iPad Pro Who here has experienced PWM issues with the M4 & M5 OLED iPad Pros?

[Meedoss]

Oh wow. So just cause YOU haven’t come across someone in YOUR life, it’s not an issue? 😂 Um ok.

All in your mind

 

[servenvolley]

I have no eye issues with an M4 pro. I read on it all the time. This surprises me as I have rather tender eyes in most circumstances.

 

[Greenmeenie]

I have no eye issues with an M4 pro. I read on it all the time. This surprises me as I have rather tender eyes in most circumstances.

Everyone is different. Some peoples eyes are just more sensitive to the PWM flickering of OLED screens. Kinda like allergies. My brother & Mom get allergies really bad every Spring. Itchy eyes & stuffy nose, while me & the rest of our family don’t suffer at all. The human body is wild.

 

[*~Kim~*]

I have an OLED TV so I’m hoping that I won’t be affected, but aside from looking at the Pro very briefly out of curiosity when the M4 came out, I have no experience of it on iPads being a mini person.

But what is the need for the I’m alright Jack posts? Mini 6 screen rolling bothered some but I doubt that was as many as PWM is affecting and the 7 does seem to have reduced it. Are you worried they will put the price up to pay for a fix you personally don’t need?

If they can’t/won’t fix the PWM, put 120hz on the Air, then affected users aren’t between a rock and a hard place. The Air as it is makes less sense now that the base iPad is in same form factor and the Pro has OLED.

 

[Greenmeenie]

I think PWM sensitivity is a lot like Allergies 🤧 Not everyone is affected by it, and those that are, vary in intensity. Some have mild cases, and others get it really bad.

 

[usmaak]

I think PWM sensitivity is a lot like Allergies 🤧 Not everyone is affected by it, and those that are, vary in intensity. Some have mild cases, and others get it really bad.

I think that age can have something to do with it as well. I'm not as young as I once was and I've noticed my eyes are a lot more sensitive than they used to be.

I'm going to hang on to my MBP M1 Max and iPad Pro M2 as long as they last.

I suspect that when those are done, I'll have a difficult time finding something that doesn't bother me. At that point it becomes a question of either doing nothing but reading my Kindle or dealing with the discomfort.

 

[usmaak]

I have an OLED TV so I’m hoping that I won’t be affected, but aside from looking at the Pro very briefly out of curiosity when the M4 came out, I have no experience of it on iPads being a mini person.

But what is the need for the I’m alright Jack posts? Mini 6 screen rolling bothered some but I doubt that was as many as PWM is affecting and the 7 does seem to have reduced it. Are you worried they will put the price up to pay for a fix you personally don’t need?

If they can’t/won’t fix the PWM, put 120hz on the Air, then affected users aren’t between a rock and a hard place. The Air as it is makes less sense now that the base iPad is in same form factor and the Pro has OLED.

I think that most OLED TVs don't use PWM for brightness. So you should be ok.

I'm not sure why some feel the need to post the "NOT ME!!" posts whenever someone has a legitimate complaint. But you can't put a complaint anywhere on the internet without people having to chime in and say that they don't have the problem. And it's not like they're in the minority if they don't. Those affected by PWM are the minority.

I have a friend with an 13" iPad Pro M4 and she's never had any eye issues with it. Those with no issues do not diminish the problems that some do have with the technology.

 

[Greenmeenie]

I think that most OLED TVs don't use PWM for brightness. So you should be ok.

I'm not sure why some feel the need to post the "NOT ME!!" posts whenever someone has a legitimate complaint. But you can't put a complaint anywhere on the internet without people having to chime in and say that they don't have the problem. And it's not like they're in the minority if they don't. Those affected by PWM are the minority.

I have a friend with an 13" iPad Pro M4 and she's never had any eye issues with it. Those with no issues do not diminish the problems that some do have with the technology.

Exactly. I have never had ANY issues with any screen before. And from limited testing so far, my PWM sensitivity seems to be mild. But i have a couple of artist friends who seriously can't use OLED screens with low PWM frequency. I totally believe them. They are the furthest people you'd call hypochondriacs. One of them is an Ironman Triathlete. Tough as nails. Never complains about squat. The verdicts not in for me yet. Gonna keep testing out the M5 ipad at the Apple store & borrow one from a friend so i can test it out in dimmer conditions. Just wanna be sure that first test was just a fluke. These are my eyes 👀 Not gonna **** around with them!

 

[snipr125]

I think i already mentioned on your other thread that i suffer from PWM sensitivity on OLED screens. With the iPP M4 i can only really use it at about 50% brightness or more. If i lower the brightness or if the screen dims then i feel like back of my head is squeezing and bad headaches follow from the flickering. Same issue with my 12 and 13 minis, 15 pro and 17 pro.

Apple LCD screens no problems at all, i really miss them so very happy using my MBA (and ipad air 4).

 

[Greenmeenie]

I think i already mentioned on your other thread that i suffer from PWM sensitivity on OLED screens. With the iPP M4 i can only really use it at about 50% brightness or more. If i lower the brightness or if the screen dims then i feel like back of my head is squeezing and bad headaches follow from the flickering. Same issue with my 12 and 13 minis, 15 pro and 17 pro.

Apple LCD screens no problems at all, i really miss them so very happy using my MBA.

Yeah, my 2018 iPad Pro’s LCD screen is amazing. I can draw on that thing all day long. Same for my iPad mini 7 screen. Just want to be sure about the M5 OLED screen before buying. As you say, the real issue is when using below 50% brightness, let’s say in a dark room… which funnily enough is when i use my iPad the most, late at night in my room. Gonna try to borrow a friends OLED iPad Pro for a few days and test it out in that environment. Cause the Apple store is so brightly lit, it’s really hard to test for PWM effectively.

 

[usmaak]

Yeah, my 2018 iPad Pro’s LCD screen is amazing. I can draw on that thing all day long. Same for my iPad mini 7 screen. Just want to be sure about the M5 OLED screen before buying. As you say, the real issue is when using below 50% brightness, let’s say in a dark room… which funnily enough is when i use my iPad the most, late at night in my room. Gonna try to borrow a friends OLED iPad Pro for a few days and test it out in that environment. Cause the Apple store is so brightly lit, it’s really hard to test for PWM effectively.

Is there anything stopping you from buying it and then returning it if you don't like it? In the US, Apple gives you 14 days. If you're a Best Buy Total Tech member, you get six weeks and if you keep it, you get AppleCare on it.

 

[Greenmeenie]

Is there anything stopping you from buying it and then returning it if you don't like it? In the US, Apple gives you 14 days. If you're a Best Buy Total Tech member, you get six weeks and if you keep it, you get AppleCare on it.

I can do that. But would like to avoid the hassle. Gonna borrow my friends first. Test it out extensively and then make my decision. Rather just buy the one I know for sure I want, load it up with all the apps I need and get to drawing ✍🏼 👍🏼

 

[usmaak]

I can do that. But would like to avoid the hassle. Gonna borrow my friends first. Test it out extensively and then make my decision. Rather just buy the one I know for sure I want, load it up with all the apps I need and get to drawing ✍🏼 👍🏼

Makes sense. I hate returning things. Especially expensive things. It makes me feel bad.

 

[*~Kim~*]

I think that most OLED TVs don't use PWM for brightness. So you should be ok.

I'm not sure why some feel the need to post the "NOT ME!!" posts whenever someone has a legitimate complaint. But you can't put a complaint anywhere on the internet without people having to chime in and say that they don't have the problem. And it's not like they're in the minority if they don't. Those affected by PWM are the minority.

I have a friend with an 13" iPad Pro M4 and she's never had any eye issues with it. Those with no issues do not diminish the problems that some do have with the technology.

The TV doesn’t cause me a problem, I was just thinking aloud as to whether I was likely to be affected. But in that case, I won’t know until I get an OLED iPad, so I will buy from Apple just in case even if there is a promotion at another retailer.

 

[snipr125]

Apple iPad Pro M5 (2025) tablet review - An extremely fast M5 SoC and Wi-Fi 7

Notebookcheck reviews the new Apple iPad Pro 11 2025 with the Apple M5 SoC, 16 GB of RAM, a 1 TB SSD, Apple Pencil Pro and the Magic Keyboard.

www.notebookcheck.net

Might worth reading Notebookcheck’s review and analysis of the PWM. Its pretty much the same as the M4, which don't surprise me. Such a shame the display is like a flawed beauty, you cannot get a better display than this right now.

 

[Greenmeenie]

Apple iPad Pro M5 (2025) tablet review - An extremely fast M5 SoC and Wi-Fi 7

Notebookcheck reviews the new Apple iPad Pro 11 2025 with the Apple M5 SoC, 16 GB of RAM, a 1 TB SSD, Apple Pencil Pro and the Magic Keyboard.

www.notebookcheck.net

Might worth reading Notebookcheck’s review and analysis of the PWM. Its pretty much the same as the M4, which don't surprise me. Such a shame the display is like a flawed beauty, you cannot get a better display than this right now.

Thanks for posting. Very in depth technical review. 👍🏼 The PWM flickering seems to be worst btwn 25% & 50% brightness which is what I use my current 2018 iPad Pro at the most because i tend to do most of my drawing late at night in a dimly lit room. So I’m gonna have to test the M5 iPad Pro in a similar environment to get more accurate results since testing it in brightly lit Apple Stores is hard to tell. Just want to be 100% sure before buying. I’ll be using this iPad all day every day drawing.