100+ Issues Other than PWM: Blur Busters' Word on Overemphasis on PWM

[Chief Blur Buster]

100+ Issues Other than PWM: Blur Busters' Word on Overemphasis on PWM

PWM is a big problem. It's a super common topic. Rightfully so.

But it's just a big slice of the display-ergonomics pie. There are more than 100 display ergonomics problems, other than the common ones (e.g. PWM, blue light, etc).

I remember how boilerplate gaming monitor used to be. The stereotypical 1080p TN. Not anymore. It's true that TN + inversion artifacts + high blue light LED + etc, all came all at the same time. It certainly definitely did complicate diagnosis, and turned 50 ergonomic problems into 200 ergonomic problems. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but I agree with you here; it did not make misdiagnoses any bit easier. But I can scientifically confirm it doesn't deny the definite existence of a motion-sensitivity issues -- some already definitively confirmed (under paid multi-hours contract) to have been solved by a lower frame rate or refresh rate.

Sometimes high frame rate is the ergonomic fix, and sometimes low frame rates is the ergonomic fix. And, even Blur Busters, acknowledges extra blur too, sometimes is required.

This topic matter in other forums is sometimes in the pre-science-era Newtonian World full of schotastic parrots ("PWM! PWM!" drumbeats. Big problem, yes. Big pie slice of the problem. But it is ONLY merely a big pie slice). And not seeing beyond their walled garden beyond to the Einsteinian World, of a much bigger universe of display-ergonomic issues. Forum members stop helping those "Switching to this PWM free display didn't help me" forum members, and move on to the next forum member they can take pleasure on having helped.

The Statistical Bias Effect

This commonly creates something called a "statistical bias" effect when so many forum members have a high success rate helping people fix PWM headaches. Yes, lots of wins.

But unfortunately sweeps OTHER display ergonomics under the rug, because forum members are stumped trying to help those people. Most people are not interested in helping these hard-wins.

These are the people Blur Busters is eagerly interested in figuring out scientifically -- and we've learned lots over the last ten years.
Imagine, tons of 1% and 10% problems that total-up to literally ~50% of the pie(ish), all ignored.

Researchers, industry scientists, or university students looking for new thesis topics, often follow the obvious topics. I now try to put the underdiscussed topics back onto proper radar. Whether it's about human-visible benefits of >1000Hz refresh rates even in non-esports contexts, or other topic matter, I love to cover the under-covered niche display topics...

The high success rate solving PWM issues in forums, literally turning a minority pieslice (albiet high double-digit minority) into what feels like a false-majority or false-near-100% pieslice. This makes other display-ergonomic issues relatively ignored.

These other forums are important in culling those people still getting PWM headaches. The remaining people who arrive on these Blur Busters pastures, often is biased-towards more surgical display-ergonomics issues. Alas, I don't have time to help everyone sadly. But I'll just point out obviouses.

Too many unfortunately perpetuate the myth that only a few display-ergonomic issues exists. And I'm going to pounce very fast to mythbust as one of the Internet's resident refresh rate mythbusters. And sometimes I have to Robin Hood some of the issues back to the forefront.

We also point out that many are affected by multiple display-ergonomic issues simultaneously, so even after fixing PWM, there's an unusually unhealthy focus on the remaining flicker-issues.

Sometimes FRC/dither issues were actually traced to eyestrain, but once fixing the blatant PWM dimming issues -- there was still an unhealthy over-focus on remaining temporal-pixel-flicker issues that was no longer affecting them (and completely missed OTHER non-flicker-related) ergonomic issues that were actually afflicting them. So the Wild Goose Chase Factor is pretty strong, when we have this type of issuecount on so many ergonomic issues (bigger than niche, smaller than PWM).

New Display Comfort Forum at Blur Busters

I have now created this brand new Display Ergonomics forum as it is already within the Blur Busters sphere, given ergonomic benefits/issues pertaining to high Hz, and "Blur Busters" being a beacon to motion blur headachers. These threads and dozens others have been moved into this new forum to keep exploding this topic further into the mainstream, in the battle of expanding overage of undercovered definite issues.

Since I have already been paid (Google/Apple contractor rates!) to help troubleshoot vision ergonomic issues with people on displays, I have come to realize just how gigantic the display comfort rabbit hole is. This is not my primary line of work, but as a peripheral issue of the ergonomic benefit of high refresh rates, it has always hovered within Blur Busters' sphere for the last ten years plus.

I want make sure all display-ergonomic issues are more fairly covered in a more broad manner. One definitely need to test yourself against eyestrain caused by PWM -- but it is all too often a redherring for other display ergonomics issues, with lots of people still getting eyestrain/headaches/nausea/motionsickness from causes other than PWM too.

When Creating New Threads

When trying to troubleshoot yourself, please be as detailed as possible:

- Whether it has only been 1 display bothering you; or you've tried many
- What you tried
- What framerates you're testing at
- Whether you get eyestrain only during motion
- What refresh rates you tried (even test out 24Hz refresh rate)
- What settings you tried (resolution, color, VRR, strobe, etc)
- What displays bother you
- What displays don't bother you
- When experimenting, try to go left field as far as you can

TIP: If you're lucky to fix your ergonomic problems after 4 or 5 monitor purchases, this advice does not apply to you. If you've been unlucky for many displays, you have to go VERY LEFT FIELD: e.g. dramatic changes. Such as viewing distance, double display size/double view distance, LCD vs OLED, try 24 Hz vs 240 Hz, sometimes lowering Hz helps, sometimes turning on framegen/interpolation fixes eyestrain unexpectedly by keeping framerates above a guaranteed minimum. Glossy vs matte (glossy is hard to get in gaming monitors). Lighting/brightness/color/etc. Test turning on GPU Motion Blur Effect (it's an easter egg accessibility setting, much like Apple Reduce Motion). Test turning on your strobe backlight, in case you get more motionblur eyestrain than flicker eyestrain. You have to do really unusually dramatic left-fiend experimentation if you've one of those afflicted by "almost all gaming monitors bother me" problems.

Why Go Left Field If You've Hopelessly Tried Many Displays Already? Here's Why: We see too many people try 10 displays, but often users keep rolling dice on only 24-27" + only-LCD-panel-tech + only armslength view distance + only-LED-backlit + only-high-Hz + only-antiglare-filtered monitors, without going Super Left Field. Trying the Same Thing Over And Over. The "Go Left Field" adage (try dramatically different displays of size, tech, antiglare coating or lack thereof, viewing distance, brightnesses, refresh rate, resolution, size, flicker, strobe mode, distance, panel type, etc) to rapidly binary-search their way through >100 display ergonomic issues.

Disclaimer: Involve your eye doctor if necessary. That said, we acknowledge eye doctors aren't always versed on display ergonomic issues beyond the common simple causes. This is where tools such as this forums can help oneself narrow down their specific display-ergonomic issue in conjunction with their existing vision help. Even some doctors sometimes use resources on the Internet to learn more about how widespread display-ergonomic issues are, for things beyond the scope of existing training.

Continue Browsing Display Comfort Forum

Hope you solve your comfort problem! It's a serious problem for many, and not a laughing matter.