were a neutral color because colors appear less distorted when they're surrounded by a neutral color, and I also heard things like the new black frame makes colors seem more vibrant. And, in my own opinion having worked on both the white and black MacBooks, colors seem more vibrant with the white frame.

But this is all opinion and creative guessing.

Are there any studies out there about how different monitor frames affect the perception of colors and the brightness of the display?

[slpdLoad]

I tend to prefer the aluminum frame color used on the Cinema displays and MBPs, simply because the color is a pretty neutral match to the silver/gray used in Apple's pro applications, like Final Cut and Aperture. To me it feels less intrusive and brighter.

However, from a media standpoint, like for watching movies, I prefer black. I like watching movies on my black-bordered Dell monitor, because it just sort of disappears, especially with the lights dimmed. It's also the reason I bought a black iPod video instead of a white one.

The iMac is an interesting mix of these two options. I think Apple made a good choice with the seamless black border covered in glass on the new iMacs, since it's primarily a media/iLife machine. iLife '08 seems to use the same color scheme, and brings more black into the apps.