OnePlus 13 PWM and dithering tests
At this point, I don't know what these graphs and readings mean anymore.....
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Other Eye-strain while using iPhone X and up
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At this point, I don't know what these graphs and readings mean anymore.....
I’ve returned the 16 plus, and I’m back to trying the 16 pro. I tried the 16 plus for one month; I could mostly tolerate it, but issues persisted that I couldn’t accept long term. Particularly, I felt eye strain (different from the strain experienced on the 16 pro) and I even had stomach issues. (I thought those were due to holiday food indulgences, but the regularity of feeling mildly queasy within a few seconds of looking at the phone has me convinced it was, in fact, the phone.)
I picked up a new 16 pro yesterday because, in retrospect, the pro gave me less issues than the plus. I’m currently on it, no queasiness but mild eye strain. I can tell the pro motion requires some adjusting, so I’ll give this the ol two week try before throwing in the towel.
It’s ridiculous how much time we donate to these issues. I appreciate everyone’s contributions!
I picked up a new 16 pro yesterday because, in retrospect, the pro gave me less issues than the plus. I’m currently on it, no queasiness but mild eye strain. I can tell the pro motion requires some adjusting, so I’ll give this the ol two week try before throwing in the towel.
It’s ridiculous how much time we donate to these issues. I appreciate everyone’s contributions!
I appreciate all you doing the work!! I just got so mad about this I said screw it and stick to my 11. Got so tired of wasting all that time. Now I'll just wait for some good feed back from here, try the new SE, then when my 11 stops working not sure what I'll do.
iPhone 16 Pro still causes some degree of migraines and headaches, but it’s becoming more tolerable. The negatives of flickering are still there, even if it is better than iPhone 15 Pro and notably improved over iPhone X. Thus, I will be returning it since I still don’t feel it’s wise to keep a device that causes this type of sensitivity.
I still feel like I’d prefer to wait for a flicker-free or ultra-low modulation display a la Apple Watch’s OLED.
On the plus side, the 6.3” form factor fixes my disillusionment with the 6.1” display: I’ve posted before that I had no attachment to an iPhone with a 6.1” display since for the form factor the display wasn’t large enough without having the comfortable single-handed benefits of a smaller iPhone. The 6.3” size will be a hit once it assumedly transitions over to iPhone 17, which is still the generation I am holding out hope for dramatically improved flickering or a flicker-free display being a feature.
I still feel like I’d prefer to wait for a flicker-free or ultra-low modulation display a la Apple Watch’s OLED.
On the plus side, the 6.3” form factor fixes my disillusionment with the 6.1” display: I’ve posted before that I had no attachment to an iPhone with a 6.1” display since for the form factor the display wasn’t large enough without having the comfortable single-handed benefits of a smaller iPhone. The 6.3” size will be a hit once it assumedly transitions over to iPhone 17, which is still the generation I am holding out hope for dramatically improved flickering or a flicker-free display being a feature.
Update: I’ve spent the past few days on this new 16 pro and I have a mixture of feelings. The screen itself seems to cause mild eye strain almost immediately, whereas the prior 16 pro I had only caused it occasionally. On the other hand, this phone feels snappier and much more responsive than the other. One of the reasons I returned the prior 16 pro was because, although the screen was somewhat tolerable, my interaction with the phone didn’t feel like an upgrade. The screen was unresponsive to touch at times and had some momentary lags that made me feel like it simply wasn’t worth the money.
I’m not sure if I have a different screen manufacturer in this one than the prior, but if my eyes don’t adjust soon, I think this will be going back. Alas.
On the bright side, I can now say that iPhone 16 Pro has been my best experience with an OLED iPhone.
That still equates to minimal headaches and migraines, especially after use but notably subdued compared to what I’ve experienced in the past. I’m shocked at how dramatically better this is than iPhone 15 Pro, although reading this back text especially is still a challenge.
I’ve found I can typically tell which iPhone I’ll do best with each generation by whichever display appears clearest in an Apple Store, and I believe that was the 16 Pro for me this generation.
To an extent, oddly enough my eyes have partially adapted to using it which hasn’t happened before. Unfortunately, that still means occasional tension headaches and some lingering headaches. It’s particularly more bothersome while typing this as opposed to I.e. scrolling on TikTok, which presents less issues.
The Always-on Display presents little-to-no issues as opposed to still causing migraines in the past, and I might be able to watch more content without getting fatigued.
Thus, keep making the flickering more consistent and if iPhone 17 is the step change I’m expecting then I think the next generation should be tolerable enough. It’s not at the level yet of an iPhone SE or LCD iPad Pro, which should remain my barometer.
That still equates to minimal headaches and migraines, especially after use but notably subdued compared to what I’ve experienced in the past. I’m shocked at how dramatically better this is than iPhone 15 Pro, although reading this back text especially is still a challenge.
I’ve found I can typically tell which iPhone I’ll do best with each generation by whichever display appears clearest in an Apple Store, and I believe that was the 16 Pro for me this generation.
To an extent, oddly enough my eyes have partially adapted to using it which hasn’t happened before. Unfortunately, that still means occasional tension headaches and some lingering headaches. It’s particularly more bothersome while typing this as opposed to I.e. scrolling on TikTok, which presents less issues.
The Always-on Display presents little-to-no issues as opposed to still causing migraines in the past, and I might be able to watch more content without getting fatigued.
Thus, keep making the flickering more consistent and if iPhone 17 is the step change I’m expecting then I think the next generation should be tolerable enough. It’s not at the level yet of an iPhone SE or LCD iPad Pro, which should remain my barometer.
Slightly off topic, I tried out the Apple Studio Display (connected to an M4 Mini) and M4 iMac in store today.
First was the iMac, no noticeable eye strain after 15mins. Switched to the Studio Display and instantly hated it!
My eyes/head did not like it, exact issue I’ve been having with my 16” M1 MacBook Pro I’ve tried to live with since 2021. Switched back to the iMac and instantly felt my eyes were being massaged in comparison.
To my eyes, text was sharper on the 24” iMac. I guess my eyes do not like mini led displays or OLED iPhones. I’ve switched from 15 pro to 8 plus.
Crazy. iMac purchased.
First was the iMac, no noticeable eye strain after 15mins. Switched to the Studio Display and instantly hated it!
My eyes/head did not like it, exact issue I’ve been having with my 16” M1 MacBook Pro I’ve tried to live with since 2021. Switched back to the iMac and instantly felt my eyes were being massaged in comparison.
To my eyes, text was sharper on the 24” iMac. I guess my eyes do not like mini led displays or OLED iPhones. I’ve switched from 15 pro to 8 plus.
Crazy. iMac purchased.
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The Studio display is LCD but it is an 8-bit panel, likely with temporal dithering to fake the P3 colour gamet. I use two at work and did find them a little harsh for the first week but very luckily I got used to them, I also switched off font smoothing.
So, there was a deal on at one of my local providers, so I decided to get a Galaxy A35, to test it out.
PWM wise, the screen wasn't as bad as I had expected. I did encounter some eye pressure and head pressure events, compared to my iPhone SE 2022, and after periods of on-screen time, looking away and going about your normal day took a bit of adjusting (i.e. something felt weird/off when watching the world after a period of OLED on-screen time).
But, it was better than previous Samsung attempts, and the Galaxy A35 screen has a lower PWM frequency than the S24 series. With the S25 series around the corner, I'm curious to see what may be.
One thing I noticed, was that using Dark Mode made it better and more bearable. Light Mode genuinely annoyed my eyes very quickly, and felt like being blasted by light directly into the eyes.
I'm wondering if anyone else has tested Dark Mode differences before? I hadn't done this before, as I have always preferred Light Mode with my previous LCD phones (I'm probably one of the few Dark Mode haters out there).
Anyway, I won't be continuing with this phone, due to the noticeable effects.
PWM aside, Samsung's OneUI isn't bad at all, and reminds me of iOS in some places.
But the plethora of Samsung apps and services is annoying as. Duplicate apps, Samsung Cloud, Samsung this and that, and not everything can be turned off or removed. It certainly makes for a poorer software experience.
Off to the next test ... I'm waiting for the Honor 200 to arrive.
PWM wise, the screen wasn't as bad as I had expected. I did encounter some eye pressure and head pressure events, compared to my iPhone SE 2022, and after periods of on-screen time, looking away and going about your normal day took a bit of adjusting (i.e. something felt weird/off when watching the world after a period of OLED on-screen time).
But, it was better than previous Samsung attempts, and the Galaxy A35 screen has a lower PWM frequency than the S24 series. With the S25 series around the corner, I'm curious to see what may be.
One thing I noticed, was that using Dark Mode made it better and more bearable. Light Mode genuinely annoyed my eyes very quickly, and felt like being blasted by light directly into the eyes.
I'm wondering if anyone else has tested Dark Mode differences before? I hadn't done this before, as I have always preferred Light Mode with my previous LCD phones (I'm probably one of the few Dark Mode haters out there).
Anyway, I won't be continuing with this phone, due to the noticeable effects.
PWM aside, Samsung's OneUI isn't bad at all, and reminds me of iOS in some places.
But the plethora of Samsung apps and services is annoying as. Duplicate apps, Samsung Cloud, Samsung this and that, and not everything can be turned off or removed. It certainly makes for a poorer software experience.
Off to the next test ... I'm waiting for the Honor 200 to arrive.
Just wait for the 17 at this point, man. Supposedly it will better deal with pwm issues.
This has been said every year, yet Apple still relies on Samsung as its primary screen supplier. For real progress, Samsung needs to innovate and improve its display technology to address these issues. However, as one of the worst offenders when it comes to eye strain, Samsung seems indifferent to concerns about PWM flicker and dithering.
So far, I haven’t seen any rumours suggesting that Samsung is making improvements in this area for the upcoming S25 series. Has anyone else heard anything different?
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Steep change you mean?
As for the prospects of the iPhone 17 I see it only getting better in one of two ways.
1) Apple makes a big fuss over "eye health" and includes explicit flicker reduction capability.
2) Apple quietly improves it. Users and reviewers with equipment alike take notice.
Apple will never mention it, as it would invite scrutiny of their other products. I realise most consumers couldn't care less, as technical specs are generally meaningless to them, or they simply don't experience eye strain.
Apple *did* introduce Night Shift and documented how it "improves eye comfort". But I frankly don't consider that worth mentioning for other reasons.
It’s true that reducing blue light exposure and improving circadian rhythm was a trending topic at the time, which likely influenced Apple’s decision. Some Android phones introduced a similar feature in the same year.
However, the real issue we face—whether it’s PWM, dithering, or other causes of eye strain and queasiness—is that mainstream media and scientific communities rarely discuss it publicly. As a result, there’s no real pressure on manufacturers to address the problem. I believe far more people are affected than they realise, but because they haven’t yet connected the dots, they don’t suspect their mobile phone, tablet, laptop, monitor, or TV as the culprit. With no obvious information available, most users remain unaware that their device could be the cause.
Step change - a significant change in policy or attitude, especially one that results in an improvement or increase.
This conversation goes back in circles sometimes, but I still believe Apple alluded to new brightness controllers with iPhone 13. They can’t really make a fuss over eye health and flickering since it may create some doubt for previous generations that will be in use for quite some time. It is ironic how they have features that can tell users if their iPhone is too close to their face to prevent eye strain, yet still make flickering displays.
We could get some sort of nod in reference to the display, but I’m not sure that they would advertise a “flicker-free OLED” even if they do develop one.
iPhone 16 Pro does feel better in use than iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, but typing this is still slightly uncomfortable and exhibits some of the symptoms of a tension headache or oncoming migraine. If the flickering is more even on this generation as Notebookcheck noted, then I do think I notice a difference—it’s just not the necessary step change.
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Update: I’m going to keep the 16 pro. Perfect? No, but I’d put it at a 1 out of 10 on the symptom scale, if that. I’ve spent the past 10 days with it, and
I can genuinely say I comfortably use it.
I had a different 16 pro in November, and my comfort diminished with increased use. This one is the opposite. My first few days had me questioning how soon I would take this back (it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t comfortable); then things started to feel normal after about a week. Notably, I dug in and learned that I have a phone with an LG screen. Not sure if it makes that much of a difference, but I’m happy to say I’m keeping this.
I can genuinely say I comfortably use it.
I had a different 16 pro in November, and my comfort diminished with increased use. This one is the opposite. My first few days had me questioning how soon I would take this back (it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t comfortable); then things started to feel normal after about a week. Notably, I dug in and learned that I have a phone with an LG screen. Not sure if it makes that much of a difference, but I’m happy to say I’m keeping this.
Remember folks... back in the CRT monitor days, those monitors ALL gave people eyestrain. Eyestrain and computers go hand in hand.
I do believe iPhone 16 Pro is the best to date. Not perfect by any means, but it feels like an improvement over the previous generation and I’m sure there will be more PWM-sensitive users who have a similar experience to yours.
I may use one of the Mac apps to check which display is on this device…
Thanks for posting this! A heads-up that this generates a lot of data, which is pretty interesting to be able to access.
I believe that I have a Samsung panel, as the serial number is G9PHA6V2PK900005DP.
I have reason to believe that the LG panel would be easier on the eyes and I do typically prefer the look of LG’s panels, I was able to better focus on and enjoy the Motorola Razr+ displays over any iPhone even if that also caused light migraines, so I can rest easier knowing I’m not returning a device with a coveted LG display.
I just spent about 15 minutes at each of two stores today investigating the Galaxy S25. Very disappointed to experience eye strain and the beginning of a headache. This has ended my possible purchase to take advantage of a good pre sales offer. I have used Android once about 5 years ago with the wonderful Galaxy S 10e. It seems Samsung has changed the type of display since then. So I remain on my LCD display iPhone SE 2022. Once that is no longer viable, who knows.
It's deeply disappointing once again, particularly given the wide range of pre-order discounts available.