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Are you experiencing this issue?


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Tijdelijk

macrumors 6502
Jul 8, 2017
267
234
I can't wait until I can make a Slowmotion video of the iPhone XR screen.

I really hope it's not using PWM.
PWM is also possible on a LCD screen.

Till now there was no PWM dimming in the iPhones LCD.

Hopefully it's stays like that
 

francerex

macrumors member
Sep 30, 2018
44
54
I would like to add my two cents on the matter, i have read most of the discussion and it's been very useful.

I have always been a bit eye sensible, as i spend most of my day in front of a screen to work and then relax. I even have a 300 $ pair of glasses with zeiss anti blue light lenses that help a lot in that regard.

When the XS Max got announced, I read about the PWM problem of the oled screen but i decided to upgrade nonetheless from my 8 plus.
Long story short, I sold yesterday my XS Max, after 5 days. Luckily I did not sell my 8+ right away. I had the same symptoms most of you have, even using my zeiss lenses. On friday i lost half day of work cause of the migraine.
Today i spent an hour browsing reddit on the 8 plus and i have no problem whatsoever.

Now, I don't know if it is really connected somehow, but when i took the dna test it resulted that i have an increased risk for macular degeneration, a degenerative disease of the eye. An increased risk to develop this age related eye condition has also been recently correlated with blue light and led lights.

My theory is that i am genetically prone to be more susceptible to blue light and the flickering of PWM.

I'll try the XR but i might stick to my 8+ for several years at this point, till micro-leds screen or similar technologies will be a thing.
 

tonybarnaby

macrumors 68020
Dec 3, 2017
2,385
1,741
Being headache free is great. I returned my max on Monday and wasn’t 100% normal until nearly 48 hours later. I have been binging on my 8+ at work this week and have not felt an ounce of pain or any issues. I miss the screen size of the max, but the OLED isn’t as important to me. 1080p is good enough for a small 5.5 or even a hypothetical 6.5” phone. I’m jealous of those who can use a max without any issues. Best iPhone ever made in my brief experience.
 
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Tijdelijk

macrumors 6502
Jul 8, 2017
267
234
Being headache free is great. I returned my max on Monday and wasn’t 100% normal until nearly 48 hours later. I have been binging on my 8+ at work this week and have not felt an ounce of pain or any issues. I miss the screen size of the max, but the OLED isn’t as important to me. 1080p is good enough for a small 5.5 or even a hypothetical 6.5” phone. I’m jealous of those who can use a max without any issues. Best iPhone ever made in my brief experience.

I think the XR is very good alternative
 

Tb87Bln

macrumors 6502
Dec 10, 2016
290
375
So, I am thinking about returning my iPhone Xs as well... but I am not sure yet because I don’t have that serious problems like some of you have... my eyes just feel tired after reading a lot of text and I didn’t experience that with my old and trusted 6s. I don’t have problems watching movies or playing games (at least so far) so I am not sure if I am just a little hypochondriac or if I really have a problem with PWM...
Tough cal I guess cause I like to read a lot on my iPhone...

A dumb newb question... I did an in-store pickup... so if I want to return the iPhone, I would just put it with all “accessories” in the box and bring it back to the store and say I wanna return it? Or do I have to do anything online?
 

tonybarnaby

macrumors 68020
Dec 3, 2017
2,385
1,741
I think the XR is very good alternative
The size in hand is a bit small compared to the max and plus phones.
[doublepost=1538308570][/doublepost]
So, I am thinking about returning my iPhone Xs as well... but I am not sure yet because I don’t have that serious problems like some of you have... my eyes just feel tired after reading a lot of text and I didn’t experience that with my old and trusted 6s. I don’t have problems watching movies or playing games (at least so far) so I am not sure if I am just a little hypochondriac or if I really have a problem with PWM...
Tough cal I guess cause I like to read a lot on my iPhone...

A dumb newb question... I did an in-store pickup... so if I want to return the iPhone, I would just put it with all “accessories” in the box and bring it back to the store and say I wanna return it? Or do I have to do anything online?
In store return. I had to return my max and they said they didn’t need anything but the phone, so they let me have an extra charger that came in the box. Not sure if that is normal or not. I would give it the full 14 days if you’re enjoying the phone. Some eye strain is completely normal with OLED phones for many people. It’s when it becomes painful that you have to decide if it’s worth it.
 
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Lyn2012

macrumors 6502a
Dec 26, 2007
694
272
Im like some others on this thread in that I’m not certain if the eye tiredness (best way I can describe it) is due to the Max, or just that I’m tired and have been under fluorescent and LED lighting too much. Unfortunately I’ll be abroad for the next 6 months (no Apple stores) so no chance of returning and getting the Xr.
 

ssledoux

macrumors 601
Sep 16, 2006
4,412
4,243
Down south
I hope everyone who is returning their XS devices makes sure the reason is recorded as “eye strain from PWM.”

I tried to have them record that information when I returned mine, but unfortunately, it only gave her a spot to check off something, and she put, “buyer’s remorse,” which really kind of ticked me off since I REALLY wanted that darn XS Max.
 

stafil

macrumors 6502
Sep 15, 2017
425
297
I tried to have them record that information when I returned mine, but unfortunately, it only gave her a spot to check off something, and she put, “buyer’s remorse,” which really kind of ticked me off since I REALLY wanted that darn XS Max.
The way I see it is like having but allergy but really wanting to go to my favorite restaurant that only recently started adding nuts. It sucks but it’s not the restaurants fault and I should be trying to force them to change it.
 

odvan

macrumors member
Jun 8, 2011
91
10
I see close objects just fine (without help) now, but the less I stress my eyes (according to my doctor) the longer (and older) I will be able to continue viewing small print without assistance.

Off. I'm always wondered how it works. The less you stress your eyes muscles the more they atrophy. Imo eyes exercises works better.
 

aldo82

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2011
676
554
has anyone had problems with faceID or is it definitely the screen causing the issues? I have a note 8 at the moment and I cannot use the Iris scanner because it makes me feel funny after just one use. I have a retinal vision problem anyway and the idea of sending IR into my eyes isn't something that appeals to me. I'm considering coming back to the iphone but the faceID, given how I feel from iris scanning, is a concern
 

5105973

Cancelled
Sep 11, 2014
12,132
19,733
has anyone had problems with faceID or is it definitely the screen causing the issues? I have a note 8 at the moment and I cannot use the Iris scanner because it makes me feel funny after just one use. I have a retinal vision problem anyway and the idea of sending IR into my eyes isn't something that appeals to me. I'm considering coming back to the iphone but the faceID, given how I feel from iris scanning, is a concern
I have Samsung phones. Do NOT use that retinal scanner again. I noticed for me the pain started off mild and became intense and took longer to fade each time I used it. Which wasn’t that many times. So whatever was going on was cumulative and progressive. However my eye exam didn’t turn up any obvious signs of damage.

With the Face ID, I did notice a strange feeling in my eyes but I guess I didn’t have it long enough to progress to a pain point. When messing around making Emoji my eyes would feel gritty pretty quickly. We really won’t know anything without scientific studies. Unfortunately I don’t think any have been conducted. We will find out the hard way when Xr gets into enough hands whether or not Face ID is a pain point, too.

I did turn my Face ID off yesterday and so have other people and we all still had problems so the main culprit for eye problems and headaches does seem to be the display.

Getting back to the Samsung iris scanner, the problem with that particular technology is that it’s slow and more intense. I’m not the only one who had problems with it. My husband developed severe pain over time, too, and he’s one of the lucky people who can use OLED just fine. There have been other forum members who also mentioned it and I think there was a Reddit thread as well.

Correction: it’s an iris scanner not a retinal scanner. I keep mixing those terms up. Sorry!
 
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ssledoux

macrumors 601
Sep 16, 2006
4,412
4,243
Down south
The way I see it is like having but allergy but really wanting to go to my favorite restaurant that only recently started adding nuts. It sucks but it’s not the restaurants fault and I should be trying to force them to change it.

Not sure I follow. I’m not asking them to change anything, but I wouldn’t call returning the phone due to an eye strain problem from the screen “buyer’s remorse.” That’s just not truthful. I have never once returned an iPhone. I had a reason and I would’ve liked it to be noted.
 

stafil

macrumors 6502
Sep 15, 2017
425
297
Not sure I follow. I’m not asking them to change anything, but I wouldn’t call returning the phone due to an eye strain problem from the screen “buyer’s remorse.” That’s just not truthful. I have never once returned an iPhone. I had a reason and I would’ve liked it to be noted.

Yeah. Never mind. I was half asleep. Even I don’t understand the point I was trying to make
 
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Tijdelijk

macrumors 6502
Jul 8, 2017
267
234
I wish Macrumors or some news outlet would acknowledge this issue. With this many people its not an uncommon occurrence

Exactly!!
They rather spend an article about wifi drops and charging issues which probably will be fixed soon.

This PWM issues is totally ignored.
The team members of macrumors are probably not sensitive to PWM dimming :(
 

Wig321

macrumors 6502
Sep 13, 2018
410
904
A few days ago I bought a 8+ to replace my X and it’s perfect. So much easier on the eyes than the X. Also nice to have the wider screen (first plus phone I’ve owned).
 
Last edited:
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filmak

macrumors 65816
Jun 21, 2012
1,418
777
between earth and heaven
Links? Proof?

It is not so hard these days to learn about something.
Google it: iPhone x eye strain
Only in Apple discussions there are 438 hits.
In reddit too (62.300 hits - what is this?)
etc
Enjoy your reading.
[doublepost=1538405401][/doublepost]All of these plus the modem problems, the early face ID, charging issues etc made me just buy an 8 plus, as it is a more mature product right now.
 
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macloverHK

macrumors member
May 16, 2018
47
168
Hong Kong
I had used the X but never got eye strain. Now with the XS Max I feel headache and eye strain every time after looking at the screen for a few minutes.

I guess the quality of the monitor in this generation has gone downhill
 

kerplunknet

Cancelled
Oct 8, 2006
836
1,885
It is not so hard these days to learn about something.
Google it: iPhone x eye strain
Only in Apple discussions there are 438 hits.
In reddit too (62.300 hits - what is this?)
etc
Enjoy your reading.
[doublepost=1538405401][/doublepost]All of these plus the modem problems, the early face ID, charging issues etc made me just buy an 8 plus, as it is a more mature product right now.
Sometimes posts are so misguided that I debate responding at all. Your post is one of those.

I was not challenging the person I quoted whether eye strain exists or not with the iPhone X. I have many posts in this thread stating that it’s a huge problem. I was challenging him on whether or not news outlets have posted stories on the subject. I haven’t seen any, so I asked for links/proofs.

Now that I’ve explained it to you as I would a two year old, do you understand?
 

filmak

macrumors 65816
Jun 21, 2012
1,418
777
between earth and heaven
Sometimes posts are so misguided that I debate responding at all. Your post is one of those.

I was not challenging the person I quoted whether eye strain exists or not with the iPhone X. I have many posts in this thread stating that it’s a huge problem. I was challenging him on whether or not news outlets have posted stories on the subject. I haven’t seen any, so I asked for links/proofs.

Now that I’ve explained it to you as I would a two year old, do you understand?

There was no need to reply like this. I was not trying to attack to you, I thought that you didn't know about it , so I was trying to help.
Sorry if I misunderstood.

Anyway, there are some posts. Macworld has posted about it, in an article where they are collecting iPhone problems.
"iPhone X headaches
Some users have complained that the device is particularly prone to cause eye fatigue and headaches; indeed, a member of the Macworld team who uses an iPhone X full-time says he's been having more headaches than usual since buying the handset.

Because the reports are anecdotal at this stage it's impossible to be sure if the problem truly stems from the phone. But it could be related to Apple's use of pulse-width modulation to dim the brightness of the display. This can produce a flickering effect that some people are sensitive to...".

Investors.com is mentioning this forum as a source.
Apple's iPhone X Screen Is Giving Some Users Headaches
https://www.investors.com/news/tech...hone-x-screen-is-giving-some-users-headaches/

and a couple more
http://elintsys.com/2018/02/05/iphone-x-users-complain-of-headaches-and-eye-strain/
http://www.ihelplounge.com/iphone-xs-display-causing-eye-strain-and-headaches-to-some-users/
 
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