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Scott Arthur Author

Level 1

28 points

Apple TV 4K White Flashes

I'm seeing occasional white flashes on the screen. Easily seen on the screen savers but I've seen them on content too like Netflix and HBO.

I saw them about every 10 to15 minutes the flash looks like a single frame of digital noise.

My setup is ATV4K to Denon X2400H to a Vizio M65C1 class. I have brand new Monoprice high speed certified premium HDMI cables. I've turned all video processing from the Denon.

I saw flashes every 10 to 15 minutes when the setting was 4KSDR 50Hz.

I did a video settings reset through the Apple TV and it changed to 4KSDR 60hz. I have seen an occasional flash but very infrequent maybe one every couple of hours. . So there’s an improvement but still something is going on.

Software issue? Hardware issue?

Apple TV 4K, tvOS 11, Denon X2400H, Vizio M65C1

Posted on Sep 27, 2017 9:13 AM

Top-ranking reply

Xrayspecs

Level 1

54 points

Posted on Nov 4, 2017 5:13 PM

I'm seeing flashing frames when my Apple TV is in Dolby Vision mode. The flashes are ghost images of the screen offset to the right. The flashes last a microsecond (a single frame, it seems), and they occur several times per minute, no matter what I'm watching on the Apple TV. The image below is a single frame of the Apple TV home screen taken from video that I shot with my iPhone. You can see the ghost images of app icons superimposed over other app icons. (The rectangular thing over the HBONow, hulu, and AMC app icons is a reflection of a window in the room; but the other ghost images are the flashing frames on the screen.)

I'm running the latest tvOS software, but the issue began to appear several days before I updated the system software. It's not an issue with my LG TV, because when I watch Dolby Vision content through the built-in Netflix app on the TV, without Apple TV, there are no flashes. Anyone else experiencing this?

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46 replies

Scott Arthur Author

Level 1

28 points

Nov 7, 2017 2:28 PM in response to Scott Arthur

TVOS 11.2 may solve the flash issues. The update is a few weeks away. I have not seen any flashes for a few days while using the 11.2 beta.

AVSForum has a story about the changes.

http://www.avsforum.com/apple-tv-4k-will-automatically-match-content-tvos-11-2/

Nov 8, 2017 12:17 AM in response to Scott Arthur

I also have this problem on an LG OLED55C7P. I talked to Apple and was given this workaround. In Settings, in Video and Audio, try turning Dolby Vision off and use 4K HDR instead. It seems to work. I only hope that this problem will eventually be resolved. Generally, Dolby Vision is considered better than HDR.

Nov 8, 2017 10:30 AM in response to Louis Castaing

Yes, the frame flashing stopped when I switched the Apple TV 4K from Dolby Vision mode to HDR mode. But that's a lousy workaround because it deprives us of a feature we paid for. Hoping for a fix soon.

Nov 8, 2017 11:51 AM in response to Xrayspecs

Update: After switching my HDMI cable to input 2 on the LG OLED tv, the flickering/flashing seems to have stopped in Dolby Vision mode. (Even though HDMI 1 input on the LG tv purportedly supports Dolby Vision HDR.)

Nov 9, 2017 2:36 AM in response to Xrayspecs

I thought that did the trick for me too, until everything went to **** again. Interestingly, sometimes, I'll get through an entire episode on Netflix with nothing, and then it'll be like a 70s disco where every couple of seconds a white flash appears (usually pretty on point with cuts in the content I am watching).

Dan.C

Level 1

4 points

Dec 12, 2017 10:02 AM in response to Scott Arthur

I'm also having the same issue with the Apple TV 4K connected to a Yamaha RX-A3070 connected to a Sony Bravia via an ARC HDMI input. HDMI control is enabled on the AV. The Apple TV is running tvOS 11.2, has dynamic range and frame rate matching enabled, format set to 4K HDR 50Hz. Flashes are mostly notable when the screensaver is running. Haven't noticed the problem when watching non-HDR content which makes me wonder if the problem is something to do with HDR.

davthu

Level 1

4 points

Dec 30, 2017 2:47 PM in response to michalb79

I have a Sony KD-55xe9005 directly connected to Apple TV 4k with the recommended HDMI cable from Belkin (48 gb) I and used to see the white flashes when setting video quality to HDR. The flashes appears to be gone after changing the video settings to ”Match framerate” and ”Match dynamic range” as mentioned earlier in this thread.

Jan 20, 2018 6:36 PM in response to Scott Arthur

Having this issue too, with a new Samsung 7 series TV. I actually first noticed the problem on my Gen 3 Apple TV, before picking up a new 4k Apple TV. Have tried different cables (they’re high speed), settings, etc, all without luck. I guess it could be the TV itself, but I think it’s something to do with Apple’s TV OS (and not just the 4k Apple TV).

Jan 24, 2018 9:03 PM in response to ckfoxtrot

Doing a full restore/reset seems to have cleared up the issue for now... but we’ll see if it lasts. Seems like the issue returns for most people. Still think it’s a TV OS issue (not just a 4k apple tv issue) with 4k TVs.

Scott Arthur Author

Level 1

28 points

Sep 28, 2017 9:40 PM in response to Scott Arthur

This is white the flash looks like. I used my iPad to record the video and iMovie to freeze the screen flash.

Sep 29, 2017 10:14 AM in response to Scott Arthur

Hi. I would try another HDMI cable.

Scott Arthur Author

Level 1

28 points

Sep 30, 2017 8:31 AM in response to Spanishbladerunner

OK, I reseated the HDMI cable and moved the ATV off the top of the very hot Comcast Xfinity X1 cable box. I got through two hours of ATV viewing with no flashes. Perhaps all is well?

Scott Arthur Author

Level 1

28 points

Oct 2, 2017 7:20 PM in response to Scott Arthur

In the end what seemed to have eliminated this issue was doing a Reset and Restore of the Apple TV. I've gone a few days with only a couple of flashes.

Oct 4, 2017 6:32 AM in response to Scott Arthur

I’m having this issue also, but haven’t had time to try any fixes yet. Video output is at 4K SDR 60Hz. LG OLED 55 B6, and Denon AVR-4300H.

GiffelDK

Level 1

4 points

Oct 11, 2017 10:07 PM in response to Scott Arthur

I also have this problem, very annoying 😬

Anyone found a solution yet?

Apple TV 4K White Flashes