Did Steve Lie to Our Faces? Screen Expert Claims 477DPI is the True Limit of the Human Retina
On Monday, Apple took to the stage at Moscone West, San Fransisco to announce the 4th generation iPhone, now known to most of us as iPhone 4. But about 30 minutes into the keynote Jobs unveiled the device had a screen like nothing we’ve ever contemplated (or in fact dreamt of) before. He called it a retina display …
… And alongside making it look gorgeous and revealing the screen actually had 326 pixels per inch, the highest pixel density currently available on the market, Jobs also claimed that 300 pixels per inch was the approximate limit of the human retina to distinguish individual pixels, when holding the device about 12 inches from ones face. Becoming in that instant what most now believe to be the screen’s unique (and only) selling point.
The trouble is, Steve may have lied to our faces. Today, Raymond Soneira, president of monitor diagnostics firm DisplayMate claims Apple marketing is incorrect, stating the actual limit for the human retina to reach a point where we can’t distinguish individual pixels is actually 477dpi.
But as noted by @Engadget, Phil Plait who was also seen working on projects such as the Hubble space telescope, has confirmed that while the actual limit is 477dpi compared to Apple’s 326dpi, Plait notes this is considered the limit for people with 20/20 vision – i.e. perfect.
[via @Engadget]
This entry was posted on Friday, June 11th, 2010 at 3:34 PM and is filed under Apple, Blog, iPhone. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Arron
Hi, I'm Arron. I'm 20 and I am currently working as a freelance graphic designer and blogger. While managing RazorianFly, I currently also write for AppBoy.com, have previously written for 148Apps.com and have been approached by many others. I've been into graphic design for about 7 years now, and now offer iPhone and iPad Interface Design to developers professionally. Along with James, I also co-founded our brilliant new shortening service, RFly.Me. I'm very much tuned into both the App Store and Apple in general. I like the design, presentation and clarity of a product. If it doesn't cut it I'll tell you straight. I'm on Twitter, YouTube, Vimeo and Facebook!
RSS Feed
E-mail Feed
Follow us on Twitter!
I don't know about you or anyone else, but the best resolution my eyes can see is probably 120ppi.
I suppose that if your eyes are absolutely perfect and you hold the iPhone one foot away from your face, you might just be able to see jaggies with the new iPhone 4 screen. However, I seriously doubt it.
The best test is can you see jaggies on laser printed pages when they were 300dpi? I know I couldn't.
Also, can you imagine what the iPad screen would look like with a 326ppi screen?! I wonder if the second generation iPad will have a 326ppi or better screen. That would rock!
By your own conclusion then the answer is “No. Steve did not lie to our faces.” But that's not as exciting as link baiting. LOL
@SplinteredMind: It's not entirely link-baiting since just about every tech blogger is writing about the subject as if Jobs is trying to pull the wool over our retina.
@SplinteredMind: It's not entirely link-baiting since just about every tech blogger is writing about the subject as if Jobs is trying to pull the wool over our retina.