And here I was thinking I was going crazy. Glad I’m not the only one with these flicker issues.
macOS Tahoe introduced a bug that causes a Studio Display connected to a Mac to flicker every so often, and subsequent updates only seem to have made the issue worse.
Mac users with the Studio Display have been complaining about intermittent flickering since the update launched in September. There are also complaints from users who have other kinds of displays, so it might be a bug that is affecting more than one type of external monitor.
We have experienced this issue with a MacBook Pro running macOS Tahoe connected to a Studio Display, and the macOS Tahoe 26.1 and macOS Tahoe 26.2 updates haven't improved the situation at all. In fact, the flickering seems to be getting worse in recent days.
Flickering happens most often when switching between apps that feature stark white backgrounds, or scrolling through webpages on light backgrounds. Any app can cause the flickering, and sometimes it just seems to be random. When flickering occurs, it's typically a brief flicker, but the display can also flicker several times in a row for a few seconds at a time. Switching from dark content to light content can almost always trigger a flicker on affected machines.
It's not clear what is causing the issue, but given that multiple Studio Display owners are experiencing it, it's likely some kind of software issue that could be addressed with new Studio Display firmware rather than a hardware problem.
Article Link: macOS Tahoe Bug Causes Studio Display Flickering Issues
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
macOS Tahoe Bug Causes Studio Display Flickering Issues
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If people would view the display correctly there would be no issue. Come on people, you're viewing it wrong.
I guess asking them to test their own hardware with their own software is asking too much in current year.
Waiting to install these garbage updates is the only smart move until Apple starts caring again.
Waiting to install these garbage updates is the only smart move until Apple starts caring again.
hey dirk, congrats that you're not having issues. do you think that, somehow, negates all the issues others are running into? what an unhelpful post.
I suppose. Windows also having bugs doesn't really help you or your Mac-using brethren though.
I left Windows behind at the rollout of Windows 8 and went permanently to Ubuntu Linux which I had been experimenting with for years. Then I added a MacBook Pro with the M3 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro a couple of years ago. They will stay on 15.x.x and 18.x.x respectively until at least 27.1 or until Apple pulls their head out of their nether regions and fixes the 26 debacle.
I permanently left Windows for a reason. I didn’t expect Apple to ever release their version of Windows Vista across their platforms. But sadly they have.
I just upgraded my iPhone 15 Pro last night to 18.7.3 and my 2023 MacBook Pro to 15.7.4 but you can only do that if you sign up to Apple’s Beta Program. Once you do you and toggle on “Beta Program” you will no longer see v.26 being offered for download and installation on any of your Apple devices.
Between one observation about the flickering happening at heavy CPU load, one that said turning off GPU dithering using the BetterDisolay App and now your’s where rebooting your MacBook temporarily fixes the issue….could it be we’re looking at a memory leak issue? After all, every Apple Silicon platform uses a unified pool of memory for both the CPU and GPU.
It does help us to judge the state of Apple Quality Control. And compared to the past it’s really bad now. Apple has been flailing about for years now. The Smart Car debacle. The Siri upgrade debacle. The Vision debacle. The Air debacle. The 26 and Glass debacle. And I suspect the Apple Fold debacle will be next. Apple has lost focus and are losing gobs and gobs of key people inside the company to competitors.
It’s time for Tim Cook to retire. He has served the purpose of stabilizing Apple after the death of Steve Jobs. But he’s not a visionary nor a stickler for quality control and the “It Just Works” and “It’s like magic” mentality of Steve Jobs. Tim has outgrown his purpose at Apple. Time to join the exodus from Apple, Tim, and let a fresh visionary have a chance to turn Apple around.
Here’s a Pro Tip, Apple. Hardware is not where the “Magical” user experience comes from. It’s the software that makes the hardware platform “Magical”. Everyone has a gadget. Not everyone has the proper software and operating system to make that hardware “Magical” and “Just Work”. You guys need to remember that.
I don't have a Studio Display, but I am experiencing similar monitor blanking/flickering issues on my M4 Pro Mac Mini after updating to Tahoe. It happens whether I use my Samsung 4K display or the smaller portable 16-inch monitor I keep as a secondary screen and only when connected to the computer's HDMI port. I've not seen the problem manifest when using USB-C to DisplayPort 1.4 on the Samsung or USB-C to USB-C via DP-alt mode on the portable screen. This behavior is also seemingly limited to macOS Tahoe as I never experienced such issues while running Sequoia.
Sixcolors is reporting Apple is purposely removing the 18.7.3 Security Update option for many in order to push people into 26. Once again…and as Sixcolors reminds….you have to sign up for the Apple Beta Program and then choose the “Beta Program” toggle in “General” - “Settings” - “Software Update” and then choose iOS 18….or MacOS 15 in your Mac. Once you do that for your iPhone, Mac or iPad you’ll only see v18 updates on your phone or v15 updates on your Mac. Same for iPadOS.
I will NOT be forced by Apple to move into v26 until I choose to. Screw that !!
sixcolors.com
I will NOT be forced by Apple to move into v26 until I choose to. Screw that !!
Apple is forcing iPhones to update to iOS 26 to patch security holes
I wrote earlier this week about the important security updates Apple just rolled out in its 26.2 operating system updates. Among the security fixes are two zero-day bugs affecting WebKit, the brows…
sixcolors.com
I have a Mac Mini M4 Pro connected to an Apple Studio Display and an LG 27” 5K Ultrafine monitor currently running Tahoe 26.2. I use an OWC 5K hub for the connection to the Apple Studio Display, but noticed that the Apple Studio Display occasionally blinked when color changes or brightness changes occurred (presumably when it is adapting to external lighting and color temperature). I thought it was the hub that was causing the issue but then connected it directly to the Mini and the problem still occurred. I then removed the LG and the problem still occurs on the Apple Studio Display. I then removed the Apple Studio Display and the problem disappears whether the LG is connected directly or via the hub, so it is related to the Apple Studio Display. It has exhibited this issue since I purchased the Mac Mini in Feb of this year and is not directly attributable to Tahoe, but exhibited the problem with Sequoia and has got worse under Tahoe.
Note that my display does not flicker, it blanks for a very short time but which is very noticeable. From the article and posts here this looks as if it is an Apple Display issue. Also note that OWC checked the hub for problems and they had not seen issues with two 4K displays connected to the hub (due to an Apple Thunderbolt 5 implementation issue you cannot connect two LG 27” 5K Ultrafine displays to a single TB 5 port since these displays use 2 display channels per display).
Additional Info: When connected to a 2020 27” i9 iMac running Sequoia, the Studio Display had no problems. This would point to an issue between my M4 Pro Mac Mini and the Studio Display and is not a general problem with display.
Note that my display does not flicker, it blanks for a very short time but which is very noticeable. From the article and posts here this looks as if it is an Apple Display issue. Also note that OWC checked the hub for problems and they had not seen issues with two 4K displays connected to the hub (due to an Apple Thunderbolt 5 implementation issue you cannot connect two LG 27” 5K Ultrafine displays to a single TB 5 port since these displays use 2 display channels per display).
Additional Info: When connected to a 2020 27” i9 iMac running Sequoia, the Studio Display had no problems. This would point to an issue between my M4 Pro Mac Mini and the Studio Display and is not a general problem with display.
Last edited:
My Mac mini M4 Pro + Apple Studio Display started showing a just perceptible but distracting and annoying soft flicker right after a clean install of macOS 26 Tahoe. The flicker persisted through the 26.2 update.
At first I thought it might be generated by the APC UPS I'm using for power. So I unplugged from the UPS and plugged the display directly into a wall outlet and the flicker went away.
Indicating something in software has made the Studio Display susceptible to certain AC noise. Just a guess.
At first I thought it might be generated by the APC UPS I'm using for power. So I unplugged from the UPS and plugged the display directly into a wall outlet and the flicker went away.
Indicating something in software has made the Studio Display susceptible to certain AC noise. Just a guess.