iPhone 6 Plus Lag Poll

[BigMar89]

Why is this everyones response to having a lag issue with iPhone 6 Plus? I have been in contact with an advisor at Apple who is in contact with the engineering team and they have collected logs from my iPhone twice. This tells me that there could very well be an issue with the OS.

Now, what could the lag be coming from? Here are my two guess:

1) iPhone 6 Plus' GPU not being able to handle the rendering of the screen. Everyone has to remember that the iPhone 6 Plus is downsampling to match the resolution of the screen. The phone renders at 3x with a point count of 414x736. Meaning, that when it renders the display its actually rendering an image that is 1242x2208. I believe if you take a screen shot this would also show as the resolution in a photo program. Since the screen isn't 1242x2208, the phone's GPU then has to downsample the image to 1080x1920 to display on screen, meaning that it has to run back to the GPU twice to get anything done. Literally, anything.

2) RAM shortage. Now before everyone jumps on my back here by saying "the iPhone doesn't need 2GB of RAM because the OS is efficient and has memory compression" let me explain. When the phone does have to render the display, it has to put some information into VRAM (Video Random Access Memory) which, since the A8 is a SoC (System on Chip) is taken from the main memory when needed. This can cause a significant chunk of memory to be dedicated to VRAM, and to top it off the iPhone can't use virtual memory like the Macs can. So its not like the OS can take 1GB of flash memory and use it for RAM tasks.

To top off the RAM shortage, either OS has a memory leak somewhere (I'm thinking Safari since many Jetsam Events list com.apple.webkit as the main hog) or the compression engine is not working as hard as it was under iOS 7. Now, how do I know this? Well I took an iPhone 5s on iOS 7.1.2 and maxed it out until I got a Low Memory error (for those that don't know, Apple renamed "Low Memory" errors in iOS 8 to "Jetsam Event"). I then compared the stats having to do with compressions and pages into RAM. What I saw was the 6 Plus was dealing with MORE uncompressed pages and LESS compressed pages then the iPhone 5s.

In layman terms, iOS 7's RAM compression could make 1GB of RAM act like 2-3GB of RAM. iOS 8's has an issue making 1GB of RAM act more like 1-1.5GB of RAM.

THIS

I have always installed SysStats lite app to see how my RAM is doing and my Plus is constantly only having memory available in the low 100s and even hitting the low double digits, with light use by the way. I have my 5 and its on 7.1.2 yet I'll use it HEAVY and it still would have at least 300MB of RAM left. I have also discovered that for some odd reason the 6 Plus only has 976 MB of RAM compared to 5 and 5s which have 1015 MB OF RAM.

Correct me if I'm wrong but do all these low memory events could contribute to faster battery drain?



The lag and stutters aren't to the point where it makes the device unusable but when you spend $1000 on it and it underperforms compared to my 5, then that's a problem.

 

[fiveainone]

THIS

I have always installed SysStats lite app to see how my RAM is doing and my Plus is constantly only having memory available in the low 100s and even hitting the low double digits, with light use by the way. I have my 5 and its on 7.1.2 yet I'll use it HEAVY and it still would have at least 300MB of RAM left. I have also discovered that for some odd reason the 6 Plus only has 976 MB of RAM compared to 5 and 5s which have 1015 MB OF RAM.

Correct me if I'm wrong but do all these low memory events could contribute to faster battery drain?



The lag and stutters aren't to the point where it makes the device unusable but when you spend $1000 on it and it underperforms compared to my 5, then that's a problem.

I'm pretty sure that's due to iOS 8's changes, like what what iamMacPerson was saying. I have 5s and 6+, both on 8.1, both running iMonitor, and it's showing the exact free memory, hovering 30mb free, 94-95% memory used, doing nothing.

 

[BigMar89]

I'm pretty sure that's due to iOS 8's changes, like what what iamMacPerson was saying. I have 5s and 6+, both on 8.1, both running iMonitor, and it's showing the exact free memory, hovering 30mb free, 94-95% memory used, doing nothing.

Definitely an iOS 8 thing then. I have a 5 but i kept it on 7.1.2 to maintain its jailbreak so couldn't compare the two on same OS version.

 

[iamMacPerson]

I have always installed SysStats lite app to see how my RAM is doing and my Plus is constantly only having memory available in the low 100s and even hitting the low double digits, with light use by the way. I have my 5 and its on 7.1.2 yet I'll use it HEAVY and it still would have at least 300MB of RAM left. I have also discovered that for some odd reason the 6 Plus only has 976 MB of RAM compared to 5 and 5s which have 1015 MB OF RAM.

Correct me if I'm wrong but do all these low memory events could contribute to faster battery drain?

The lag and stutters aren't to the point where it makes the device unusable but when you spend $1000 on it and it underperforms compared to my 5, then that's a problem.

I had iMonitor installed for quite a while before my restore and with just Safari running, just Safari, I'd only have 30-50MB of RAM left. Quitting Safari would free up an additional 200-250MB of RAM (with 1 tab open) but if I lock the phone and come back 10 minutes later (no apps running and Background Refresh off) and its back to 120MB free.

I think the 976MB of RAM could just be mis-reporting but that could always be the case. I have heard of some people getting replacement and not having any more issues (maybe their phones have 1015MB of RAM?). Makes me wonder if its something with the earlier models.

I'm going to wait until I hear back from the engineers in the next few days. Sometimes they would like you to send your old phone to them and in its place they will send you a new one due to them wanting to test it. Fine with me as long as my AppleCare carries over (I already bought AC+).

Oh also, yes the more RAM that is in use it does use more battery life although it isn't that much TMK. The phone is still very power efficient, it just needs to be more RAM efficient.

I'm pretty sure that's due to iOS 8's changes, like what what iamMacPerson was saying. I have 5s and 6+, both on 8.1, both running iMonitor, and it's showing the exact free memory, hovering 30mb free, 94-95% memory used, doing nothing.

This is very surprising. I'd like to hear someone chime in with a A6 device on 8.1. I say that because it could possibly be the 64-bit ARM processes taking so much RAM. I remember reading a while back (I want to say 2007 when the first x86-64 MacBooks were coming out) that the processes, while faster, can take more RAM. Me thinks the same thing could be happening here.

If you have a 4th Gen iPad or iPhone 5 running iOS 8.1, please download a memory checking app and report back how much RAM is remaining! Thanks in advanced.

Definitely an iOS 8 thing then. I have a 5 but i kept it on 7.1.2 to maintain its jailbreak so couldn't compare the two on same OS version.

It could very well be something hogging memory in iOS 8 across all devices, but I would think we would hear even more complaints from iPhone 4s users considering they have an A5 with 512MB of RAM. Possibly the compression engine wasn't fully recompiled for the A8 chip? Maybe the A8 has a faster or different type of RAM?

 

[kmj2318]

I find it unlikely that the lag is caused by RAM constraints. The spotlight rotation lag happens every time. If it was a RAM issue, the lag would happen the first time as it is loaded into RAM, but it should be fine after. Same with scrolling the default wallpapers, or scrolling through Notification Center. These things lag literally every time.

It looks much more like a graphics issue, and because the GPU in the phone is a beast for gaming, I feel that the culprit is the scaling.

 

[Dmunjal]

I find it unlikely that the lag is caused by RAM constraints. The spotlight rotation lag happens every time. If it was a RAM issue, the lag would happen the first time as it is loaded into RAM, but it should be fine after. Same with scrolling the default wallpapers, or scrolling through Notification Center. These things lag literally every time.

It looks much more like a graphics issue, and because the GPU in the phone is a beast for gaming, I feel that the culprit is the scaling.

Exactly. It isn't the GPU. Even the iPad 4 (2 generations older) has no problems with stuttering with a higher resolution than the 6+. It's the downscaling, specifically with the UI. Videos and gaming don't seem to suffer has much.

 

[booksbooks]

First of all, you can't say every single one. Secondly, your technical knowledge is clearly limited. When saying "or something like that" it makes it clear you are reaching.

Can't deal with the lag? Return it and deal with Androids.

Ok, here we go. Where you do get off with such a smug post?

I started this thread if you're forgetting. My technical knowledge is not limited: unlike other people, I don't shoot my mouth off about things I don't understand. The reason for the lag is complex and I just didn't and don't have the time to post a detailed summary of why. Neither have I done enough analysis to be able to provide a full account.

The reason for the lag has been discussed at length. There is no other explanation other than the scaling of the interface to account for the odd ppi.

This will affect every single iPhone 6 Plus. Period.

 

[DiggityBiggity]

I agree it is nitpicking. But whatever lag or stutter there is, it is worse than the product it replaces. That is the point. This should be an upgrade not a downgrade. Maybe Android users are used to it but iOS users have been immune from it so far.

This, I understand. Valid opinion.

 

[fotomarc]

My 6 plus doesn't lag and doesn't bend! It's perfect. Love the phone!

 

[DiggityBiggity]

iPhone 6 Plus Lag Poll

This is very true, however IMO either the phone itself has a small hardware flaw having too little of RAM, or the OS is flawed and a major chunk of it needs a rewrite. I'm starting to think it is the software and not the hardware however, since other devices (while not as bad) are having issues as well, not just the 6 Plus.



In fact, anyone and everyone with a 6 or 6 Plus, please go into Settings>Privacy>Diagnostics & Usage>Diagnostic & Usage Data and quote me with how many JetsamEvent logs you have? This has to do with Low Memory and at one point over a two week period I gathered 80 Jetsam logs.







Agreed. I had the 5s and the lag on it (at least with 7.1.2) was no where near as bad. As I said above I believe it is just software that needs better optimization.

10-4; I'll check my Jetsum and report back

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Ok, here we go. Where you do get off with such a smug post?



I started this thread if you're forgetting. My technical knowledge is not limited: unlike other people, I don't shoot my mouth off about things I don't understand. The reason for the lag is complex and I just didn't and don't have the time to post a detailed summary of why. Neither have I done enough analysis to be able to provide a full account.



The reason for the lag has been discussed at length. There is no other explanation other than the scaling of the interface to account for the odd ppi.



This will affect every single iPhone 6 Plus. Period.

My apologies if I came off as smug, sincerely. I know tone is lost via txt.

I personally am more than pleased with the (lack of) lag on my phone.

That is all

----------

My 6 plus doesn't lag and doesn't bend! It's perfect. Love the phone!

I agree. Aside from it being very top heavy, I love the phone.

 

[iamMacPerson]

I find it unlikely that the lag is caused by RAM constraints. The spotlight rotation lag happens every time. If it was a RAM issue, the lag would happen the first time as it is loaded into RAM, but it should be fine after. Same with scrolling the default wallpapers, or scrolling through Notification Center. These things lag literally every time.

It looks much more like a graphics issue, and because the GPU in the phone is a beast for gaming, I feel that the culprit is the scaling.

Exactly. It isn't the GPU. Even the iPad 4 (2 generations older) has no problems with stuttering with a higher resolution than the 6+. It's the downscaling, specifically with the UI. Videos and gaming don't seem to suffer has much.

Well, actually the scaling could easily be fixed with software, however it would decrease the usable space of the display. They could change the point count in the software to 360x640 which when scaled up to Retina 3x in 1080x1920 however it would actually leave less usable room on the display then the iPhone 6. They could do Retina 2x which would put the phone at a point count of 540x960 which would give it more usable room then right now but produce a grainer image.

The other thing that could have been done would be to change the screen for a 1242x2208 display which would allow the current point count to stay 414x736 with no issue rendering at 3x. No downsampling required. I think this is what Apple was going to do but something was wrong with the displays (too many dead pixels, light leakage, etc) leading them to go with the next-closest industry standard resolution; 1080x1920. This, along with the shortage of sapphire could very well be causing the delays in the 6 Plus shipping since they would have to reopen every device and replace the display assembly with a new one.

10-4; I'll check my Jetsum and report back

Sounds good! Waiting for your response.

I agree. Aside from it being very top heavy, I love the phone.

Same here, its an awesome phone and I think with some better software optimization it will be awesome for everyone. Even with the slight issues with lag and scaling, I still would pick the Plus over the regular for the sheer screen size. Its awesome for viewing videos on. I call it the "iPad mini killer" although I still think the iPad Air is a perfect companion.

 

[DiggityBiggity]

What from here should I be looking for?

 

[iamMacPerson]

View attachment 510835 What from here should I be looking for?

Oh no go back one page and count how many JetsamEvents you have.

 

[Applefan4]

I noticed some very very minor stutter when quickly going through facebook options (news feeds, messenger, notifications). Also when changing photos to landscape mode in whatsapp. Otherwise it's all been super smooth. Granted, I don't play games, so I can't comment on that.

 

[AppleKash]

I LOVE the iPhone-- but they ALL lag. The 6 Plus lags. Still a great phone. Hopefully it'll be corrected..

 

[DiggityBiggity]

Oh no go back one page and count how many JetsamEvents you have.

Ok, currently only one of these events. Throughout the full day of use, I'll report back.

 

[fotomarc]

I LOVE the iPhone-- but they ALL lag. The 6 Plus lags. Still a great phone. Hopefully it'll be corrected..

Lag when doing what?

 

[DiggityBiggity]

Just an FYI: after a full day of normal use, I only have one Jetsum event. Once the phone is charged, I'm going to use it "abnormally", and report back.

 

[BlazingGold]

Oh no go back one page and count how many JetsamEvents you have.

I've noticed that on average I have 10-20 per day. What exactly does this mean????

And as I've commented on, my iPhone DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY lags bigtime. My 5s and 5 are much, much quicker in virtually every way.

 

[66gonzo]

I find it unlikely that the lag is caused by RAM constraints. The spotlight rotation lag happens every time. If it was a RAM issue, the lag would happen the first time as it is loaded into RAM, but it should be fine after. Same with scrolling the default wallpapers, or scrolling through Notification Center. These things lag literally every time.

It looks much more like a graphics issue, and because the GPU in the phone is a beast for gaming, I feel that the culprit is the scaling.

It's a bug with transparency. If you want to see for certain turn off transparency (settings > general > accessibility > Increase contrast > turn off transparency). I have an open bug report in regarding it.

 

[iamMacPerson]

I've noticed that on average I have 10-20 per day. What exactly does this mean????

And as I've commented on, my iPhone DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY lags bigtime. My 5s and 5 are much, much quicker in virtually every way.

This mean that you are running out of RAM on your iPhone. Every time you are running low on RAM, it creates a JetsamEvent log in your Diagnostic data. I recommend restoring your iPhone to factory settings because while it is normal to generate some every day, 10-20 is way over the top. Might be a corrupt OS install.

I mean a fresh install too, do not restore your data back from a backup. Drag everything back manually and set your phone up as new. This gets rid of any chance of it being your software. My phone generated about 80 JetsamEvent logs over 2 weeks but after restoring it its dropped considerably.

 

[benfica88]

Why is this everyones response to having a lag issue with iPhone 6 Plus? I have been in contact with an advisor at Apple who is in contact with the engineering team and they have collected logs from my iPhone twice. This tells me that there could very well be an issue with the OS.

Now, what could the lag be coming from? Here are my two guess:

1) iPhone 6 Plus' GPU not being able to handle the rendering of the screen. Everyone has to remember that the iPhone 6 Plus is downsampling to match the resolution of the screen. The phone renders at 3x with a point count of 414x736. Meaning, that when it renders the display its actually rendering an image that is 1242x2208. I believe if you take a screen shot this would also show as the resolution in a photo program. Since the screen isn't 1242x2208, the phone's GPU then has to downsample the image to 1080x1920 to display on screen, meaning that it has to run back to the GPU twice to get anything done. Literally, anything.

2) RAM shortage. Now before everyone jumps on my back here by saying "the iPhone doesn't need 2GB of RAM because the OS is efficient and has memory compression" let me explain. When the phone does have to render the display, it has to put some information into VRAM (Video Random Access Memory) which, since the A8 is a SoC (System on Chip) is taken from the main memory when needed. This can cause a significant chunk of memory to be dedicated to VRAM, and to top it off the iPhone can't use virtual memory like the Macs can. So its not like the OS can take 1GB of flash memory and use it for RAM tasks.

To top off the RAM shortage, either OS has a memory leak somewhere (I'm thinking Safari since many Jetsam Events list com.apple.webkit as the main hog) or the compression engine is not working as hard as it was under iOS 7. Now, how do I know this? Well I took an iPhone 5s on iOS 7.1.2 and maxed it out until I got a Low Memory error (for those that don't know, Apple renamed "Low Memory" errors in iOS 8 to "Jetsam Event"). I then compared the stats having to do with compressions and pages into RAM. What I saw was the 6 Plus was dealing with MORE uncompressed pages and LESS compressed pages then the iPhone 5s.

In layman terms, iOS 7's RAM compression could make 1GB of RAM act like 2-3GB of RAM. iOS 8's has an issue making 1GB of RAM act more like 1-1.5GB of RAM.

Great observation!

 

[BlazingGold]

This mean that you are running out of RAM on your iPhone. Every time you are running low on RAM, it creates a JetsamEvent log in your Diagnostic data. I recommend restoring your iPhone to factory settings because while it is normal to generate some every day, 10-20 is way over the top. Might be a corrupt OS install.



I mean a fresh install too, do not restore your data back from a backup. Drag everything back manually and set your phone up as new. This gets rid of any chance of it being your software. My phone generated about 80 JetsamEvent logs over 2 weeks but after restoring it its dropped considerably.

Actually, when upgrading to ios 8.1, I did a full restore as new through iTunes. I did not restore from an iCloud backup. I only pulled my contacts, notes, and Safari bookmarks through

 

[lingaoyi]

Music Lag。。。。。。。。

 

[dogg]

I find it unlikely that the lag is caused by RAM constraints. The spotlight rotation lag happens every time. If it was a RAM issue, the lag would happen the first time as it is loaded into RAM, but it should be fine after. Same with scrolling the default wallpapers, or scrolling through Notification Center. These things lag literally every time.

It looks much more like a graphics issue, and because the GPU in the phone is a beast for gaming, I feel that the culprit is the scaling.

I have an iPad Air 2 and the spotlight issue happens on this too. Actually slightly slower than on the iPhone 6 plus. I am lost with all of this. IPad Air 2 running 8.1 through DFU mode. No backup restore. Set up as new device with a handful of apps so far.
So lost with all of this.