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Apple Sued Over 'Millions of Colors' Claim

MacBook actually displays only 262,144 colors

By Truman Lewis
ConsumerAffairs.com

April 3, 2008 

Nice ad, but the problem is that MacBook LCDs only display 262,144 colors. Geeks say that's because they use 6-bit TFT models instead of a true 8-bit display, which would indeed support 16,777,216.

But someone at Apple was counting pennies and decided to downgrade the display to 6 bits, even though Mac users pay a considerable premium for what they think will be a superior machine. So says a class action lawsuit against the computer maker.

Apple has already settled one lawsuit filed by aggrieved customers. Details are confidential, but what's not confidential is a new suit filed by a powerful Los Angeles legal firm, Kabateck Brown Kellner, a frequent litigant in high-tech circles.

"Apple is duping its customers into thinking they’re buying 'new and improved' when in fact they’re getting stuck with new and inferior," said managing partner Brian Kabatech.

Kabatech says his firm wants "to help those customers who were deceived and make sure Apple tells the truth in the future."

Track record

In the previous "millions of colors" case, MacBook owners Fred Greaves and Dave Gately filed a class action suit against Apple last May.

The case was initially viewed as frivolous but as hundreds of disgruntled MAcbook purchasers began posting their embittered complaints on apple.com and other online forums, both the legal community and Apple began to take the case more seriously.

Apple settled out of court with the two, reaching a confidential settlement. But by then, the damage had been done and others consumers -- and, more significantly, other lawyers -- began following the scent and Apple now faces a much more daunting opponent.

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