Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
tk3765
Contributor - Level 3

Interesting little glitch occurring.   The brightness of my screen keeps bouncing from my brightness setting to very dim.  No changes in location; it can just be sitting on my desk and the brighter screen will go dim for a few minutes, then brighten back up again with no interference on my part.  Has done this at least a half dozen times already. 

Changing the brightness setting doesn't correct the issue and in fact, the brightness setting itself doesn't always take immediate effect even when I force a change.

Any ideas?

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Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
Ann154
Community Leader
Community Leader

Does it adjust for ambient light?

I'm most definitely NOT a VZW employee. If a post answered your question, please mark it as the answer.

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
stef7
Master - Level 2

Yeah, if you pull down your notification pane, do you have a slider for screen brightness? If there is a button labeled Auto (or go into Settings) and it's on, I think your screen should dim in darker environments. If Auto is not selected, I think the intensity should stay fixed.

Is there anything in the way of the ambient light sensor? Case? Screen Protector? Other debris? Clean the screen.

Yes, I like a diagnostic program like Phone Tester from the PlayStore. It will tell you if the light sensor is not consistent. Just run the program, select sensor status, scroll to Light. It will provide a measurement in Lux.Just cupping your hand over the sensor, you will see the value change.

In your case, if the value is changing with the phone sitting on a flat surface, there may be something wrong with it.

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
tk3765
Contributor - Level 3

I'll add Ann here as well Smiley Happy

I appreciate the help.  In this case, the light where the phone was sitting didn't change.  It was on my desk under the same light it "sees" every day. Screen was cleaned this morning.  No change in a case or screen protector; same exact setup I have had since I picked the phone up two weeks ago.

I had another major glitch on the way home.  I made a call via my car bluetooth just as I left work.  Call was fine but after it ended, the screen went black and wouldn't come back up.  Lasted 90 minutes until I got home and then just came up like nothing happened.

Humph..I had to navigate DC rush hour traffic on my own Smiley Happy but luckily guessed correctly and took the better route by sheer luck.

I'll update as I research in case someone else ends up with the same issue.

Thanks again Smiley Happy

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
tk3765
Contributor - Level 3

Still no resolution.  I've reset the settings twice, essentially telling the phone to ignore what was previously "learned" and re-calibrate the auto-brightness process.  It isn't listening Smiley Happy.

It is still going dark in bright light and swapping between darker and lighter even in the same light level, as in no change in light level or position of the the phone.  I am also seeing that when I turn the phone "off" and then back on, it automatically  keeps the dark setting.

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
stef7
Master - Level 2

At this point, I think either the software version has a defect (would expect others to report it), or there is something related to HW.

Change your screen timeout to some lengthy amount of time so it stays on. Did the screen intensity change while the phone was placed on it's back (and not under a desk lamp please, just ambient light)? If the intensity changed, did the sensor reading change?

Knowing the answers to those questions should tell you if you need to get a replacement, or bug Samsung for an update.

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
vzw_customer_support
Customer Service Rep

stef7,

 

We want your device to function as expected in regards to your the brightness settings. Let's get this figured out. When did this start? Has your device been exposed to any physical/water damage?

 

CoreyM_VZW

Follow us on TWITTER @VZWSupport
If my response answered your question please click the _Correct Answer_ button under my response. This ensures others can benefit from our conversation. Thanks in advance for your help with this!!

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Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
stef7
Master - Level 2

I'm not the OP Smiley Happy

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
tk3765
Contributor - Level 3

I missed this update Smiley Happy.

As the original OP, no, no physical or water damage and I have to make the assumption it started from the time I got the phone, as the auto-brightness is a "learning" process for the phone.  Everything else on the phone is working fine but the screen auto-brightness is still showing a preference to dark or totally black when on auto.  I can change the display brightness via hand when it decides to lighten up enough where I can just make out the settings, but, despite starting the "learning" all over again four times now, it still returns to the darker lighting.

What I do notice is that when in lower light, such as a dark room at night, the brightness is correct and consistent.  It is the change from low light conditions to brighter conditions, such as going from inside to outside a building, where it doesn't want to change or changes very slowly..as in it takes a good 15 minutes for it to "read" the change and at least lighten up enough to where I can see the settings so I can brighten the screen manually.

I do notice that after I lighten the screen and re-activate the auto-brightness feature, the brightness level indicator always drops back to the same place even though the brightness level of the screen I just set manually doesn't change..at least not until the screen goes into the usual "sleep" mode and goes dark again.

Re: Screen Brightness Keeps Changing
vzw_customer_support
Customer Service Rep
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