Apple’s iPhone 12 range may be breaking sales records, but they are also racking up a significant number of (potentially serious) problems. And Apple has now quietly confirmed another.
Apple has finally acknowledged problems with some iPhone 12 displays
For months now, iPhone 12 buyers have been reporting that some models are shipping with a strong green tint to their displays. Apple has declined to comment on this, despite claims the company was secretly aware and actively telling its service providers to “avoid servicing affected iPhones.” But now Apple has quietly acknowledged it in the release notes for iOS 14.5 beta 2 and the news is mixed.
In the notes, Apple downplays the problem describing it as “a dim glow that might appear at reduced brightness levels with black backgrounds” despite users repeatedly showing it can be severe (see examples below). That said, the big news is Apple states the release contains “an optimization” to reduce it and, for some users, it’s working:
“Just updated, then reboot my phone… CAN CONFIRM THIS IS FIXED IN MY iPhone 12 Pro!!” - source
“Can confirm in complete darkness and when restarting the phone (usually it flashes green for a second and then goes away) but it stayed black with the logo the whole time.” - source
“IT’S FIXED! Finally.” - source
An example of the serious lighting issues found on some iPhone 12 models
“As someone who already knows about the bug I can still see it. But it’s at the point now at least on my device where if I was someone who wasn’t aware of the issue I probably would not notice it.” - source
“iPhone 12PM. It’s true. No more green tint issues” - source
“Beta 2 fixed it for me. Had [a] problem with blacks not turning off since first day. Well done Apple” - source
“True blacks have arrived finally!” - source
“Fixed for me also” - source
It isn’t a perfect score though, with a similar number of users reporting that iOS 14.5 beta 2 either made little or no difference to their iPhones (1,2,3,4,5,6,7). It also remains to be seen whether Apple’s software fix can address the more serious examples of the fault or whether they will require a physical repair.
An extreme example of the green tint problem seen on some iPhone 12 models
History suggests the end result will vary. Apple was dogged by the same problem with some iPhone 11 models (as were Samsung panels in the Galaxy S20 and OnePlus 8 Pro) . Again Apple took a similar approach, staying silent for months before quietly acknowledging the issue in a software update (iOS 13.6.1). The fix proved to be effective on milder cases but others required new displays. On the plus side, iOS 14.5 still has several betas to go before release, so there remains room for improvement.
With leaks already revealing the iPhone 13 Pro models will have a major display upgrade, Apple will hope to put this problem to bed in the next generation. What the company can do about its more troublesome MagSafe health problems, however, is a lot less certain.
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