The contrast between the new iPad display and that of its predecessors struck many reviewers. "Using the new display is like getting a new eyeglasses prescription — you suddenly realize what you thought looked sharp before wasn't nearly as sharp as it could be," says Walter Mossberg, reviewing for . As MG Sielger, at says, "After using the new iPad for an extended period of time then switching back to an iPad 2 (or 1, for that matter), you'll cringe at the pixelated cloud that appears to surround every app icon. Text will look murky. Colors will look muted."

Apple didn't rely on just the raw number of pixels to impress. Instead it updated its own on-board apps, and is encouraging third-party developers to do the same, to fully exploit the new iPad's Retina Display technology. "All of Apple's own apps have been updated to suit the higher resolution, with more detailed iconography and text," says Vincent Nguyen, writing at . "However, third-party apps also look good, even if they've not been polished to suit the new hardware, though they aren't quite as refined as Apple's own handiwork."

The screen shows vivid 1080p video and high-def photos "though the 4:3 aspect ratio means there are black bars top and bottom," Nguyen says. "Nonetheless, the level of detail is incredibly impressive...."

On the new iPad itself, says Siegler, "Web pages look almost as if they're being displayed in a high-quality glossy magazine. Photos look like photos — the printed out kind. Text is razor sharp and crisp, just like print."

John Gruber, at : "It's not just sharp; the display also shows great bright colors without any saturation-gimmickry like you get with OLED displays. Photographs look amazingly good, but also amazingly true-to-life....Photos don't just look sharp when zoomed out — they look sharp when zoomed in."