Weekly poll: what does the perfect smartphone display look like to you?

05 June 2022
Do you have a minimum resolution or refresh rate when looking for a new phone? What about AMOLED vs. LCD and flat vs. curved displays?

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • JKT
  • 05 Jun 2022

GSMArena should do a Flashback on why RGB AMOLEDs are so rare. I remember their old reviews used to capture the display under a microscope to see the pixel arrangement.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • s3E
    • 05 Jun 2022

    Perosnally for me a perfect phone screen is 6.7-6.8" 19.5:9 curved QHD+ 120+ Hz amoled with always-on. I don't have problems with such a screen size even with one-hand use, my hands aren't that big, from what I noticed most people just hold it a bit differently and I have no idea how that can be more comfortable but whateve. Either way anything below 6.4" if it's 19:9 or taller is a no-go for me, it's just uncomfortable to use for me, idk. As for QHD - I don't actually turn on QHD rendering, I settle for FHD, however when I had an actual FHD 6.56" phone I could actually distinguish between individual pixels occasionally. On my current 6.8" QHD screen with FHD rendering no problems like that, and I can see difference between QHD and FHD rendering only if I look closely, so it's really just about physical pixels here. As for curved edges - again, due to me seemingly holding my phone a bit differently than most people I have never ever had problems with accidental side touches, back swipe however is just so pleasant that I really don't wanna go back to flat. And I almost never paid attention to light reflections on edges.

      • B
      • Big mom
      • wrX
      • 05 Jun 2022

      Hanif Fikri, 05 Jun 2022All i wanted is go back to 19.5:9 display ratio like from t... moreDo you realize that 0,5 different between 20 and 19,5?
      I think it is small difference that doesnt matter.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • 3SL
        • 05 Jun 2022

        MASTERY, 05 Jun 202216:9 2160p 4K (switches to 1080p when 4K content isn... moreSame here. Would be a perfect display for me. Have a Xperia 1 and can easily say that it's the best display in terms of quality i have ever used. The display is small but we are looking from a close distance. So 4K is not a gimmick.

          • A
          • Andrew
          • gv6
          • 05 Jun 2022

          For me a phone with a FullHD+ Amoled 120hz, Always on, DC dimming and low blue light is quite perfect.

            Dolby Vision is a deal breaker for me.

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • vIb
              • 05 Jun 2022

              I like how there is a convenient option for iPhone users which says "Don't care" but a more accurate one would be "don't know, cause I'm just an iPhone user"

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • vIb
                • 05 Jun 2022

                MASTERY, 05 Jun 202216:9 2160p 4K (switches to 1080p when 4K content isn... moreHaving owned many phones with qhd I can say there is a difference for sure. And so i will pick qhd anyday but that is unless I try a 4k. And then it's 4k anyday

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • 8Uw
                  • 05 Jun 2022

                  MASTERY, 05 Jun 202216:9 2160p 4K (switches to 1080p when 4K content isn... moreYou have just described XZ2 Premium

                    16:9

                    2160p 4K (switches to 1080p when 4K content isn't present like Xperia's do)

                    LCD

                    120Hz

                    Flat

                    HDR

                    10-bit

                    Say whatever you want about high resolutions on small displays. I can clearly see a difference.

                      Ok, I voted. Out of 5 questions, 3 are in conjunction with the majority opinion. AMOLED, FHD+ and Flat display.
                      I also prefered "Toughened Glass" which scored 2nd rank.
                      Flat is mainly to avoid accidental touches. AMOLED for quality. FHD+ as its mostly enough, and higher res means lesser battery life.

                      GSMArena could've gone with a better set of options though. What's with 90, 120, 144Hz but no 60Hz mentioned?
                      Let me tell you, "Don't care" is not the same as "I deliberately prefer 60Hz". I mean, would you totally ignore battery life for higher refresh rate?

                        FHD+ is the best compromise between sharpness and battery life on anything under 7" and I didn't think having a 120hz refresh rate would be that noticeable until I used it. Tried going back to 60hz and really noticed the juddering which surprised me. And having used both amoled and LCD screens I definitely prefer LCD as the amoled strained my eyes and gave me a headache. Haven't tried a curved screen but I like having a screen protector on my phones so probably wouldn't buy one. And good brightness is also important (and I'm from UK where we don't get as much sun as a lot of countries) but still need decent brightness on a rare sunny day.

                          • T
                          • The DON
                          • xjH
                          • 05 Jun 2022

                          Olympus Oms, 05 Jun 20225". Full HD. Samoled. 90 degree corners! No holes! 144... moreYou must have really small hands

                            Anything above 1080p on a 6/7 inch device is a gimmick. Refresh rate at 90 is fine for me as most of the games are fixed at 60fps so apart from scrolling there isn't much use of it. Most of the people can't even differentiate between lcd/amoled pannel on a PHONE.

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • 3SI
                              • 05 Jun 2022

                              Anonymous, 05 Jun 2022The 60 hz option was likely omitted because very less peopl... moreiPhone 13 sells pretty well though at 60 Hz

                                For me the perfect display is :-
                                1080p,
                                AMOLED of the best kind,
                                60 Hz as I have a gaming laptop for high refresh action, but can manage upto 90 Hz, any more is a tax on the battery life,
                                Size from 5 to 5.5 inch in 16:9.
                                Aspect ratio should be 16:9 I insist, rather my right hand's paining thumb insists.
                                Notch is tolerable, but rather it not be there...
                                Top and bottom bezels are perfectly ok. Avoid side bezels which increase phone width.

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • Kg}
                                  • 05 Jun 2022

                                  Around 6.5"-6.7" flat OLED Screen
                                  QHD+
                                  LTPO 1Hz- 120Hz
                                  1200-1500 nits peak brightness
                                  HDR 10+ or Dolby Vision
                                  10-bit panel
                                  Excellent color calibration (meaning great colors, dynamic range, UNIFORM solid colors such as greys, no black crush and green tint)
                                  360Hz-480Hz Touch sampling rate
                                  Between Gorilla glass 6 to Victus+ protection

                                    • l
                                    • lvm
                                    • JEP
                                    • 05 Jun 2022

                                    And no holes, notches and rounded corners. Perfect flat rectangle.

                                      Anything above 1080p is totally unnecessary for a mobile phone display. The only benefit of having a higher res display I have found is when I take screenshots, as it captures a lot more details thus looking crisp. Regarding refresh rate, yeah 90/120 Hz would be great, 60 Hz needs to die really, along with curved display. And I voted for LCD also, AMOLED remains immature, pressure putting on eyes.

                                        • N
                                        • Nick
                                        • 3Sw
                                        • 05 Jun 2022

                                        Olympus Oms, 05 Jun 20225". Full HD. Samoled. 90 degree corners! No holes! 144... moreAmen, brother.

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