iPad Pro Screen Color

[Sowelu]

Here is my example, I’m going to the Apple Store today to ask for an exchange.

I would prefer the one to the right. The one to the left has a greenish/blue cast to it which looks dingy to my eyes. I use color filters to achieve a look similar to the one on the right. This is true for other examples in this thread (for me), but to each their own. Our eyes vary and our preferences for display temperatures do as well.

 

[Wags]

I generally like cooler screens. Didn’t realize how blue the m1 is compared to m4. Overly blue. Not just because m4 more neutral.

 

[julesme]

I just did a side-by-side comparison, and my OLED M4 iPad Pro 11” appears to have the same color temp as my M1 MacBook Pro 14” (mini-LED). That came as a relief after reading this thread.

That said, my new M4 iPad Pro is clearly warmer than my old M1 iPad Pro 11” (LCD) that it is replacing.

 

[Donza]

Had chance to compare my 13” M4 to two other 13” M4s and one 12,9” M2.

Mine was pretty much exactly same with other 13” but had slightly greener hue than the second 13” in store.
12,9” M2 was waaaay bluer and looked off to me in comparison to 13” models.

I tested all with True Tone off.

The green tint I noticed on my iPad Pro in comparison was really surprising because in certain light I feel like my iPad has more of a purple tint. Super confusing… Can the panel’s colors be somehow shifting during use?

I think I will still stick with what I have. My conclusion is that M4 iPad Pros are significantly warmer across the board compared to old iPads and some of the old iPad panels are in comparison way too cool in tone.

 

[UltimateSyn]

I just did a side-by-side comparison, and my OLED M4 iPad Pro 11” appears to have the same color temp as my M1 MacBook Pro 14” (mini-LED). That came as a relief after reading this thread.

That said, my new M4 iPad Pro is clearly warmer than my old M1 iPad Pro 11” (LCD) that it is replacing.

Well, shoot. My 11” M4 is noticeably warmer than my 14” M1 MacBook Pro. The 11” M4 is also about the same color temp as the 13” M4 that I received first.

I guess I should return and re-purchase but don’t really want to keep playing this game.. it’s very warm / yellow though.

 

[TheRealAlex]

P3 color gamut needs to be tested at 98% for the new M4 iPad Pro some people are getting 83% which is bad out of spec too warm or too green. Mine tested exactly at 98%. And eyeballing it next to my QD-OLED monitor it’s spot on.

 

[pdoherty]

I generally like cooler screens. Didn’t realize how blue the m1 is compared to m4. Overly blue. Not just because m4 more neutral.

You say that, but has anyone actually proven the M4 is "more neutral" than the M1? Which is actually closer to what they both should be?

 

[mtngal]

You say that, but has anyone actually proven the M4 is "more neutral" than the M1? Which is actually closer to what they both should be?

I'm not used to uploading anything to this forum, not sure of formatting etc. But here's a comparison between an M1 iPad Air and my M4 iPad Pro (13"). True Tone is turned off with both.

D65 (6500K) is considered an industry standard for viewing and editing photos. There are other standards for other reasons. Since I only do still photography, I use the D65 standard.

So in the case of my M4 iPad, it is set very close to the 6500K standard (white point 6446K) while the iPad Air is cooler by a fair amount (7037K). Higher numbers are cooler, lower numbers are warmer.

So in the case of these two iPads, the M4 is closer to the standard than the M1 Air. Not proof overall, but certainly proof in my case.

 

[UltimateSyn]

P3 color gamut needs to be tested at 98% for the new M4 iPad Pro some people are getting 83% which is bad out of spec too warm or too green. Mine tested exactly at 98%. And eyeballing it next to my QD-OLED monitor it’s spot on.

What device are you testing this with? Apologies if this has already been covered.

 

[geoelectric]

Mine seems the same as my OLED iPhone 15PM with True Tone off—iPad is maybe slightly greener. But turning on True Tone for both in dim 2700K (Hue default soft white) light causes the iPhone to turn slightly warmer and the iPad to aggressively become yellow.

They’re much closer in both bright light or dark, but something about dim light works very differently between the two.

Someone on Reddit said they had the same issue (TT off wasn’t an issue but on was super aggressive) and a swap still fixed it. I’m debating it myself.

 

[Donza]

Mine seems the same as my OLED iPhone 15PM with True Tone off—iPad is maybe slightly greener. But turning on True Tone for both in dim 2700K (Hue default soft white) light causes the iPhone to turn slightly warmer and the iPad to aggressively become yellow.

They’re much closer in both bright light or dark, but something about dim light works very differently between the two.

Someone on Reddit said they had the same issue (TT off wasn’t an issue but on was super aggressive) and a swap still fixed it. I’m debating it myself.

I have same experience that True Tone seems too aggressive on new oled iPads. I’d imagine it’s fixable by software, but I’m also debating should I try swapping lottery.

 

[Mockenrue]

I compared my 13" to display models at an Apple Store today. The two 13" display models looked exactly like mine: good* color temperature with True Tone off and overly yellow with TT on. Brightness was the same.

The 11" was closer to good with TT on, but similar to the 13" models with TT off. The 11" also seemed a bit brighter at max.

*By "good", I mean what I understand to be accurate and similar to my OLED iPhone. This may still seem warm for those who prefer the cooler/bluer look of LED iPads.

I decided to keep mine and just leave True Tone off. Unless there's something wrong with all three 13" models I saw, the TT algorithm seems to be the problem.

 

[Wind30]

I just did a side-by-side comparison, and my OLED M4 iPad Pro 11” appears to have the same color temp as my M1 MacBook Pro 14” (mini-LED). That came as a relief after reading this thread.

That said, my new M4 iPad Pro is clearly warmer than my old M1 iPad Pro 11” (LCD) that it is replacing.

I have exactly the same findings except my m1 iPad Pro is 13”, and my MacBook Pro is 16”

 

[Donza]

I compared my 13" to display models at an Apple Store today. The two 13" display models looked exactly like mine: good* color temperature with True Tone off and overly yellow with TT on. Brightness was the same.

Did one last round today to local stores carrying 13” and had same conlusion. Display of my iPad was almost exactly same as others; very yellow with True Tone but relatively neutral with True Tone off.

I guess what bothers me most is that color temp of this iPad Pro is so different when compared to my other Apple screens, especially when using True Tone.

 

[RobinNL]

So I purchased a colorimeter because this issue was driving me crazy. I found the iPad to be too warm compared to my other devices, so I took a few measurements:


iPad M4 (true tone off): 6451k
iPad Pro 2018: 6776k
Macbook Pro M1 Max: 6740k

All the devices dropped into the <6000k white point with true tone on, so obviously not usable for color critical work. I also tested various brightness settings and found the color temperature to remain comparable to its base value measured at 110cd/m2.

I also read a review of the M4 Pro 11-inch, and the testers had measured the white point of this device at ~6711k.

TLDR:
If 6500K is the industry standard, the iPad M4 from my selection of devices is most true to spec. Although I suspect Apple generally targets a white point that is slightly cooler.

 

[Donza]

So I purchased a colorimeter because this issue was driving me crazy. I found the iPad to be too warm compared to my other devices, so I took a few measurements:


iPad M4 (true tone off): 6451k
iPad Pro 2018: 6776k
Macbook Pro M1 Max: 6740k

All the devices dropped into the <6000k white point with true tone on, so obviously not usable for color critical work. I also tested various brightness settings and found the color temperature to remain comparable to its base value measured at 110cd/m2.

I also read a review of the M4 Pro 11-inch, and the testers had measured the white point of this device at ~6711k.

TLDR:
If 6500K is the industry standard, the iPad M4 from my selection of devices is most true to spec. Although I suspect Apple generally targets a white point that is slightly cooler.

Makes sense then - our eyes are just accustomed to cooler Apple screens.

Did you notice big difference with the True Tone temps between iPad Pro and others? This is perhaps my biggest issue that I generally like how True Tone adapts to surroundings, but it just feels too heavy handed on new iPads Pro.

Will be talking to Apple Support engineer about this later today - wondering if they are aware of the issue.

 

[myllian]

People who read the iPhone forum regularly will know that these type of threads pop up consistently on every iPhone release ever since OLED was introduced to the iPhone.
For some reason apple calibrates OLED screen a tad warmer than LCD screens and TrueTone seems to enhance that difference even more. Of course it varies between each device and if yours is really too yellow, consider a return but don't underestimate how "warm" D65 (the standard for photography) actually looks.

My new 11" M4 looked warmer than my 2017 iPad with TrueTone off, so I measured the temp and it's 6.6k, so perfectly fine. In my case it is actually the old iPad that is too blue if you target a D65 white balance.
I just wish they would change the TrueTone algorithm for OLED devices, since it really is too yellow in most cases..I have it turned off.

 

[Alicia1]

So I purchased a colorimeter because this issue was driving me crazy. I found the iPad to be too warm compared to my other devices, so I took a few measurements:


iPad M4 (true tone off): 6451k
iPad Pro 2018: 6776k
Macbook Pro M1 Max: 6740k

All the devices dropped into the <6000k white point with true tone on, so obviously not usable for color critical work. I also tested various brightness settings and found the color temperature to remain comparable to its base value measured at 110cd/m2.

I also read a review of the M4 Pro 11-inch, and the testers had measured the white point of this device at ~6711k.

TLDR:
If 6500K is the industry standard, the iPad M4 from my selection of devices is most true to spec. Although I suspect Apple generally targets a white point that is slightly cooler.

Which colorimeter did you purchase? I would be interested to test mine.

Thanks

 

[klasma]

TLDR:
If 6500K is the industry standard, the iPad M4 from my selection of devices is most true to spec. Although I suspect Apple generally targets a white point that is slightly cooler.

I obtained very similar results when measuring OLED iPhones 3-4 years ago: close to 6500 K but slightly on the warm side (i.e. 6400-6500 K), and the LCD iPhones were cooler, more around 6700-6800 K.

LCD displays traditionally have a cooler white point. LCD backlights used to be 9300 K natively (maybe still are?), possibly because that’s the white reference mandated by NTSC-J. The further away the configured white point is from those 9300 K (i.e. compensated by pixel colors), the more the display loses contrast and color range. This may be the reason why “neutral” (nominally 6500 K) white points on LCDs tend to be slightly more on the cool side.

That being said, I’m not entirely sure how neutral the 6500 K standard really appears to everyone. For one, there is likely some individual variation, and secondly it’s not clear (to me) how exactly the 6500 K standard was arrived at to be declared the most neutral, i.e. what the accuracy of that number is with respect to what people actually perceive as neutral white.

In addition, the factory calibration process for OLED seems to be less accurate than the differences the human eye can perceive. Whenever I have compared multiple units of an OLED model, the color temperature was never exactly the same between them.

 

[sparksd]

I obtained very similar results when measuring OLED iPhones 3-4 years ago: close to 6500 K but slightly on the warm side (i.e. 6400-6500 K), and the LCD iPhones were cooler, more around 6700-6800 K.

LCD displays traditionally have a cooler white point. LCD backlights used to be 9300 K natively (maybe still are?), possibly because that’s the white reference mandated by NTSC-J. The further away the configured white point is from those 9300 K (i.e. compensated by pixel colors), the more the display loses contrast and color range. This may be the reason why “neutral” (nominally 6500 K) white points on LCDs tend to be slightly more on the cool side.

That being said, I’m not entirely sure how neutral the 6500 K standard really appears to everyone. For one, there is likely some individual variation, and secondly it’s not clear (to me) how exactly the 6500 K standard was arrived at to be declared the most neutral, i.e. what the accuracy of that number is with respect to what people actually perceive as neutral white.

In addition, the factory calibration process for OLED seems to be less accurate than the differences the human eye can perceive. Whenever I have compared multiple units of an OLED model, the color temperature was never exactly the same between them.

Interesting discussion here on monitors & temperature -

https://www.eizo.com/library/basics/color_temperature_on_an_LCD_monitor/

 

[Michael Scarn FBI]

Upgraded from a 2017 10.5" iPad Pro to an 11" M4 and specifically waited for OLED to arrive, because of the perfect blacks. The screen is my main reason to upgrade, but unfortunately it has a really ugly greenish tint. I hate greenish tints! A few years back I couldn't believe how people could stand those ugly Samsung Galaxy screens, and the M4 screen immediately reminded me of those. If it only where warmer, okay, but this is to the point where I'd always try to edit the tint out of photos. I also noticed that it gets worse when I look at it the tiniest bit off axis. My oldschool iPad Pro basically looks the same (or similar enough) like my M1P MacBook Pro with MiniLED. My OLED iPhone looks much more like the M4, which makes sense, but it doesn't have this awful tint.
Really frustrating, but at this price point and especially when the screen is advertised the way they did, I think it is okay to be a little nitpicky. Probably try to get a replacement...

 

[Surfsalot]

Upgraded from a 2017 10.5" iPad Pro to an 11" M4 and specifically waited for OLED to arrive, because of the perfect blacks. The screen is my main reason to upgrade, but unfortunately it has a really ugly greenish tint. I hate greenish tints! A few years back I couldn't believe how people could stand those ugly Samsung Galaxy screens, and the M4 screen immediately reminded me of those. If it only where warmer, okay, but this is to the point where I'd always try to edit the tint out of photos. I also noticed that it gets worse when I look at it the tiniest bit off axis. My oldschool iPad Pro basically looks the same (or similar enough) like my M1P MacBook Pro with MiniLED. My OLED iPhone looks much more like the M4, which makes sense, but it doesn't have this awful tint.
Really frustrating, but at this price point and especially when the screen is advertised the way they did, I think it is okay to be a little nitpicky. Probably try to get a replacement...

You have a Samsung screen. ouch .
Another reason to buy a 13". LG screen, kings of oled.

 

[RobinNL]

Which colorimeter did you purchase? I would be interested to test mine.

Thanks

Purchased the display plus HL (calibrite.com)

Did some research and the older models are probably also sufficient (max 2000 nits) but I couldn’t find one in my region.

 

[HDFan]

here's a comparison between an M1 iPad Air and my M4 iPad Pro (13").

How did you get the graphs?

 

[ReliableSource]

Upgraded from a 2017 10.5" iPad Pro to an 11" M4 and specifically waited for OLED to arrive, because of the perfect blacks. The screen is my main reason to upgrade, but unfortunately it has a really ugly greenish tint. I hate greenish tints! A few years back I couldn't believe how people could stand those ugly Samsung Galaxy screens, and the M4 screen immediately reminded me of those. If it only where warmer, okay, but this is to the point where I'd always try to edit the tint out of photos. I also noticed that it gets worse when I look at it the tiniest bit off axis. My oldschool iPad Pro basically looks the same (or similar enough) like my M1P MacBook Pro with MiniLED. My OLED iPhone looks much more like the M4, which makes sense, but it doesn't have this awful tint.
Really frustrating, but at this price point and especially when the screen is advertised the way they did, I think it is okay to be a little nitpicky. Probably try to get a replacement...

If you can, I would suggest returning it and just buying a new one instead of trying to get a replacement.

They’re not going to keep swapping out devices because you don’t like the tint of the display, but you can return and repurchase as much as you want.