When Glare is Good

While many industries have been busy getting rid of glare from displays -- including art galleries, car manufacturers and producers of "glare-gone" products for computer displays -- it turns out that laptop makers have been busy going the other way. Welcome the Glare Type LCD display. Glare type LCD screens offer richer colors Glare type LCD displays, also known as BrightView in the world of HP and Compaq laptops and as "Color Shine" with Asus, have glossy, shiny screens that -- you guessed it -- have a lot of glare. So why would a laptop user want to put up with glare? Because these relatively new screens offer a far more vivid viewing experience. Colors come out richer and more vibrant. Plus, might I add, the glassy finish of the LCD screens actually adds a touch of class to the laptops. And the images do indeed come out more vividly. Dim the lights and pop a movie into a laptop with a glare type screen and it's almost like watching on a plasma TV set (as opposed to the rather flat images that traditional laptop LCD displays offer). And perhaps this is why the new crop of glare-equipped laptops, such as the MSI S260 (reviewed in this month's m|ph), the Asus W5 and the MSI S270 (both reviewed in the upcoming July issue), all offer widescreen displays: using these laptops for entertainment purposes is highly encouraged. This is how "glary" a glare LCD screen can be: it's almost like a mirror! There is a downside, however. First, glare-type displays may be a bother under bright outdoor lighting. Outdoor glare will get in the way of your viewing experience, and may even end up being annoying. In fact, laptops that use glare-type technology have to use very bright displays, or else the viewing experience is ruined... and this can lead to lower battery life. But everybody loves these new displays, so it looks as if glare-type LCDs are here to stay. Heck, they might even end up becoming the de facto standard. Next stop: glare shields for these glare type LCD displays?