iPad iPad 9th Gen backlight bleed

[ijon01]

Hi all

Had a 9th gen for Christmas, it’s my first iPad and it’s great however it has a very small amount of light bleed in the lower right corner.

When watching movies with letterbox bands I can see it if brightness is higher.

I have looked around the forum and online and see that it’s not uncommon and exchanging can become a lottery just wondering if this is true?

I have an iPhone X and watch se and they have perfect screens I understand that they both use oled and led backlit screens are hit and miss ?

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Yes to the above. It can become a lottery and it comes down to, how much does it bother you. IIRC the budget iPad's use IPS panels and those are susceptible to blacklight bleed. I have monitors and TV's that all exhibit some form of backlight bleed. I've just learned to accept it as part of the tech. My 6th and 9th gen iPad's also have some form of backlight bleed.

 

[ijon01]

Thanks

I’m kinda thinking the same, my tv’s have it, bugged me at first but over the years I have forgotten about it, my Amazon echo has it also.

I’m getting less “anal” as I get older I think, used to exchange my apple devices and end up in a cycle of exchanges and wishing I’d kept the original device.

I have read they the iPad Pro’s can also suffer from screen issues ?

 

[robkas]

Hey mate,

I received my Air 4 a few days ago and it also has the backlight bleeding at some spots along the borders. I'm pretty sure I would've never noticed it if I didn't read about this before getting it. I only hardly notice one "lesser-black" spot in the corner when watching movies at higher brightness, and I don't even think that's the backlight bleeding but rather IPS glow. The backlight bleeding itself I never really notice unless I look for it.

It still bothers me, but I'm trying to be at peace with it since my iPad took 4 weeks for delivery and I don't want to go through the hassle of returning it right now (and with my luck + given the experiences of others, I'm pretty sure the new unit wouldn't be much better if better at all). So what I will do is to get AppleCare+ for a bit of peace of mind, so I know that I can exchange it somewhere in the future if it still bothers me then or if it gets worse.
I was about to make a thread on here too, but figured posting a picture of my screen wouldn't be all that helpful for me, since there would probably be people telling me to return it, which would raise the anxiety again.

If it's only 1 spot for you I'd suggest keeping it knowing you probably got a rather good unit, compared to what others got. Maybe show it to somebody else without telling them what to look for and I'm sure they won't even notice. My girlfriend thinks I'm going crazy although I suspect my unit has a more obvious light bleed than yours.

edit: Out of curiosity I also checked my laptop (which was 400€ more expensive than my iPad) for light bleeding/IPS-Glow and there's a LOT of it. Funnily enough, I never noticed it because I never looked for it. I remember having this issue with my TV too when I got it, but I also had totally forgotten about that, which shows me that this isn't really a problem unless we make it one.

 

[bubulol]

I have small IPS Glow but not backlight bleed on my former iPad Mini 5th
I will look into my iPad 7th gen if i got any bleed/glow

 

[ijon01]

Ok just googled ips glow and that’s what I have, not bleed.

It’s a small amount in the lower right corner of the screen and it looks as though that’s just how ips is ?

 

[bubulol]

Yes, its inherent to IPS technology panel but it will differ from every unit.
Smaller screen display also means reduced perception of ips glow, i meant iPad are just 9/11 inches screen display while many PC monitors 24/27 exhibit more pronounced ips glow.
Moreover, the glossy panel would also help to reduce the perception of ips glow.
For example, i have a 27 inches matte IPS PC monitor, i can guarantee you, i much prefer watching movies on my iPad Mini than using my monitor for this.
IPS panel are not meant to use in very dark environment with dark contents (dark movie scenes and black bars)
Otherwise you will notice the IPS glow even though its a small amount.
Maybe exchange your for new unit, it could be too much ips glow on your unit

To be accurate, IPS Glow will differ from distance/angle, it will be reduced according distance/angle, backlight bleed doesnt not
Try to watch from further distance/angle and see what will happen in order to identify it.

 

[ijon01]

Yes if I tilt the iPad slightly I can’t see it, it is glow and it’s very minor.

Going to keep my unit, it’s a tiny amount in one corner on high brightness, if I exchanged I could very well end up with a much worse screen.

I have played the exchange game before and regretted it.

 

[bubulol]

The amount of glow is negligible on such size and Apple made very good units
Its much worse when it comes to others like PC monitors, other laptop brands, very random...
But you are right to worry about it, its something that would bother me and i m hoping to get one decent, fortunetely Apple goes for OLED panel on iPhone, Mini LEDs from iPad Pro M1 12.9 and Macbook might help for IPS Glow or backlight bleed, not sure though!

 

[dantay]

I was just about to start a new thread “iPad 9th generation uneven backlight” and found this so posting here.

I have an iPad Pro 12.9 and wanted the “new” 9th gen iPad for a lighter and smaller device for around the house and as my partner has the 8th gen and the screen is decent for a non-laminated IPS screen I decided to get the 9th gen.

The screen on the 2 9th gen units I have now personally seen are nowhere near as even as the 8th gen I have as reference and have both been returned.

Both 9th gens exhibited pinched corners and sides and horrible colour cast immediately noticeable on the black start up screen. This is not IPS glow, this is backlight bleed due to uneven clamping forces on the edges of the panel/backlight assembly.

Apple have (I’m sure) multiple suppliers for their best selling iPad display and the new panels have the True Tone sensors in the top bezel so this is not exactly the same assembly as on the 8th gen iPad but I find such a messy uneven backlight completely unacceptable even on Apple’s entry level iPad.

I have ordered 2 more units to arrive tomorrow from 2 different suppliers in the hope that one will be acceptable.

I would like to reiterate that this is NOT IPS glow but backlight bleed, and really horrible backlight bleed at that.

As I did not take pictures of the initial 2 units I will post pics of the 2 new units with a comparison to the 8th gen my partner owns.

We should not be seeing this issue with a tried and tested chassis and a well established screen technology in 2022 especially when the last iteration of this model had no such (in my experience) issues.

 

[Joplin]

I’ll chime in here as well. I recently got the 9th gen and I’ve noticed two things with the display: it seems to be slightly less bright than my 6th gen (white screen with True Tone disabled), which I guess is just the tolerance that can exist between units, but a little more frustrating is a slight shadow edge along the left bezel in portrait mode.

I can live with both of these things, but the shadow edge is hard to unsee. Anyone else have this on their 9th gen?

 

[dantay]

I’ll chime in here as well. I recently got the 9th gen and I’ve noticed two things with the display: it seems to be slightly less bright than my 6th gen (white screen with True Tone disabled), which I guess is just the tolerance that can exist between units, but a little more frustrating is a slight shadow edge along the left bezel in portrait mode.

I can live with both of these things, but the shadow edge is hard to unsee. Anyone else have this on their 9th gen?

I didn’t get further than the boot screen on the 2 units I checked the other day as the backlight was so horribly uneven.

If either of the units I receive tomorrow are acceptable (unlikely) then I will check for a shadow edge.

As an fyi I had this shadow on both iMacs and iPads in the past and it’s to do with the backlight defuser/reflector being slightly misaligned and took multiple returns on the iMac to get a good one and I gave up on the (1st gen Air) iPad.

I understand teething problems with new screen tech and or chassis design but as neither of these are the case on the 9th gen I can only come to the conclusion this is a cost cutting exercise on Apples behalf for this “upgrade”.

Im surprised more people haven’t noticed and aren’t talking about it, It really was/is horrible and reminded me of the issues experienced with the 2nd gen iPad.

 

[bubulol]

I understand you, i have bought multiple IPS screen monitors and its a lotery and nowhere near to what you got on the Apple devices (its bigger though)
That's why i am glad there are oled display on the iPhone!

 

[dantay]

I understand you, i have bought multiple IPS screen monitors and its a lotery and nowhere near to what you got on the Apple devices (its bigger though)
That's why i am glad there are oled display on the iPhone!

OLED panels have their own unique set of issues, my Z Fold has a colour cast across the main screen, my LG OLED TV has DSE. My iPhone 13 Pro screen is decent by some miracle but plenty of people have issues with the OLED on the 12 and 13 series iPhone.

I have 2 more iPad 9th gens coming tomorrow (making 6 units total) and if neither of these is reasonably even I’ll have to admit defeat and get the Air.

 

[1BadManVan]

Weird, my moms 9th gen screen seemed perfectly fine. nicer colours than her 5th gen

 

[dantay]

Weird, my moms 9th gen screen seemed perfectly fine. nicer colours than her 5th gen

Colours aren’t a problem, it’s backlight uniformity.

 

[bubulol]

When you watching movies with black bar, does the corner appear brighter (assuming you turn off any light)?

 

[dantay]

When you watching movies with black bar, does the corner appear brighter (assuming you turn off any light)?

Yep, bottom right in portrait (top right in landscape) has a pinch/bleed that is brighter.

Been through 6 units now, keeping the best one……its not right but it’s ok (Whitney).

The series 9 screen is a downgrade from the 8.

 

[bubulol]

I have 7th ipad i can take picture if there is anything

 

[robkas]

OLED panels have their own unique set of issues, my Z Fold has a colour cast across the main screen, my LG OLED TV has DSE. My iPhone 13 Pro screen is decent by some miracle but plenty of people have issues with the OLED on the 12 and 13 series iPhone.

I have 2 more iPad 9th gens coming tomorrow (making 6 units total) and if neither of these is reasonably even I’ll have to admit defeat and get the Air.

Given how many people complain about the Air (2020) screen + my own experience, I doubt that you’ll have more luck with the Air. My first Air had backlight bleeding in 2 corners and along 2 of the edges. I decided to keep it until I noticed the screen wasn’t laminated properly in the center (made a clicking noise when touched).
Now my second unit has the same amount of backlight bleeding (maybe slightly worse) in the same spots, but at least the other problem seems to be fixed. I’ll keep it since I doubt I’ll find a much better unit. In normal use the bleeding is barely visible anyway in my case, just noticeable as a slightly brighter spot in the corners when watching letterbox movies in a dark room with 70%+ brightness.
I also bought AppleCare+, which helps a lot to find peace with it.

 

[dantay]

Given how many people complain about the Air (2020) screen + my own experience, I doubt that you’ll have more luck with the Air. My first Air had backlight bleeding in 2 corners and along 2 of the edges. I decided to keep it until I noticed the screen wasn’t laminated properly in the center (made a clicking noise when touched).
Now my second unit has the same amount of backlight bleeding (maybe slightly worse) in the same spots, but at least the other problem seems to be fixed. I’ll keep it since I doubt I’ll find a much better unit. In normal use the bleeding is barely visible anyway in my case, just noticeable as a slightly brighter spot in the corners when watching letterbox movies in a dark room with 70%+ brightness.
I also bought AppleCare+, which helps a lot to find peace with it.

I previously had the Air (current gen) and sold it and got the M1 12.9 Pro to replace it, the realised I wanted a smaller “sofa iPad” so bought the 9th gen standard iPad.

The screen on my Air was completely uniform or I would have returned it.

You sound like you have been unlucky and got 2 bad units, that or Apple changed the supplier on the current Air since my launch unit was manufactured.

As the base iPad is relatively cheap I can (I’m obviously going to have to) put up with these imperfections, I definitely wouldn’t on the Air.

I also think Apple care is a total rip-off, great for Apple though.

 

[robkas]

I previously had the Air (current gen) and sold it and got the M1 12.9 Pro to replace it, the realised I wanted a smaller “sofa iPad” so bought the 9th gen standard iPad.

The screen on my Air was completely uniform or I would have returned it.

You sound like you have been unlucky and got 2 bad units, that or Apple changed the supplier on the current Air since my launch unit was manufactured.

As the base iPad is relatively cheap I can (I’m obviously going to have to) put up with these imperfections, I definitely wouldn’t on the Air.

I also think Apple care is a total rip-off, great for Apple though.

Well, I just noticed that my replacement unit also produces the "click"-sounds now, so you must be right; I'm either really unlucky or something's up with Apple's recent Air units. I'm wondering how this doesn't seem to be a more popular problem since it's pretty noticeable when writing on the screen. Not really sure what I should do at this point.
I'm sure the next unit wouldn't be better.

 

[dantay]

Well, I just noticed that my replacement unit also produces the "click"-sounds now, so you must be right; I'm either really unlucky or something's up with Apple's recent Air units. I'm wondering how this doesn't seem to be a more popular problem since it's pretty noticeable when writing on the screen. Not really sure what I should do at this point.
I'm sure the next unit wouldn't be better.

Maybe 3rd times a charm!

 

[robkas]

Maybe 3rd times a charm!

Yeah it’s probably worth a try. If that one is defect too, I’ll probably (lose my mind and) try getting one from a different vendor as a last resort.

 

[Ignacio Russo]

When I first got my LED TV, I realized that it was only an LCD somewhat illuminated with a led array. Years passed by, and all I can tell is that I kinda like IPS because it reminds me of the old cinema screens (silver screens). Genuinely I'm not too fond of OLED contrast (all my tv sets are LG OLED), and even with the internet expert configuration, movies like the Dark Knight look like a Dark screen. If you feel like it does not work, go to the store and ask as charmingly as you can for an expert who may decide to change the equipment.