Other Eye-strain while using iPhone X and up

[jimmy_uk]

My migraine and back of eye pain has lasted all day so I've had to avoid using the 13 Pro and 13 Mini. I cannot afford to have this feeling during my working week so I'm stuck. I might just try the 13 Pro one more evening at home (don't want to carry a £1000 phone outside and risk damage if it's to be returned) and see how I go, but I'm very reluctant after how bad I've felt today. Not hopeful anymore. 😩

XR, 11 and SE 2020 are not viable options for me and there isn't stock of 8 Plus 128gb or 256gb Space grey iPhones in the UK. Just had a look at Android phones with LCD options but nothing flagship.

5th year of this mess! 😡

 

[JM]

Yeah, that’s weird. I haven’t heard people having problems with the 11..
Today for me is day 3 with 13 pro max. My eyes feel a lot better than they did on Friday.. no sick feeling (until I start thinking about it.. more so like oh wow. I feel great, then I start feeling sick lol). 4 hours and 39 minutes of screen time so far today. 8 1/2 hours yesterday. 7 hours on Friday

@TVTechGrl I’m one that has issues with 11. With the 12 mini I had sharp pains in the back of my eyes that would start less than a minute into looking at screen.

I got an 11 and had an intense warm feeling when looking at the screen immediately. The warm sensation went away but now I’m stuck with a dull ache in my right eye that makes me feel like I’m going to lose vision any moment. (No sharp pains though)

here’s the interesting part, though: I have astigmatism (?) in my left eye and it is blurrier than my right. I still have good vision, but it is because my right eye is pulling all the weight and doing all the focusing. I got glasses where no RX is on right, but a little RX on the left. Also blue light filtering. When I wear these glasses I can use the 11 all day long with no right eye pain… it’s actually quite perplexing. My theory is that since now both of my eyes are focusing and doing work, the temporal dithering flashing doesn’t affect me anymore since I’m focusing through both eyes now and my brain can adjust between the subtle color shifts (our whatever the 11 screen is doing).

I did not have the glasses for 12 mini, so I never got to try it. I’m very very curious to see if I can handle the 13mini wearing these glasses.

so 13 mini havers, assemble! And Report!

 

[happy orchard]

My migraine and back of eye pain has lasted all day so I've had to avoid using the 13 Pro and 13 Mini. I cannot afford to have this feeling during my working week so I'm stuck. I might just try the 13 Pro one more evening at home (don't want to carry a £1000 phone outside and risk damage if it's to be returned) and see how I go, but I'm very reluctant after how bad I've felt today. Not hopeful anymore. 😩

XR, 11 and SE 2020 are not viable options for me and there isn't stock of 8 Plus 128gb or 256gb Space grey iPhones in the UK. Just had a look at Android phones with LCD options but nothing flagship. 5th year of this mess! 😡

That’s awful.

Although, in the US Apple online store, they have the 8+in the refurbished section. I have good luck with Apple's refurbished. Maybe you have them in your UK Apple online refurbished site.

 

[F23]

I think someone needs to research on the face id infrared scans that are blasting our eyes all day. that might be causing this feeling too. try turning off attention awareness and require eye contact in face id settings.

 

[AJAAY]

I think someone needs to research on the face id infrared scans that are blasting our eyes all day. that might be causing this feeling too. try turning off attention awareness and require eye contact in face id settings.

Yes, Face ID can contribute to the issue as well. Although some people don't have an issue with Face ID. Unfortunately, turning off attention awareness or Face ID completely does not stop the IR blasts. There are some Youtube videos that show the IR blast periodically scanning the face during usage, even with Face ID completely turned off.

 

[now i see it]

Yes - the flood illuminator on notched iPhones can not be turned off and it regularly blasts a pulse of IR light right at the user’s face and into their eyes.
There’s no definitive testing that has been done that conclusively determined that the endlessly flashing flood Illuminator is detrimental to a person’s health — but it sure is suspicious none the less

 

[thejadedmonkey]

How’s the mini doing for you?

Almost perfect. If I try really hard I can imagine the eye strain, so it's still there, maybe. One thing I can say, for sure, is that it's better than the SE (the original). I know, the SE was DC dimming where the 13 mini is PWM, but the 13 mini has a far brighter screen, so "normal" eye strain from the display being dimmed is less prevalent, and it's a pleasure to use the 13 mini in bright sunlight.

This time last year I was packing up my 12 mini to return. This year the only reason I haven't completely reset my SE is to keep my 2 factor auth active, just in case.

I give this phone a "buy" rating, even if you have sensitive eyes.

 

[esaelias187]

Yes, Face ID can contribute to the issue as well. Although some people don't have an issue with Face ID. Unfortunately, turning off attention awareness or Face ID completely does not stop the IR blasts. There are some Youtube videos that show the IR blast periodically scanning the face during usage, even with Face ID completely turned off.

It actually does turn off it doesn’t blink as often ... maybe that’s because if you don’t set up Face ID it won’t blink I never set mine up so it doesn’t blink

 

[Danconia]

401 ppi LCD (vs 326 on the 11)
Touch ID
No notch
I prefer big top & bottom bezels
$399 Apple refurbished

Same. I just ordered another 8 Plus based on the sentiment in this thread. I‘ve been here since the beginning after trying the X and XR and gave up after those ordeals. I feel like I could use a Max/Plus version of an iPhone 11.

Luckily, the new iPad Pro mini led doesn’t bother me and I use it for everything.

Well, I’m now again hoping for the long rumored SE Plus.

 

[JM]

I think someone needs to research on the face id infrared scans that are blasting our eyes all day. that might be causing this feeling too. try turning off attention awareness and require eye contact in face id settings.

yeah those are def off for me on the 11. still have issues, though. I looked at an SE2020 screen and it gave me the same issues the 11 screen does. I've read some people put tape over the front camera but for me, it didn't make a difference (I tried it, haha)

 

[JM]

Almost perfect. If I try really hard I can imagine the eye strain, so it's still there, maybe. One thing I can say, for sure, is that it's better than the SE (the original). I know, the SE was DC dimming where the 13 mini is PWM, but the 13 mini has a far brighter screen, so "normal" eye strain from the display being dimmed is less prevalent, and it's a pleasure to use the 13 mini in bright sunlight.

This time last year I was packing up my 12 mini to return. This year the only reason I haven't completely reset my SE is to keep my 2 factor auth active, just in case.

I give this phone a "buy" rating, even if you have sensitive eyes.

Woot Woot! Best thing I've read today. Thanks!

I'll have to get the funds ready to look into picking up a mini then. I'm so stoked they bumped up the storage to 128 standard. It really makes the $729 price tag seem more worth it.

 

[spillerz]

@spillerz I really don’t know. A few people have mentioned temporal dithering being the reason. However, I use a 2020 iPad Pro without any problems.

@TVTechGrl interesting. Yeah, the PWM frequency for your iPad is roughly 59k, so it probably doesn’t bother you. I still have the iPhone 11, but my 13 pro max will be arriving soon. I’ll give it a shot and report back. Fingers crossed! I did try it in the store though, and it didn’t give me any problems. When I look at a 12 I get dizzy immediately. So there is hope!

 

[TVTechGrl]

@TVTechGrl interesting. Yeah, the PWM frequency for your iPad is roughly 59k, so it probably doesn’t bother you. I still have the iPhone 11, but my 13 pro max will be arriving soon. I’ll give it a shot and report back. Fingers crossed! I did try it in the store though, and it didn’t give me any problems. When I look at a 12 I get dizzy immediately. So there is hope!

@spillerz I hope it works out for you! I will say, the 13 pro max is a fantastic phone!

 

[gigapocket1]

I just personally feel the glare from the 13 pro max is so intense. I know someone said that anti glare screen protectors didn’t help them.. but I just feel that I have to try it. Also feel that even a privacy screen protector could help as it always darken/dampens screens. Just a few thoughts..
My eyes haven’t felt too bad and I haven’t felt to nauseous like I did with the 12 pro max..

 

[Macmelman]

Yes - the flood illuminator on notched iPhones can not be turned off and it regularly blasts a pulse of IR light right at the user’s face and into their eyes.
There’s no definitive testing that has been done that conclusively determined that the endlessly flashing flood Illuminator is detrimental to a person’s health — but it sure is suspicious none the less

You are surrounded by IR light ALL THE TIME as every material body surrounding you emits it as a function of its temperature. IR is a form of non-ionizing radiation that is not dangerous at the levels we are usually exposed and certainly not at the levels produced by the iPhone.

 

[DJTaurus]

Macrumors prefers to upload such first world problems of articles…..

iPad Mini 6 Users Complain of 'Jelly Scrolling' Issue in Portrait Orientation

Now that new iPad mini 6 owners have had a couple of days with Apple's latest redesigned tablet, some users are noticing an issue being referred...

www.macrumors.com

 

[jimmy_uk]

Macrumors prefers to upload such first world problems of articles…..

iPad Mini 6 Users Complain of 'Jelly Scrolling' Issue in Portrait Orientation

Now that new iPad mini 6 owners have had a couple of days with Apple's latest redesigned tablet, some users are noticing an issue being referred...

www.macrumors.com

The jelly scroll is really horrible to look at will likely effect more users. We are still considered a minority regarding the PWM issue, although it is being discussed more now than ever across the Internet for all phones. Just doesn't seem like macrumors wants to escalate it to a story that could gain more traction for us.

 

[JM]

The jelly scroll is really horrible to look at will likely effect more users. We are still considered a minority regarding the PWM issue, although it is being discussed more now than ever across the Internet for all phones. Just doesn't seem like macrumors wants to escalate it to a story that could gain more traction for us.

I still think Apple is aware of it but doesn’t want to call it out (and would even put a muzzle order out to channels) because it’s a no-win situation: Apple can’t do anything about it because they either they offer best screen or no PWM (tech just isn’t there at a price level that works unless people want to pay $2000 for a phone).

 

[now i see it]

They really dropped the ball discontinuing the 401 ppi large LCD screens.

 

[jm31828]

The only difference between the 12 mini and 13 mini (12 and 13) display is
625 nits max brightness (typical) vs
800 nits max brightness (typical).
How do you expect a difference if the screen is the same?
At least the Pro has a new feature, therefore it may or may not feel different.

I am trying to figure out the difference. I have a 12 Mini and just got my 13 Mini. On my 12 Mini to mitigate any eye discomfort from the flicker, I turned brightness up to about 95%, and turned reduce white point to 95% so it wasn't too bright. It ended up being very easy on the eyes over the last year.

Now with the 13 Mini, I did the same thing- and for some reason it's a bit uncomfortable to look at. Not sure if I just need time to adjust, or what- I can't believe there are any other differences.

I do have a privacy screen protector on it (as I do on the 12 mini, too) since I felt that took just a bit of an edge off of the sharp brightness.... maybe the one I got for the 13 mini is poor quality and contributing to problems- I will take it off later on today and see if that helps at all, while also adjusting brightness settings a bit to see if that helps.

 

[jm31828]

Almost perfect. If I try really hard I can imagine the eye strain, so it's still there, maybe. One thing I can say, for sure, is that it's better than the SE (the original). I know, the SE was DC dimming where the 13 mini is PWM, but the 13 mini has a far brighter screen, so "normal" eye strain from the display being dimmed is less prevalent, and it's a pleasure to use the 13 mini in bright sunlight.

This time last year I was packing up my 12 mini to return. This year the only reason I haven't completely reset my SE is to keep my 2 factor auth active, just in case.

I give this phone a "buy" rating, even if you have sensitive eyes.

That's fantastic- glad to hear it, enjoy your new phone!!

I upgraded from a 12 Mini to a 13 Mini.... the 12 Mini after adjusting brightness up to 95% and setting reduce white point to 95%, i was able to get it to a point that it was easy on my eyes. Definite problems when I reduced brightness much below where I had it.

Oddly the 13 Mini is causing me a little discomfort- and setting to these same settings isn't really helping. I'll have to keep playing around with it because there are several reasons why this would be a great phone to keep.

 

[The.Glorious.Son]

They really dropped the ball discontinuing the 401 ppi large LCD screens.

I agree with this. But I will say I think the ability to notice the difference in display quality is similar to how not everyone is bothered by PWM. I personally find the screen of my 11 to be better than my 8 Plus. Not sure what apple did to tweak it, but I prefer it to the higher ppi 8 plus. Others like yourself can immediately see the difference in quality in favor of the 401 ppi screens. It’s weird how we can all have such unique experiences.

 

[840quadra]

Yes, Face ID can contribute to the issue as well. Although some people don't have an issue with Face ID. Unfortunately, turning off attention awareness or Face ID completely does not stop the IR blasts. There are some Youtube videos that show the IR blast periodically scanning the face during usage, even with Face ID completely turned off.

IIRC it also uses that subsystem to see if you are paying attention to your phone and or using it to prevent Auto-Lock. Not sure if it is still true, however I seem to recall people changing Auto lock to an extreme setting, or disabling it completely (back when the X was new) to remove or reduce the final criteria for the facial scanning.

Not something I would personally do however.

 

[jm31828]

IIRC it also uses that subsystem to see if you are paying attention to your phone and or using it to prevent Auto-Lock. Not sure if it is still true, however I seem to recall people changing Auto lock to an extreme setting, or disabling it completely (back when the X was new) to remove or reduce the final criteria for the facial scanning.

Not something I would personally do however.

Yes, you can disable the awareness feature so it is not blasting your face with IR while looking at the phone.

 

[daviddcmd]

My experience with the 13Pro.

First a little history. I bought the Iphone X and almost immediately had eye strain and headaches. At the time there really wasn't any discussions on PWM. Gave the phone to my wife and even now can't look at it, she still uses it. Back to my 8 Plus.

Last year I tried the 12, 12 Pro and the Max, even worse for me than the 10 for all three.

Ordered the 13 Pro, got it last Friday and ......... Unicorns and rainbows, NO EYE STRAIN or headaches!

YMMV