Business

Inside the new MacBook Air's screen

TechRestore's CEO sheds light on the hoops that Apple jumped through to save weight and thicknesss on its thinnest notebook ever.

Written by Jason D. O'Grady, Contributor Oct. 25, 2010 at 10:07 a.m. PT

Almost immediately after Apple launched the new MacBook Air, TechRestore began offering a matte finish screen replacement for its glossy screen.

CEO Shannon Jean told me that that they're using the same panel that Apple does. Apparently there’s only one panel like it being made right now. I also asked if it was any easier to get inside MBA now that there's no microphone in the display:

It’s much more difficult. The screen is paper thin and it’s not inside a housing like the traditional screens. It’s in layers, it’s insane. Perhaps you can do a post on this service, then I can send you images of the screen to do an additional post. I don’t think there’s ever been a screen like this used in a laptop. It’s very similar to a Sony PSP screen, where the LCD panel and backlight are separate pieces.

Like I mentioned, this is an ultra-thin screen that is not encased in a typical screen housing. Looks like Apple saved weight and space by keeping the parts separate. Very cool, except getting the screen out of the unit is a challenge with the Iron Man adhesives that Apple uses. Plus the fact that replacing the screen will require a dust free environment, since you are essentially peeling back the screen like an onion and there are all kinds of ways to cause damage. If you scratch the backlight layer, it will show through the LCD, if you get dirt/dust in between the LCD and reflective layers, it will show up, just to name a few.

Following are some photos of removing the screen on the 2010 MacBook Air.