Filed under: iPhone
iPhone 3G screens made "warmer"
The great 320 x 480 screen was among the things that didn't change with the 3G iPhone, or so we thought. Some of the lucky folks who managed to snag a 3G iPhone have noticed that the screen on the new model seems to be slightly yellowish compared to the original iPhone. Now Engadget is reporting that this is intentional. According to an Apple marketer "the screen's color temperature has been purposely altered on the new iPhone to produce warmer, more natural tones, sharper images, and deeper blacks." Apparently the iPhone engineers decided that the first generation iPhone screen was "colder and less defined" and so made the change. So for those of you out there that have upgraded: what do you think? Is the new screen better?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Matt said 8:36PM on 7-12-2008
It's not noticeably yellow unless you hold it next to the original iPhone, but it does seem a bit sharper.
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joshjagdfeld said 8:38PM on 7-12-2008
Yeah, I think so. After about a day of testing some video podcasts and movies next to my wife's iPhone 2G at the same time, I can definitively say that the screen is a bit more sharp. The blacks are also, in my opinion, more true.
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Long Nguyen said 8:39PM on 7-12-2008
Yes, I knew something was different. It didn't look usual to me.
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John said 8:41PM on 7-12-2008
all i know is my first 3g's screen stopped working about 4 hours after i got it activated. it went all white, with lines all over the place. i took it to an apple store, they replaced it even though the genius bar was out of appointments, and now i have a bright spot in one of the corner's. i'll be taking this one back too.
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Desterado said 5:25AM on 7-13-2008
How is this contributing to the conversation?
Oh wait, it's not.
joshjagdfeld said 8:48PM on 7-12-2008
Well, I tried earlier, and apparently my comment went into admin void. Not sure why I got scrubbed, but I'll try again:
I did a side by side in the last day of use, and it is clear to me that the image is sharper, and the colors seem a bit more "true" on the 3G. I'm quite pleased with the new screen, but I can't say I really had gripes with the old one, either.
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joshjagdfeld said 8:49PM on 7-12-2008
...and now my previous comment is back. Nice. Sorry for the double post.
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DistortedLoop said 9:24PM on 7-12-2008
You and me, both (struck by the double post glitch). LOL.
MUTE MATT said 9:06PM on 7-12-2008
I noticiced the "warmer tone" almost immediately. I haven't noticed the other improvements (sharper image, blacker blacks), but the whites have a yellow tint that I don't care for. I like my whites to be white.
How long before Clorox.app comes out?
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CloroxBleachSupportTeam said 10:11PM on 7-12-2008
You can contact us here, we would love to build a "app" for iPhone. http://www.clorox.com/contact.php
DistortedLoop said 9:20PM on 7-12-2008
It's definitely not as "cool" tinted, or blue-ish as my first day 8gb iPhone, but it's not much "warmer" or yellowish than the 16gb I got last February.
I've got no problems with the screen, but after my first day of actually using the thing, I've got issues with the battery life! Granted I probably used the GPS and 3g connected services more than I would in a typical day, but I got the 20% battery warning after just a three hour trip for lunch, and hanging at the local coffee shop/mall testing some of the features. I hope Mophie expedites producing a Juice Pack for these things!
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Tj said 10:41PM on 7-12-2008
I've noticed the same thing. My day one iPhone was so much bluer than the one that replaced it a few months back.
As far as your battery goes, LiIon batteries get better with a little time. Keep using it normally. I've noticed mine has improved since yesterday.
8CoreWhore said 11:16PM on 7-12-2008
Do a thorough calibrating. Let it drain fully till it shuts down, then charge it over night not just to when it says full, leave it charging some more.
Skeuomorph said 12:14AM on 7-13-2008
Mophie JuicePack was life saver on first iPhone -- good enough to watch movies nonstop on 9 or 10 hour transoceanic red-eyes flights, and still have enough battery to conduct business and travel the following day.
Unsleeved, the new form factor is more ergonomic, but I miss my Mophie JuicePack, badly.
DistortedLoop said 9:22PM on 7-12-2008
It's definitely not as "cool" tinted, or blue-ish as my first day 8gb iPhone, but it's not much "warmer" or yellowish than the 16gb I got last February.
I've got no problems with the screen, but after my first day of actually using the thing, I've got issues with the battery life! Granted I probably used the GPS and 3g connected services more than I would in a typical day, but I got the 20% battery warning after just a three hour trip for lunch, and hanging at the local coffee shop/mall testing some of the features. I hope Mophie expedites producing a Juice Pack for these things!
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DistortedLoop said 9:22PM on 7-12-2008
oops, sorry for double post.
joshjagdfeld said 9:45PM on 7-12-2008
I did a full battery discharge, then a full charge, and my battery life is significantly better than the first charge (obviously). I think the battery cloud has a silver lining, and the initial drain or two are not reflective of the real battery life.
While I've heard it's not awful in most reviews, I've also gotten the impression that the battery life leaves a bit to be desired with lots of radio services on.
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ola said 10:37PM on 7-12-2008
Assuming the new handsets use lithium-ion or lithium-polymer batteries, they will not give optimum battery life before two-three charging cycles.
DistortedLoop said 10:43PM on 7-12-2008
@joshjagdfeld - good point re: battery life. I recall being very disappointed with my original iPhone's battery life the first few days, but it got better over time. But I also learned that I had to do things like always charge it overnight, plug it into a car charger when driving, and I even bought an extra dock for the office. I also picked up one of those Juice Packs for it, which more than doubles the phone's life, and it really spoiled me and my expectations.
All that said, I'll keep my complaints to a minor roar until the things had a few good deep cycles and get out of have-to-play-with-all-features mode and settle into a more normal usage.
totoro said 10:21PM on 7-12-2008
Both warmer and sharper compared to the 1st gen iPhone. Not sure about the viewing angles though.
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