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Well, this came as a surprise. Whether you liked Macs or you didnt, for a long time it has been hard not to concede that Macbook displays have been superior to standard notebook displays, much to the joy of photographers and designers everywhere. So whats all this about a Dell Inspiron Mini 9 topping the new MBP 15" in color accuracy?

Professional photographer Rob Galbraith uses his Dell Inspiron Mini 9 daily. No, it cant handle tough conversions and complex tasks, but its perfect to "import, select and transmit JPEGs" as well as the standard netbook uses of email and web browsing. What he didnt expect was that the viewing quality would exceed that of the new 15" Macbook Pro.

Gilbraiths biggest problem with the new MBP is the dont-even-think-about-opening-that-shade all glass glossy display. The display caused enough problems, apparently, that the Macbook rated 4th out of the 4 laptops tested. Two Lenovo entries were also tested and they were rated the top two of the bunch, with the Dell coming in 3rd.

For the longest time, Apple laptop displays ruled the roost around here. With very few exceptions, going back to the days of the PowerBook G4, portable Macs were considerably more colour accurate [than anyone else]. Thanks to Lenovo, however, and Apples decision to standardize on the glossiest of glossy screens... Macs are no longer at the top of the laptop display heap in our minds.

Gilbraith does admit that the viewing angles on the MBP are much better that those on the Dell Mini, and if your emphasis lies with that the MBP catapults all the way up to 3rd place in his rankings, passing the Mini. But no matter which way you look at it, this is visibly eye-popping news given the dramatic price difference between the Dell (~$300) and the MBP (~$2000).