iPhone X Is King of OLED Screens: See for Yourself

[gaaronel]

note 8: 1200 nits, iphone x: 400 nits. not only does it crush iphones display there, it crushes it in color and viewing angles.

 

[ravenousfallen]

The notch is a problem because it cuts into your video viewing. You have to shrink the video down to avoid the notch. This isn't a problem unless you watch a lot of videos... then it's a problem that will bug you every day.

And yes, Samsung makes amazing AMOLED displays... I'm very happy Apple customers will get to enjoy it. They are in for a treat... it's just a shame the notch will put a damper on the fun.

 

[nrado91]

So I think maybe you should title this Article "Samsung is King of OLED Screens" seeing as they manufacture the panel in the X lol.

 

[guyster82]

This has gotta BE the least professionally done review, at least with regards to screen display.

It's almost as if the "reviewer" was simply paid to write that Apple iPhone X is better than Samsung Galaxy Note 8.

I mean, the article smacked of Apple fanboyism with no sense of professionalism.

The review was laughable until it hurts. Tom's Guide ought to do better than this!

 

[Brodie_2]

Total BS Samsung made the screens for the iphone x and they have already confirmed that they deliberately made them 25 percent lower quality then the S8 screen what an apple sheep this person is.

 

[geofffieldew]

My goodness, this article is so misleading. Samsung's own phones (Galaxy S8 & Note 8) are considerably brighter than the iPhone X but they have a lower peak brightness in manual mode to save battery. If you leave the phone on auto brightness, as it comes preset and how most people use it, it will reach much higher levels of brightness than the iPhone X. It will not reach these levels inside the Tom's Guide office unless you have very bright overhead lights. Nor should it. It only needs to reach those levels when the ambient light requires it.

 

[cblizz732]

The Galaxy Note 8 display does not blue shift. Period.

 

[Matthew Langley]

I like how you now added the different screen modes on the Samsung but don't elborate that the Basic mode will give you a very natural sRGB mode or expand on the other modes (which support DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB). It's not about toning down colors it's about accuracy for the content. The modes alone give the win to the samsung.

Additionally your comparison is still flawed since the Note 8 gets brighter in auto brightness mode in ambient light. It has a lower manual max increase (though you can put it on auto brightness and have some manual tweaking, something you should definitely do to see if you get manually get it to higher brightness in your environment).

The point being you *shouldn't* need a higher brightness in an environment that auto-brightness doesn't jack it up. Not only is this brightness unlikely what you'd use in that environment but it will drain your battery crazy fast... this is why Samsung doesn't allow you to crank up to 1200 nits manually like it can reach in auto brightness in high ambient light. People will set that and leave it and have horrible battery life.

Your off angle viewing test is almost definitely only producing better results on the iPhone X due to the higher manual brightness in your environment... If you are doing a proper screen comparison you should:

1. Look at off angle viewing when all phones are equal brightness nits (meaning ignore the percent or settings) to see how the screen compare equally.

2. Test their auto brightness modes to see how they behave differently in these situations (on the Note 8 you can crank it up with some manual adjustment in this mode)

3. Compare in different environments including high ambient light also comparing auto brightness (where theNote 8 can reach a whopping 1200 nits).


Your comparison is basically completely and utterly pointless since you have no controls, context, multiple scenarios that actually match how you'd use it.

 

[monchwow]

Samsung fans talk about numbers and stats when it suits them (maximum NITS, RAM, PPI, etc etc) but ignore others like CPU (A11 bionic chip destroys samsung’s snapdragon) and talk about how CPU benchmarks don’t matter and it’s all about how the phone ‘feels’.

Why do Android fans comment (and defend with their life and with such hostility) more on an iPhone review than Apple fans?

 

[reasonfordance]

@MONCHWOW What are you talking about?
People here are bassicaly correcting misinformation. Why do you have a problem with that?
What's to talk about the A11? The CPU is neuter by low RAM, small batteries and low capabilities on iOS.
So the scenario where it looks the best is in benchmarks. Yeah big deal.

 

[Matthew Langley]

Wrong again, you guys just can't get your info right

"The fact that the Note 8 isn't far and away the leader here may come as a surprise, especially after it was reported by DisplayMate that the device could reach a peak brightness of 1,240 nits. Indeed, the Note 8 can get brighter than the iPhone X, but only in extremely specialized conditions where a very small portion of the display is active. Owners are not likely to ever encounter such a scenario in typical usage, so when viewing full-screen content, Apple's phone actually performs better."

From DisplayMate
"When Automatic Brightness is turned On, the Galaxy Note8 produces up to a very impressive 1,240 cd/m2 (nits) in High Ambient Light, where high Brightness is really needed – which is the brightest Smartphone display that we have ever measured, and 22% Brighter than the Galaxy S8. As a result of its very high Automatic Brightness and low Reflectance, the Galaxy Note8 has a Contrast Rating for High Ambient Light that ranges from 122 to 270, also the highest that we have ever measured for a Smartphone display. See the Brightness and Contrast, the High Ambient Light and the Screen Reflections sections for the measurements and details. The much higher Peak Brightness of over 1,200 nits is also used to provide High Dynamic Range HDR, which we discuss next..."

What are you talking about, it does happen in real life scenarios, in high ambient brightness and throughout the screen. I mean no screen has perfect brightness uniformity, but it's close. I mean youtube videos have tested this.

Get your info right please. They also point out brightness over 1,000 nits is key for it's HDR capability.

 

[Matthew Langley]

http/www.displaymate.com/iPhoneX_ShootOut_1a.htm

Displaymate review in, they do crown it the best, but not for the reasons you point out. Basically it's mostly the same as the Note 8 just a slightly better calibration. Credit where it's due... though again not for the points you mention.

Brightness ratings

Brightness on the iPhone X 634=804 vs Note 8 560-1240, they get higher brightness numbers than yours in normal environments which really brings into questions your methodology.

Further you also get the off angle viewing wrong, probably due to comparing phones at different brightness levels...

Note 8
Brightness Decrease
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
29 percent

This part is key
White Point Color Shift
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
2.3 JNCD

Primary Color Shifts
Largest Color Shift for R,G,B
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
5.0 JNCD

Color Shifts for Color Mixtures
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
Reference Brown (255, 128, 0)
0.7 JNCD


The iPhone X
Brightness Decrease
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
22 percent

White Point Color Shift
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
2.7 JNCD

Primary Color Shifts
Largest Color Shift for R,G,B
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
6.2 JNCD

Color Shifts for Color Mixtures
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
Reference Brown (255, 128, 0)
1.8 JNCD


So the iPhone X has a lesser brightness decrease but higher color accuracy shift despite that. So it's a trade off but clearly the color accuracy at viewing angles go to the Note 8, contrary to your result. Again likely due to your testing at different brightness levels across devices.


Displaymate's conclusion is *not* a vindication of your article, you declare it the OLED king for the *wrong* reasons, which means you got lucky. If you name an article like this you really should have a minimum bar of quality, thoroughness, proper comparison that's fair and objective across devices. Really you should step this up or not try.

 

[datiecher]

http/www.displaymate.com/iPhoneX_ShootOut_1a.htm

Displaymate review in, they do crown it the best, but not for the reasons you point out. Basically it's mostly the same as the Note 8 just a slightly better calibration. Credit where it's due... though again not for the points you mention.

Brightness ratings

Brightness on the iPhone X 634=804 vs Note 8 560-1240, they get higher brightness numbers than yours in normal environments which really brings into questions your methodology.

Further you also get the off angle viewing wrong, probably due to comparing phones at different brightness levels...

Note 8
Brightness Decrease
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
29 percent

This part is key
White Point Color Shift
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
2.3 JNCD

Primary Color Shifts
Largest Color Shift for R,G,B
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
5.0 JNCD

Color Shifts for Color Mixtures
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
Reference Brown (255, 128, 0)
0.7 JNCD


The iPhone X
Brightness Decrease
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
22 percent

White Point Color Shift
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
2.7 JNCD

Primary Color Shifts
Largest Color Shift for R,G,B
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
6.2 JNCD

Color Shifts for Color Mixtures
at a 30 degree Viewing Angle
Reference Brown (255, 128, 0)
1.8 JNCD


So the iPhone X has a lesser brightness decrease but higher color accuracy shift despite that. So it's a trade off but clearly the color accuracy at viewing angles go to the Note 8, contrary to your result. Again likely due to your testing at different brightness levels across devices.


Displaymate's conclusion is *not* a vindication of your article, you declare it the OLED king for the *wrong* reasons, which means you got lucky. If you name an article like this you really should have a minimum bar of quality, thoroughness, proper comparison that's fair and objective across devices. Really you should step this up or not try.

You either didn't read the full DisplayMate's review or are being intentionally misleading. Quoting directly from their iPhone X review, where they list the display's advantages over the competition:

A record high Full Screen Brightness for OLED Smartphones of 634 nits, which improves screen visibility in high Ambient Light. The Samsung Galaxy Note8 can produce up to 1,240 nits, but only for small portions of the screen area (Low Average Picture Levels) – for Full Screen the Note8 can produce up to 423 nits with Manual Brightness and 560 nits with Automatic Brightness only in High Ambient Light. For small portions of the screen area the iPhone X can produce up to 809 nits (Low Average Picture Levels). On its Home Screen the iPhone X produces an impressively bright 726 nits.

 

[marcuskhoppe]

So im just gonna post the conclution of displaymates test of the iPhone X, becuase there seem to be some confusion in the comment section.

· Highest Absolute Color Accuracy for any display (0.9 JNCD) which is Visually Indistinguishable From Perfect.

· Highest Full Screen Brightness for OLED Smartphones (634 nits).

· Highest Full Screen Contrast Rating in Ambient Light (141).

· Highest Contrast Ratio (Infinite).

· Lowest Screen Reflectance (4.5 percent).

· Smallest Brightness Variation with Viewing Angle (22 percent).

And ofcause a quote to top if off "the iPhone X becomes the Best Performing Smartphone Display that we have ever tested"

 

[nib95]

Brightness.

A few problems with this comparison. First the Note 8 doesn't reach max brightness when only a portion of the screen is active, it does so when you set the brightness to auto, and the phone detects you are in sunlight. Essentially it boosts the brightness to increase legibility. In ordinary viewing you would otherwise never need your phone to be as bright.

Colour accuracy.

Also, a bit of a pointless article comparing colour and white balance accuracy with the Note 8 set to its default adaptive mode. You don't review and compare TV's based on their default dynamic or normal modes, you select their THX or Cinema mode. Likewise, with the Note 8, Basic mode is the most accurate display mode, which they touch on, but don't actually compare or test.

That being said, the iPhone X screen is very likely the best OLED display out there (besides in ppi). Samsungs displays have always incrementally improved, so it's no surprise their latest has again. But why Toms Hardware continue to do such redundant comparisons I have no idea.

It's poor journalism like a this that gave so many the false impression OLEDs, and specifically Samsung ones, were always too saturated and unrealistic, when in truth for several generations they've had a far more accurate and almost perfectly calibrated "realistic" display mode available on their devices.

True Tone.

Regarding the iPhones colour and white balance accuracy, the only issue with relying on their True Tone feature for absolute colour accuracy is that users are reporting wildly varying results from it. Even online reviewers that have two iPhone X's adjacent to each other, have reported that True Tone is giving the devices two different colour palettes or skews. I'm not sure in how many environments or variables they tested the True Tone balancing, but it does seem the results are variable, even in similar environments.

 

[nib95]

Brightness.

A few problems with this comparison. First the Note 8 doesn't just reach max brightness when only a portion of the screen is active, it does so when you set the brightness to auto, and the phone detects you are in sunlight. Essentially it boosts the brightness to increase legibility. In ordinary viewing you would otherwise never need your phone to be as bright.

Colour accuracy.

Also, a bit of a pointless article comparing colour and white balance accuracy with the Note 8 set to its default adaptive mode. You don't review and compare TV's based on their default dynamic or normal modes, you select their THX or Cinema mode. Likewise, with the Note 8, Basic mode is the most accurate display mode, which they touch on, but don't actually compare or test.

That being said, the iPhone X screen is very likely the best OLED display out there (besides in ppi). Samsungs displays have always incrementally improved, so it's no surprise their latest has again. But why Toms Hardware continue to do such redundant comparisons I have no idea.

It's poor journalism like a this that gave so many the false impression OLEDs, and specifically Samsung ones, were always too saturated and unrealistic, when in truth for several generations they've had a far more accurate and almost perfectly calibrated "realistic" display mode available on their devices.

True Tone.

Regarding the iPhones colour and white balance accuracy, the only issue with relying on their True Tone feature for absolute colour accuracy is that users are reporting wildly varying results from it. Even online reviewers that have two iPhone X's adjacent to each other, have reported that True Tone is giving the devices two different colour palettes or skews. I'm not sure in how many environments or variables they tested the True Tone balancing, but it does seem the results are variable, even in similar environments.

 

[varase]

All of the reviewers that continue to rant about the poor Color Accuracy of the Galaxy OLED displays have failed to set the proper Screen Mode for their content, which is very accurate as shown in our extensive Lab Measurements and Viewing Tests.

iPhone X is an iPhone and as such is a miniaturized Macintosh running on an ARM processor.

One thing that is often forgotten about the iPhone is that it's closely related to a platform which has been used for years as a prepress workhorse, and it has color management as part of its core foundations.

Ever since iPhone 7, Apple has ported ColorSync to the iPhone and it handles color on a by-content basis and has superior color handling.

Android is just getting into the game, and has no such history and has to do everything from scratch.

 

[walahaba]

Displaymate has also noted that further increase in PPI for smartphones are "absolutely pointless and a silly marketing wild goose chase into the stratosphere, with no visual benefit for humans".
It's obvious Apple's OLED is superior here!