Newsroom Update

Tap to Pay on iPhone is now available in Canada. Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

iPhone 3G S has yellowish tint

I just got my iPhone 3G S today and noticed that it has a distinctly yellowish tint to the screen. Doesn't matter what app I am using, and I've tried adjusting the brightness with no success.

Is anyone else experiencing this issue?

15" Macbook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.6), iPhone 3G S

Posted on Jun 19, 2009 3:13 PM

Reply
998 replies

Jun 20, 2009 2:31 PM in response to DaveHanson

I am at the apple store and have just confirmed that the phone should NOT have the yellow tint. The display models are perfect with no tint and my sister just bought a phone with no tint. They will not replace mine now. All the reviewers must gave gotten the first batch like is with the yellow tint. We all should get replacements, the other screen looks way better. Make sure you demand a replacement. They wouldn't help me at thus store because they hadn't heard of the issue yet from apple.

Jun 20, 2009 2:52 PM in response to Tom Slininger

My wife and I had the exact same issue. Her white 3GS has the "cooler" white and blue tint. My black 3GS is MUCH more yellowed and warm. I upgraded from a 1st gen iphone and I am hating the yellowed look. Her phone shipped from china 4 days before the 19th. Mine shipped overight from Memphis. I think you are right. This can't be something they planned.

Jun 20, 2009 3:34 PM in response to DaveHanson

I have had 2 - 3GS. Both have the "warmer" tone to them. Does not bother me. I can say I like the "crisper, bluer" look better though. I don't know if Apple can make it so the users have options or not. Not sure if the backlight for the LCD itself is what's causing it or calibration.

If people are having some that are crisp white and some that are warm white, not sure what is causing that.

Jun 20, 2009 3:50 PM in response to DaveHanson

Hey guys, I posted earlier that I wasn't going in to the store and compare screens, but I did. Found one on display that was a black back like mine and the screen seemed to be void of the yellow tint. I worked with a manager who was nice enough to let me look at two other phones and compare and I swapped for the one that was closest to the display. He was nice to let me do that. There were variations from one display model to the next. There were even white ones that seemed to have the yellow tint to them. Make sure to make an appointment with one of the geniuses. They are the ones that are supposed to do the swaps. They made an exception for me today.

Jun 20, 2009 5:56 PM in response to DaveHanson

One thing I didn't write in my earlier post is that after showing me the two, the manager told me which one he thought was the closest to the display one that looked good to me. He said he could keep bringing out phones, but that I might not ever find one that would match that display one exactly. It was interesting to see that there were white ones on display with a yellow tint. The manager hadn't noticed the yellow tint until I showed him mine next to one on display. He said probably a lot of people are not noticing. I told him about this post. Just so you know, there are variations. Go with what you can live and be happy with. The one I walked out with was pretty close to the display one. The just swapped the phone, nothing else. They have individual phones in the back.

Jun 21, 2009 12:18 AM in response to DaveHanson

I have compaired my 3g and 3gs phones and there are some differences. The main difference that I have noticed is not necessarily the color. The 3gs seems to have a MUCH more aggressive auto-brightness setting then the 3G (3.0 software). I noticed this without a direct comparison but side by side if the lighting is dim the 3GS becomes much darker when the auto-brightness kicks in. If I turn on a bright light the 3GS comes up to about the same brightness as my 3G. If I turn off the auto brightness it is also about the same. With the brightness levels equivalent my 3GS looks almost identical to my 3G. With the auto-brightness on it is much dimmer and could have what would be considered a yellowish cast to it, but this is just the fact that its very dim.

I was initially put off a bit by this but then realized its probably to extend battery life and it is also much easier on the eyes. When I was sitting in the dark using it for a while and then turned off the auto-brightness the screen became so bright it was annoying to look at.

I dont know if this is what other people are experiencing then they say they have a yellow cast but just to make sure try turning off the auto-brightness just to remove this from the equation.

Jun 21, 2009 12:50 AM in response to kre62

Yeah I dont think my phone shows the yellowish cast that your phone does. When the auto-brightness is on its much warmer and dimmer then without it but its not that yellow. When the auto-brightness is off I would even say my 3GS is slightly more blue then my 3G, if only by a very very small amount.

I was just hoping that it was something simpler for you then a real hardware issue.

iPhone 3G S has yellowish tint

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple ID.