Apple's new MacBook Pro screen beats a rival laptop in a side-by-side test

Apple's new 16-inch MacBook Pro has a screen that clearly beat a Lenovo rival in a side-by-side demo, according to Tom's Guide. The editor who saw it said the difference was "night and day." The catch is that Apple picked the test. Independent lab results have not been published yet.

What was compared

The MacBook Pro has a new display Apple calls PROLED XDR. It starts at $3,399. Apple put it next to the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i, which uses a screen type called tandem OLED. Tom's Guide describes the Lenovo as a comparably priced Windows competitor. The reviewer was not allowed to take photos or videos, so the report is a description of what he saw.

What he saw

Straight on, the two screens looked almost equal. The gap showed up in other situations.

• From the side, the MacBook kept its image quality while the Lenovo's colors shifted and turned yellowish.
• Apple claims a 10 million to 1 contrast ratio, versus 1 million to 1 for the Lenovo. Contrast is the gap between the darkest black and the brightest white.
• In a skyline photo, the Lenovo looked brighter, but the sky was washed out and city lights were fuzzier.
• With the room lights up, the Lenovo struggled and showed the reviewer's own reflection.

The MacBook in the demo did not have Apple's nano texture option, which is a finish meant to cut glare. The reviewer still saw only minimal glare.

The hinge test

Apple also showed off the hinge, which it designed to have more resistance than other laptops. When a rep touched the screen with the camera app running, the MacBook showed less bounce. The Lenovo wobbled so much that the camera view looked like an earthquake.

What is not known yet

The reviewer said the screen could live up to Apple's claim of being the best laptop display ever. He also said that will not be certain until his team tests it in its lab. Those tests cover brightness, color reproduction and color accuracy. He called the demo admittedly handpicked by Apple, but said that based on his 25 years of reviewing laptops, the screen looks legitimate.

What to do

Anyone eyeing a laptop at this price can wait for independent test results before buying. A company-run demo shows a product at its best. Lab numbers and reviews from outlets that tested it themselves will give a fuller picture.