Apple Investigating Display Issues With iPhone 12 Models, Including Flickering and Green/Gray Glow

In an internal document obtained by MacRumors, Apple has acknowledged an issue with some iPhone 12 displays exhibiting flickering, a green or gray glow, or other unintended lighting variations under some conditions.

iphone 12 green glow
In the document, shared with Apple Authorized Service Providers this week, Apple says that it is aware of customer reports related to this issue and is investigating. Apple has advised technicians to avoid servicing affected iPhones, at least for now, and instead inform customers that they should keep their iPhone up to date with the latest iOS version. This guidance suggests that Apple may be confident that it can fix the issue in a future software update.

A similar green tinted display issue affected some iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max models, and Apple was able to fix it in iOS 13.6.1.

There have been complaints about this new issue in the MacRumors forums and Apple Support Communities since shortly after iPhone 12 models launched. The issue can affect the iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Based on customer reports, the issue appears to occur when the display brightness is set to around 90% or lower. Many users are experiencing the issue on iOS 14.1, iOS 14.2, and seemingly even the first two iOS 14.3 betas. The flickering or glowing is not always persistent, disappearing after a short time for some customers.

If and when the issue is addressed, or we learn more, we'll update this article accordingly.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Production Will Reportedly Begin Ramping Up in October

Tuesday July 23, 2024 2:00 pm PDT by
Following nearly two years of rumors about a fourth-generation iPhone SE, The Information today reported that Apple suppliers are finally planning to begin ramping up mass production of the device in October of this year. If accurate, that timeframe would mean that the next iPhone SE would not be announced alongside the iPhone 16 series in September, as expected. Instead, the report...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature

iPhone 17 Lineup Specs Detail Display Upgrade and New High-End Model

Monday July 22, 2024 4:33 am PDT by
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

Kuo: Ultra-Thin iPhone 17 to Feature A19 Chip, Single Rear Camera, Semi-Titanium Frame, and More

Wednesday July 24, 2024 9:06 am PDT by
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today shared alleged specifications for a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 model rumored to launch next year. Kuo expects the device to be equipped with a 6.6-inch display with a current-size Dynamic Island, a standard A19 chip rather than an A19 Pro chip, a single rear camera, and an Apple-designed 5G chip. He also expects the device to have a...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Less Than Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Thursday July 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
icloud private relay outage

iCloud Private Relay Experiencing Outage

Thursday July 25, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
Apple’s iCloud Private Relay service is down for some users, according to Apple’s System Status page. Apple says that the iCloud Private Relay service may be slow or unavailable. The outage started at 2:34 p.m. Eastern Time, but it does not appear to be affecting all iCloud users. Some impacted users are unable to browse the web without turning iCloud Private Relay off, while others are...

Top Rated Comments

macduke Avatar
48 months ago

Does this include the yellow tint issue?
It's obviously a combination of the yellow tint issue, and the blue tint issue.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CJ Dorschel Avatar
48 months ago
“You’re looking at it wrong”
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
moabal Avatar
48 months ago
Does this include the yellow tint issue?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
48 months ago
Is it me or has this release been unusually problematic? Compared to the near flawless release of the 11 series last year it's kind of disappointing.

So glad I'm skipping this year.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LFC2020 Avatar
48 months ago

Turn off true tone.
Really ??‍♂️?

Guessing you haven't seen the 80 page thread regarding the yellow screen issues, pretty sure everyone by now knows how to turn off True Tone.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LFC2020 Avatar
48 months ago
Nice work Macrumors, now can we get a news article about the yellow tinting on most displays, greys look yellow/green in dark mode.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)