# Is 4k and 100% AdobeRGB an advantage?



## Mickey (Sep 7, 2018)

Moving to a new laptop and I'm debating between two screens:  
15.6" 4K Ultra HD (3840 x 2160) InfinityEdge Anti-Reflective Touch IPS100% AdobeRGB 400-Nits display  or​15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080) InfinityEdge Anti-Glare Non-touch IPS 100% sRGB 400-Nits display​​There is a price difference but I'm willing to pay the extra for the 4K if the higher resolution and color space are an advantage.  I do have a 24" monitor that I could use when doing Lightroom but I don't think it is as good quality as either of these two screens.  The touchscreen might be nice overall but likely wouldn't use it in LR, but might for general computing.  I believe the 4K screen is glossy, though they claim it is "anti-reflective" while the FHD screen is matte.   I expect I'll be using the laptop as my main computer replacing my aging desktop and a work laptop I use for traveling (retiring soon ) .  I've seen the 4K screen and man is it sharp but I don't know if I could really tell the difference between the two and I haven't found anyplace I can compare both side by side, at least not yet.  My current 24" monitor is 1920 x 1080 and its fine though definitely not as sharp as the 4K laptops I've seen in stores.

I know there have been lots of threads asking for help picking a computer, and I've read many/most of them.  Looking for thoughts and advice from our LR experts.  Thanks all!

Mickey


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## BarrySchwartz (Sep 7, 2018)

I found it really, really nice when I moved up to a better screen.  4K gives you a smoother look on images (and graphics of all kinds), particularly images with flesh tones as well as sharp, contrasty edges on other kinds of pictures.  The full Adobe RGB has the same advantages, including transitions in tone, not to mention a far more accurate version of anything you - or someone else - will print, whether it is for a publication or ink jet.  Non-glare is also really nice, and if there is a hood available, that can make it easier to see accurately.    All of it put together also - no small thing - make for a less stressful experience staring at a screen for minutes or hours at a time.


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## tspear (Sep 7, 2018)

Start with how you display your images. If only online, or standard digital picture frames, color space does not matter much.
Second, unless your eyesight is a lot better than mine, or you have really coke bottle glasses, small monitor with high resolutions do not help much. You actually have to be able to see the pixels.... I have a BenQ SW320, a 32in 4K monitor. I would not consider a smaller monitor at that resolution .


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## Mickey (Sep 7, 2018)

I can definitely see a difference between the 4K screen and my existing monitor, even though the 4K screen is much smaller which surprised me as I wouldn't have thought I could tell the difference, but it's very clear.  Not sure whether I will like a glossy screen though, even if it is clearer.   I'm still going to search to see if I can find both screens that I can compare.


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## Replytoken (Sep 7, 2018)

You may also want to consider the following in your decision process:

How much will the higher resolution screen cost you in battery life (if that is a concern)?
How color accurate are the screens?  Higher gamut does not automatically get you more accuracy.
Will you mind working with a glossy screen?  They may say the glossy screen is anti-reflective, but it is not a matte screen.
Are there different suppliers of screens to the manufacturer?  Some use exclusive suppliers for certain models, and others give you a "panel lottery"?
Are you sensitive to PWM flickering, and does the screen use it to reduce brightness?
These are things that I considered when I purchased a new laptop this summer.  I ended up with a glossy touch screen and it has been a mixed blessing.  I prefer matte screens like my NEC monitors, and the reflections can be annoying, but it is nice for viewing images.

Good luck,

--Ken


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## LouieSherwin (Sep 7, 2018)

For editing having a wide gaumt (Adobe RGB or Apple P3) monitor is a clear advantage.  You still need to calibrate with a good quality colorimeter. The fact that a particular monitor specification states  that it has 97%, 98% or even 100% Adobe RGB does not mean that it is Adobe RGB. These percentages simply mean that the monitor has the capability to display that percentage of the colors represented by Adobe RGB working space. 

-louie


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## Tom75 (Sep 7, 2018)

Hi,

for me a 15.6 screen would be a little small for working but you are of course talking about the laptop screen.

I know I would not do much working with LR and pictures etc on such a small screen and you are saying you have a 24" monitor with 1920 x 1080. So basically the main question will be if you want to keep or replace that because if you buy the laptop with a natural resolution of 3840 x 2160 it will be pointless to connect it to a screen with only 1920 x 1080. Only the size of the picture will be bigger but you will see a LOT less on your 24 inch screen than on your laptop screen.

My point is you should always try to have an external screen that supports at least the resolution of your laptop screen otherwise its no point even connecting it.

In my opinion 1920 x 1080 is a little on the low side these days but if you are not planning to invest in a external display with 3840 x 2160 then I would recommend to go for the 1920 x 1080 because it would fit together resolution wise.

In the picture you can see what I mean

Regards,
Tom


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## Mickey (Sep 8, 2018)

Replytoken said:


> You may also want to consider the following in your decision process:
> 
> How much will the higher resolution screen cost you in battery life (if that is a concern)?
> How color accurate are the screens?  Higher gamut does not automatically get you more accuracy.
> ...


Ken - You make some good points, some of which I have considered.  

not concerned about battery life
Understand about color accuracy and I plan on calibrating the screen
Not sure about how I'd like a glossy screen, hence my hesitation.  Unfortunately it's harder and harder to find a matte screen in a laptop.
I don't know about the screen suppliers
I am sensitive to PWM flickering so that's something I will need to investigate.



LouieSherwin said:


> For editing having a wide gaumt (Adobe RGB or Apple P3) monitor is a clear advantage.  You still need to calibrate with a good quality colorimeter. The fact that a particular monitor specification states  that it has 97%, 98% or even 100% Adobe RGB does not mean that it is Adobe RGB. These percentages simply mean that the monitor has the capability to display that percentage of the colors represented by Adobe RGB working space.
> 
> -louie



Louie - absolutely true.  That's why I plan on making sure I can calibrate the laptop screen.



Tom75 said:


> My point is you should always try to have an external screen that supports at least the resolution of your laptop screen otherwise its no point even connecting it.on 1920 x 1080 is a little on the low side these days but if you are not planning to invest in a external display with 3840 x 2160 then I would recommend to go for the 1920 x 1080 because it would fit together resolution wise.
> 
> In the picture you can see what I mean
> 
> ...



Thank you, Tom.  I had totally forgotten that point, and it's a good one.

Last night I went searching in a local mall and was able to view two laptops at the Microsoft Store.  One was the exact Dell I was thinking about with the glossy 4K screen, and the other was another brand but with the 1920 x 1080 matte screen.  Even though it is a laptop, the 4K screen was very obviously much clearer and crisper, especially so after I adjusted the brightness on them to be as close to the same as my eyes could tell.   Unfortunately I was not able to view an actual photo or to view in Lightroom, so I was judging based solely on the appearance of MSN.Com.

I did find the glossy screen definitely showed reflections, including my own reflection, which was more noticable on dark backgrounds.  I preferred the matte screen but the sharpness of the 4K.  Unfortunately those two do not exist in combination.  Based on Tom's comments above, I may need to factor in a new monitor as well.

Another totally different direction occurred to me while mulling all this over.  My husband and I do plan on doing more travel in the next few years, but based on our past trips I rarely end up doing much on the laptop I lugged around other than viewing the photos I took and bare minimal tagging and rating.  I also always bring my ipad.  I'm now thinking about just using Lightroom CC with my iPad when traveling and upgrade my desktop at home and not bother with a laptop.  

I have Victoria's new book that I just recently started so this may be my best bet.  If I use Lightroom CC while traveling then switch to Lightroom Classic at home on the bigger screen it might be the best of both worlds as long as I can figure out the right workflow for using both with mucking things up.  It also has the added advantage of cloud backup for my photos which I haven't done at all yet (I rely on an offsite backup as well as local backup).

Anyway, sorry for rambling on here and I do appreciate all the feedback.  I may not post often but I love this site and rely heavily on the advice I read here.  Thank you all.

Mickey


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## Replytoken (Sep 8, 2018)

Mickey said:


> I don't know about the screen suppliers
> 
> 
> I am sensitive to PWM flickering so that's something I will need to investigate.



I recommend this site for laptop reviews - Notebook / Laptop Reviews and News .  They do detailed reviews and test for PWM (as well as identify screen suppliers).

--Ken


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## Mickey (Sep 9, 2018)

Thanks, Ken.  I am familiar with that site and I agree that it has great information.  Another good one is NotebookReview.com - Notebook Reviews - Laptop Reviews and Netbook News


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## Replytoken (Sep 9, 2018)

Mickey said:


> Thanks, Ken.  I am familiar with that site and I agree that it has great information.  Another good one is NotebookReview.com - Notebook Reviews - Laptop Reviews and Netbook News


I used to really love their site, especially since they were big Thinkpad fans, but the reviews seem fare fewer than in years past.  Nonetheless, I do check in from time to time there and at Laptopmag.

--Ken


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## Tom75 (Sep 9, 2018)

Mickey said:


> If I use Lightroom CC while traveling then switch to Lightroom Classic at home on the bigger screen it might be the best of both worlds as long as I can figure out the right workflow for using both with mucking things up.



Ok , now you are thinking about a completely different setup I am just wondering how you will get your photos you take with a camera into LR CC on your iPad or are you just thinking about pictures you are taking with an iPad or phone?


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## Mickey (Sep 9, 2018)

Definitely taking pictures with a camera.   I’m putting off the laptop decision for a few months after all this since no big travel plans ‘til next year.  I have a lightning connector on a card reader (new) that I’ll experiment with while I work on learning LRCC.


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