I’d like to think that for them to release this they were mindful enough of what PWM-sensitive users need to not be affected anymore and not just a setting that makes it slightly more tolerable. After all, we deserve it after our patience and loyalty all of these years.
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iPhone 17 Models Include Toggle to Disable Screen Flickering (PWM)
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can anyone install iOS 26 RC and check if this settings is also available for older iPhone models as well ?
absolutely, it's a class action lawsuit waiting to happen. I'm willing to be a lot more people will eventually start to get symptoms as OLEDS have been in use for many years across mainstream devices now.
Oh my God I never thought I would see this with my eyes! It’s incredible, I thought Apple would never bother! I can finally switch from LCD to OLED!
Let’s cross fingers that this gets extended to the iPad Pro and upcoming MacBook Pro.
Let’s cross fingers that this gets extended to the iPad Pro and upcoming MacBook Pro.
Just wait until you see the setting enabled with your eyes before getting too excited.
Assuming this is a true flicker-free implementation, this bodes well for future OLED iPads and MacBooks.
iPhone 16 plus. The option is not available in accessibility on iOS 26 RC. I think it will be iPhone 17 pro only as it’s likely a screen hardware setting and it will consume more battery (iPhone 17 pro is the only model with much larger batteries than previous generations). Maybe someone will be able to reverse engineeer the setting and add it to earlier models through jailbreak or sideloaded apps.
We have been waiting 4-5 years to be heard. Some people thought we are crazy but we have one of the longest threads in this site. Finally we are in the headlines. https://forums.macrumors.com/thread....2085427/page-486?post=34111908#post-34111908
Shoutout to the greatest youtube specific channel to our issue.
www.youtube.com
Shoutout to the greatest youtube specific channel to our issue.
Nick Sutrich
PWM display analysis and gaming, including VR and Steam Deck titles. I've been reviewing smartphones since 2011 and playing games since 1990. Here to have fun and change the world one device display at a time.
www.youtube.com
Eight years, twelve-thousand-plus posts, a million-plus hits, and we have to hope that this is finally the solution we’ve been putting so much tenacious energy into achieving.We have been waiting 4-5 years to be heard. Some people thought we are crazy but we have one of the longest threads in this site. Finally we are in the headlines. https://forums.macrumors.com/thread....2085427/page-486?post=34111908#post-34111908
Shoutout to the greatest youtube specific channel to our issue.
Nick Sutrich
PWM display analysis and gaming, including VR and Steam Deck titles. I've been reviewing smartphones since 2011 and playing games since 1990. Here to have fun and change the world one device display at a time.
Interesting! Everyone’s experience seems different. I had the iPhone 11 Pro, and its display felt super smooth and easy on my eyes. I love my iPhone 14 Pro, but its screen causes a lot of eye strain. Fingers crossed the iPhone 17 Pro is gentler!
Oh wow. Amazing news and relief if it actually fully disables PWM/flickering (although somewhat sceptical), I can't wait for this to get into Notebookcheck and other reviewers hands. Was not expecting to be able to finally upgrade my iPhone 11...
You and I are not alone. I’ve done unofficial questionnaires with every user I’ve interacted with and many didn’t have issues until they got COVID. And if they did have sensitivities, it worsened them.
I could tolerate my 2019 iMac that I left on MacOS Mojave - unchanged from when I bought it (it was a music production computer so that’s typical). I got reinfected in July 2024 and couldn’t tolerate the AMD dithering and FRC anymore.
My theory is that in addition to the vascular and neurological destabilization caused by COVID, it also has the potential to lower your critical fusion flicker threshold - AKA the rate at which you perceive flicker and your tolerance for it.
Obviously COVID and long COVID are still essentially a black box that scientists are still trying to understand. I think it’s an unfortunate coincidence that Apple and other companies have really ramped up device brightness and dithering to try to make screens look flashier and more vivid. The PWM frequency and modulation has been particularly bad since the iPhone 14 series, with the latest M4 gen of iPads and MacBooks driving users to Eyestrain subreddits and forums by the week. One user even reported an Apple Store tech was having symptoms.
So this issue really has to be addressed. The flicker portion is the easiest to deal with and the most egregious: PWM and dithering. People in the communities are discussing a class action lawsuit because it has gotten out of hand and up until this rumor, Apple has been silent.
Again, count yourself lucky if you’re reading this thread and don’t have this problem. But shaming people as I’ve seen a lot of people do over the years on this forum is akin to shaming someone for having any other disability or neurological condition. No one here is trying to rag on Apple - this is an industry wide problem.
Yes, strangely enough this is the first thing I check whenever I do iOS updates. I've been checking for years, hoping that Apple will add this toggle. When I read the article headline, I couldn't believe my eyes,
I remember when I first got the iPhone X and was so blown away by the design. Only to get severe eye strain from using it. I sort of got used to it. But even to this day I still can't use my iPhone too long or I get eye strain. I use my LCD iPad Pro from 2018 which I could not upgrade because the newer models have OLED. This is huge for me!
I don't want the 17 Pro though, too similar to my current 16 Pro Max.
If the iPhone Air has it, I'll upgrade! If not, I can wait one more year for the Fold.
I don't want the 17 Pro though, too similar to my current 16 Pro Max.
If the iPhone Air has it, I'll upgrade! If not, I can wait one more year for the Fold.
Good to see Apple taking eye care very seriously and I hope others follow their lead offering this option. Also hope it comes to their iPad Pro's.
It's the main reason I've been avoiding OLED for years, was fearful that everything would eventually transition to it. Phones might be OK because it's a 'glance at' device but its a big no no for me on laptops where you might look at it 8 hours a day.
However I think backlit LED is the true future, now they are making them with nano LED's which can produce almost OLED like images without the drawbacks like burn in, shorter life and of course PWM flicker.
It's the main reason I've been avoiding OLED for years, was fearful that everything would eventually transition to it. Phones might be OK because it's a 'glance at' device but its a big no no for me on laptops where you might look at it 8 hours a day.
However I think backlit LED is the true future, now they are making them with nano LED's which can produce almost OLED like images without the drawbacks like burn in, shorter life and of course PWM flicker.
What an empathetic take…
If YOU don’t know what it’s like not being able to use or enjoy an iPhone since the 2017 iPhone X how about you stay quiet on the matter.
Next thing you’re complaining about are the temperature sensors on Apple Watch that are mostly useful to women.
You can appreciate these achievements or stay quiet. My two cents.
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This is EPIC!!! thx to macrumors and to all people who speaking about this!!!