Apple launches iPhone 15 and 15 Plus with USB C, 2000-nit display, and welcome camera updates

[Redaktion]

Apple has updated the iPhone line-up with the iPhone 15 and 15 Max. The new devices look much like their predecessors but feature updated hardware, new camera tricks, and more recycled material. Both the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus launch at the same price as last generation.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Apple-launches-iPhone-15-and-15-Plus-with-USB-C-2000-nit-display-and-welcome-camera-updates.749018.0.html

[PWM]

There should be at least one model with IPS Retina Screen in the 2023 lineup for people who can't work with PWM (OLED) screens.

[julian.vdm]

There should be at least one model with IPS Retina Screen in the 2023 lineup for people who can't work with PWM (OLED) screens.

Probably. In my experience, the iPhone OLED panels are quite tolerable when it comes to PWM flickering, and our review of the 14 Pro supports this. I'm quite sensitive to PWM flickering, which I only learned when I used a Galaxy A52. I never had any issues on any OLED iPhones I've used, though. Obviously, ymmv, and everyone has a different threshold. 

Even an iPhone is not immune to OLED flickering. Our oscilloscope reveals fairly calm cycling at a constant 240 Hz at minimum brightness and a frequency of a steady 480 Hz at above 39 % brightness, which is comparable to high-frequency DC dimming. This should reduce eyestrain for sensitive users.

[NikoB]

Probably. In my experience, the iPhone OLED panels are quite tolerable when it comes to PWM flickering, and our review of the 14 Pro supports this. I'm quite sensitive to PWM flickering, which I only learned when I used a Galaxy A52. I never had any issues on any OLED iPhones I've used, though. Obviously, ymmv, and everyone has a different threshold. 

Even an iPhone is not immune to OLED flickering. Our oscilloscope reveals fairly calm cycling at a constant 240 Hz at minimum brightness and a frequency of a steady 480 Hz at above 39 % brightness, which is comparable to high-frequency DC dimming. This should reduce eyestrain for sensitive users.

Reviews on NB are disingenuous about AMOLED panels - some authors honestly measure the native contrast (black level), while others lie that it is "infinite," which is far from true. So, in more or less honest reviews, the real contrast of AMOLED panels from all manufacturers is 50-100 times lower than the marketing contrast of 1M:1. And it's even worse if the shim frequency increases above the typical 240-250Hz. In the case of 480, a "dc-dimming" scheme is clearly used, which leads to a significant drop in the dynamic range of the panel and banding on gradients. The real native contrast at this shim frequency on AMOLED, in more honest reviews, rarely exceeds 8000:1, which is more than 100 times worse than the 1M:1 declared by marketers.

Naturally, 480Hz does not have such a strong effect on the eyes, even of sensitive people, but only at brightness levels above 40%, which is typical during the day in daylight and bright office lighting. But in the evening and especially at home in the light of sconces or in the dark, the PWM will be at a vile 240Hz frequency, which is guaranteed to lead to increased fatigue of the nervous system in people with a fast nervous system, although there are relatively few of them in the general population (otherwise AMOLED would have long ago been officially banned for installation in all popular gadgets).

In the dark, any AMOLED should never be used, because... At low brightness it flickers the most. Where normal modern IPS screens do not flicker at all in generally accepted tests, having a PWM much higher than 1 kHz.

I will write once again - I strongly do not recommend gadgets with AMOLED to children, because... their nervous system has not yet stabilized and the harm from flickering to their health is maximum. If they are allowed to use gadgets with AMOLED, then only those that clearly use a dc-dimming circuit that increases the PWM frequency throughout the entire brightness range above 500Hz, which of course will lead to significant degradation in the quality of the picture on AMOLED in terms of native contrast and color rendition, but this is the price for relative safety. Try to buy for children while there are still models with IPS - they are safe for the eyes (of course, not allowing them to use smartphones for long periods of time without resting their eyes and observing the rules of ergonomics regarding the size of text on the screen and viewing distance), since almost all of them have a PWM above 2 kHz, even at 1% brightness..