Slight Yellow Tint (iPhone 4S)

It's not the serial numbers. I have two phone one is screen is blue and the order is yellow. They both start C36G.....DTDL It can be the glue or production when making the screen. I'll wait 2 weeks and then if nothing happen I'll return the yellow screen.

Isn't it pretty well established that it's either an LCD manufacturer difference or, more likely, a new color calibration that Apple has for the screens?

The problem on my iPhone 4 is particularly bad at low brightness levels in a dark room... and that's when I most often am reading black text on a "white" background. The cool-blue screens look fine at low brightness.

Still awaiting a new setting in iOS 5 were we can do our own color calibration and resolve this!

Went to Genius Bar today and I was told that they are aware of the issue and it should resolve itself with in 2 months or so (that’s way more than the two weeks everyone is talking about here). I was also given the option of exchanging the phone as a one time curtesy but of course they would not guaranty that it would not have a yellow tint. After that they would have to process a return if I try to exchange the exchange. Asked if anything would help like keeping the brightness all the way up and she said no, if anything that may be worst. That’s my story, I decided to wait and see. Also I notice today that if I look at the screen with my polarized sunglasses it has a pink hue while the iPhone4 does not. I don’t know if that means anything I just thought I would share.

I had sensed my 4S screen didnt seem as crisp as my 4 but it was when I had them side by side that it was really apparent. The 4S had very noticeable cream colour to any whites. At work I compared mine to a colleagues and his was fine. Out of curiosity to test something else bugging me - the battery - I ran my two phones side by side, in airplane mode, and watched the 4S battery drain faster than my old 4. Cant understand how a software update is going to fix that if its occurring when there is no synching etc going on.

Anyway, decided that for the two problems it was going back to the store. In the store I looked at one of their White demos - screen fine, and one of their black demos - screen had yellow tint. I showed the staff my 4S against my old 4 and was offered swap or refund straight away. However, after firing up two potential replacements it was obvious they had same problem. The setup menu bars were cream coloured, even before confirming it with something like a blank web page. I compared the new black 4s against the white demo in store and they were noticeably different. After looking at 2 I decided its a batch problem and took the refund option instead. The 2nd staff member said they hadnt heard of the issue and got defensive when I mentioned these forums, so I mentioned Google, these forums, articles in the press, and he got a bit hacked off.

My work colleague's looks fine so they must be out there ! Plus he says his battery is better than the 4, whereas I watched mine draining faster. Maybe not related. Anyway, why pay £500 for something that has a problem that is being widely reported. Worth waiting til sorted out, or #5

I took my yellow iPhone 4s to an Apple store and all I got was a "genius" asking me "Well, does it prevent you from using the screen?" I was shocked at the attitude. He also turned the brightness up to 100% on my phone to "see the problem" even after I told him I never do that and don't use it that way.

No offer of replacement, nothing about waiting for it to fix itself. All he did was run ot the back and see if "Apple had any protocol" on this issue and came back after 8-10 mins saying "no, sorry."

I've been thinking about this problem a lot and two things come to mind after seeing my phone compared directly against my GF's iPhone 4S which DOES NOT have the yellow tint. Both wer bought on the same day, same store. Although hers is a 32GB and mine's a 64GB. Both are white.

I think it has either to do with a misaligned screen that's slightly off or something called Haidiner's Brush.

Haidinger's Brush is here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haidinger's_brush

As for the misaligned screen I've noticed that if I hold my iPhone 4S so the screen is facing me, but tilt it so the top is closer to me than the bottom (looking "down" the phone) and then rotate it on it's (cartesian) Y axis (if X is the screen pointing at you) [imagine a pencil pushed through the screen front to back and the phone is rotating upon the pencil] you'll see a color shift as you rotate the iPhone 4S.

For me it's more yellow the more clockwise I rotate it, and more blue the more counter clockwise I rotate it. My GF's phone is nice and crisp and white when at 12 'o clock, mine matches her when I hold my at about 11 'o clock (rotated slight counter clockwise).

ALL phones at two apple stores I visisted did not exhibit the yellow, low contrast screen. I believe it's a manufacturing flaw and I'm going to try and get it replaced even if Apple has to open up all the boxes of iPhone 4S's in the store. (I also have the battery draining problem so I'm not a happy camper).

When held side by side with one that is fine there should be no argument from Apple. Take in a comparison phone or use one of their demos (white ones seem to have less issues). To convince them, set both brightness to full, turn off auto, then look at that settings page. One is blue grey with the white vertical stripes as it should be and the other has the yellow hue and looks off. Then go to Safari and open a new tab on each. The difference is clear as one is cream in comparison.

I'm back with my 4 after a week with my dulled 4S and I feel like someone who's just had laser eye surgery and can now see clearly. The 4 screen is great so there is no reason why anyone should compromise over this and go back a step to a 4S with this problem. Its a **** of a lot of money to pay. A lot of people won't know that it should be better, and some havent noticed the change since 4, unless they see them side by side. Talk loudly about it in the shop and mention some of the press articles about it and they will be keen to sort you out and get you out of the shop before you put off other buyers. They opened 2 for me and I could tell from the startup screens that they had the problem, before confirming it as above. After 2 we left it there and I got a refund. They were from the same serial number batch so probably not worth going on.

I'm a shareholder and I have to say I'm hacked off at their silence and denial on this. They've lost my money til I've seen the 5 in operation and I've researched all the potential problems before I commit. Thats no way to sell a product.

I have the black iphone 4S, and when I first received it, it did look a little creamy compared to my iphone 4 when held side by side. I have this phone about 3 weeks, and it is as white as the iphone 4 now...I actually preferred the slightly mellower screen because I tend to suffer from eye strain...too many hours logged in front of the computer, I guess. Perhaps it really is a glue issue, and at least in my case it really was. Siri is awesome...

W. Raider wrote:

I took my yellow iPhone 4s to an Apple store and all I got was a "genius" asking me "Well, does it prevent you from using the screen?" I was shocked at the attitude. He also turned the brightness up to 100% on my phone to "see the problem" even after I told him I never do that and don't use it that way.

No offer of replacement, nothing about waiting for it to fix itself. All he did was run ot the back and see if "Apple had any protocol" on this issue and came back after 8-10 mins saying "no, sorry."

I've been thinking about this problem a lot and two things come to mind after seeing my phone compared directly against my GF's iPhone 4S which DOES NOT have the yellow tint. Both wer bought on the same day, same store. Although hers is a 32GB and mine's a 64GB. Both are white.

I think it has either to do with a misaligned screen that's slightly off or something called Haidiner's Brush.

Haidinger's Brush is here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haidinger's_brush

As for the misaligned screen I've noticed that if I hold my iPhone 4S so the screen is facing me, but tilt it so the top is closer to me than the bottom (looking "down" the phone) and then rotate it on it's (cartesian) Y axis (if X is the screen pointing at you) [imagine a pencil pushed through the screen front to back and the phone is rotating upon the pencil] you'll see a color shift as you rotate the iPhone 4S.

For me it's more yellow the more clockwise I rotate it, and more blue the more counter clockwise I rotate it. My GF's phone is nice and crisp and white when at 12 'o clock, mine matches her when I hold my at about 11 'o clock (rotated slight counter clockwise).

ALL phones at two apple stores I visisted did not exhibit the yellow, low contrast screen. I believe it's a manufacturing flaw and I'm going to try and get it replaced even if Apple has to open up all the boxes of iPhone 4S's in the store. (I also have the battery draining problem so I'm not a happy camper).

Mine is yellow also. Mine does the exact same thing yours does. Looks good looking at it from the same angle as you mentioned, 11 o clock. This is annoying to me, I really wish I hadnt already sold my iphone 4, I'd just swap back and return my 4s.

For the record...

I had 3 replacements from the O2 store with the same issue. Decided to send it away to apple for replacment. 10 days later it came back to me with a note saying that the product was working to spec. Still unhappy with this I called apple and they arranged a replacement straight away. Got my replacment in the post this morning and Thank God!! it is a beautiful crisp, white display (not yellow at all). So my advice to all who are concerned is get on to apple. Regardless of different screen suppliers, they should all look as nice as eachother. Plus they dont come cheap!

Cheers

Ray

I was handled poorly aswell. With 4 days PAST the 30day return policy I realized how stuck I was... He took my phone, we didn't clear the data on the phone he walked off with my information basically.. Came out with a phone (not in the black replacement box) just the phone. I'm starting to wonder - are these new phones we are handed? Or tinkered with refurbs..?

One of the issues I had with my first 4S was that I wasn't convinced it was new. It was boxed and wrapped in cellophane but the plastic screen protectors looked a bit dirty, there was dust trapped underneath and the screen had a few marks that rubbed off. As if someone had done it at home or in store, rather than factory conditions. Wasn't convinced so let it go, but given the screen problem and the battery draining faster than a 4 (even tho both on ios 5.01 and in airplane mode) it was going back anyway. They must get thousands of returns and Im sure the couple we opened in store would have been reboxed and sold.

thanx for this link - i will definitively write something there as i am very unhappy with this ( have two 4S ( me and my wife ) compared to my old 4 - both very "creamy" ) - just yesterday compared at my friends home his 4 with his daughters 4S - same story - 4 has a crisp white clear display ... 😟

I acquired a black iPhone 4S 64GB and immediately noticed by comparison to my 3GS the screen was dull, washed out, and had a slight yellowish tinge which was most noticably effecting the white and the blue. It was clearly inferior to the 3GS.

I called Apple within an hour of opening the box (2 calls) and they all said it was the glue not yet being cured/dry and it would clear in a "while". They were willng to replace it but wanted me to wait at least one week and then call them back if it persisted. I accepted this reluctantly.

The next day I compared my 4S to 5 others at various shops in the local mall. All were clearly superior to mine and did not exhibit the same symtoms. These looked more like my 3GS (colour and brightness). The clerks all commented, unprompted, that my 4S screen was dull and 'yellowish'.

I figured that the phone cost me CAN$960 (taxes icluded) and that "waiting" for it to get better was not acceptable, especally after confirming by comparison with other 4S iPhones that mine was clearly inferior as described.

Today I went to the Apple Store (2 hr drive) and was fairly insistant that it should be replaced because of the symptoms. The Genius said he thought it was normal and repeated the "glue needs to dry and it will clear" story. Reluctantly he agreed to allow me to compare it to ONE replacement and if I wanted that replacement I could have it. However, I was only allowed to compare the store phone at the 'activate' screen - not a complete comparison. I reset my phone so I could compare the same activate screen and it was clear that the replacement was indeed better - deeper blue and the white letters were white. I took the replacement.

(As an aside, I had a screen protector and had to sacrifice that. But the Genius took his car keys and hammered and scratched on the screen of my returned phone to show me that a screen protector isn't really needed. Interesting... but I'll put on a screen protector anyway.)

I am pleased that Apple did replace the phone, although I don't know that I should have had to jump though ANY hoops for them to do so.

More importanly, a product of this nature and cost, particularly from this company, should not be available for a customer to purchase until it is ready - in otherwords, let consumers purchase a phone with cured/dry glue so that on day 1 the phone is at it's best. Besides using my time, energy and funds, Apple resources were used to deal with the customer - a cost that could have been avoided had the glue been allowed to cure/dry before selling it to the customer.

I don't mind putting an avocado or bananas on the counter until they ripen, but not a cell phone that puts me out of pocket close to $1,000.

It worked out for me in the end.

You see apple has changed their screen manufacturer from Samsung

To LG and that's why the new iPhone 4s has a warmer tint!

Also if you go to any apple store nowadays and buy an iPod touch,

iPhone 3GS, or iPhone 4 they will also have the warmer tint. In my opinion

The tint is a good thing because research shows that blueish tint viewed

At night time is bad for your eye sight , so stop being so picky

And enjoy ! :)

Mine is black and my wife has the white one. Both purchased at AT&T store on two weeks ago. I noticed that my wife's phone has better colors, mine looks like a little yellowis and also colors are like washed. Also, her screen is brighter at same brightnes level. I called apple support they told me to hard restore and after that put th ephone at factory setting by using itunes. I did nothing changed. I went to AT&T store they told me apple should take care of the issue since the phone is still under 30 days warranty term. I went to apple made genious bar appointment and waited for 2 hours. The persn who handled the issue look at the phones (mine and my wife's) and told me they cannot do anything because I was purchased the phone at AT&T store and AT&T should handle the issue. Also he said If the phone was purchased at Apple store hewould have no problem to replace it (The phones sold at AT&T are not manufactured by Apple?) I told him that I am hearing different stories form Apple and AT&T about this issue. I said I am bouncing back and forth between AT&T and Apple. He said he will check if there is a policy between Apple and AT&T and left. 20 minutes later he returned and told me since I was baounced back and forth between two companied he will replace the phone (But earlier he told me that since AT&T sold the phone Apple cannot replace the phone! what changed n 20-30 minutes? Why Apple replacing the phone which it should be replaced by AT&T . Is he doing a fawour to AT&T or to me, if he does, why he didn't do it in the beginning?) However the genious bar representative finaly agreed to replace the phone he didn't offered me a new one but he did ofer me to give one of the open box or refurbished one. Why? I purchased a brand new one and it is still under 30 days warranty. When I asked him if the that he will give me phoned used before he did not give me a clear answer and he did not let me to see one that he will give me. (He also mentioned different manufactures type of things.... I gues all customers must have their own long checklist to go through with sales representatives before purchase a product. specially Apple products) Than I did not agree and went back to AT&T spoke to the manager and he said that Apple must replace the phone and he ffered me to go to apple store together ( which was really nice) We went o Apple store we could not find the same person who I spoke earlier but the other one refused that there was a problem and said they will not replace the phone. AT&T anager said they can replace the phone bt I have to pay restoring fee (35$) I did not like to pay any extra but at least I feel AT&T is much more fair whaen dealing with issued that customers have.

I also have to mention that first person at the Apple store genious bar said that I can return the phone to AT&T and get full refund but this will cause me to terminate my contract since the hone sytill under 30 days warranty therm. But I said I will lose my phone number and my unlimited data plan for $30 (unlimited data plan at AT&T is not available anymore). I think he was meaning return the Apple iphone 4S to AT&T with full refund and get the new one at Apple store. I thought I purchased Apple iPhone 4S at AT&T but it seems like I didn't.

All I can say that I am not happy and what I was told and the way I was treated at the Apple store was B.S.

Regards.