Wednesday, November 23rd 2011
Small, High Resolution Windows Laptops Coming In 2012 - Thanks To Apple
Love 'em or hate 'em, Apple has a habit of trend setting. When Apple released their original iPad, it had a meager low resolution 1024 x 768 resolution display which was scoffed at by many, yet it didn't stop it from being a runaway success. And the iPad 2 didn't improve on it, either - perhaps surprisingly, since the original formula worked so well. However, in early 2012 Apple plans to introduce its new Retina display equipped next generation iPads, offering a very high 2048 x 1536 resolution. On the 9.7" screen of an iPad, this would make the pixels all but invisible to anyone, except for those with the sharpest of 20-20 vision, giving the screen superb clarity and wow factor. These will be incorporated into its next generation iPads, which is expected to push the PC notebook market to use higher resolution displays too in order to remain competitive.
One indication of this, is that Acer and Asustek Computer are, according to Digitimes, both working with "panel makers AU Optronics (AUO) and Chimei Innolux (CMI) separately to develop a new generation of full HD notebook panels with a resolution of 1,928x1,080, according to industry sources." Digitimes' sources also state that these new ultrabooks are expected to go one sale around Jan-Feb 2012 at the earliest and that both manufacturers are optimistic that these small computers will sell well. For comparison, Asus's 11.6" UX21 ZenBook model is currently stuck at a 1366 x 768 resolution - barely better than an iPad 2. This resolution unfortunately, is also common with larger laptops, too. However, with the new display panels, this should hopefully jump to a much more useful Full HD, 1920 x 1080 resolution.
So, could this trend also rub off on desktop monitors, perhaps making 2048 x 1152 desktop monitors commonplace and inexpensive? It seems quite possible. The market has been stuck at a Full HD resolution for a while now and it's about time we saw a significant resolution jump.
One indication of this, is that Acer and Asustek Computer are, according to Digitimes, both working with "panel makers AU Optronics (AUO) and Chimei Innolux (CMI) separately to develop a new generation of full HD notebook panels with a resolution of 1,928x1,080, according to industry sources." Digitimes' sources also state that these new ultrabooks are expected to go one sale around Jan-Feb 2012 at the earliest and that both manufacturers are optimistic that these small computers will sell well. For comparison, Asus's 11.6" UX21 ZenBook model is currently stuck at a 1366 x 768 resolution - barely better than an iPad 2. This resolution unfortunately, is also common with larger laptops, too. However, with the new display panels, this should hopefully jump to a much more useful Full HD, 1920 x 1080 resolution.
So, could this trend also rub off on desktop monitors, perhaps making 2048 x 1152 desktop monitors commonplace and inexpensive? It seems quite possible. The market has been stuck at a Full HD resolution for a while now and it's about time we saw a significant resolution jump.
37 Comments on Small, High Resolution Windows Laptops Coming In 2012 - Thanks To Apple
I would have thought they would have gone with 1080p though
I don't know why they aren't doing 16:9 though.
However, that doesn't work with Windows. You can raise the DPI settings, but it just ends up making things look screwed up, and some things just don't adhere to the DPI setting and remain so small you can't read them. Larger resolutions on small screens just doesn't work for most people on PCs. 1080p on an 11.5" screen would be impossible to use for most people, even on a 13.3" screen it would be pretty hard for most to use.
Mostly because, it will force Apple and other devs to finally drop Intel craphics for good. Or, it may force Intel to finally get serious. Really, you can't run high res stuff on Intel. Even if it can display that much, there is no power behind it.
The current Sandybridge iGPU compete very well with lower end descrete graphics, putting any more power than that in a iGPU doesn't really make sense. It is enough to do HD video and beyond and casual gaming, but anyone looking for more than that will likely use a higher end descrete GPU anyway, but it is pointless to make the general public pay for a higher end GPU that they won't use.
1280 x 768 on a 13.3" is pretty tiny compared to a standard 19 - 23" desktop monitor @ 1920 x 1080. The pixel density is better, but everything is tiny; 1280 x 768 is difficult to get used to, I can't see a 1920 x 1080 ultrabook being a pleasant viewing experience for normal everyday tasks aside from video files.
And if you want to it to be like that at stock, maybe Windows 8 will bring that?
This needs to be resolved before I'm interested in it.
I don't care about stupid resolutions. What about the color gamut? I'm sick and tired of (especially laptops) having incredibly washed out displays with extremely poor viewing angles. Not to mention, a useless glossy display that can't be viewed easily outdoors. THIS is something notebook manufacturers should focus on, instead of wasting time with resolutions.
When you think about it, the screen is the main way one interfaces with there computer, so naturally one would expect that to be one area where quality is evident, but sadly it isnt mostly.
Hopefully this will change things anyhow, win 8 may have support for larger resolutions without compromising on font size /dpi and all of that.
About time this is!!!
But as the other poster mentioned, there are other considerations than just resolution that make a good screen.
Also, please ban glossy screens.
and the panels will probably still be samsung and lg ... so who's pushing who?
i don't see the connection with the PC market and M$, sorry ...
I said:
"2048x1152 are inexpensive already"
"when 2560x1440 becomes inexpensive that's when I will be interested in the desktop monitors"
I feel like I am just repeating myself sometimes :rolleyes: :laugh:
Mind you, 2048 x1152 is not all that cheap or common yet, is it?
I wonder what Heroes 3 will look like on it though. :P