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Other Eye-strain while using iPhone X and up

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The first post of this thread is a WikiPost and can be edited by anyone with the appropiate permissions. Your edits will be public.

Are you experiencing this issue?

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now i see it said:
Ummm
The XR is an LCD screen & doesn't use PWM. The problems you experienced with it is related to something else.
Click to expand...

I had the iPhone XR and this is what happened. If it wasn't PWM, the iPhone XR has serious display issues. This happened for two brand new phones, out of the box. I used iPhones for 10 years and never had this issue. If you feel a headache, just get rid of the phone. I did and I feel 100% again. Another thing about the XR was that neither my wife nor I could get a focal point. We had to hold it very far from our faces to be able to read it, where the iPhone 8 is just like the 6s from which we migrated. I understand using new technology and that things change, but such a serious side effect of use should be told to the user, especially before they buy expensive phones. Also, the iPhone 8 models were almost twice the price of the XR models. I would have paid anything, however, to have gotten away from the migraine nightmare I experienced and am just glad it is over. Good luck and again, if you are getting headaches from an iPhone X, don't try to fix it, just get out of that phone and into one not utilizing whatever 'tech' is causing the headaches and eyestrain.
[doublepost=1563226246][/doublepost]Thanks for the link TDDM! Will post what I wrote there.
 
MacTime82 said:
I had the iPhone XR and this is what happened. If it wasn't PWM, the iPhone XR has serious display issues. This happened for two brand new phones, out of the box. I used iPhones for 10 years and never had this issue. If you feel a headache, just get rid of the phone. I did and I feel 100% again. Another thing about the XR was that neither my wife nor I could get a focal point. We had to hold it very far from our faces to be able to read it, where the iPhone 8 is just like the 6s from which we migrated. I understand using new technology and that things change, but such a serious side effect of use should be told to the user, especially before they buy expensive phones. Also, the iPhone 8 models were almost twice the price of the XR models. I would have paid anything, however, to have gotten away from the migraine nightmare I experienced and am just glad it is over. Good luck and again, if you are getting headaches from an iPhone X, don't try to fix it, just get out of that phone and into one not utilizing whatever 'tech' is causing the headaches and eyestrain.
[doublepost=1563226246][/doublepost]Thanks for the link TDDM! Will post what I wrote there.
Click to expand...

As it can't be PWM with the XR, what about FaceID? Being unable to focus doesn't quite fit that theory, but is it possible that it could still be due to after effects of the FaceID IR bombardment?
 
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https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/07/24/what-is-dc-dimming-and-why-are-phone-screens-getting-it/

Nice to see DC Dimming getting some attention, people definitely seem to be getting a little more aware of PWM. It’s interesting to see people in the comments on multiple sites realizing that the headache they’ve been having has actually been due to the flickering, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that a lot more people than we think are affected but just ignore the symptoms or not even consider their phone as the cause.

Anyway, I’m still hoping Apple will add in DC Dimming as an accessibility feature someday. iOS14 perhaps? :D
 
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Interesting.. even DC dimming shows some flicker, is it just the artifact of recording the video from another camera with different scanning rate?
TDDM said:
https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/07/24/what-is-dc-dimming-and-why-are-phone-screens-getting-it/

Nice to see DC Dimming getting some attention, people definitely seem to be getting a little more aware of PWM. It’s interesting to see people in the comments on multiple sites realizing that the headache they’ve been having has actually been due to the flickering, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that a lot more people than we think are affected but just ignore the symptoms or not even consider their phone as the cause.

Anyway, I’m still hoping Apple will add in DC Dimming as an accessibility feature someday. iOS14 perhaps? :D
Click to expand...
 
gaanee said:
Interesting.. even DC dimming shows some flicker, is it just the artifact of recording the video from another camera with different scanning rate?
Click to expand...
The author noticed that as well, he said:
"DC dimming uses a continuous current, which means the display mostly stays on all the time. (It might still exhibit some alternating as a result of the display's refresh rate, which I think is what's happening with the slow-moving line in our video, but I can't be sure.)"
 
Keep in mind the video was shot at 960fps. That slow flicker with DC dimming enabled shouldn't be noticeable for anyone.

I use DC at night on my 7 Pro. Love it. The changes in color and uniformity rear their ugly heads at minimum brightness if I'm reading in bed though.
 
Harthag said:
Keep in mind the video was shot at 960fps. That slow flicker with DC dimming enabled shouldn't be noticeable for anyone.

I use DC at night on my 7 Pro. Love it. The changes in color and uniformity rear their ugly heads at minimum brightness if I'm reading in bed though.
Click to expand...
Do you normally have issues with PWM if you don't use DC?
 
TDDM said:
Do you normally have issues with PWM if you don't use DC?
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Only with computer monitors and TVs. I tend to stare longer and blink less often while using a monitor or watching TV which causes eye fatigue faster if there's flickering. Mostly monitors I notice it.
 
Eye-strain on the new iPhones in 3, 2, 1...

We have a faulty keyboard since 2016, so I assume same bad oled tech on the 11 as well.
 
Expecting specific problems before anything is even announced? Not sure what keyboard your iPhone has, mine's been fine. If you're referring to the MacBook then what has that got to do with iPhones exactly?
 
Never had eye strain with the X or Xs. No reason to expect this to be a problem with the new models either especially as they are supposedly using the same kind of displays used in the Galaxy S10 range.
 
I experienced eye strain on my XS in the first week when I started using it, didn't occur to me until now that I've not noticed it since. Maybe I got used to it?
 
There is no iPhone 11 yet for us to strain ours eyes with, you must mean the iPhone X/XS?

Regardless - rumors are that Apple will switch to new OLED panels, the same premium ones that Samsung uses for its Galaxy Note 10, for the upcoming iPhone 11 Pros.
 
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Some people can stare at strobe lights all day long (iPhone OLED screens) with no ill effects while others can't get near them. It remains to be seen what, if anything, has improved with the iPhone 11 screens.
 
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orbitalpunk said:
has anyone tried similar current Samsung, Sony or Pixel phones and had the same issue?
Click to expand...
Any OLED or LED backlit display that’s using a PWM backlight will be a problem for some of us.

So far notebookcheck’s been the only reliable source for this. Also, rtings for televisions.

FWIW, the XR has been wonderful, but it is still an LCD with no flickering.
 
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phillytim said:
There is no iPhone 11 yet for us to strain ours eyes with, you must mean the iPhone X/XS?

Regardless - rumors are that Apple will switch to new OLED panels, the same premium ones that Samsung uses for its Galaxy Note 10, for the upcoming iPhone 11 Pros.
Click to expand...
If that’s the case, then the PWM sensitive people are definitely out of luck this year.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Samsu...ed-SoC-promises-better-runtimes.433424.0.html
“The panel in our review unit flickers between 122.5 and 250 Hz, which is low enough to cause issues for those who are PWM sensitive. Likewise, the panel flickers at 60 Hz at 100%, so we would recommend trying the Note 10+ before buying it if you know you are PWM sensitive. Samsung does not include any special dimming features like DC dimming as Huawei and OnePlus do with some of their flagships.”
 
orbitalpunk said:
has anyone tried similar current Samsung, Sony or Pixel phones and had the same issue?
Click to expand...
I've used the following OLED phones with zero issues:
Galaxy s4
Galaxy S5
Galaxy s6
Galaxy S7
Galaxy s7 edge
Galaxy s8
Galaxy s8+
OnePlus 3
Moto z play

None of them gave me a headache, and every single one of them (besides maybe the z play) are Samsung made screens (just like the xs max)

I had an xs max at launch, but I had to return it due to really bad headaches within minutes of using it. I gave it a weekend to try to "get used to it", but it didn't work. It felt a lot like a sinus headache, and following the screen when I scrolled down was really difficult. Not all OLED screens are the same, even if the pwm frequency is the same. Apple definitely does something unique with their pwm in my experience.
 
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TDDM said:
...the panel flickers at 60 Hz at 100%...
Click to expand...
Ouch. :/

I had a Samsung HDTV a couple years back and @ 120hz, the pain set in fast and lasted long after.

I’ve seen “flicker free” advertised on traditional monitors for years (2013 even on a BenQ), and here we are in 2019 with this crazy push for OLEDs on phones, watches, etc.

I’d really love to see a hard push against fluorescent lighting and these flickering displays. :-(
 
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