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someone33

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 17, 2014
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There is a reason there are such conflicting reports of blooming and it’s because the local dimming is only working for certain apps. And the local dimming does not work for menu overlays which is why you get blooming from that. It is the exact same way on my Sony Z9D TV which has 800 dimming zones. The menu system overlay shows horrible blooming but while viewing actual content, it looks incredible.

If the local dimming was really that bad on this mini-led then there would be horrendous blooming while viewing HDR content, which simply isn’t the case. Try a show like Altered Carbon on Netflix which has really bright highlights. It looks amazing on this display with negligible blooming. If it’s even possible to get the local dimming engaged with certain apps where it’s not working, I’m sure it will be figured out and updated.
 
There is a reason there are such conflicting reports of blooming and it’s because the local dimming is only working for certain apps. And the local dimming does not work for menu overlays which is why you get blooming from that. It is the exact same way on my Sony Z9D TV which has 800 dimming zones. The menu system overlay shows horrible blooming but while viewing actual content, it looks incredible.

If the local dimming was really that bad on this mini-led then there would be horrendous blooming while viewing HDR content, which simply isn’t the case. Try a show like Altered Carbon on Netflix which has really bright highlights. It looks amazing on this display with negligible blooming. If it’s even possible to get the local dimming engaged with certain apps where it’s not working, I’m sure it will be figured out and updated.
Which explains why iPadOS 14.5.1 fixes it.
 
There is a reason there are such conflicting reports of blooming and it’s because the local dimming is only working for certain apps. And the local dimming does not work for menu overlays which is why you get blooming from that. It is the exact same way on my Sony Z9D TV which has 800 dimming zones. The menu system overlay shows horrible blooming but while viewing actual content, it looks incredible.

If the local dimming was really that bad on this mini-led then there would be horrendous blooming while viewing HDR content, which simply isn’t the case. Try a show like Altered Carbon on Netflix which has really bright highlights. It looks amazing on this display with negligible blooming. If it’s even possible to get the local dimming engaged with certain apps where it’s not working, I’m sure it will be figured out and updated.
I really hope you are right on this - I was so looking forward to buying my very first iPad Pro 12.9 but this blooming and shodow thing has put me off big time.
 
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So I got my new iPad Pro 12.9 on Friday. I’ve really enjoyed using it up until tonight when I though I’d do some work in bed and stream some shows on Disney +.

The blooming is extrmely noticeable and distracting, at medium brightness, at low brightness, any brIghtness. Intrestingly its very apparent around the trackpad cursor too, when I move the cursor around a large block of light surrounds the cursor and moves around with it. Anyway I’ve attached some photos if anyone is interested. These do actually represent what I’m seeing, only slightly exaggerated. I’m on 14.5.1.

A386920A-01AB-4250-818C-693A04FAE616.jpeg
79A08B3A-D165-418C-A5FA-5CA3DC01A43E.jpeg
D0302948-E4A5-48D9-8A08-C21EC10F41E2.jpeg
 
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So I got my new iPad Pro 12.9 on Friday. I’ve really enjoyed using it up until tonight when I though I’d do some work in bed and stream some shows on Disney +.

The blooming is extrmely noticeable and distracting, at medium brightness, at low brightness, any brIghtness. Intrestingly its very apparent around the trackpad cursor too, when I move the cursor around a large block of light surrounds the cursor and moves around with it. Anyway I’ve attached some photos if anyone is interested. These do actually represent what I’m seeing, only slightly exaggerated. I’m on 14.5.1.

View attachment 1779764View attachment 1779763View attachment 1779765
That's caused by the local dimming zones.
 
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Which explains why iPadOS 14.5.1 fixes it.
Unfortunately it didn’t for me, but it’s not really an issue for me anyway. For actual content like browsing the web, playing games, or watching videos, the blooming is negligible. I really don’t care about doodling around in note or the “blooming“ from menus/status overlays.
 
Unfortunately it didn’t for me, but it’s not really an issue for me anyway. For actual content like browsing the web, playing games, or watching videos, the blooming is negligible. I really don’t care about doodling around in note or the “blooming“ from menus/status overlays.
yeah didn’t fix it for me either. However I”m finding the blooming is very apparent when sitting in a dimly lit room at night very distracting. Just posted a thread on it with photos.
 
Anyway I’ve attached some photos if anyone is interested. These do actually represent what I’m seeing, only slightly exaggerated. I’m on 14.5.1.
I don't wanna be that dude, but there's already a thread discussing it.. maybe more than that. I believe it's something that becoming well known already.



 
What’s strange is I don’t get any blooming when viewing webpages such as 9to5Mac in dark mode.

The above app was Ulysses by the way. The same blooming is apparent on Things, and the Settings and Notes App in Dark Mode, etc
Could be because web sites such as 9to5mac have clean design, a text and a black background whereas the app you mentioned have fancy font with gradient glow effect (for the lack of better word) around, causing the dimming zones not turning off completely.
 
I don't wanna be that dude, but there's already a thread discussing it.. maybe more than that. I believe it's something that becoming well known already.



please use one of these threads to discuss this topic
 
The local dimming is not being used in whatever app that is. And I saw your other picture in a different thread of a video stream with blooming. Notice how it is only the menu overlay that is causing the blooming. Again, that is because the local dimming is not applied to overlays like that. The actual video being played is fine because the local dimming is being used.
 
How come you didn’t know?
The burden of proof is upon the one making the assertion.
Therefore, if you make a claim and someone asks for data, you can’t turn it around and say “Where’s the data proving me wrong?”
In science and logic, as well as a court of law, if that were allowed it would lead to a world of false conclusions and false convictions. Therefore, it is disallowed according to the laws of logic.

Imagine if I developed a vaccine and said “This is safe and effective for everyone”. The FDA (American Regulatory Authority - Food & Drug Administration) says, “OK before we approve this, show us your data to back that up.” And then I tell the FDA, “First you show me the data that shows I’m wrong”. It just does not and can not work that way.
 
It's a hardware limitation and software fixes will only mitigate it.
I wouldn’t be so sure. Apple does say that the dimming is controlled by algorithms running on the M1.

The Liquid Retina XDR display improves upon the trade-offs of typical local dimming systems, where the extreme brightness of LEDs might cause a slight blooming effect because the LED zones are larger than the LCD pixel size. This display is designed to deliver crisp front-of-screen performance with its incredibly small custom mini-LED design, industry leading mini-LED density, large number of individually controlled local dimming zones, and custom optical films that shape the light while maintaining image fidelity and extreme brightness and contrast.

Additionally, custom algorithms run on the advanced display engine of the M1 chip, working at the pixel level to control the mini-LED and LCD layers of the display separately, treating them as two distinct displays. These proprietary algorithms coordinate the mini-LED and LCD layers across transitions to deliver the optimal visual experience. Transitional characteristics of local dimming zones, such as a slight blur or color change while scrolling against black backgrounds, are normal behavior.

 
Since we all have the same iPad, watch this video at the 0:51 and pause there where the red balls are flying with a background. At 35% to 45% I can very clearly see the bloom just as bad as the photos appear.

‘what I found interesting, is if you lay it flat on a table and take several steps back, the blooming gets even worse, as worse as the photos that I’ve seen

 
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