Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > iPhone, iPad & iPod > iPad lower PPi than new iPhone

iPad lower PPi than new iPhone
Thread Tools
Embermage
Forum Regular
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Here
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 7, 2010, 08:46 PM
 
Is anyone else a bit sad that the iPad has a lower pixel per inch count than the new iPhone? Am I correct that this implies the new iPhone will have a crisper, sharper screen than the iPad?
     
mrtew
Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: South Detroit
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 7, 2010, 08:59 PM
 
I don't even think the iPad has as good of picture as my old iPhone 3G. I compared the same app on my iPhone to two different iPads in two different stores and it looked worse on both of them. Almost grainy like it was thousands of colours instead of millions like on my iPhone. And yes I was looking at it in the small floating window, not blown up to full screen.

I love the U.S., but we need some time apart.
     
Sage
Mac Elite
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SoCal
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 7, 2010, 09:10 PM
 
Originally Posted by Embermage View Post
Is anyone else a bit sad that the iPad has a lower pixel per inch count than the new iPhone? Am I correct that this implies the new iPhone will have a crisper, sharper screen than the iPad?
iPhone has always had higher ppi than iPad (~160 versus ~130). The "need" for higher ppi is proportional to how far away you are from the screen – you usually hold a phone closer to your face, thus the need for a higher ppi than a tablet (consider a widescreen TV, which has absolutely atrocious ppi compared to any computer monitor – it’s because you sit far away from it and therefore can’t make out the individual pixels anyway).
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 7, 2010, 09:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by Embermage View Post
Is anyone else a bit sad that the iPad has a lower pixel per inch count than the new iPhone? Am I correct that this implies the new iPhone will have a crisper, sharper screen than the iPad?
Uhm, yeah, that's ALWAYS been the case.

The old iPhone 3Gs had 163 ppi, the iPad has "only" 132 ppi.

I mean, why would you want 326 ppi on the iPad right now ?
You know that would equate to 2,558 x 1,919 resolution. What would you do with that ?

-t
( Last edited by turtle777; Jun 8, 2010 at 02:56 AM. )
     
Enigmatic
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Join Date: Jul 2004
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 02:42 AM
 
yeah to have that kind of resolution(2,558 x 1,919- higher than 1080p HD) would require much more video processing power, I think were a few years off where mobile graphics processors can handle that kind of image size with the GUI effects and battery life of the current ipad.
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 03:17 AM
 
I shudder to think of the cost.

2560x1920 is the resolution of the 30" cinema display, isn't it?
     
dwero
Baninated
Join Date: Jun 2010
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 03:52 AM
 
Originally Posted by mrtew View Post
I don't even think the iPad has as good of picture as my old iPhone 3G. I compared the same app on my iPhone to two different iPads in two different stores and it looked worse on both of them. Almost grainy like it was thousands of colours instead of millions like on my iPhone. And yes I was looking at it in the small floating window, not blown up to full screen.
In which store you find the so-called two different iPads? Can u name them?
     
angelmb
Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Automatic
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 05:55 AM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
I shudder to think of the cost.

2560x1920 is the resolution of the 30" cinema display, isn't it?
     
mrtew
Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: South Detroit
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 06:38 AM
 
Originally Posted by dwero View Post
In which store you find the so-called two different iPads? Can u name them?
I just meant that I compared my iPhone to two of them. I didn't mean they were different from eachother. Sorry to confuse.

Unless I'm confused. Maybe you want me to name the stores. They were the AppleStore and BestBuy.

I love the U.S., but we need some time apart.
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 07:10 AM
 
Originally Posted by angelmb View Post
Showoff.

(2560 by 1920 would be 4:3)
     
kenna
Dedicated MacNNer
Join Date: May 2007
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 8, 2010, 11:34 AM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
Showoff.

(2560 by 1920 would be 4:3)


I dream of the day I get one... which will be when I have enough space for one. My room is cramped as it is (only reason I don't have an iMac, yes I need to move out only for the inability to on my own, 'cos house prices are ridiculous!)
MacBook Pro 17" 2.2 GHz quad-core, 2x4GB 1333MHz RAM, 750GB Hard Drive, Intel HD Graphics 3000,
AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 1GB GDDR5, Mid 2011

MacBook Air 13" 1.7 GHz dual-core Intel i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB Flash Storage, Intel HD Graphics 3000, Mid 2011
iPhone 4 32 GB, Mid 2010
     
Zeeb
Mac Elite
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Manhattan, NY
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 11:20 AM
 
The resolution on the iPad should have been at least a little higher than it is--but not as high as the iPhone 4. That would be expensive on a screen as big as the iPad's I'm guessing. Now that the honeymoon is over and I've been using my iPad for while I've started to notice the graininess a bit more. It's more like an LCD from 3 years ago. I bet Apple skimped on the screen for the first generation to keep costs down.
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 11:50 AM
 
Originally Posted by Zeeb View Post
Now that the honeymoon is over and I've been using my iPad for while I've started to notice the graininess a bit more. It's more like an LCD from 3 years ago. I bet Apple skimped on the screen for the first generation to keep costs down.
Really ?

Show me what products had a 163 ppi LED-backlit glossy widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology.

-t
     
imitchellg5
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:04 PM
 
The iPad's resolution is pretty typical for tablets.
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:11 PM
 
Originally Posted by imitchellg5 View Post
The iPad's resolution is pretty typical for tablets.
And multi-touch IPS , too ?

-t
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:19 PM
 
It's really funny.

Up until two days ago, the ipad had one of the best displays ever.

Today, they skimped.

     
imitchellg5
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:21 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
And multi-touch IPS , too ?

-t
I'm not sure about that, but definitely for a capacitive screen.
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:36 PM
 
Are there any others with IPS desplays?
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 12:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
It's really funny.

Up until two days ago, the ipad had one of the best displays ever.

Today, they skimped.

I agree. I found the statements above retarded.

The iPad has the best display of any mobile device I have seen.

-t
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 01:45 PM
 
Oh, they're not retarded.

They're just a perfect example of why Apple is doing so well:

(User looks up from whatever they're currently using to note tech news coverage of Apple event)
"OMFG that's the most sophisticated, utterly futuristic life-enhancing piece of technology I've ever seen. Want."

So you buy it and are the happiest camper ever, until Apple brings out their next product.

(User looks up from whatever they're currently using to note tech news coverage of Apple event)
"OMFG that's the most sophisticated, utterly futuristic life-enhancing piece of technology I've ever seen. Want."

Three days ago, my iPhone 3GS was by far the slickest phone on the planet.

Now, that title goes to New And Improved.

I have Old And Inferior.
     
slugslugslug
Mac Elite
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Durham, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 04:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
Really ?

Show me what products had a 163 ppi LED-backlit glossy widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology.

-t
Not the iPad. Its display is more like 132 ppi.

[edit: oh wait, you’re the one who said pointed that out upthread. Did you forget or is your example supposed to illustrate people’s expectation of something “better”? Just noticed the “widescreen” in there too.]

It certainly is fantastic compared to most laptops I’ve seen, and the stuff I can do with it is great. But I was always a little disappointed that the pixel density was below the iPhone’s. For all the reading PDFs I do, a slightly bigger screen and a somewhat higher pixel density would make for substantially less scrolling on letter/A4 documents.
( Last edited by slugslugslug; Jun 9, 2010 at 04:09 PM. )
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 04:06 PM
 
Originally Posted by slugslugslug View Post
Not the iPad. Its display is more like 132 ppi.
.
Sorry, you're right.

The current iPhone is 163 ppi, I got them confused.

But still, it's a fantastic screen, much better than anything that you'd find in sub $ 1,000 electronics.

-t
     
imitchellg5
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 9, 2010, 04:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
Are there any others with IPS desplays?
Not that I'm aware of.

EDIT: About the only non-Apple product that I can find with IPS is the HP EliteBook.
     
Zeeb
Mac Elite
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Manhattan, NY
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 10, 2010, 09:47 AM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
I agree. I found the statements above retarded.

The iPad has the best display of any mobile device I have seen.

-t
I guess you need to insult or belittle people who disagree with you to make your point. You guys are funny, the same type who would have said in the 90's "Why would you ever need 10Gb's of hard drive space? You'll never need more than 5!" or in the 60's "Who needs a color TV?"

I'm not saying the iPad screen isn't nice but its very grainy--which is plain to see. It may have IPS but the resolution is lower than LCD's several years old. That's why Steve Jobs has to keep saying how great things look on the iPad screen over and over again. I bet the next revision to the iPad will have a greatly improved resolution and Steve will be saying things like "4 times as sharp as the previous iPad screen!"
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 10, 2010, 09:59 AM
 
Originally Posted by Zeeb View Post
It may have IPS but the resolution is lower than LCD's several years old.
Care to give an apples-toapples example ?

I'm not talking about comparing the iPad's screen to some 3" cell phone display (that would be apples to oranges).

Show us the higher res (ppi) netbooks or ebook readers.
And please, don't compare the iPad to some $ 2,000 laptop either.

-t
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 10, 2010, 10:19 AM
 
Originally Posted by Zeeb View Post
It may have IPS but the resolution is lower than LCD's several years old. That's why Steve Jobs has to keep saying how great things look on the iPad screen over and over again. I bet the next revision to the iPad will have a greatly improved resolution and Steve will be saying things like "4 times as sharp as the previous iPad screen!"
oddly, he kept touting the same thing when he released iPhone 4 last Monday. I guess that means you'll have to accuse Apple of "skimping" in six months' time.

I find it amusing that you cannot find a comparable IPS-display device.

I think you have no clue just how much better - and more expansive - IPS displays are.
     
Zeeb
Mac Elite
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Manhattan, NY
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 11:24 AM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
oddly, he kept touting the same thing when he released iPhone 4 last Monday. I guess that means you'll have to accuse Apple of "skimping" in six months' time.

I find it amusing that you cannot find a comparable IPS-display device.

I think you have no clue just how much better - and more expansive - IPS displays are.
I'm not comparing devices with IPS technology--this thread is about screen resolution on one device--the iPad. You are using IPS as a red herring to distract from the problem of the grainy iPad screen. I guess it wouldn't matter if it was a black and white TV from the 1960's it wouldn't matter as long as it had IPS right? I also have an iPad and I enjoy it despite the screen being a little retro in this respect so I'm not a hater.

However, this is something that I'd like to see improved.
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 11:27 AM
 
Well, my iPad is not grainy.

You either have a dud, or your vision is broken.

-t
     
::maroma::
Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: PDX
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 12:10 PM
 
Yeah I was wondering why you keep harping on the iPad screen being "grainy". I see zero grain in any of the images. If you put your face an inch from the screen you can see pixels, but other than the iPhone 4 (and maybe the EVO or one of those few Andriod devices), what device doesn't do that?

In fact, you are the only person I've heard complain about this. Most everyone else praises the image quality on the iPad.
     
imitchellg5
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 01:58 PM
 
I do think that the iPad's pixel density is a bit too low to read a book for hours, but I'm probably one of the few people in the world who still reads a book for hours.
     
mrtew
Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: South Detroit
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 09:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
Well, my iPad is not grainy.
You either have a dud, or your vision is broken.
-t
If someone can see detail you can't it indicates that your vision is broken, not theirs. Have you compared the same iPhone-app or photograph on your iPad to an iPhone. I saw the exact same grainyness on the screens of two iPads in different stores when I did a direct comparison and so did my friend who was with me; and he loves the iPad and was talking about how wonderful it looked until I showed him the comparison.

I love the U.S., but we need some time apart.
     
turtle777
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 09:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by mrtew View Post
If someone can see detail you can't it indicates that your vision is broken, not theirs. Have you compared the same iPhone-app or photograph on your iPad to an iPhone. I saw the exact same grainyness on the screens of two iPads in different stores when I did a direct comparison and so did my friend who was with me; and he loves the iPad and was talking about how wonderful it looked until I showed him the comparison.
For Pete's sakes, nobody is disputing that the current iPhone has higher ppi than the iPad.

The claim was made that the iPad's display is bad, "lower than LCD's several years old."

I asked for examples, but of course, I got nothing.

For sub $ 1,000 devices, the iPad has by far the best screen on the market when you compare size, technology (IPS) and other factors.

-t
     
mrtew
Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: South Detroit
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jun 11, 2010, 09:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
For Pete's sakes, nobody is disputing that the current iPhone has higher ppi than the iPad. The claim was made that the iPad's display is bad, "lower than LCD's several years old." For sub $ 1,000 devices, the iPad has by far the best screen on the market when you compare size, technology (IPS) and other factors.
-t
Land O'Goshen, I never said it was as bad as windows devices. The claim was made that "my iPad is not grainy. You either have a dud, or your vision is broken." Don't say ridiculous stuff like that unless you want someone to bring you back to reality.

I love the U.S., but we need some time apart.
     
   
Thread Tools
 
Forum Links
Forum Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Top
Privacy Policy
All times are GMT -4. The time now is 03:09 PM.
All contents of these forums © 1995-2017 MacNN. All rights reserved.
Branding + Design: www.gesamtbild.com
vBulletin v.3.8.8 © 2000-2017, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.,