Apple May Be Considering Matte Screens Again
Glassy screens be gone... please?
Regardless of what you may think of Apple computers, their designs do hold a certain attractive quality. We were mightily impressed last October with the new unibody construction but we've always been very against the all-glass display.
While the glossy glass display looks stunning in the show room, especially when the machine is off, the added frustration of dealing with extreme glare makes it something that most road warriors will end up hating.
Apple partially solved the problem by offering the 17-inch MacBook Pro with an option for a matte screen – at the cost of $50 for something that used to be no-cost.
The thing is that those who have 17-inch MacBook Pros might be less likely to carry their machines to environments with uncontrollable lighting as compared to those with 13- or 15-inch MacBook Pros.
AppleInsider claims to have heard from sources close to Apple that the matte screen option will soon return, perhaps as early as sometime this year coinciding with a hardware refresh. This could help put a little bit of the professional in the "Pro" line of MacBooks.
Although things may return all to the way they should be in Appleland, the influence that the Cupertino computer maker has on the rest of the PC industry could mean that certain PC-based laptops will continue to make use of ultra-glossy displays simply because they look nice.

But what about those of us in love with ourselves? I can watch porn and see myself at the same time!
But yay, glare reduction. The boost in hardware (much needed) was interesting. Attempting to add another glamorous option to these MacBooks may not be so interesting.
They will release a new matte, they will charge for it, you will buy it because it will Innovative! somewhere in the description.
I will hand it to Apple, I do like the glass screens for there durability.
But what about those of us in love with ourselves? I can watch porn and see myself at the same time!
I like you now.
Yeah!
But what harm would there be in making this a customizeable feature? It is just swapping 1 LCD for another, and they already have the statistical information to determine which to order more of by now...
I have an old Compaq R3000 with a glossy screen. I honestly prefer it to matte. I got a glossy Sony screen for my desktop...ohhhh the bad color, My Samsung 245T is matte and still looks good, but i still have no issues with glossy in the right environment.
Apple, give users the CHOICE for FREE!!!
And for a small fee, you can purchase iMirror, the latest software for macbooks. It turns off your screen and enables the "MLRS" (mirror like refletion system) that was built into your macbook from the factory. The app will only cost $69 at your nearest Apple store.
Only a moron would have thought "This is good". In almost any environment - the glossy screen is reflecting everything. Your face, anything behind you, any movement. Sure this is good if you have people who like to sneak up behind you.
When I was shopping to a notebook last year to buy from a store. I was looking at the IdeaPad at $650 (C2D/2GB/gf8600m/Vista) and a ThinkPad R61 (PDC/1GB/intel-video/XP) for $500. The ability to play games was a selling point on the IdeaPad, faster CPU & bigger HD. But I'd also have to spend $100 to replace Vista with XP. But then I noticed the severe lack of reflection on the Thinkpad.
With its brighter matte screen, I was done instantly! I wasn't looking for a NON-glossy screen notebook because I thought nobody made them anymore. HP, Sony, IdeaPad, Gateway, etc... glossy. And besides, the other features of ThinkPad makes it a better notebook, besides saving $250 in price.
Next time anyone wants a new notebook with a good screen, keyboard & XP options, you can order a ThinkPad and it ships in about 7~10 days (I've bought some for clients). But some models include the Glossy option
Of course, LCDs (without a glass cover) are easily damaged too... but thats the actual monitor thats getting damaged.
Waffle: About 3-4 years ago, some idiot in marketing decided that a glossy screen would look better. Now, to a degree - the glossy screen is a tad darker, making the desktop look more "colorful" which is fine for watching videos. But doing work?
I've just compared a 15" glossy notebook in a darkish dining room to my ThinkPad with matte screen in a bright room with 2 light sources. I can still see the reflection of my face on the glossy screen. The ThinkPad's display is bright & crisp and with no reflections. No detractions. No moving backgrounds when I move.
Cool to have a choice on screens... but for most people, they don't have a choice because the selection at the stores and don't know they can order a better product over the internet.
Unfortunately, most netbooks appear to be glossy screens.