retina

In today's show, we look into the Apple crystal ball, get hit with more apps and save up for new games:

Apple will be highlighting new products at its annual Developer's Conference Monday. Expect computers to get Intel's new processors, and we'll likely hear about new 3D maps on iOS 6 and other mobile system upgrades.

Some have said laptops could get retina display, which is found on iPhones and iPads. That seemed pretty improbably, until recently. An application for Macs has been updated to support retina graphics. That raised a few eyebrows.

The presentation kicks … Read more

Retina rumors never cease. And now, according to the latest speculation, those ultra-high-resolution displays will land on select new MacBooks.

A fresh report, based on data from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo with KGI, shows Retina-class displays coming on a 13-inch "MacBook" and 15-inch MacBook.

Those models could be announced at Apple's annual developers conference WWDC2012 next week.

Let's be clear. Retina displays coming to new MacBooks is not the moral certainty that it was for the third-generation iPad. Naysayers say that all of that extra resolution is not necessarily a good thing on a MacBook and a … Read more

The looming presence of a WWDC keynote doesn't usually spark dreams of laptop hardware, but this year's a little different. Apple hasn't released a MacBook in all of 2012. It's already June. And, Intel's latest Ivy Bridge processors have been showing up everywhere, including a bumper crop of new Windows ultrabooks.

Here's what I'd like to see in Apple's next MacBooks, both from software and hardware. … Read more

All of the talk surrounding the possibility of Apple launching MacBooks with Retina Displays just got a bit more serious.

A Mac OS X-based application today was updated with support for "Retina graphics." The app, FolderWatch, allows users to automatically keep a copy of a project on an external hard drive or file server. It might not be the most obvious choice for a Retina-ready app, but the very fact that it supports the feature is rather interesting.

For months now, we've been hearing rumors that Apple could launch a new line of MacBooks featuring the Retina … Read more

By now, just about anyone with an iPhone or iPad probably has a ton of images sitting in his or her image library. Most people already know about photo-sharing apps like Instagram and EyeEm, along with photo filter apps like PhotoToaster and FX Photo Studio for that stylized look, but there are still more fun ways to play with your images to produce nice-looking projects.

Diptic (99 cents) is an intuitive app that lets you make cool-looking collages using photos you take with your iPhone camera or what you have stored in your photo library. A new version of the app now adds photo filters and other options, letting you create simple but elegant collages in only a few easy steps.… Read more

When Raymond Soneira compares smartphone displays, he doesn't just stare at side-by-side screens, using his highly trained eye to detect differences in color temperature and contrast. He does that, make no mistake, but he also uses a suite of scientific tests that measure factors like brightness, color gamut, and reflection.

Soneira is the president, CEO, and founder of DisplayMate Technologies, a gold standard toolkit among manufacturers and display reviewers, CNET included. Holding a doctorate in theoretical physics, Soneira has spent 23 years fine-tuning the algorithms that analyze visual data on screens of all sizes, from smartphones to TVs. Mathematical models are a specialty of his; in past positions, Soneira has developed intricate tests for both AT&T Bell Labs and CBS (CNET's parent company), among others.

This mountain of experience and expertise is why I'm paying attention when Soneira tells me quite plainly over the phone, "Just about every single spec on displays is exaggerated."

And by "exaggerated," he suggests skewed, misleading, and sometimes utterly useless. Why? Because while a screen's resolution and other specs can indicate a certain level of performance, there are many more factors involved in determining a display's actual level of performance. … Read more

All signs point to a taller screen for the iPhone 5. For many, that alone will redefine Apple's iconic phone.

Probably more than any other single hardware feature, Retina screens are what consumers of the iPhone and iPad are focusing on these days -- not to mention Apple marketing folks.

And Apple won't disappoint with the iPhone 5. 9to5Mac says the taller screen will boast a resolution of 640-by-1,136. (iPhone 4 and 4S are 640-by-960.)

Those tweaks will yield a resolution "very close to a 16:9 screen ratio, so this means 16:9 videos can play full screen at their native aspect ratio,&… Read more

Apple's iPad could be getting Sharp's latest and greatest display tech after all, according to an analyst who spoke with CNET.

That technology would be IGZO (indium gallium zinc oxide), which Sharp began volume production of in April. In that announcement, Sharp specifies sizes and resolutions that match or exceed the third-generation iPad's display.

"It looks like it's happening. It's in our published research," said Richard Shim an analyst at DisplaySearch. "That is, Sharp is supplying the IGZO panels for the new iPad."

Apple was planning to get the IGZO display … Read more

With each new Apple product launch, there's typically one feature that gets the most attention in the rumor mill. This time around, it's the iPhone 5's display.

According to Apple blog 9to5Mac, citing sources, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company is currently testing at its headquarters two iPhones -- only one of which will be released -- boasting larger displays. And although rumors have suggested the device will come with a true 4-inch screen, 9to5Mac claims it'll actually boast a 3.95-inch display.

The new iPhone's screen will be just as wide as that of its … Read more