iPhone 3G Yellow Screen Issue

[greenmymac]

Some iPhones were much yellower and dimmer than others - i.e. my first one. I doubt those are fixable with the new firmware.

well what can we do...every company messes up on things.. look at microsoft!

 

[Sphyrna]

Yeah, I did. Although I was very lucky in the end. I waited for the store to open from about 7:45am (the store opened at 9am), was first in line and started the authorisation process at 9:06 am. At 10:06 am the store said I could head off and they'd call me back when it authorised. An hour later I got a phone call saying all had gone through and I was back shortly afterwards (its two minutes from where I live).
It took me about an hour to notice that the screen was distinctly yellow (since I'd been restoring and copying music over etc etc for aaages) and then I called Apple. They said I had to take it back to CPW because they couldn't do anything about it. I went back to the store but was told that all 16GB iPhones had sold out in the region so they couldn't get me a replacement and that I should try and get one through Apple. Luckily, however, I got a call from CPW a few hours later saying they'd managed to find one last 16GB in another branch and had reserved it for me. They really were fantastic in the store, very friendly and I believe appreciated having a calm customer that didn't start screaming their head off at the first stumbling block.

So I was incredibly lucky in the end to get another one. Lucky as well because I can tell my tale of how some iPhone 3Gs are yellower than other ones.

Now THAT is customer service!

 

[Spanky Deluxe]

well what can we do...every company messes up on things.. look at microsoft!

Well, it seems that all of our moaning about the yellow tint has already payed off and Apple has fixed it for most users with the firmware update. Apart from my original 3G iPhone, a few others have noted particularly bad yellow tints when compared to other 3G iPhones. I'm sure these people will be able to get their iPhones replaced.

I, for one, am pretty happy at how this has all ended up.

Now THAT is customer service!

Indeed!! Very happy! My hat goes off to the staff of Car Phone Warehouse in Churchill Square, Brighton, they were fantastic.

 

[Mikey B]

Well, just got back from the Apple Store. Had to hold a 3G in my hands. I definitely noticed a difference between my gen 1 and the 3G demo. For me, I noticed the blue-ness of my iphone more than a yellow tint to the 3G. Actually, I thought the screen on the 3G looked fabulous. Very crisp, clear and bright.

I wasn't very impressed with the speed of 3G, though. Its faster for sure, but, at least in the 20 minutes or so I surfed around, hardly life-changing and blazing-fast enough for me to feel like I have to get it.

 

[Riemann Zeta]

At least you can be sure that a 100% of the people that have reported this problem will have it.

Classic. Comedy gold.

But anyway, it seems that in today's world of gadgets with intricate LCD/LED displays, display quality is always a lotto. Since screen components come from a lot of different manufactures, you may be end up with a backlight or emitter from a sh*tty batch, or you could get lucky and score a perfect one. Obviously, if it sucks too much and is way out-of-spectrum, then swap it in, but a lot of the "I reflashed the FW in this particular way and the color spectrum changed" comments are placebos.

 

[thaprofessor33]

good for me

I love the phone and have no yellow issues

 

[MacReloaded]

I played with one of the demos at Rogers Video today and didn't notice the yellowing. The screen was gorgeous. Then again, I don't have a 2G iPhone to compare it with.

 

[HFU]

Photos under yellow lamp and white fluorescent lamp

Just want to share some of the photos and hope to provide some comparison and tracking as reference so people may get an idea what batch they got.

* Model: iPhone 3G Black 8GB
* Supplier: ATT local store
* Production Date: 8482********
* Default firmware: 2.0 (5A345)

First photo was taken under yellow lamp, and the second two took under white fluorescent lamp. When taking the shot under strong flash light, it does turn the iPhone screen a bit dimmer but not yellow. The screen otherwise looked crisp and sharp with no yellow issue.

 

[Dammit Cubs]

do you guys realize that its a reallly really light tint right?

and it makes your photos in safari look better. (skin tones look warmer and alot better).

it's not like someone pee'd on your iphone. It's not that bad. It's also makes it easier to read.


Let me call Steve, Oh yeah..... he DOESN'T CARE

 

[mcdj]

do you guys realize that its a reallly really light tint right?

and it makes your photos in safari look better. (skin tones look warmer and alot better).

it's not like someone pee'd on your iphone. It's not that bad. It's also makes it easier to read.


Let me call Steve, Oh yeah..... he DOESN'T CARE

On mine the warm tint is pretty noticeable all around, but I agree, for the most part it makes photos look better. It's like Fuji Velvia vs. Ektachrome. I'm showing my age...

I think part of the problem is people are A.) obsessing, and B.) obsessing on screens that they'll rarely spend time on...settings, etc.

If you think your 3G screen is horribly yellow, crank up the brightness, pull out your 1st gen iPhone, crank up the brightness on it too, then pull up the wallpaper settings screens on both. Go through the stock wallpapers one by one and if you're like me, you'll quickly start to appreciate the warmer screen. By about the 4th image, my 1st gen screen was looking mighty blue.

 

[TheIntruder]

There's no doubt that the 3G screen has a warmer temperature than the original.

Unfortunately, this is mainly a hardware issue. Do some research on LEDs and you'll find that there is no such thing as a true white LED -- they are really blue LEDs that have a phosphor coating to make them appear to emit white light. The results can end up biased toward the bluish, or yellow/green. The finished components are tested, and separated by their characteristics into different classes in what's known as a "binning" process.

White light can also be derived from separate red, green, and blue LEDs, but I doubt a small device such as the iPhone uses that method. It's a method that would be used for a large panel like a television.

Also be aware that LEDs are current-driven devices. They are designed to operate at a specific current level, and the results from deviating from that level aren't as predictable as they are with incandescent bulbs.

The question is whether Apple or their screen supplier purposely chose the LEDs that provide backlighting from a different bin than the original iPhone, or if it's a QC issue at the component level.

 

[pflau]

On mine the warm tint is pretty noticeable all around, but I agree, for the most part it makes photos look better. It's like Fuji Velvia vs. Ektachrome. I'm showing my age...

LOL I know exactly what you mean I used to do a lot of Ektachrome and the blue color bias always killed me LOL.

 

[meagain]

Has anyone who bought it not had this problem? Or is it pretty much all 3G's?

Yes, my screen is SO much better than the 2g. And my 2g was swapped about 4 times due to my screen analness. Reds, greens are perfect. No blue push like the old one. Screen is sharper more crystal. More details. White is WHITE not a cold blue-tinged white.

And it's brighter too. NOT washed out but brighter. It's gorgeous.

It's ACCURATE in comparison to the 2g.

(black 16g with build ending in 45)

 

[michael31986]

Can't this yellow tint if anything be fixed by firmware? i mean its just a color tint. its not like its a negative black defect like the ipod touch had.

 

[pavyaz19]

I, for one, love a cooler screen. I always set my monitors to a cool color temp. I am not happy hearing about about the warm color temp on the new phones. The closer an image is to sepia, the more I dislike it.

It may be a subconscious thing for me... sepia being older / primitive, while cooler blue being more clean / futuristic.

If there was a color temp setting on the iPhone, mine would always be set to cool, and I'd love the 3G even more.

 

[MattyK]

HELP my iphones yellow tint went too far this time!

 

[msw123307]

comparing my original iphone to the 3g, the difference is plainly obvious. even on the home screen. it's not a full black. strange tint to the 3g.

 

[JPL4]

comparing my original iphone to the 3g, the difference is plainly obvious. even on the home screen. it's not a full black. strange tint to the 3g.

Agreed.. Black is not black on the home screen.. It is washed and clearly something is wrong.

To make it fair. I will say that my buddy also got the 3G and unlike me it is his first iPhone.. He thinks it looks ok..

This is really almost a deal breaker for me since I am giving my old iphone to a friend for nothing. 3G here has been a disaster so far and I dont think I will ever make much use of the GPS.. Added 2.0 to my 1G iphone yesterday and he is like new. The original just feels so much more solid and better in the hand. I'm not sure apple made a legit upgrade here.. JMO



I think I know now why Apple included the sim remover.. So you can pull that sucker out and put it right back into your 2.5..

Seriously..

Also have dust under my screen already FYI..

 

[queshy]

Hmm. Compared next to my touch, the iPhone's screen isn't as white. The colors are a lot warmer. The screen is also a bit brighter too, but it's hard to tell. They're both excellent quality screens. I think the new screens just show colors differently. I wouldn't look at mine and call it yellow but it definitely looks different next to my touch. On the iPod touch, white is white (very very white).

 

[JPL4]

If it aint broke dont fix it.. Why would apple go out on a limb and make a change like this to such a influential and popular device.. It makes no sense. Was it overlooked?

(no pun intended)

 

[Mark Booth]

I'm a serious amateur photographer and use a calibration system on my computer displays on a regular basis. My displays provide me with much more accurate color versus the default settings/color profiles that Apple provides.

I copied a color test photo (not any old photo, but one designed for such testing purposes) to both my new iPhone 3G and to my original iPhone, made sure both iPhone's had their brightness set to the default middle position on the slider, and then compared the color test photo on each iPhone up against the same image on my main calibrated display (Apple 23" Cinema Display).

While the iPhone 3G's display is not perfect, I found it to be much more color accurate than the original iPhone's display. The original iPhone's display is too blue. And while that blue tint might be pleasing to (some) eyes, it is far from accurate.

Mark

 

[JPL4]

That may be true.. Unfortunately yellow tint in a display reminds us all of a dieing CRT. It is not a flattering color to see in any display unless intentional. It is a very bad tint to see.. Blue is new and crisp.. yellow is old and sepia.



P.S. I'm also a photographer and graphic artist..

might as well throw it up.. YES I WAS A WinMo Kid.. www.JPL4Design.com Just whore it out..

 

[taphil]

Here's a comparison with my ****** 3G phone. Hopefully I can show them tomorrow the comparison and get a replacement.

3G on the bottom. Notice that you can't see the objects in the upper right, the difference between the wood floor and the butt of the gun, the guy's entire right arm, and the bottle. Both screens set to max brightness, auto setting off.

 

[taphil]

Some more images.

 

[Nicholas.C]

is the iPhone 100% OK now?