Pixel 2 XL Screen Discussion

[codeda]

That's not straight on, that's at an angle.

It was as straight on as I could take. I was staring down at the screens on their docs. It wasn’t an extreme angle as some suggest that you can only see the tint at. My only point was to show an example. I took this over the weekend just to share with a friend since we both have phones coming.

 

[anon(596177)]

Okay, I was convinced to take a second look at the store. Wow, very much more noticable than I originally remember seeing. But again, probably not something I would have noticed without looking for it as I would only ever personally be looking at these odd angles only very occasionally.

The portrait photo at an angle I attached probably best shows the hue change, with the bottom being whiter and the top, being more at an angle with the camera, being blueish. This is at it's worst, as noted previously, on white backgrounds. I put a movie trailer on to test while viewing video and while the effect is still there on the video, it's less jarring because you have more than just a flat white color on your screen. I took a still photo of the lightest section of the trailer as an example.

With that in mind, photos can only show you so much. Make the decision for yourself. I'm blown away I didn't notice this the first time, but with that being said, I know how I normally use my phone and while this can be jarring it's not a deal breaker to me because the screen looks GREAT at a normal viewing angle.

 

[ottscay]

It was as straight on as I could take. I was staring down at the screens on their docs. It wasn’t an extreme angle as some suggest that you can only see the tint at. My only point was to show an example. I took this over the weekend just to share with a friend since we both have phones coming.

That's totally fair, it's not like you had a tripod and protractor handy. But if you look at the lines of the phone edges they are definitely not head on, and it looks like the XL is at a steeper angle:



If you color sample the top and bottom of the Pixel 2 screen with the Photoshop color picker tool there's also a blue shift on the smaller screen, though to a less obvious degree.

All that aside, I'd agree that your photo makes it look like the blue shift is more pronounced (possibly at an early angle) on the 2XL. I wouldn't think this would be variable between panels the way artifacts and banding might be, but the blue shift doesn't look this severe in video reviews (edit: or the photos published lower in the thread). Perhaps the brightness setting is key? (e.g. beauty shots in reviews may have the brightness cranked all the way up, while in a store they may not, and that could impact how obvious the blue shift is).

I'm still not too concerned about it until I see what mine looks like on arrival, but I can understand why some would be.

 

[ottscay]

Okay, I was convinced to take a second look at the store. Wow, very much more noticable than I originally remember seeing. But again, probably not something I would have noticed without looking for it as I would only ever personally be looking at these odd angles only very occasionally.

This is about what I was expecting (and much less severe than in the other image posted above). This is what my Nexus 6p looking like in terms of blue-shift, and it's never bothered me, but I guess I'll see when mine arrives.

 

[codeda]

That's totally fair, and it's not like you had a tripod and protractor handy. But if you look at the lines of the edges they are definitely not head on, and it looks like the XL is at a steeper angle:
View attachment 271436
If you color sample the top and bottom of the screen of the regular Pixel 2 you see there's also a blue shift on the smaller screen, though to a much less obvious degree.

But all that aside, I'd agree that the image sure makes it look like the blue shift is more pronounced (quite possibly at an early angle) on the 2XL than on the 2. I wouldn't think this would be variable between panels the way artifacts and banding might be, but it clearly doesn't look this severe in some of the videos in reviews (though it's still visible). Perhaps the brightness setting is key to the difference? (e.g. beauty shots in reviews may have the brightness cranked all the way up, while in a store they may not, and that could impact how obvious the blue shift is).

I'm still not too concerned about it until I see what the version I ordered looks like on arrival, but I can understand why some would be.

On the LG v30 they’ve been saying it shows more on lower brightness, so you might have a point. I didn’t fuss with brightness. Just took some pictures and played around a bit to see what the feel was like.

 

[anon(9072051)]

Can you show image? Not a good sign if you can see blue head on.

No, I don't have a good enough camera with me that wouldn't just add to the confusion, and a screenshot's not gonna show you anything.

FWIW, I'm seeing white now when I look at the phone head on, and unlike Vlad Savov's, none of my status bar icons looks off-white, fuzzy or blotchy. I'm also not sure where he's seeing brown instead of red in the Chrome icon, whether straight on or even off-axis.

 

[codeda]

Guessing it might bother some more than others depending on how they use their phone too. Like mine is kept on a stand on my desk at work all day and it does rest at a slight angle. BUT I’m also not looking at white screens all the time. Usually playing videos or something while I’m working. Even when I saw it at the store I didn’t think it was a deal breaker, but the smaller pixel did have better coloring.

 

[seb1509]

Setting up my new pixel 2 xl right now...

Few impressions the build quality is fine. But the screen leaves a lot to be desired I'm not super picky when it comes to screens. But the color shift is VERY noticeable. So noticeable that you won't be able to not see it. It's not an issue you look for... It's there.

Also, the screen just is not the best colors look so weird. I can easily tell on emojis. I am coming from the original pixel XL. I REALLY wanted to love this phone. But I'm not sure I'll be keeping it. I just see waves of blue and warm White whenever I'm typing and move my head a bit or even when I maneuver the phone to tap stuff up high.

Maybe I'll get used it it in a week. But it definitely doesn't have a wow factor :/ and it should!!!!!

The screen also looks different... Reminds me of the screen on the LG G6 (which I owned for about 10 days)

Also, not sure if this is common with front facing speakers. But if I play music at medium to high level I can totally feel the music on the screen when I tap stuff. It's kind of obnoxious.

 

[svenEDGE]

sRGB setting in Developer Options

Although I'm sure this can be chalked up to wishful thinking...

Has anyone gone into the Developer Options and checked to see if the sRGB switch is turned on? Maybe if it's on by default, we can get those punchy vibrant colors we've grown to love on our OLED screens by just simply turning it off!

Can someone PLEASE try this out?!

*Sorry, I figured this was specific enough that it justified starting a new thread. My bad!*

 

[anon(596177)]

This is about what I was expecting (and much less severe than in the other image posted above). This is what my Nexus 6p looking like in terms of blue-shift, and it's never bothered me, but I guess I'll see when mine arrives.

If if I'm being completely fair and objective, I don't believe the 6p had the issue quite like this. Granted, I don't remember ever specifically looking for this, but I think I would have remembered if the viewing angles blued up this much.

As said before in another post, the photos don't really do it justice. You're just going to have to see it and make a judgement call. The photos take the edge off the difference a little bit

I went into this after looking at the pixel 2XL the first time thinking how could this issue possibly be bad enough to Warrant a phone return. Now after looking at it a second time I can completely understand why this could be polarizing for some people

 

[ottscay]

Re: sRGB setting in Developer Options

Although I'm sure this can be chalked up to wishful thinking...

Has anyone gone into the Developer Options and checked to see if the sRGB switch is turned on? Maybe if it's on by default, we can get those punchy vibrant colors we've grown to love on our OLED screens by just simply turning it off!

Can someone PLEASE try this out?!

Google (and reviewers) have made it clear that they are purposely targeting more accurate colors, and that turning on the "vivid" mode doesn't change it much right now. But in Savov's article he writes that Google expressed interest in adding in other color profiles if people want them, and with Oreo having real color management this should frankly be an easy thing for them to do. So I'd be more concerned about making sure your phone doesn't have any artifacts or banding (or that the blue-shift doesn't bother you). A more vivid "vivid mode" shouldn't be hard to achieve.

 

[Nonymous666]

From what I've seen so far (videos / photos only, not in real life), the blue shift seems just a tad worse that what my 6P does. Doubtful it will bother me.

As for hues, I actually hate the high saturation of the displays on samsung's phones, and the default of my 6P. I always turn on my 6Ps sRGB option. So I think I'll probably actually like the 2 XL's hues.

Only thing I'm really worried about is that supposed 'graininess' effect. Screen shots of that make me go 'wow. really LG?'.
Seems like it's mostly only noticeable with brightness turned down. But some have said you can even see it on full brightness; i.e., you don't really notice it, until it's pointed out, and then you can't not see it anymore.

 

[Morty2264]

I feel like I'd have to look at the screen myself in order to fairly judge its quality. Reviews and research are important to consider, but user observations count most when it comes to buying a device.

 

[osubeavs728]

Seeing all these "The Pixel 2 XL could have been the best phone" topics breaks my heart...

Why Google? Why? Why didn't anyone say anything from the hands on after the presentation???

Because people in forums like to blow things out of proportion.

 

[svenEDGE]

Re: sRGB setting in Developer Options

Google (and reviewers) have made it clear that they are purposely targeting more accurate colors, and that turning on the "vivid" mode doesn't change it much right now. But in Savov's article he writes that Google expressed interest in adding in other color profiles if people want them, and with Oreo having real color management this should frankly be an easy thing for them to do. So I'd be more concerned about making sure your phone doesn't have any artifacts or banding (or that the blue-shift doesn't bother you). A more vivid "vivid mode" shouldn't be hard to achieve.

I'm aware of all of that. My question is specifically weather or not the sRGB mode, that is present on most current Android phones, is turned on by default, and if so, can it be turned off?

 

[AustinTech]

If it's as bad as people are saying, I find it crazy that of all the early review videos I've seen of the larger Pixel 2, Noone mentions just how dated and odd the screen appears.

MKBHD mentioned it right off.

 

[seb1509]

MKBHD mentioned it right off.

I saw it in almost every review.

 

[anon(596177)]

Because people in forums like to blow things out of proportion.

I thought this too at first, and to an extent I still do, but after looking at it again I definitely feel like the complaints about it are a lot more Justified now. It really can be jarring and it doesn't take a whole lot of moving off center to start noticing the hue change.

Just make a decision yourself after you get the device. I wouldn't necessarily cancel your pre-order because of this, but definitely think about making sure you like the phone within your return window

 

[svenEDGE]

Because people in forums like to blow things out of proportion.

I saw the display before I saw all of the talk of how bad the display is. This is for sure not being blown out of proportion. Whether or not the screen looks bad to your eye is a different story. I can confirm that for myself, the display is as bad as the worst reports say. The fact that the display is the component of the phone that you use more than any other component, makes it very important that the display is at least good. I can live with good. The display on my OG Pixel XL is good. The display on the Note 8 I had for a couple weeks was excellent. The display on the 2 XL is poor.

 

[aggie]

I went ahead and cancelled. I was really excited about the 2 XL but am a bit discouraged after reading all of the negativity about the display. While it may not be a total deal breaker, I have a perfectly good Note 8 with an amazing display and can't see paying nearly the same amount for a device with a subpar display. I'm going to just keep my original XL as a backup and maybe revisit the 2 XL at a later date.