How can I make the text crisper and less blurry on my MacBook Pro?

Question

How can I make the text crisper and less blurry on my MacBook Pro?

I just purchased my first MacBook Pro, and I absolutely love it, save for one potential deal breaker: The text displays blurry. Instead of stark, black on white text, there is a slight halo of grey (or whatever color the font is in) around every character. It makes the text look nice, but much harder to read. The characters are deliberately out of focus. Apparently this is normal, according to this article: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2015823073_ptmrsh06.htm l

Is there a way to fix (or work around) this? As a writer, I cannot type for eight hours a day on a computer that "softens" the text. I have tried adjusting my screen resolution (it's at the highest possible) and turning off "font-smoothing" (it's off). Nothing works. I called Apple support and they couldn't help me either. I can't believe there's not an easy fix for this.

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Oct 8, 2011 12:19 PM

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Answer 1

Oct 8, 2011 12:57 PM in response to ComputerUser23483

Humor me.

Let's revisit the things you did, because they -should- have fixed the problems.

!) to set screen resolution, you MUST use:

System Preferences > Displays ...

Use of the MenuBar item simply shows the last three chosen, not all available.

And what is the screen resolution you are using now? 13" 15" or 17" display? Do you have the default glossy screen or the enhanced matte display?

2) font smoothing.

System Preferences > Appearance.

I see no OFF. I see a checkbox to default to LCD smoothing, and I see "turn off font smoothing for characters smaller than nn point", where nn is 4 to 12.

How do you have these set?

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Answer 2

Oct 8, 2011 3:25 PM in response to ComputerUser23483

I suggest you go to the Apple store and look at the 15" MacBook Pro with higher resolution and/or matte display. The characters are smaller and crisper, and you may find it more pleasing. They are smaller enough those with bad eyesight are complaining it is difficult to see the letters, so it should seem dramatically different.

You have only 14 days to return the one you have now, so do not delay.

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Answer 3

Oct 9, 2011 2:05 PM in response to ComputerUser23483

Have you adjusted the Brightness? That can make a big difference. You can also calibrate your display for different results from the standard profile.

Tried a different Font? Serifs are good for guiding your eye along a line of print, but may be "too busy" for writing words on screen. Tried Helvetica?

Would it work better white text on black background? That is available in Universal Access system preference.

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Answer 4

Oct 8, 2011 3:14 PM in response to ComputerUser23483

1280 by 800 is the maximum resolution for the 13" display. Since that display IS an LCD, your choosing to uncheck the checkbox gives you CRT font smoothing, which is not what you want.

You DO want LCD font smoothing, as you have an LCD display.

Setting the font selector to 12 turns off font smoothing for sizes 12 and smaller, which does, as you have suggested, turn it off for all practical purposes.

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Answer 5

Oct 8, 2011 1:56 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thanks for the response. My resolution is set as high as it will go, 1280 x 800. Is there a way to make it higher?

There is a button that says "Use LCD Font Smoothing When Available." I have that button unclicked. I have adjusted it so it turns off font smoothing for sizes 12 and higher.

It's frustrating, because it seems to be anti-aliasing anyway. I wish I could just turn it off, because the fuzziness of the text is a strain on my eyes and makes writing for long periods impossible.

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Answer 6

Oct 8, 2011 3:22 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thanks again for the help. So I have checked the box as you suggested. The text is still blurry, though. There's nothing else I can do? Such a disappointment; I was hoping to use this computer to write, but I can't if the text is out of focus; that's too hard on my eyes.

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Answer 7

steve359

Level 6

17,187 points

Oct 8, 2011 3:32 PM in response to ComputerUser23483

FWIW

The hi-res anti-glare of my 15 in MBP is very clear ... "as near as makes no difference" full-HD.

But the letters are very small, and I use the "zoom" much for detailed work. For general reading of a language I am very familiar with (English) that my brain can easily "guess at the gaps" when needed, works fine.

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