YouTube Videos and Reading on XR it’s plain bad :/ | MacRumors Forums
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chad.petree

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 2, 2013
563
256
Germany
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?
 
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matt3526

macrumors regular
Mar 7, 2011
201
298
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?


This is all in your head. The xr has a better resolution than the eye can distinguish, so unless you are some kind of android or looking at your phone through a lens you can't see a difference in picture quality between the xr and xs. the xr doesn't support 1080p youtube videos, but then it's a tiny screen and if you can't distinguish between the pixels you have, then you certainly don't need anymore. Now when the displays get bigger, you need a higher pixel density otherwise you'll notice, but this is a 6 inch screen, not a 48 inch screen. This is why a 4K phone screen is irrelevant for example. Now the Xs will look better in terms of contrast, it has an amazing screen and the colours will look better, but not the clarity of text. It sounds to me like you have been sucked into the marketing terms of numbers here.
 

Droid187

macrumors newbie
Jan 27, 2019
24
37
From your previous posts about the “720p” screen it sounds like you were already biased about the quality of the screen, so I’m not sure why you even bought it. I have no issues with it and I use it very close up for reading.

If you convince yourself hard enough you can find flaws in anything.
 

trillionaire

macrumors regular
Dec 19, 2018
240
154
Canada
This is all in your head. The xr has a better resolution than the eye can distinguish, so unless you are some kind of android or looking at your phone through a lens you can't see a difference in picture quality between the xr and xs. the xr doesn't support 1080p youtube videos, but then it's a tiny screen and if you can't distinguish between the pixels you have, then you certainly don't need anymore. Now when the displays get bigger, you need a higher pixel density otherwise you'll notice, but this is a 6 inch screen, not a 48 inch screen. This is why a 4K phone screen is irrelevant for example. Now the Xs will look better in terms of contrast, it has an amazing screen and the colours will look better, but not the clarity of text. It sounds to me like you have been sucked into the marketing terms of numbers here.

Couldn't agree more. There's no way the text looks that different. These are still very good displays and on a screen of that size there can't be that big a difference. It does sound like you just don't like the phone in general so the only option you have is to return and get something else.
 

willmtaylor

macrumors G4
Oct 31, 2009
10,314
8,198
Here(-ish)
First off, the screen of the Xr has been widely regarded as quite good, so the issues you’re concerned about seem odd. This issue, therefore, is more about what makes you happy.

Go to the Apple Store and make sure it isn’t just YOUR Xr with these issues.

While you’re there, check out the Xs and see if the same issues are evident there.

Only you can decide how much money makes your daily driver “worth it” and which hardware/software nest suits your use case and values.
 
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pika2000

Suspended
Jun 22, 2007
5,587
4,902
The XR has the same pixel density as the iPhone 8. Never heard anybody complaining about "fuzzy" text on the 8.

Visible jaggies on text: how close are you actually looking at your phone? Are you even reading at normal reading distance?
Visible jaggies on Youtube: This depends on the video's resolution. Make sure you're playing at least 720p videos. Often times on cellular, Youtube will default to 480p or lower, and some carriers lock Youtube on cellular to lower resolution.
 

scottcampbell

macrumors 6502
Aug 7, 2017
343
812
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?
Thoughts and prayers coming your way OP
 

MacLappy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 28, 2011
530
393
Singapore
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?

Hi OP, just wondering did you set the video option to 1080p on youtube? Sometimes it auto to a much lower resolution. I noticed this on both my iPad and iPhone especially when the internet connection is iffy.
Also I think turning display zoom to standard helps. Might want to try that.
 
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Seanm87

macrumors 68020
Oct 10, 2014
2,143
4,237
These posts are so ridiculous. It has the same screen as the 6,7,8 and I don’t remember anyone ever saying those screens were “fuzzy” or blurry. They were widely regarded as the best LCDs on the market.

The XR screen is the best LCD on the market. It’s fantastic.
 

ericwn

macrumors G4
Apr 24, 2016
11,854
10,468
I agree with OP! This screen is not good. Period. It’s decent at best. No one complained about the 6,7,8 because that was all there was.

No, there was always the plus version with a higher resolution compared to the regular models 6/7/8.

But ultimately it’s the OP’s call. If not happy, return it or learn to live with it.
 
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Apple_Robert

Contributor
Sep 21, 2012
34,471
49,952
In the middle of several books.
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?
Apple made the XR to better accommodate people that didn't need or couldn't afford the ticket price of the flagship phone.

Apple made the specs known ahead of time. You had opportunity to do research before purchasing.

Sounds like you purchased a phone you didn't really like to begin with (spec wise) and then want to complain about how its Apple's fault.

Not buying what you are selling.

Return the phone and be done it with.
 

1rottenapple

macrumors 601
Apr 21, 2004
4,706
2,721
From your previous posts about the “720p” screen it sounds like you were already biased about the quality of the screen, so I’m not sure why you even bought it. I have no issues with it and I use it very close up for reading.

If you convince yourself hard enough you can find flaws in anything.
Sounds like the real issue is OP doesn’t know what common sense is lol

Like a kid who touches fire. Then keeps touching it and getting burned. You know the screen wasn’t up to your perceiving eye yes you still brought it lol
[doublepost=1549724246][/doublepost]
Hi OP, just wondering did you set the video option to 1080p on youtube? Sometimes it auto to a much lower resolution. I noticed this on both my iPad and iPhone especially when the internet connection is iffy.
Also I think turning display zoom to standard helps. Might want to try that.
Exactly on my iPad Pro the way the default the setting it’s garbage. You have to manually change it but I believe it’s how google has made things and outside apples control. And we know the iPad Pro screen is fantastic.
 
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Plett

macrumors 6502
Feb 16, 2016
315
247
The screen doesn’t look that bad when I’m using the phone on the street or the subway, but watching YouTube videos and reading in my bed it’s just a bad experience, there are visible jaggies in the letters , text just looks “fuzzy” and so don videos as well, exhibitng lots of compression.

I also have a pixel 2 (that I’m selling right now) and I compared the two devices, to not feel like I’m being just paranoid and picky, but there is a real difference. I cannot believe apple is so greedy that it would purposely cripple the device, so that if we want a better aka good screen we’re forced to get the iPhone XS, a 300 eur device like a moto g6 has a higher res screen, ridiculous.

Before you say , just return it and buy the iPhone XS, I’d like to say that it feels wrong to me to pay 1150 euros for a device, that by the way also has an inferior camera to my current device (pixel 2) that was released a year ago and costed me 600 euros; also the iPhone XS has poor battery life and no usb c port, too many compromises for that price.l point.

And no I don’t want to keep my pixel 2 with such a small screen, I miss iOS. I want to use iOS again.

Did you just learn to live with it?
Fuzzy? Get new glasses.
 

The Clark

macrumors 6502a
Dec 11, 2013
766
2,185
Canada
I recently picked up the XR (came from S8 with oled display) and I think the XR display is stunning, I'd even go so far as to say just as nice as my S8. That being said, you're clearly unhappy with yours and that's okay.. just sell/return it and upgrade to something that suits your needs.
 

tt061282

macrumors 6502
Mar 18, 2018
367
409
Nevada
This is all in your head. The xr has a better resolution than the eye can distinguish, so unless you are some kind of android or looking at your phone through a lens you can't see a difference in picture quality between the xr and xs. the xr doesn't support 1080p youtube videos, but then it's a tiny screen and if you can't distinguish between the pixels you have, then you certainly don't need anymore. Now when the displays get bigger, you need a higher pixel density otherwise you'll notice, but this is a 6 inch screen, not a 48 inch screen. This is why a 4K phone screen is irrelevant for example. Now the Xs will look better in terms of contrast, it has an amazing screen and the colours will look better, but not the clarity of text. It sounds to me like you have been sucked into the marketing terms of numbers here.


Finally someone on this forum gets “it”. Contrast is obviously distinguishable, but as far as YouTube videos looking “bad” or text bring “fuzzy” ... I’m sorry but your eyes aren’t seeing that.

Going throughout the posting history I can’t understand why this OP would have bought an iPhone Xʀ.

I’ll be honest I have 3 “X” versions of the iPhone and the Xʀ is my choice for my “daily driver”. I have 20/20 vision. I guess the 6.1” is my sweet spot and I guess battery life trumps all in my eyes...

Also, this device is anything but “crippled”... it’s the fastest device on the market ATM... definitely not crippled because again it has the A12 and 3GB of RAM... which is the same as the XS or XS Max has for “system performance”. I know they have 4 GB of RAM, but 1GB of that is for the telephoto lens...
 
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mreg376

macrumors 65816
Mar 23, 2008
1,221
405
Brooklyn, NY
I agree with OP! This screen is not good. Period. It’s decent at best. No one complained about the 6,7,8 because that was all there was.

Most people don't look at their phone through a microscope. Which is the only way the human will eye will see jaggies on the XR display UNLESS you're looking at an image or video that is not running at the full 720p, in which case it woudn't matter what the resolution of the screen is. He should just return the phone if he doesn't want it. But he'll get no confirmation here.
 

1rottenapple

macrumors 601
Apr 21, 2004
4,706
2,721
Most people don't look at their phone through a microscope. Which is the only way the human will eye will see jaggies on the XR display UNLESS you're looking at an image or video that is not running at the full 720p, in which case it woudn't matter what the resolution of the screen is. He should just return the phone if he doesn't want it. But he'll get no confirmation here.
The amazing thing OP has said it was inferior then buys it anyway. Our American education epic failed.
 

tatsuki

macrumors member
Apr 23, 2012
58
82
I had the XR for a while and while the screen was very good overall there were times when I felt images or text looked soft or fuzzy, I put it down to some sites or applications not been optimised for the XR's screen or aspect ratio. For whatever reason the screen on my 7 seems a little crisper (Disclaimer I had the Xr last year in November) And the screen on my S8+ is significantly better from a resolution point of view to compared to the 7 and XR.
 

tonybarnaby

macrumors 68020
Dec 3, 2017
2,385
1,741
Every time this comes up, people inevitably bring up how no one complained about the 6/7/8 having the same resolution. Those phones were fine, but everyone also knew the plus version had a better screen. They were also not on the same level as the plus phones in terms of specs. The XR is neck and neck with the XS except for the resolution, OLED and no dual camera. Even a 1080p lcd would have kept people happy. I tried an XR for a week and the difference between my 8+ was obvious. The XR isn’t bad, but the 8+ is noticeably better and more clear. Colors on the XR are awesome, but it just doesn’t cut it to me and other people coming from a 1080p plus phone.
 
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MacLappy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 28, 2011
530
393
Singapore
Hi OP, did you try out some of the suggestions like setting display zoom to standard and also manually setting youtube to 1080p? Was wondering if that might have solve the problems you were facing.
 
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