Pixel 2 XL Screen Discussion

[anon(596177)]

Here's what makes me unsure of the proportion. I use this phone for over 2 months and didn't have any issues. No one else that I know that was testing the device had any issues. All of the reviewers that were on the hands on event did not report any issues. Then a few people have devices that they claim are bad and the media is running with it. Which is fine we see that all the time of course they're going to blow up The Sensational story. But we haven't actually seen any bad displays, unless that's changed today, I've been out of touch. And we also have a lot of other reviewers telling us that it's not anywhere near as bad as it's being said. And we also have some of the ones who said that they hated it admitting that they just hate the color profile because they are used to inaccurate displays. As an example artem turned srgb mode on on his old pixel and he hates that one just as much. So there's a lot of confusion about why exactly people think there's something wrong with it and there's a lot of confusion about how many of them actually have anything wrong with them or if anything is wrong with any of them. I've purchased two of these plus I've had my test device and I've seen several in stores. None of them have any issues other than the slightest blue tint at extreme angles. And that's the exact same slightest hint that we see on the S8 and Note 8 and the original pixel however those phones don't shift to Blue they are red and yellow respectively. So a very well could be that my perceptions just aren't as finely tuned to some other people's or it could be that a lot of people are blowing something up that doesn't really have a lot of teeth to it. And since I don't know which it actually is my recommendation is that each person actually look at it for themselves if they think it's going to be an issue.

That's interesting. I can also only go off of what I've seen personally. Personally, my regular pixel does not display a yellow hue at angles, it's also blue, but a very, very tame blue. Personally , I have seen 2 pixel XL Verizon floor models and they both display about the same level of blue hue at an angle, and both were significantly more blue than the blue hue on my normal pixel. Enough to warrant the idea that it is unusually more of a color shift than most other phones, if not all other phones on the market.

Now if you are seeing screens that don't compare to that description, then perhaps it really was a fluke in some of the panels. Regardless, I'm still anxiously awaiting my panda.

 

[I Can Be Your Hero]

Well I got around to a store and got to play with the 2 XL for a solid 10+ minutes.

I don't know if my eyes are horrible or the display model had a lucky good screen or something, but I actually quite liked the screen. I thought it looked great. The store had both the 2 and 2 XL and honestly, they looked pretty much exactly the same.

My takeaways:

- The colour saturation is a touch lower than what I'm used to seeing on Samsung AMOLED panels. It does make it look a touch lifeless/dull and hope Google go ahead with increasing the colour gamut.

- The blue tint to me isn't an issue. I hold my phone front on all the time and when I did tilt it, the colour shift didn't really bother me at all. Plus the angle required to see the colour shift isn't a natural position that I'd be holding it in.

- I couldn't see any grain. I put it at max brightness on white background, couldn't see it, put it at half brightness, again couldn't see anything, low brightness, and nothing. Maybe there's a specific coloured background I need to look at or something, but it looked like one consistent colour, no blotches or anything like that.

- Maximum brightness might be a little lower than I'd like. It's brighter than my current Pixel XL, but only slightly, and I think the max brightness of the Pixel XL isn't high enough.

So my takeaway from it is I'd be quite happy with the screen. Is it as good as the latest Samsung panels? No, I doubt it would be and if I were comparing them side by side, I'd probably see where the differences are, but on its own, I thought the screen looked quite nice. I think these issues are more of a tech enthusiast thing than an issue for the general public.

Again, maybe just happened to be a really good panel and there are others out there that look horrible, or maybe my eyes aren't good enough to pick up the imperfections, but after seeing it in person, I've gone ahead and placed my order for the black Pixel 2 XL 64gb. If I get a dunce screen, I just get it replaced until I get a good one, like the one I saw today.

Now I'm not dismissing any negative thoughts people have had with the display, if you didn't like it, there's nothing wrong with that, and you shouldn't put money down on something you don't like. I'm not going to dispute any reviewers/commentators who have said the display is not good - I didn't see what they saw so I can't comment. Just for me, what I saw in my limited play time, I walked away quite happy. I was expecting something bad, but I got something quite satisfactory.

 

[mwboost]

After reading through this whole thread I think this screen issue is way overblown. People are getting hyped up about the blue tint at angles........ angles that we don't use our phone at. Maybe a glance from a distance at times but that's it. The colour maybe a little dull but other settings may come.

 

[jrvtecaccord]

After reading through this whole thread I think this screen issue is way overblown. People are getting hyped up about the blue tint at angles........ angles that we don't use our phone at. Maybe a glance from a distance at times but that's it. The colour maybe a little dull but other settings may come.

Have you used one in person? If the color shift was only at extreme angles then I would consider it a non-issue as well(as all phones shift color/contrast at extreme angles), but the slightest angle causes this. It was really annoying for me when I would use the phone straight on, but had to shift my hand position to reach the top of the screen causing the phone to angle and the top of the screen will be normal then the bottom half would be blue. It was enough for me to return the phone, if Google fixes the issue then I will repurchase.

 

[quietlybrilliant]

I saw the screen at the Verizon store today and honestly hope that google finds a way to fix it very soon because otherwise this generation will be a flop.

 

[Bertolus]

Oh wow! I am a huge Erica Griffin fan. I'm surprised she went as far as to say that the screen was crap. I feel like I'd have to see the screen in-person to be able to judge for myself, however.

Actually Erica has now posted a video on YouTube saying that the Pixel 2 XLs display is not up to the current standard of the Note 8 or iPhone 8. She says it reminds her of older generation OLEDs. Thanks Google for selling expensive crap!

 

[Jeremiah Bonds]

I saw the screen at the Verizon store today and honestly hope that google finds a way to fix it very soon because otherwise this generation will be a flop.

What did the one you saw look like?

 

[osubeavs728]

Have you used one in person? If the color shift was only at extreme angles then I would consider it a non-issue as well(as all phones shift color/contrast at extreme angles), but the slightest angle causes this. It was really annoying for me when I would use the phone straight on, but had to shift my hand position to reach the top of the screen causing the phone to angle and the top of the screen will be normal then the bottom half would be blue. It was enough for me to return the phone, if Google fixes the issue then I will repurchase.

I've seen three of them in person and my experience is nothing like yours.

 

[Guyinbox]

Love the note. But no okay Google from the lock screen is a deal breaker.

Is this carrier specific maybe? The TMobile note 8 definitely does ok Google with the screen off. Plus you should be able to remap the bixby button to open assistant to simulate the squeezable sides

 

[Chex313]

After checking it and confirming , when tilted it does have a blue tint...I find the whole thing to be nonsense.
I never look at my screen tilted. Even in a car mount I can't notice . The tint I find to be totally onnocuose. I am OCD about a lot of things but thankfully this isn't one.

Oh and by the way , with any dark theme, like the Android central app...It's a non issue. The tint is only visible on a white or very bright background. I like to theme everything dark....

 

[Richard Servello]

Have you used one in person? If the color shift was only at extreme angles then I would consider it a non-issue as well(as all phones shift color/contrast at extreme angles), but the slightest angle causes this. It was really annoying for me when I would use the phone straight on, but had to shift my hand position to reach the top of the screen causing the phone to angle and the top of the screen will be normal then the bottom half would be blue. It was enough for me to return the phone, if Google fixes the issue then I will repurchase.

I've had mine for 2 days now... It's a non-issue.

 

[Mike Dee]

I've seen three of them in person and my experience is nothing like yours.

Same here

 

[Pixelfan56]

Get mine this week, saw the 2 XL at Verizon last week. Based on variance in panel quality, I have no idea what I will get mine ships the 24th...

 

[anon(9072051)]

Oh and by the way , with any dark theme, like the Android central app...It's a non issue. The tint is only visible on a white or very bright background. I like to theme everything dark....

Have you tried theming notifications yet with rootless Substratum? I really like black notifications but they look kinda crappy against the 2 XL's lockscreen, at least the really black Swift Black ones do.

The Settings page also looks kinds Meh to me because the accent color is grey instead of blue.

 

[bjrosen]

I won't get mine for another week but I just took a look at a 2XL at Best Buy and the display was fine, I didn't find it objectionable at all. I'll reserve final judgment until I receive my phone but from first impressions I think this is much ado about nothing.

 

[Bertolus]

At a price tag of $ 1K it IS an issue no matter if you can live with it or not.

 

[marcb11]

Reading all the reports about the muted colors I decided to turn on sRGB on my OG pixel and tbh I like it. I find the colors far more pleasing and less intense.

If the P2XL I have on order looks as good or better I will be very happy.

Even if Google offers saturated color options the natural colors are more pleasing to me.

As for tint issues, in every single video and pictures comparison I've seen the screen does tint cooler blue but is more readable than the non tinted ones. Now I know this wasn't the design but really it shouldn't be a huge issue for me anyway.

 

[Aquila]

At a price tag of $ 1K it IS an issue no matter if you can live with it or not.

This is false. You're arguing to value and that is up to each person who is determining how much is $1,000 worth to them vs how much they're willing to deal with whatever perceived issues they may or may not have. Value is absolutely a subjective concern. Also it sounds like some of the issues might not even exist or definitely do not exist to the extent that some of the more hyperbolic complaints indicate.

 

[Bertolus]

This is false. You're arguing to value and that is up to each person who is determining how much is $1,000 worth to them vs how much they're willing to deal with whatever perceived issues they may or may not have. Value is absolutely a subjective concern. Also it sounds like some of the issues might not even exist or definitely do not exist to the extent that some of the more hyperbolic complaints indicate.

If you think so. To me something just doesn’t feel right about Google asking 1K for an inferior display.

 

[Aquila]

If you think so. To me something just doesn’t feel right about Google asking 1K for an inferior display.

No issue with that at all. If that's the deal breaker for you then I would definitely recommend passing on this one in buying something else that you like better.