(That’s my pet name for the ungainly and awkward “iPod Touch”, by the way; some folk call it the iTouch, but I think not. Besides, TouchPod has a nice ring to it, don’t you agree?)
Something called the “negative black effect” (speak about inappropriate names) is appearing in an increasing number of TouchPods.
Reports have surfaced earlier this weekend as the TouchPods began selling at Apple Stores that the new screens seem to be inferior to the iPhone’s, contrary to the Jobster’s (stupid name; but Stevester seems worse) statement that screens are the same. Blacks aren’t as black, and colors seem washed out, as in this side-by-side pic from Gizmodo (iPhone on the bottom):
More units seem to have it worse: some TouchPods’ black portions look like the shimmery, odd blacks you get from film negatives (hence the “negative black effect” name), and they seem to be a spotty and erratic phenomenon. Look at this comparison from Apple-Touch.com (iPhone on top):
Apple seems to be taking in defective units and replacing them without question (which is a tacit admission that a problem exists), but sometimes the replacements themselves have similar problems. No official statement yet.
Caveat emptor. Certainly a strong argument against early adoption, and for waiting for the first revision. Or just waiting for the 16gb, 3G, open-line iPhone that everyone seems to be expecting. Hmm.
Check out a sampling of reports from Apple-Touch, Tech.Blorge, Gizmodo and Engadget.
September 18th, 2007 at 12:42 am
[…] posted on the Apple Discussions page on the Apple Support site today a possible explanation for the Negative Black Effect plaguing the new iPod Touch as being poor quality control with the anti-reflective (AR) coating on […]