Are iPhone 18 Pro Max users experiencing physical headaches?

If you are experiencing frequent physical headaches while using the iPhone 18 Pro Max, don’t immediately assume that the phone itself is the cause. Prolonged screen use, eye strain, brightness, viewing distance, or an outdated spectacle prescription can all contribute to headaches.

It would be advisable to get your eyes thoroughly examined by a qualified and competent ophthalmologist. Have your current spectacle prescription checked and verified, and if there has been any change in your vision, get the prescription updated and your glasses changed accordingly.

Also, pay attention to your screen habits—take regular breaks, maintain a comfortable viewing distance, and avoid using the phone for prolonged periods without resting your eyes. If the headaches persist even after correcting your vision and improving your screen habits, consult a doctor to rule out other possible causes.

Move your iPhone or iPad to a distance greater than 30 cm (12 inches) from your face. Tap Continue. Which devices work with Screen Distance? Read more

What is Screen Distance?

Try turning on Display Pulse Smoothing at this path,

iPhone > Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size > scroll down > Display Pulse Smoothing (PWM)

This is what Apple say about Display Pulse Smoothing; “Provides a different way to dim the OLED display at low brightness levels, by disabling pulse width modulation which can create a smoother display output. Disabling PWM may affect low brightness display performance under certain conditions.”

Some users are more sensitive to the way modern screens provide the visual information.

Have you tried enabling Display Pulse Smoothing at this path,

iPhone > Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size > scroll down > Display Pulse Smoothing (PWM)

This is known to help some users that are sensitive to the refresh rates on OLED screens.

JULIEET13 wrote:

Is anyone experiencing physical headaches using 18 pro max?

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Headaches

No. And I'm on this forum daily and to be honest, your post is the first I've seen suggesting their new iPhone is giving them any headaches from using an iPhone 18 Pro model. We've had our 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max, since launch day. I would recommend you follow Jeff Donald's advice on pulse smoothing.

I’m in the same boat headaches since starting the 18 pro, changed some settings like mentioned above and might try buying an old 15 since that’s what I had before with no issues, curious if your break works

Hi thank you for the advice. I had an eye test yesterday which showed no problem. My screen habits are the same and I have always had iPhones. I have had my new phone 2 weeks and my headaches two weeks also. I am now taking a break to see if that makes a difference.