Other Eye-strain while using iPhone X and up

[TDDM]

It’s astonishing how long this thread has been going. Seriously, if there are that many of you having problems you’d be better off leaving feedback with Apple rather than posting on here. If all of you do it there might even be an impact.

How is it astonishing that we're talking about an unsolved problem? This is the only active discussion about PWM I've found online, why would we stop the thread?

Then again, it is also possible the majority of you are experiencing a psychosomatic effect. You’re worried about experiencing discomfort and so you do. The brain is an extremely potent organ

Most of us had no idea what PWM was before using the X. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the posters are only here because they searched for "eye strain iphone x" or something and found this thread.

Personally been using my iPhone X for months now. Used an OLED Galaxy S8 before that and my eyes are fine

That's great, you're in the majority of people who aren't affected by the flicker.

 

[barjam]

How is it astonishing that we're talking about an unsolved problem? This is the only active discussion about PWM I've found online, why would we stop the thread?


Most of us had no idea what PWM was before using the X. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the posters are only here because they searched for "eye strain iphone x" or something and found this thread.


That's great, you're in the majority of people who aren't affected by the flicker.

You are surrounded all day long by PWM. It isn’t a new thing Apple invented.

 

[MICHAELSD]

You are surrounded all day long by PWM. It isn’t a new thing Apple invented.

Right, but apparently it doesn’t belong on a phone.

 

[TDDM]

You are surrounded all day long by PWM. It isn’t a new thing Apple invented.

When did I say apple invented it? And no, I'm never been exposed to PWM as much as I was with my X.

 

[MICHAELSD]

I’ve been experiencing eye discomfort for the past few weeks after discontinuing use of iPhone X.

 

[Gollygeewillikers]

Yeah, IR is really not harming your eyes.

Oh thank goodness. (I love these flippant answers)
And PWM? Is that okay for our eyes too, doctor research scientist? I guess we're all imagining it...

 

[decder]

One should remember that not all OLEDs are created equal, and not all PWM implementations are causing equal amounts of issue. For some reason, for me, Galaxy S9 is much more pleasant to look at than an iPhone X.

 

[TDDM]

One should remember that not all OLEDs are created equal, and not all PWM implementations are causing equal amounts of issue. For some reason, for me, Galaxy S9 is much more pleasant to look at than an iPhone X.

Can you compare the eye strain between the two devices? Do you have any strain at all with the S9? Hopefully the X+ has a better implementation this year.

 

[decder]

Can you compare the eye strain between the two devices? Do you have any strain at all with the S9? Hopefully the X+ has a better implementation this year.

I like to read on my iPhone, and reading text while scrolling is difficult on the X. The strobing/flickering/interlacing/smearing effect that is produced is hostile to look at. Somehow, the S9 doesn't have the same problem.

 

[unobtainium]

Yeah, IR is really not harming your eyes.

There are zero long-term safety studies of VCSEL IR lasers for biometrics, so you have no way of knowing.

 

[MICHAELSD]

I’ve gotta say, I’ve put in a lot of self-sacrifice here (time, effort, involuntary pain) just to try to ensure that this won’t affect the next generation of iPhones. All I hope to get out of it is that I have helped make sure the long-term future of iPhone is usable for everyone and that my persistence will end up fixing an issue that may not have been fixed otherwise, or potentially serves as inspiration for a redesign of the OLED panel that benefits every single iPhone user.

 

[Gollygeewillikers]

I’ve gotta say, I’ve put in a lot of self-sacrifice here (time, effort, involuntary pain) just to try to ensure that this won’t affect the next generation of iPhones. All I hope to get out of it is that I have helped make sure the long-term future of iPhone is usable for everyone and that my persistence will end up fixing an issue that may not have been fixed otherwise, or potentially serves as inspiration for a redesign of the OLED panel that benefits every single iPhone user.

I think I speak for most here when I say, thank you and very much appreciated! It's one thing to commiserate on a discussion board (like we all typically do, including myself) and another thing entirely to take the steps to actually make change directly with these large corporations.

I hope it's just the OLED. Switching to LCD should fix the problem. Or a smarter OLED. If Face ID is also damaging our eyes, well then, Apple is going to be in real trouble. I have friends and loved ones using the X and they'd be really pissed off to end up with long term vision problems that they aren't even aware are happening.

 

[TDDM]

I think I speak for most here when I say, thank you and very much appreciated! It's one thing to commiserate on a discussion board (like we all typically do, including myself) and another thing entirely to take the steps to actually make change directly with these large corporations.

I hope it's just the OLED. Switching to LCD should fix the problem. Or a smarter OLED. If Face ID is also damaging our eyes, well then, Apple is going to be in real trouble. I have friends and loved ones using the X and they'd be really pissed off to end up with long term vision problems that they aren't even aware are happening.

100% agreed. Only reason I even have a slight bit of hope for this year's iPhone X+ is because of what you did Michael. If I had to guess, I'd absolutely bet on this being worked out by Sept, considering we've seen that it *can* be addressed with software.

As for the cause of our symptoms, I'm fairly certain its the PWM flicker. The symptoms are extremely consistent with what other sufferers are saying online, and there's no reason to think it's Face ID at this time IMO, at least until there are new symptoms.

 

[Deifie]

I also sold my iPhone X and went back to iPhone 8 because of the eye strain problems.
Before i sold the device i opened an apple care incident. The operater was not able to helb me as there is no fix available at the moment.
1 week after my call with apple care i have been contaced by an apple engineer which had multiple questions about the problem.
So i assume apple is aware of the problem and hopefully there will be a solution for the next devices with oled screen.

 

[Lyn2012]

I’m just wondering if Apple’s “solution” to the OLED PWM issue will be the rumoured 6.1” LCD version. Personally I’m perfectly happy with LCD, in fact I prefer it, but would also like all top end features - camera, dual (active) SIM etc. Ideally 16:9 ratio screen too, but I know this is unlikely.

 

[TDDM]

I’m just wondering if Apple’s “solution” to the OLED PWM issue will be the rumoured 6.1” LCD version. Personally I’m perfectly happy with LCD, in fact I prefer it, but would also like all top end features - camera, dual (active) SIM etc. Ideally 16:9 ratio screen too, but I know this is unlikely.

I really hope that's not their solution, the rumors imply the LCD model will lack 3D touch, have a worse PPI than the current plus models, and go back to a single camera system.

Also, you guys know how the X has no chin because they were able to fold the OLED screen up top? I don't think that's possible for LCD, so does that mean the LCD model would have a chin?

EDIT: And now there's rumors that Samsung will be the sole supplier of the OLED panels, since LG can't hit the production targets. Not really looking good if that's true.

 

[fallenapple99]

I've started to have eye strain issues. I've had my X for just a few months. I had no issues before the X. I had some similar issues when I owned a SG4 and a HTC one. For those who got rid of the X and went back to an 8 how much are you getting on a trade in?

 

[Harthag]

I've gone back to an 8 from my 10 and have been using it exclusively for the past 4 days. Also use an S9. I am not terribly bothered by PWM flicker but do slightly notice the flicker. Especially when browsing on my phone in very dim lighting. I have zero eye fatigue when looking at the iphone 8. After about 30 mins I do notice very slight eye fatigue from the S9 and X. I also think True Tone and night shift work much better on the iPhone 8 versus the 10- TT has never worked properly on the 10 in my opinion. In low light situations I'll take flicker-free LCD any day. And zero black crush, but I digress...

I'm not optimistic anything will change in OLED phone screen tech any time soon. They (Apple) are already investing R&D into mLED and have moved on. OLED will be a blip on the radar and gone in 2 years time. Thank goodness.

 

[Pazman2000]

I have been looking for A new car over the last two weeks and have spent many 2-3 hours sessions most days on my X on 4 different sales apps looking at cars .
This would not have been possible previously to turning off Face ID without great eye strain.
For me my X is fixed and causes no eye strain at all with ID awareness disabled.

 

[RD207]

Just checking back in.... been away for awhile.

Someone brought up the visual effect of blur while scrolling and I also noticed that plus my eyes feeling like they were zooming in/out in an effort to focus. I experience the same phenomenon (and eye strain/headaches) if I wear my polarized Maui Jim sunglasses. I will be selling those on eBay since making the recent correlation and getting another pair or Oakley non-polarized Prizms.

@MICHAELSD cannot thank you enough for all your input here and alerting Apple of the eye issues some experience. It took me about 2-3 wks for my eyes to feel normal again after a few days using the X. Maybe your eyes need a longer recovery time since you used it longer.

@Deifie good to hear an engineer contacted you, that is a positive step that indicates a possible future LED design using better eye friendly technology.

 

[RD207]

@Pazman2000 so glad that worked for you. I’m a little jealous cause I did love the X initially. Seems there are multiple issues with the X that are bothersome and painful to many with solutions ranging from turning off feature(s) to abandoning this version.

 

[Hariachi]

Hello all,

I thought I'd post here about an issue I've been having and see if anyone else is experiencing the same thing.

When I'm using the phone my eyes feel strained, like, they're trying to focus on the screen. Also, I've noticed that when I look away from my phone at something else, my eyes feel a little blurry and I have to blink.

Not sure why this is happening. I've tweaked with all the various displays settings (TrueTone/Night Shift/White balance), but nothing seems to make a real difference. Not using a screen protector.

Anyone else?

I just realised that its ipnone x which is hurting my eyes. I always had iPhone no problem, since upgrade to X my eyes hurts. Blury vision double vision in right eye. Is it from them cameras Face Id

 

[Gollygeewillikers]

I just realised that its ipnone x which is hurting my eyes. I always had iPhone no problem, since upgrade to X my eyes hurts. Blury vision double vision in right eye. Is it from them cameras Face Id

Welcome to the "club" I guess. Just skip to the end and replace your phone with a 6, 7, or 8? Or Android. Good luck!

 

[jtl_]

Welcome to the "club" I guess. Just skip to the end and replace your phone with a 6, 7, or 8? Or Android. Good luck!

Android won't save you necessarily. Samsung OLED phones still have PWM, among other display issues.

 

[Gollygeewillikers]

Face ID is also contributing to eyestrain for some users so it's not just PWM. But yes, agreed, there are obviously screen issues with Android phones too. Though I can personally say the X has the most noticeable eyestrain for me. I had sharp pain in my eyes using it for only a minute.