ChemistryEquipment: Under the microscope: a closer look at the new iPad

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Under the microscope: a closer look at the new iPad

Sure, you can take us on our word that the new iPad really is that much sharper than its predecessor -- or, you can opt for a more scientific approach, and peek at that Retina display under a microscope. Our own Richard Lai slid his 64GB WiFi iPad under a USB scope, going far beyond the naked eye for a close-up look at those gorgeous high-density subpixels. As you can imagine, it's impossible to distinguish one dot from the next when you're looking at a cool three million pixels packed tightly within a 9.7-inch slab, but that view clears up quite nicely under a 230x microscope. What you'll see is that those tiny red, green and blue dots are now significantly smaller, when compared to the iPad 2. That means text that's easily legible without a pinch, smooth icons and far sharper pictures. There's a dramatic improvement for sure, but is that new display alone enough to justify the upgrade for you? A quick click through the gallery below should help clear things up.

Gallery: The new iPad's LCD under the microscope