Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Other Eye-strain while using iPhone X and up

Status
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?

  • Total voters
    1,929
So when they were announcing the iPhone 13, they made a big deal about how much better the screen is than the 12. Did anyone else pick up on that? 28% brighter, 1.5 hours longer battery life (I think), and even something about the screen drawing algorithm. Hopefully when all combined, it means I'll be able to look at the screen without getting a headache the following day or having to take eye drops!

I'll be pre-ordering a 13 mini this Friday, and I'll post back on the 25th regarding how bad or non-existent my headache is ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jetro and JM
thejadedmonkey said:
So when they were announcing the iPhone 13, they made a big deal about how much better the screen is than the 12. Did anyone else pick up on that? 28% brighter, 1.5 hours longer battery life (I think), and even something about the screen drawing algorithm. Hopefully when all combined, it means I'll be able to look at the screen without getting a headache the following day or having to take eye drops!

I'll be pre-ordering a 13 mini this Friday, and I'll post back on the 25th regarding how bad or non-existent my headache is ;)
Click to expand...
Well, the same could be said about the XS compared to the X, the 11 Pro series compared to the XS, the 12 series compared to the 11 Pro, etc. Each year offered better screen specs than the previous but for most, the usability did not change. I’m not trying to be intentionally negative as I would do just about anything to retire this 11. But nothing I have read anywhere suggests the PWM will be more manageable on the 13.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jetro, Chele and miniyou64
There is always hope that the next generation of iPhones is going to be free of PWM or use a very high frequency for PWM, but I didn't see anything that made me think this would be the case for this year's new models.

Waiting for NotebookCheck's PWM tests...
 
  • Like
Reactions: MICHAELSD and The.Glorious.Son
It's sad that apple had nothing say about things like DC Dimming or higher pwm frequenzy. So i don't have very much hope that something good could change with the new Pro Max. I have buy a cheaper flicker meter that should deliver comparable results to devices that are more expensive. I will test the pro max next week when possible and see.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jimmy_uk
Mr.Simple said:
It's sad that apple had nothing say about things like DC Dimming or higher pwm frequenzy. So i don't have very much hope that something good could change with the new Pro Max. I have buy a cheaper flicker meter that should deliver comparable results to devices that are more expensive. I will test the pro max next week when possible and see.
Click to expand...
I would not expect Apple to announce a change like that because they would almost be admitting guilt for their last 4 generations of OLED iPhones. Thank you, in advance, for reporting back your findings next week.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jimmy_uk and thejadedmonkey
Sadly, I agree with everyone's assessment that there is no current evidence to suggest that the PWM issue is better with the new 13s. My poor 11 is starting to slow down and I'm really hoping to retire it. I briefly thought about just buying another 11 because at least that would let me limp along a little bit longer. I tried the 12 last year and couldn't tolerate it. I'm thinking of getting the 13 Pro, because I never tried the 12 Pro. I don't have a lot of hope that it'll really make a difference though. If anyone here is going to gamble and get one of the 13, which one are you trying and why?
 
  • Like
Reactions: miniyou64 and The.Glorious.Son
There's probably thousands of silent watchers to this thread waiting for the guinea pigs to try the 13 series and report back their headache/eyestrain findings or lack of them here.
This thread is probably the most important thread on Mac Rumors forums.

In a way, PWM sensitivity is like having a food allergy. The difference is that food labels have allergy warnings where ApleInc ignores the toxic display subject entirely.
 
  • Like
Reactions: miniyou64, jimmy_uk, JM and 1 other person
Chele said:
Sadly, I agree with everyone's assessment that there is no current evidence to suggest that the PWM issue is better with the new 13s. My poor 11 is starting to slow down and I'm really hoping to retire it. I briefly thought about just buying another 11 because at least that would let me limp along a little bit longer. I tried the 12 last year and couldn't tolerate it. I'm thinking of getting the 13 Pro, because I never tried the 12 Pro. I don't have a lot of hope that it'll really make a difference though. If anyone here is going to gamble and get one of the 13, which one are you trying and why?
Click to expand...
I am leaning trying the 13 Pro. Reason being, I felt like the 12 Pro Max bothered me more than the 12 Pro. Could be completely placebo, but it felt like the larger the screen, the more flicker to hit the eyes. That said, I’ve also thought about a new 11. But I honestly need 512gb for my needs and it looks like the 11 tops out at 128gb now. I refuse to downgrade to an SE.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chele
ARizz44 said:
I am leaning trying the 13 Pro. Reason being, I felt like the 12 Pro Max bothered me more than the 12 Pro. Could be completely placebo, but it felt like the larger the screen, the more flicker to hit the eyes. That said, I’ve also thought about a new 11. But I honestly need 512gb for my needs and it looks like the 11 tops out at 128gb now. I refuse to downgrade to an SE.
Click to expand...
I completely agree with you. I really need the 256gb and don't know if I want to get a "new" 11 with less than my current one. I guess I'll try out the 13 Pro. I still feel like I'm just going to be turning around and returning it though. Because of that, I'm not sure how to pay for it. I'm part of the iPhone upgrade program but because I returned the 12 last year, my 11 is paid off. So I can re-enroll with the 13 but I wouldn't be able to trade in my 11. Part of me just thinks it'd be easier to just put it on my credit card rather than get in any program because it'll be short lived anyway.
 
  • Like
Reactions: The.Glorious.Son
Who’s willing to pre-order this year?

I’m past the point of waiting for Notebookcheck to post their findings and would rather start testing at least on iPhone annually until there’s one I’m able to keep. It would be ideal to be within the holiday return window so let’s see how patient we can be this year.

I do have to admit I’m not super tempted by iPhone 13 and would have probably kept my iPhone 12 Pro Max for another year if that was an option.

There have to be some differences in PWM on the Pro models due to the higher 120Hz refresh rate of the display, but it concerns me slightly that the refresh rate is dynamic as that means the PWM rate will probably vary widely throughout usage.
 
MICHAELSD said:
Who’s willing to pre-order this year?

I’m past the point of waiting for Notebookcheck to post their findings and would rather start testing at least on iPhone annually until there’s one I’m able to keep. It would be ideal to be within the holiday return window so let’s see how patient we can be this year.

I do have to admit I’m not super tempted by iPhone 13 and would have probably kept my iPhone 12 Pro Max for another year if that was an option.

There have to be some differences in PWM on the Pro models due to the higher 120Hz refresh rate of the display, but it concerns me slightly that the refresh rate is dynamic as that means the PWM rate will probably vary widely throughout usage.
Click to expand...
I’m likely mistaken, but I didn’t think that type of refresh rate had any correlation to PWM.
 
For those unfamiliar, here is a refresher:

Refresh rate, measured in Hertz (Hz), is how quickly a display can refresh an image.

Frame rate is the number of still images generated by the GPU/CPU.

PWM frequency is how quickly the display's backlight is cycled on and off. Modulation and duty cycle are also important.

More here: https://tftcentral.co.uk/articles/pulse_width_modulation

We have seen OLED phone displays commonly use PWM frequencies that are 4 times the refresh rate, but there are many other multipliers.

Give me analog any day.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: DJTaurus and jimmy_uk
kerplunknet said:
Give me analog any day
Click to expand...
image.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jetro and 1369281
I’m going to try a 13. Seeing my 11 next to a gorgeous OLED screen on a friend’s 12 just made me want it so much more. I hope I can cope with the 13 PWM rate more than I could my X.
 
The thing with oled is the pixels are the backlight. So how a variable refresh rate interacts with pwm flicker isn’t clear to me.
 
karinatwork said:
The hope is that since these ARE new screens, they did change the PWM rate too (hopefully upwards, not downwards!!). But waiting for the extended holiday return policy is probably a great idea, thanks for that, @MICHAELSD!
Click to expand...
My plan is to pre-order an iPhone 13 Pro to test for the next two weeks, if I’m able to get one on launch day or within a reasonable timeframe. iPhone 12 Pro was the only model with a quasi-DC dimming mode at certain brightness levels so it’s probably the best bet. Then if that doesn’t work out or if I find it to be too small even coming from iPhone SE I’ll possibly give iPhone 13 Pro Max a shot over the holidays.

I am more optimistic about next year since it’s an entirely new generation of iPhone as compared to effectively a 12s year, even if Apple did make some impressive improvements when it comes to the display on the Pro model and the cameras. I just can’t keep sitting out new iPhone years as an enthusiast that still watches the keynote events in full, so it’s probably better to get hands-on and see if it works out than to obsess over PWM measurements that should be at least a little different this year — although I’m sure we’ll all be doing both regardless.
 
  • Like
Reactions: karinatwork, 1369281 and TVTechGrl
I've decided against the 13 Pro Max as I don't think I want to deal with a large and heavy phone anymore when out and about. I had the same thought when trying the 12 Pro Max last year as those flat sides really dig into the fingers.

So the 13 Pro is a def. I've also ordered an iPad Mini 6 so thinking a 13 Mini would complement nicely as I loved my OG SE before going to Plus iPhones. I will happily report back.

Sadly I'm already prepping myself for the returns walk of shame to my local Apple store if the eye strain and headaches come on as quick as last year. 😖
 
  • Like
Reactions: GlenK, 1369281 and now i see it
jimmy_uk said:
I've decided against the 13 Pro Max as I don't think I want to deal with a large and heavy phone anymore when out and about. I had the same thought when trying the 12 Pro Max last year as those flat sides really dig into the fingers.

So the 13 Pro is a def. I've also ordered an iPad Mini 6 so thinking a 13 Mini would complement nicely as I loved my OG SE before going to Plus iPhones. I will happily report back.

Sadly I'm already prepping myself for the returns walk of shame to my local Apple store if the eye strain and headaches come on as quick as last year. 😖
Click to expand...
Speaking realistically I think most of us will end up returning these phones.
 
  • Like
Reactions: miniyou64 and GlenK
I have decided to preorder the 13 pro max. Because of the size the max is the only option for me. So if it doesn't work for me i will completely switch to android. The new Motorola Edge with 144 Hz LCD Display, Honor Magic 3 or maybe a successor for the Nokia 8.3 with a 120 Hz LCD Display are good options. Last chance apple. I hope this year comes the breakthrough but i'm realistic.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jetro, 1369281 and jimmy_uk
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back