????我們一直想讓自己的電子設備變得更強大。曾幾何時，這意味著更強大的處理器、更多的內存和更大的硬盤。之后，MacBook Air從天而降，更輕更薄的筆記本成了我們的追求目標。而在移動性方面，我們同樣希望設備更輕、更薄、屏幕更大。

????本月初微軟（Microsoft）公布其Surface平板電腦后，至少在Twitter上，絕大部分批評言論都將矛頭對準了其顯示屏。“Windows 8 Surface Pro版”將配備微軟所謂的ClearType高清顯示屏，這似乎是微軟對蘋果（Apple）視網膜顯示器的回應，但價格較低的“Windows 8 Surface RT版”卻不會配備這種高清顯示屏。這一點讓有些人很不痛快。

????一位網友在Twitter發言稱：“如果微軟Surface不能在屏幕分辨率上戰勝iPad，那我就不知道了。對我而言，屏幕分辨率對平板電腦的用戶體驗已經越來越重要了。”

????另一位網友則在Twitter上稱：“我認為屏幕將決定微軟新款平板的成敗。視網膜顯示屏令人炫目，其它非蘋果硬件都已經過時了。”

????隨著iPhone、iPad和最近的MacBook Pro這些具備明銳顯示屏的設備大行其道，蘋果已經為我們重新定義了理想中的產品標準。對于許多人而言，目前最期待的似乎是超高分辨率的顯示屏，而在一定程度上，我能理解這一點。畢竟，顯示屏是電腦及平板電腦中我們所接觸最多的部件，說得形象點，就是“顯示內容的窗口”，所以，可以理解人們希望這扇窗戶盡可能的清晰、明銳。例如，最新推出的全新iPad，屏幕效果非常出色。將亮度調到最高，電子書的書頁看起來就像是色彩鮮明的紙張。

????但從另一方面而言，我尚不清楚高清晰顯示屏對于出色的計算機體驗而言，究竟是不是不可或缺的。我從沒見過抱怨iPad 2屏幕的用戶——至少在新款iPad上市前是如這樣此。而且，在花了相當的時間體驗過最新潮、最輕便、最纖薄的15英寸MacBook Pro后，雖然我立刻被清晰的顯示屏吸引住了，但我（基本）不介意重新用回老款MacBook Air“過時”的1440 x 900分辨率屏幕。

????一款設備的成功與否與分辨率的高低沒有關系。根據谷歌Nexus 7的早期評測來看，盡管它的分辨率與蘋果的視網膜視頻還有差距，但谷歌終于算是打造出了一款出色的平板電腦。總之，高質量顯示屏是件好事，但絕不像某些人想的，是決定產品成敗的關鍵所在。

????你的看法如何？在這個后iPhone 4、“全新iPad”和MacBook Pro時代，視網膜顯示屏標準的屏幕是否是決定一款新設備生死的關鍵？

????譯者：項航

????We always want our gadgets to be better. At one time, that meant a push for the fastest processor, better RAM, more hard drive space. Then the MacBook Air arrived, and attention turned to thinner and lighter notebooks. On the mobile side, that meant devices that were also lighter, thinner, with increasingly larger screens.

????When Microsoft (MSFT) announced its Surface tablet earlier this month, much of the criticism lobbed towards at -- at least via Twitter -- focused on the tablet's display. "Surface for Windows 8 Pro" will have what the company calls a ClearType HD display, seemingly the company's answer to Apple's (AAPL) Retina display, but the cheaper "Surface for Windows RT" will not. This little bit of news irked some.

????"If Microsoft Surface doesn't beat iPad in screen resolution, then I dunno. To me, screen rez is becoming more crucial to tablet experience," Tweeted one.

????"I think this new tablet from Microsoft will live or die on its screen. The Retina display is stunning and non-Apple HW [hardware] have lagged behind," Tweeted another.

????The almost-inevitable popularity of Apple devices packing sharper screens like the iPhone, iPad, and more recently, the MacBook Pro, has reshaped our idea of what we want from our gear. For many now, it appears to be extremely high screen resolution, and to some extent, I understand why. After all, if the screen is the one computer or tablet feature we interact with the most -- the literal window to content -- it makes sense that that "window" be as clear and sharp as can be. And on a product like the newest iPad, for instance, the screen is gorgeous. Turn the brightness all the way up and book pages resemble glowing sheets of paper.

????On the other hand, I don't know if having a super-sharp display is all-that-necessary to have an excellent computing experience. I don't know anyone who complained about their iPad 2's screen -- at least until the next version came along. And having spent quality time with the newest, lightest, thinnest 15-inch MacBook Pro, I instantly appreciated that display's clarity but (mostly) didn't mind going back to the "antiquated" 1,440 x 900 resolution of my old MacBook Air.

????A device can still be a great one regardless of how many pixels it's packing. If early reviews of Google's (GOOG) Nexus 7 -- a device with a quality screen not-quite-up to Retina standards -- are any indication, Google finally has an excellent tablet on its hands.

????Which is all to say, a quality display may be all well and good, but it's not the deal breaker some make it out to be.

????What do you think? In this post-iPhone 4, "new iPad," and MacBook Pro-era, is a Retina Display-quality screen a make or break feature now for new devices?