Raymond Soneira a theoretical physicist with a degree from Princeton says Apple's claims that the iPhone 4 display resolution exceeds the human retina, are false and outlandish.
“It is reasonably close to being a perfect display, but Steve pushed it a little too far,” Soneira said.
During his keynote speech announcing the iPhone 4, Steve Jobs said that the new display had a pixel density of 326 pixels per inch. He claimed that this resolution exceeds the limit of the human retina when held at a foot away.
“It turns out there’s a magic number right around 300 pixels per inch, that when you hold something around to 10 to 12 inches away from your eyes, is the limit of the human retina to differentiate the pixels.”
According to Wired, Soneira said it was inaccurate to measure the resolution of the eye in terms of pixels, because the eye actually has an angular resolution of 50 cycles per degree. Therefore, if we were to compare the resolution limit of the eye with pixels on a screen, we must convert angular resolution to linear resolution. After conversions are made, a more accurate “retina display” would have a pixel resolution of 477 pixels per inch at 12 inches, Soneira calculated.
“The marketing puffery is now in control,” Soneira said. “Everything that’s being said now is just this superamplified imaginary nonsense, and the only way to get people’s attention now is making more outlandish statements.”
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“It is reasonably close to being a perfect display, but Steve pushed it a little too far,” Soneira said.
During his keynote speech announcing the iPhone 4, Steve Jobs said that the new display had a pixel density of 326 pixels per inch. He claimed that this resolution exceeds the limit of the human retina when held at a foot away.
“It turns out there’s a magic number right around 300 pixels per inch, that when you hold something around to 10 to 12 inches away from your eyes, is the limit of the human retina to differentiate the pixels.”
According to Wired, Soneira said it was inaccurate to measure the resolution of the eye in terms of pixels, because the eye actually has an angular resolution of 50 cycles per degree. Therefore, if we were to compare the resolution limit of the eye with pixels on a screen, we must convert angular resolution to linear resolution. After conversions are made, a more accurate “retina display” would have a pixel resolution of 477 pixels per inch at 12 inches, Soneira calculated.
“The marketing puffery is now in control,” Soneira said. “Everything that’s being said now is just this superamplified imaginary nonsense, and the only way to get people’s attention now is making more outlandish statements.”
Read More