ELI5 MacBook Pro resolutions

[Leychee]

The MacBook Pro 14" is advertised as having a resolution of 3024x1964, but in the display settings it shows up as 1512x982. 

The screen is very sharp and 4K content looks fantastic, so what's the magic behind it? Is it some form of upscaling? Please ELI5.

 

Thank you!

[Crunchy Dragon]

The resolution is the amount of pixels that make up the screen. macOS scales the display, which is the number you see in display settings.

[saintlouisbagels]

6 hours ago, Leychee said:

The MacBook Pro 14" is advertised as having a resolution of 3024x1964, but in the display settings it shows up as 1512x982. 

The screen is very sharp and 4K content looks fantastic, so what's the magic behind it? Is it some form of upscaling? Please ELI5.

The user interface is designed to look its best around ~110 PPI (pixels per inch) or higher. This is a good balance of sharp text and screen elements without making everything look too small.

With this in mind, Apple also designs the displays with bizarre resolutions like 3024x1964 because they result in a PPI that's double of the PPI target.

 

This leads to a default display resolution that "looks like 1512x982" while giving you the double the sharpness and clarity of a far denser screen.

- - - - - -

For a less confusing example;

 

27-inch, 2560x1440 monitors have a PPI of ~108

Apple's 27-inch display is 5K (5120x2880) and has 216 PPI

If you leave the display settings on default, the Apple's 5K screen is effectively identical to a regular 1440p display. But if you compare the "picture quality" side by side, the 5K display is MUCH sharper.

 

[Leychee]

12 hours ago, saintlouisbagels said:

The user interface is designed to look its best around ~110 PPI (pixels per inch) or higher. This is a good balance of sharp text and screen elements without making everything look too small.

With this in mind, Apple also designs the displays with bizarre resolutions like 3024x1964 because they result in a PPI that's double of the PPI target.

 

This leads to a default display resolution that "looks like 1512x982" while giving you the double the sharpness and clarity of a far denser screen.

- - - - - -

For a less confusing example;

 

27-inch, 2560x1440 monitors have a PPI of ~108

Apple's 27-inch display is 5K (5120x2880) and has 216 PPI

If you leave the display settings on default, the Apple's 5K screen is effectively identical to a regular 1440p display. But if you compare the "picture quality" side by side, the 5K display is MUCH sharper.

 

18 hours ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

The resolution is the amount of pixels that make up the screen. macOS scales the display, which is the number you see in display settings.

That's a bit clearer now. Can't say I fully understand it yet, but it makes more sense. Thanks!