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Love-hate 🍏 relationship

macrumors 68040
Sep 19, 2021
3,057
3,235
they use cheap displays with a ton of software tricks to make them "pop"
this includes : color dithering, a ton of antialiasing, variable fresh rate (I hate it); crazy gamma settings, PMW and so on. Booting the OS in safe mode should turn off some of these tricks, try it and see if it gets better.
you do rly think they rely on cheap display ?
 
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TheRdungeon

macrumors 6502a
Jul 21, 2011
546
93
they use cheap displays with a ton of software tricks to make them "pop"
this includes : color dithering, a ton of antialiasing, variable fresh rate (I hate it); crazy gamma settings, PMW and so on. Booting the OS in safe mode should turn off some of these tricks, try it and see if it gets better.
That's extremely interesting, any more info on this?
 

ASX

macrumors 6502
Oct 30, 2021
407
146
I have tested dark mode on the 16 inch mbp 2021. I see no blurri- or hazziness. I used for example in addition the Asus ROG forum.

Your problems could be associated to pwm or the subpixellayout wich is common for lg's newer panels. They are using no stripes. The pixels have a form like a bow. This is also used for LG nano ips panels. Some users are complaining uncomfortably after using this displays for a while. The bows have worse pixel rendering. The edges are much less smooth, they have spikes.

Bows:


Stripes:

 
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Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
I have tested dark mode on the 16 inch mbp 2021. I see no blurri- or hazziness. I used for example in addition the Asus ROG forum.

Your problems could be associated to pwm or the subpixellayout wich is common for lg's newer panels. They are using no stripes. The pixels have a form like a bow. This is also used for LG nano ips panels. Some users are complaining uncomfortably after using this displays for a while. The bows have worse pixel rendering. The edges are much less smooth, they have spikes.

Bows:


Stripes:

That is possible. Looks like there are a number of issues that could be at play. Unfortunately it doesn't look like anything I'm able to do to fix/mitigate the issue which really sucks. Such a beast of a laptop. Looks like I'll be back to my 2019 16'... just when I'd gotten used to this phenomenal battery life. Fingers crossed they make some small improvements in future years that ends up addressing this issue so by the time I look at upgrading again I won't experience any issues.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Any updates? I've been having similar issues on my 16' M1 Pro ... eye strain/headaches after prolonged use and the sense that the screen is off somehow. I'm on week two now and it seems like it has gotten slightly better, though could also be that I'm getting out of the honeymoon period and not staring at the screen 24/7. I don't think it could be PWM as I have no issues with my 13 pro ... and the PWM refresh rate on the iPhone is significantly slower. I have until the 20th to return, and if I don't see any meaningful improvement it will likely be going back. Hugh bummer because I absolutely love this computer otherwise.

Would love to hear if it has improved for anyone or if anyone has found a "fix" or mitigation for whatever this might be...

If you have any lights behind the monitor… turn them off and see if it helps. I’ve been playing around with mine to see what could be causing it… it’s definitely a coating or a light diffuser of some sort.

That bow / stripe theory is interesting.

I’m on my iPhone 12 Pro all day and I never have issues with it. Which def rules out PWM. It’s def a coating or diffuser IMO.

Things to try for you guys - Try viewing
the screen at a 45 degree angle… does it go away?
Try viewing the monitor with no lights on behind you.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
They are using a lot of filters to reduce the blooming. Maybe they are distracting you.

I’ve noticed at certain angles… the blooming goes away. When looking straight ahead, I see the blooming… at other angles, the blooming goes away. Shouldn’t it be the opposite?
 

Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
If you have any lights behind the monitor… turn them off and see if it helps. I’ve been playing around with mine to see what could be causing it… it’s definitely a coating or a light diffuser of some sort.

That bow / stripe theory is interesting.

I’m on my iPhone 12 Pro all day and I never have issues with it. Which def rules out PWM. It’s def a coating or diffuser IMO.

Things to try for you guys - Try viewing
the screen at a 45 degree angle… does it go away?
Try viewing the monitor with no lights on behind you.
That is very interesting... it does seem to be more comfortable viewing slightly off to the side vs head on. Something that clicked just now as the eye strain/ headache seems to be more prevalent when I'm at my desk during the day staring right at the screen vs at night laying on the couch with the laptop slightly off to the side. Same with me - no issues at all with my 13 pro.
 

Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
Personally, I guess I'll have to decide whether this is something that's worth trying to work around, or give Apple a few tries to perfect the technology, especially since the purchase fell on more of the want side of the spectrum vs need. Whether they will make any significant changes at all to the display is the question, especially since it doesn't seem to be bothering many people at all, and I don't believe they made many significant changes to the LCD screen in the '16 - '20 era MB Pros? I could be wrong.
 

TinyMito

macrumors 6502a
Nov 1, 2021
862
1,225
I’ve noticed at certain angles… the blooming goes away. When looking straight ahead, I see the blooming… at other angles, the blooming goes away. Shouldn’t it be the opposite?
Could be a defect, I would suggest to go in store with your laptop and compare side by side with demo unit with the Apple people.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Personally, I guess I'll have to decide whether this is something that's worth trying to work around, or give Apple a few tries to perfect the technology, especially since the purchase fell on more of the want side of the spectrum vs need. Whether they will make any significant changes at all to the display is the question, especially since it doesn't seem to be bothering many people at all, and I don't believe they made many significant changes to the LCD screen in the '16 - '20 era MB Pros? I could be wrong.


It’s a quality control issue. I have no idea how they apply coatings, but from what I’ve seen… every single screen has been different with no consistency. Some are more glossy than others, some are more anti reflective. My screen is more anti reflective… to the point where viewing the screen straight ahead, the sides of the screen are dimmer than the center.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Could be a defect, I would suggest to go in store with your laptop and compare side by side with demo unit with the Apple people.

It most likely is a defect. I’ve returned 3 M1 MacBook Pros… I’d know how ****** the QC is. Received my 14” MBP with scratches on the bottom case and a partially loose screw, luckily I have a P5 screwdriver… so I just tightened it up.
 

Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
It most likely is a defect. I’ve returned 3 M1 MacBook Pros… I’d know how ****** the QC is. Received my 14” MBP with scratches on the bottom case and a partially loose screw, luckily I have a P5 screwdriver… so I just tightened it up.
Do you recall if the ones you returned had a similar issue, or were those the 13" models? Debating whether to go the exchange route to see if I have any issues with a replacement model.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Do you recall if the ones you returned had a similar issue, or were those the 13" models? Debating whether to go the exchange route to see if I have any issues with a replacement model.

The 13" models were M1 models... and the issues varied. All 3 had poorly applied screen coatings. One of them wobbled, two had speakers that weren't loud enough. Just various issues... off the top of my head.
 

Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Update - returned my MBP, checked floor models… all the floor models were inconsistent, each display was different. Although I’m not sure they had the issue mine did since I didn’t spend any time using them. The 16 inch models were more consistent and they actually looked much better in terms of coating quality. I only saw one that looked wonky… def a lottery at this point. No point in owning a laptop that hurts your eyes. Workers claimed they had another return for the same issue. Two other people had looked at my screen and said it made them nauseous so perhaps it was just a defect.
 

Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
Update - returned my MBP, checked floor models… all the floor models were inconsistent, each display was different. Although I’m not sure they had the issue mine did since I didn’t spend any time using them. The 16 inch models were more consistent and they actually looked much better in terms of coating quality. I only saw one that looked wonky… def a lottery at this point. No point in owning a laptop that hurts your eyes. Workers claimed they had another return for the same issue. Two other people had looked at my screen and said it made them nauseous so perhaps it was just a defect.
 

Srao1982

macrumors newbie
Nov 8, 2021
20
37
I ended up returning my BTO 16" and am on day three with a base 16" 1TB model. So far I have had a far better experience with this one... text appears clearer, no headaches or indescribable "something is not right" feeling with this model. I read somewhere that there were two mini-led suppliers for the 2021 models - LG and Sharp. Wonder if that has to do with it, or maybe a coating issue as you are thinking? No idea, but I'm going to give it a week before I can say confidently that there is a difference. If so I'll end up keeping this one.
 

Likeaboss7

macrumors newbie
Feb 12, 2019
23
16
Let’s see if there is a pattern to screen and eye strain. List 14 or 16 screen manufacturer and model and whether eye strain. Screen manufacturer and model can be found here -

You can still see some display manufacturer info if you open up a display profile via ColorSync utility:

Screen Shot 2021-10-31 at 2.11.05 PM.png
 
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Nocturnal-G

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 18, 2012
129
87
Let’s see if there is a pattern to screen and eye strain. List 14 or 16 screen manufacturer and model and whether eye strain. Screen manufacturer and model can be found here -

You can still see some display manufacturer info if you open up a display profile via ColorSync utility:

Screen Shot 2021-10-31 at 2.11.05 PM.png

Damn, wish I knew how to look this up… mines gone. I’m leaning towards a bad coating but a bad optical coating/screen/mini led issue is def a possibility.
 

ignaciobarrena

macrumors 6502
Dec 25, 2016
274
220
2 different Silver 14” MacBooks Pro from the Apple Store, same manufacturer.
 

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ignaciobarrena

macrumors 6502
Dec 25, 2016
274
220
The screen on the right has a better applied coating… the screen on the left has excessive. You can see the clarity differences immediately.
They look the same to me. The differences you are seeing might be from the slightly different angles of the pictures.
 

Buck987

macrumors 65816
Jan 16, 2010
1,268
2,106
They look the same to me. The differences you are seeing might be from the slightly different angles of the pictures.

At first glance they look the same to me, however zooming in I do believe the right side one is a little sharper.
 

3SQ Machine

macrumors 6502
Dec 8, 2019
356
204
Found this thread very interesting, but I'll admit I'm struggling with the "something's not right" sensation of the screen on my MBP 16" M1. Switching to the preset of "internet & web (sRGB)" made it more comfortable for web browsing, but I'm still poking around. Otherwise love the system.
 
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