Displaymate Tablet Shootout Puts Retina Ipad Mini In Last Place With Out Dated Technology

DisplayMate, a company specializing in scientific display testing and calibration, gave the Retina iPad Mini third place in detailed lab tests of three leading 7-inch tablets, criticising Apple for “really bad planning” for what it considers to be out-dated display technology.

DisplayMate says that there are two problems with Apple’s use of IGZO (Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide) displays in its iPads. First, although IGZO was the best available technology two years ago, things have moved on, and the LTPS displays used by both the latest Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 tablets are now significantly better.

Second, says the site, IGZO has suffered poor yield rates, and as a result Apple has not been able to get enough of them to use the displays in all of its iPads, mixing them with less-efficient Silicon a-Si screens.

Shades of Samsung vs LG displays in Retina MacBook Pros here. While Apple is apparently succeeding in delivering the same brightness and battery-life with each, it does raise questions about the relative longevity of the two approaches.

The very best of today’s display technologies? The Quantum Dots displays used in the Kindle Fire HDX 7 according to the report.

DisplayMate did give top marks to the iPad Mini display in many categories, praising its resolution, small color shift with different viewing angles, “close to perfect” contrast accuracy, accurate calibration, low reflectivity – and rating as “very good” its maximum brightness, black levels, contrast ratios and viewability in high ambient light.

The greatest criticism was reserved for the 63% color gamut (range of colors that can be displayed) against 97 percent for the Kindle and 103 percent for the Nexus – an issue picked up in some earlier technical reviews.

You can read chapter and verse, and see all of the detailed tables, over on the DisplayMate site.

Of course, none of this changes the generally rave reviews the new Mini has received, but it will certainly be interesting to keep an eye on Quantum Dot displays to see if & when Apple makes the switch down the line.