OLED iPad Pro owners discover grainy display problem

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New M4 iPad Pro owners are complaining about an issue that produces visible grainy artifacts in the display.

iPad Pro with M4 and a Nano-texture coating
iPad Pro with M4 and a Nano-texture coating



The iPad Pro with M4 is starting to arrive with consumers, eager to get started using their new tablets. But while the Tandem OLED system promises a bright picture, some users are discovering apparent issues with the display.

For some Reddit users, there appears to be a grainy appearance when viewing content. The grain is visible and very apparent when closely inspected, especially in dark rooms.

In one set of screenshots submitted to the site, the grain was quite visible when viewing dark menu elements.

Grainy screen example on an iPad Pro [Reddit]
Grainy screen example on an iPad Pro [Reddit]



While there is seemingly some issue with the displays, it may not be a big deal for many buyers of the iPad Pro. By needing to purposefully look for the grain, it becomes a problem for only a small percentage of device owners.

Possible Mura effects



There is no official comment from Apple about the user reports as yet, so it is unclear exactly what is causing the problem. However, it could be what is known as the Mura effect, or clouding.

The Mura effect refers to an irregularity between pixels, often caused by the screen not being properly illuminated. For example, if a pixel receives too little voltage, it may vary in appearance from another next to it.

The effect is especially present in LCD screens, which rely on backlighting, as well as self-illuminated pixels of OLED panels.

There are a few main reasons why Mura occurs, with it largely revolving around manufacturing. With displays made from multiple layers, sometimes they can be laid in ways that are less than perfect.

It's also possible that some form of contamination occurred during production, again affecting crystals in an OLED panel.

Mura is a very common problem that appears across multiple manufacturers and suppliers, and is often unable to be avoided. In many instances, Mura effects are not really considered as a defect of the display panel.

With the instances happening in dark UI elements, it seems likely that it is a Mura problem. However, it's unlikely that Apple will have an immediate fix for the problem in the short term.



Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 13
    If that's what it really looks like, that's terrible. I'd be really mad. I don't see that on my previous gen iPad Pro, or any of my Apple devices.
    AndyFVictorMortimergrandact73watto_cobra
     3Likes 0Dislikes 1Informative
  • Reply 2 of 13
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,836member
    It reminds me of the quantum tunnelling effect with fingers on a glass of water, as shown in this video. These dots could be a quantum effect too.

    https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Bbq6dBPG9n4
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 3 of 13
    It looks like someone took a photo of an app running on iPad then opened the photo on the iPad and took a zoomed in photo of the previous photo to get a super grainy look. 
    edited May 2024
    kdupuis77zeus423iOS_Guy80argonautwatto_cobra
     5Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 4 of 13
    kdupuis77kdupuis77 Posts: 164member
    I’m on my 11” OLED iPad Pro and I haven’t seen anything like this since I opened it Wednesday. Is this something happening on nano texture screens only? This thing looks great so far and it gets stupid bright lol. 
    iOS_Guy80watto_cobra
     2Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 5 of 13
    qoodannyqoodanny Posts: 2member
    kdupuis77 said:
    I’m on my 11” OLED iPad Pro and I haven’t seen anything like this since I opened it Wednesday. Is this something happening on nano texture screens only? This thing looks great so far and it gets stupid bright lol. 
    My 13” Standard also has the issue
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 6 of 13
    dewmedewme Posts: 6,059member
    The good news at this point in time is that all current owners of the new iPads can still return them. There’s really no need to speculate about the cause, just bring it back if it bothers you for any reason. While being atypical for Apple, it’s not unheard of that early production runs of a new to have a few issues that need to be resolved. Would I wait around to see whether this can be resolved through a software update? Only up to a point in time where I still have time to spare before the return window closes.

    I remember the most recent iPad mini had a jelly roll, or jelly scroll, or was it a jelly donut issue with the display? Apple said pretty quickly that they couldn’t fix it in software but I don’t remember when the discovery came out with respect to the release date. I went through the repro scenarios to see the issue for myself on my mini but I didn’t see anything that struck me as being anomalous behavior so I never thought about it ever again. I do hope that other folks who were impacted negatively by JellyGate did something about it, like return the device. Once you decide to keep a product that has a known issue that cannot be fixed by the company you bought it from, you become the new owner of the problem. Complaining about it at that point is a waste of time, energy, and money. 
    edited May 2024
    tenthousandthingswatto_cobra
     2Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 7 of 13
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,703member
    I haven’t see this on my wife’s new M4 iPad Pro. Still waiting for mine though. It will be interesting to note whether this effect can be seen through the nano surface of mine. I’ve been reading a lot of reviews and use tests of the new models, some who have already put extensive time in them. None of them have mentioned this. Considering that a lot of the reviews have been done by artists, who would, I would expect, examine their work, and therefore the display, quite critically, I don’t see this as a problem for anyone. When people look for problems, they can always find something, even if that something isn’t relevant to users.
    edited May 2024
    watto_cobra
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 8 of 13
    Grainy Issue On Standard 13" iPad. You have to look close to the display, and it happens to all colours.
    More serious issue on grey color + low brightness
    Nano screen is just adding an extra layer on the screen, it does not solve the OLED mura.
    However , it is display lottery, some user has no issue and some has the issue. As an Apple fan who pays a high price on it, I do not expect to have this quality of display.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 9 of 13
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,452member
    Mine seems OK thank goodness.
    i guess people can just get it swapped?
    iOS_Guy80argonautwatto_cobra
     3Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 10 of 13
    No screen issue here with my 11-inch OLED M4 iPad Pro. Bright, vibrant, crisp display with no grain or artifacts.
    watto_cobra
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 11 of 13
    eriamjheriamjh Posts: 1,840member
    It reminds me of the quantum tunnelling effect with fingers on a glass of water, as shown in this video. These dots could be a quantum effect too.

    https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Bbq6dBPG9n4
    I don’t buy that as quantum tunneling.  Looks more like change in refraction of an uneven surface (fingerprint).   But call it quantum tunneling if you want.  
    watto_cobra
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 12 of 13
    temperortemperor Posts: 82member
    On a 13 inch model here, better display than my 12.9 M2 ... it could be a manufacturing defect and you can get a replacement for sure or, more likely a software glitch that is fixable by an update. So I do not see the issue, just to be clear. 
    watto_cobra
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 13 of 13
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,811member
    Beta Testing :smile:  Take it back and get a new one.....?
    neoncat
     0Likes 1Dislike 0Informatives
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