[Let's Tech] How Does Screen Dimming Works in Smartphones?

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Last month, we got introduced to Honor's Highest flagship "The HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate" which is right now sitting at the top charts in all departments whether it's cameras, screen or charging, etc.

With so many breakthrough technologies the HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate has many Industry’s 1st too and 1920Hz PWM dimming is one of them. I am pretty sure you might not gave it that much attention at the launch event, that's why I decided to put this weight on my shoulder and fall some light on PWM dimming, what is it? and how it affects our smartphone experience?

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First question is why are we discussing it? because it is something we don't notice but it can greatly affect our smartphone display experience and HONOR is the first company to launch a product with 1920Hz PWM dimming which led to a smoother display and offers a remedy for the eye sourness.

What is PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) Dimming?

LEDs can be dimmed using two methods: analog and pulse-width modulation (PWM). Analog dimming modifies LED light output by adjusting the DC current in the string, whereas PWM dimming modifies the average current in the string by varying the duty cycle of a constant current in the string.

In easy terms, we can say PWM is a technique for controlling the brightness of a display panel by varying the width of the light pulse. Simply put, you control how long the screen remains on or off. Lowering the brightness causes the screen to be off for longer than it is on, which is perceived as lower brightness.

Our eyes cant notice it because the frequency of the pulses is very high (Highest in the case of HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate,1920Hz), the human eye will not be able to detect individual pulses. The human eye, on the other hand, averages out the amount of light from these pulses. As a result, the perceived brightness is determined by the ratio of the panel's on and off states.

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At full brightness, you can see that the light is always turned on. When the brightness is reduced to 50%, the panel alternates between on and off at equal intervals. However, as the brightness is reduced further, the screen remains off for a longer period of time than it does on. As a result, there is a flicker effect at extremely low levels of brightness.

PWM dimming has the following advantages:

It provides a more precise output level.
It has a wider dimming range.
Ideally suited for applications that require specific LED characteristics, such as efficiency, color, or temperature.
Color shifts can be avoided by operating the LED at its proposed forward current and forward voltage operating points.

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Other smartphone manufacturers also use PWM dimming in their smartphone displays but due to low frequencies they are not able to get rid of the flickering in displays, the HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate's 1920Hz PWM dimming shows is the highest frequency you can ever experience on a smartphone so when compared to any other smartphone, HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate show no flickering that results in a smooth display experience.

However, some users may be sensitive to the flicker effects of the screen and some are not, if you are experiencing eye strain or headaches as a result of being glued to their smartphone screen for far too long, don't blame the PWM dimming alone. Try to develop good smartphone habits, such as adjusting your display brightness to a comfortable level and maintaining a reasonable distance between you and your smartphone screen or the best thing you can do is buy an HONOR Magic 4 Ultimate.

Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

THANKS, KURAMA

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