View Single Post
Old 11-28-2012, 10:28 AM   #36
Synamon
Lunatic
Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Synamon ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Synamon's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,691
Karma: 4386372
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Land of the Loonie
Device: Kindle Paperwhite and Keyboard, Kobo Aura, iPad mini, iPod Touch
Quote:
Originally Posted by murraypaul View Post
I think if you stop and think about that for a bit, you'll realise it is a bit silly.
A 40" 1980x1080 TV is pretty crappy then, having only about 55 ppi?
While my BlackBerry, at 480x360 @ 244 ppi, would be better for reading magazines on than the iPad Mini at 1024x768 @ 162 ppi?

The iPad Mini has the same resolution as the original iPad.
An original iPad held further away will give exactly the same visual image as an iPad Mini held closer. (I can't be bothered to work out the exact difference in distance required.)
Here's the data from another thread, the difference is 4", but I'm not sure how accurate the numbers are:
Quote:
Originally Posted by jswinden View Post
  • For h = 1/132" (132 ppi), distance required = 22.7" (iPad1 and 2)
  • For h = 1/162" (162 ppi), distance required = 18.5" (iPad Mini)
  • For h = 1/170" (170 ppi), distance required = 17.6" (original Fire)
  • For h = 1/216" (216 ppi), distance required = 13.9" (Fire HD, Nexus 7)
  • For h = 1/268" (268 ppi), distance required = 11.2" (iPad3)
  • For h = 1/326" (326 ppi), distance required = 9.2" (iPhone5)

So in theory the above listed devices would have to be held at least as far from the eye as the listed distance before the average human retina would no longer see any individual pixels. Your eyes, of course, will vary.

Here's an article about HDTV and retina screens. The data there is slightly different, but the same idea:
Quote:
The iPhone 4 with 326 PPI is a Retina Display when viewed from 10.5 inches or more
The new iPad 3 with 264 PPI is a Retina Display when viewed from 13.0 inches or more
The MacBook Pro with 220 PPI is a Retina Display when viewed from 15.6 inches or more

Since I hold my reading material more than 20" away from my eyes (I was curious so I got out a tape measure) anything with 160+ ppi is retina for me. Heck, my 130 ppi laptop is retina too, since the screen is more than 2 feet from my eyes. 326 ppi sounds impressive, but it only matters if you want to squint at your phone a few inches from your nose.

The presumption that seeing a pixel is the end of the world is silly anyway. Compared to reading the fuzzy print in an old paperback even a low resolution screen is clearly better.

Last edited by Synamon; 11-28-2012 at 10:32 AM.
Synamon is offline   Reply With Quote