iPhone Screen Checkered Pattern

[DaftUnion]

Here are my images. sorry about my hand, but I'm holding the photo. i adjusted the exposer to enhance the dots.

A little off topic, but thanks for posting those images up. Besides the white checkered dots I have along with everyone else I had six evenly spaced patches of light bleeding through on the top of the screen.

Apparently after seeing this, your phone has the same exact light bleed through on the top as mine does. At least I know I'm not alone with this issue.

 

[phoneorpda]

Finally a conclusion! I agree Jerry. I just went to the apple store today and saw all the display models (about 10 of them) and I can see the white dot grid on ALL of them. I turned up the brightness on all of them. Some of the iPhones you can see the dots more than others. But it is on ALL of them. My friend has a 5, you can barely see it on his at max brightness, but it IS there. The 7 does have better colors and better contrast. The 5 is sharper and the black looks nice. So for people that have OCD, stop returning your iphones because of the dots-- they are on ALL iPhones. This is not a LCD issue anymore. NOW GO ENJOY YOUR IPHONE!!!! Jesus

yeah, i noticed all floor models have it too, now.

however you are not right about the contrast issue.
my belief is that the contrast and/or sharpness are better on the 5***, since the grid is not screwing with the dark colors.

while i can see why people are happy with the 7*** screen, i do prefer the 5***, especially if i need to watch movies.

 

[unity]

Some research...

Finally a conclusion! I agree Jerry. I just went to the apple store today and saw all the display models (about 10 of them) and I can see the white dot grid on ALL of them. I turned up the brightness on all of them. Some of the iPhones you can see the dots more than others. But it is on ALL of them. My friend has a 5, you can barely see it on his at max brightness, but it IS there. The 7 does have better colors and better contrast. The 5 is sharper and the black looks nice. So for people that have OCD, stop returning your iphones because of the dots-- they are on ALL iPhones. This is not a LCD issue anymore. NOW GO ENJOY YOUR IPHONE!!!! Jesus

"they are on ALL iPhones"..... nope, they are not visible on all and thats the problem. I have been using mine since the 29th. Finally today I got my hands on one the the 7 series. After using my phone for so long, I can confidently say the 7 series I handled had a horrible screen. Now, maybe not ALL 7 series have bad screens, but no one seems to have an issue with the 5 series. The 7 series had VERY VISIBLE white dots/grid, there is NO WAY this is by design. Also, the colors were washed out even on reduced brightness. In short, horrible contrast, NOT better contrast. On my 5 series phone the blacks look really sharp and dark with little backlight bleed, even on full brightness it becomes but a very dark grey as any LCD does when compared to a true black. But the 7 series had an almost grey screen all the time.

And to say its by design is wrong. If it is by design, then there is something wrong with mine, and I am GLAD!

So to look further on my phone, since I could not see them. I turned brightness full up (normally I keep it at about 40%) and entered the photo app and took a black photo. I then turned the lights off and took a VERY close look. This is what I found:

The first image is the black photo being viewed, not an active camera. The second is the same screen with controls up. Brightness is at 100% with auto-brightness off and again, lights off in room to help. This is the ONLY way I could see them and even then, they are barely visible dead on - the phone must be tilted a bit.

 

[phoneorpda]

"they are on ALL iPhones"..... nope, they are not visible on all and thats the problem. I have been using mine since the 29th. Finally today I got my hands on one the the 7 series. After using my phone for so long, I can confidently say the 7 series I handled had a horrible screen. Now, maybe not ALL 7 series have bad screens, but no one seems to have an issue with the 5 series. The 7 series had VERY VISIBLE white dots/grid, there is NO WAY this is by design. Also, the colors were washed out even on reduced brightness. In short, horrible contrast, NOT better contrast. On my 5 series phone the blacks look really sharp and dark with little backlight bleed, even on full brightness it becomes but a very dark grey as any LCD does when compared to a true black. But the 7 series had an almost grey screen all the time.

And to say its by design is wrong. If it is by design, then there is something wrong with mine, and I am GLAD!

So to look further on my phone, since I could not see them. I turned brightness full up (normally I keep it at about 40%) and entered the photo app and took a black photo. I then turned the lights off and took a VERY close look. This is what I found:

The first image is the black photo being viewed, not an active camera. The second is the same screen with controls up. Brightness is at 100% with auto-brightness off and again, lights off in room to help. This is the ONLY way I could see them and even then, they are barely visible dead on - the phone must be tilted a bit.


awesome shots.

i took the liberty to repost them at howardforums.

any chance you could take the SAME picture of a 5*** and a 7*** side by side?

 

[unity]

awesome shots.

i took the liberty to repost them at howardforums.

any chance you could take the SAME picture of a 5*** and a 7*** side by side?

Thanks. And keep in mind these are my 5 series phone. But the dots are NOTHING like the 7 series at all.

I wont see the 7 series again, or else I would have. But I think we have plenty of 7 series photos! I just had to put some 5 series up. I honestly was not expecting to see ANY dots at all. I also find it odd that they are so much more visible with the controls up - keep in mind that if it were to be the touch screen only that in this case it would not matter as I am in the photo app and have zoomed in, etc... the entire screen is active.

Here are some more "way too huge for a forum" pics:

These are at normal brightness in a dark room. I tried to take pics at the same angles as others. As you can see, not grid/dots.....

 

[phoneorpda]

5*** screen, no grid:

7*** screen, with grid:

i hope this helps to portrait better what we are talking about.


i know these are not from the same photo session, but i think they are close enough to give an idea, until we find somebody that can do a side to side photoshoot

 

[unity]

I think ya got them reversed above

Oh, and I took a shot that I think compares just a bit better. I wish my macro lens was not so tight, its hard to being everything in focus. But I think this image of a 5 series that is close to the one above will work better for comparison.

 

[milk242]

do you only see these dots at extreme angles on the 7 series? I can only see it when I'm basically have my eyes leveled across the screen. I can't see it at all looking at it normally

 

[phoneorpda]

I think ya got them reversed above

fixed it, thanks!

 

[taphil]

do you only see these dots at extreme angles on the 7 series? I can only see it when I'm basically have my eyes leveled across the screen. I can't see it at all looking at it normally

I think there is variation with this. On the bad 7* screen I got, I could see it at medium brightness from a foot away under dining room lights looking straight on. I didn't even see the problem on another 7* screen that I got but returned due to dead pixels.

 

[tamakin]

after seeing those pics, I guess it is a LCD issue... only thing you can do is send your phone in to Apple and get the 5 model in return

 

[invocatus]

I have a 7 series LCD as well. The white checkered pattern is visible at 50% brightness from ANY angle. Yes, that includes head-on.
I hope this is fixed/recalled/addressed. My attempts to correct this problem at the Genius Bar only resulted in assurances that these problems were "normal." But that's only because there were 7-series screens on the floor. Knowing someone with a 5-series screen is almost depressing; they are categorically better.

-i

 

[tamakin]

I have a 7 series LCD as well. The white checkered pattern is visible at 50% brightness from ANY angle. Yes, that includes head-on.
I hope this is fixed/recalled/addressed. My attempts to correct this problem at the Genius Bar only resulted in assurances that these problems were "normal." But that's only because there were 7-series screens on the floor. Knowing someone with a 5-series screen is almost depressing; they are categorically better.

-i

this is unacceptable for a mac product.. I guess Apple outsourced most of the LCD production to the lowest bidder (cheapest product).

 

[tttmac]

anyone who has talked personally to a applecare support guy

have you tried contacting them directly again in case they found out anything?


we really need to get apple aware of this issue on all facets and in all departments of that company!!

 

[tamakin]

anyone who has talked personally to a applecare support guy

have you tried contacting them directly again in case they found out anything?


we really need to get apple aware of this issue on all facets and in all departments of that company!!

the only way to get Apple's attention is to contact review sites or iphone blog sites.. or any sites like appledefects.com that can shine some light on this problem

 

[Slevin]

I know this won't help but I had gotten an iPhone on release day in Garden city LI but I had to exchange it and got a 7 series phone from the apple store in SoHo a week later on 7/6. After seeing this issue with the 7 series here I decided to look at my own and I can say it does not affect all 7 series phones, my 7 series phone at 50% brightness and all angles does not have the effect you are all seeing.

So I just want to give you a notice that its not all 7 series screens. Just a small number (compared to the total number shipped that is). But I'm sorry you all are having problems

 

[tttmac]

so anything new today on this battle-front yet?

 

[phoneorpda]

so anything new today on this battle-front yet?

haha,

i really don't have anything else to add.

we got pictures, and we got several reports that it is an issue, somehow.

now it's just a matter of waiting to see if anybody picks it up as such.

unless somebody else has a better idea.

 

[tttmac]

somebody should make a side by side VIDEO comparison and upload it to youtube.....

i would, cept i dont have a 5* anymore!

and then spread this video link everywhere possible

 

[RidleyGriff]

I understand everyone's frustrations, but it does indeed look like the 5 series screens were used in the first batch only, and everything thereafter has been a 7 series screen. The floor demo models have 7-series screens, etc. At that point, this simply becomes a matter of This Is How The iPhone Is.

I own a 5-series, and my girlfriend has a 7-series -- as i stated before, save for a minor variance in contrast, they are the same. I can see dots on both if i pump the brightness and look at an extreme angle, but in neither case do these dots affect functionality of the device.

Does anybody really use their screens an eighth of an inch away from their face, which is what all these "damning" photos seem to infer is required to see these things in the first place? That's not to mention that from the looks of it, each dot photo has been processed in terms of contrast or color to give an artificial sense of the severity of the problem in question.

Personally, the fact that unaltered pics, between 7 and 5 series, side by side with identical settings, showing the differences in dots, have not yet appeared, is suspect.

I am not trying to be a difficult/contradictory poster, but if currently manufactured phones are 7-series -- and all anecdotal information seems to indicate that -- then perhaps it's simply a matter of "this is they type of screen this product has -- do I want it or not?". But as this certainly seems to be a niche problem, not a widespread complaint, I would think any policy change or official statement from Apple is unlikely.

 

[taphil]

Does anybody really use their screens an eighth of an inch away from their face, which is what all these "damning" photos seem to infer is required to see these things in the first place?

It has been said again and again, there is variation. On some, you need to look at only few inches away. Fine, not a huge issue.

But with others that are really bad and making people mad, you can see them holding it at half-arm distance, head on, under medium light, with the backlight set to medium - in other words, it's plainly visible and highly annoying. You can't use the excuse of being visible only at a few inches here.

 

[millerrh]

It has been said again and again, there is variation. On some, you need to look at only few inches away. Fine, not a huge issue.

But with others that are really bad and making people mad, you can see them holding it at half-arm distance, head on, under medium light, with the backlight set to medium - in other words, it's plainly visible and highly annoying. You can't use the excuse of being visible only at a few inches here.

Also, on the bad ones, when you hold them at arms distance, the dots all sort of blend together and make the blacks look gray.

 

[phoneorpda]

Also, on the bad ones, when you hold them at arms distance, the dots all sort of blend together and make the blacks look gray.

and i think that's what makes these screens look "brighter" and more "washed out"

 

[RidleyGriff]

But with others that are really bad and making people mad, you can see them holding it at half-arm distance, head on, under medium light, with the backlight set to medium - in other words, it's plainly visible and highly annoying. You can't use the excuse of being visible only at a few inches here.

Nobody is using any excuse, but the fact remains all the proof that has been put forth has been dots shown at an EXTREMELY close range in photographs that have likely been tweaked to emphasize the problem. Given that some of us have only encountered 7-series phones without such an extreme dots issue, these photos are the only evidence we have of the problem.

I think it would behoove everyone if photos were posted showing such a severe case, before the owner exchanged said phone (which I assume would be the owner's next course of action, if the problem varies between 7-series model to 7-series model, etc).

 

[invocatus]

Nobody is using any excuse, but the fact remains all the proof that has been put forth has been dots shown at an EXTREMELY close range in photographs that have likely been tweaked to emphasize the problem.

It this problem is as terrible as you state, I think it would behoove everyone if photos were posted showing such a severe case, before the owner exchanged said phone (which I assume would be the owner's next course of action, if the problem varies between 7-series model to 7-series model, etc).

I have a terrible 7-series, where the dots are plainly visible at any angle (I already posted this above). I'm currently teaching away from home, so I don't have a camera on me, but perhaps I can address your concern when I return. However, I think your complaint about "altered" photos, while on some levels valid, is flawed. Anyone who's even remotely serious about photography knows that pointing a camera and shooting doesn't always (more often does not) reproduce exactly what you see with your eye. A lot of "post-processing" needs to be done on digital images in terms of contrast, levels, white-balance, and sharpness (to name a few) before the resulting image is a faithful representation of what the naked eye sees. If you need an immediate example of where this has NOT happened, scroll up to the pictures of the 5-series and look at the greenish cast on the screen. We all know that isn't visible if you hold the phone in your hand.

In short? I encourage you to take a look at some floor-model 7-series to find one with the sort of problem we describe, since there is no such thing as an "unaltered" digital photo (especially in an age of in-camera preprocessing).

-i