[irus]

I haven't purchased my 12" iBook yet, and wanted to see if anyone had attempted using one outside on a sunny day. Some laptops perform better than the other, and my old IBM X20 was nearly useless on a sunny day. Is it possible to get any work done, say, sitting on a bench in the park, or am I wasting my time?

My other alternative is a NEC Versa E120, which has a display designed for outside use. Disadvantage - Windows.

Rus

[smic]

i really cant see mine
unless i have some shade or something
the first time i used it in the sun i thought the display was broken
could be me though
since im not to big on outside during the day unless im tanning

[SupahCoolX]

It can be pretty hard to see outdoors. Try to find a shady spot, and try to focus on black text with a white background, etc.
There are companies that sell these hoods to provide shade, but I can't think of any brand names at the moment. Perhaps someone else could provide more info?

[hempcamp]

The worst part about the iBook is that light just pours through the translucence of the top clamshell and completely drowns out the display, even in shady areas on bright days.

--Chris
iBook 700 (16 VRAM)

[escher]

One thing you can do to improve visibility in bright sunlight is to use the Universal Access control panel to change the display to White-on-Black (instead of Black-on-White). This feature is designed for visually impaired people, but works for brigh light situations as well.

Escher

[turtle777]

Originally posted by escher:
One thing you can do to improve visibility in bright sunlight is to use the Universal Access control panel to change the display to White-on-Black (instead of Black-on-White). This feature is designed for visually impaired people, but works for brigh light situations as well.

Escher

WOW !!!

THAT LOOKS SO COOL !

I'm gonna try it out in sunlight, to see if it makes things better. But the look is great.

Thx for the hint.

-t

[billybob128]

yeah so cool im gonna leave it like that for a while it is also way easier on the eyes as i find that there is never a brightness level that suits my eyes it is either too bright or too dark

[radarbob]

The white on black idea is most excellent.

You could also go to the displays control panel and fiddle with the setting to adjust the contrast and the color. Besides sheer brightness sunlight is qualitatively different than indoor lighting - ask any professional photographer. However this will not help in full, unshaded, sunlight.

[MacmanX]

Has anyone tried turning off the backlight and using the iBook in full sun? That used to work on my old (old, old) PB 140.

Though, I haven't had any problems using my 14" iBook outside.

Cheers!

[smijolovic]

Outdoor light has always been a problem with LCD displays. I have 4 laptops at home (3 IBM and my ibook 800) and they all pretty much SUCK in heavy sunlight. I will have to try that white on black switch on a sunny day to see the difference.

[chabig]

The PB 140 had a different type of LCD display. I believe its called reflective because light enters from the front and reflects back out. Modern LCDs are transmissive because they are lighted from the back.