Mobile Tech Minutes– Screen Size Matters Video
Yes, screen size matters and I am in a unique position to demonstrate that old adage. I have so many gadgets in Mobile Tech Manor that it occurred to me that I can show many different screen sizes on devices.
The devices, screen sizes and resolution as shown in the video:
- Viliv S5 UMPC, 5-inch, 1024×600
- Viliv S7 UMPC, 7-inch, 1024×600
- Lenovo S10-2 netbook, 10-inch, 1024×600
- Lenovo S12 netbook, 12-inch, 1280×800
- Apple MacBook, 13-inch, 1280×800
- Lenovo ThinkPad T400s, 14-inch, 1440×900
It is interesting that all devices from 5 inches through 10 inches have the same resolution, so things appearing on-screen vary from tiny to quite large. All of the notebooks, netbooks and UMPCs shown in the video are running either Windows XP or Windows 7.
Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.
Size matters…
Would of been nice to have demonstrated the same PDF on all screens. I know that huge TV in the back gets some web surfing on it too…you don’t fool me…lol.
yes, screen size matters. the real, actual size.
resolution, on the other hand, *should not* matter–except that more is better for a nice detailed display.
So many toys, so little time….LOL
I wish they would offer some 4:3 aspect matte screens.
The wide screens seem to be short for alot of the programs we use and smaller area.
I agree with you, Sam. That’s why I’m not really into the new widescreen notebooks and stick to my 14″ ThinkPad T43 with a SXGA+ display (1400*1050). I know it’s not the brightest display out there, but it’s the best compromise of size, resolution and weight.
On my netbook (Acer Aspire A110) or on my external TFT the widescreen format is okay for me, but not on my standard laptop. I simply need to get some work done on this machine.
This wasn’t all the toys by any means, just one of each size. :)
Love seeing the computers James, thanks for sharing some of your “Geeky Goodies”.
Have you ditched your Fujitsu P1620? It would be an odd duck in that lineup, with its 8.9″ 1280×768 display.
I recently bought one used off EBay at a very good price, there’s a seller there who apparently bought over a hundred from the Circuit City liquidation (he’s been selling them with 2GB RAM for hundreds less than people used to sell 1GB models).
Too bad I wasn’t there James, you could have showed off an 8.9″ 1280×800 netbook alongside my 17″ Toshiba beast.
Then again, you’re probably NOT the guy who’s going to buy an Alienware M17x…
So when’s that 13″ Envy showing up?
Physical screen size shouldn’t matter if you have OK euesight. Screen resolution however, is very important. Look at firefox with a 1024×600 screen – half the screen is the toolbars. I recently upgraded from a 9″ 1024×600 aspire one a150 netbook to a 11.6″ 1366×768 eee 1101ha, and the physical screen size doesn’t really do much besides making room for a larger keyboard, which is an entirely different subject altogether. The screen resolution however, makes all the difference in the world. Just for something as simple as blogging – wordpress’ text editor page is almost useless on 1024×600 because the text editor box is so small you don’t really see what you’re doing (especially with pictures and such). I’d love a S5, but frankly I’d need 768 vertical pixels to be able to use it much
no. please world, quit thinking about pixels and start thinking about inches (or centimeters)! please world, become resolution independent! please world, start designing your GUIs for various display sizes!
I whole agree screen size matters. However there is a consumer issue with too many choices. I am a believer in the the small – medium – large models. The ones in between are just struggling to in one of these categories. Example: Netbooks with keyboards that are hard or impossible to use, either get rid of them for touch and use a different form factor or add some other type of value (dual small screens etc).