I made this account just to share this because I'm honestly fed up with Apple.
I bought an iPhone 18 Pro Max for $1,400 and waited an entire month for it to arrive. Right out of the box, I noticed a display defect. It's subtle, so most people probably won't notice it, and I suspect more people have this issue without realizing it.
I discovered it by enabling Display Pulse Smoothing (PWM) under Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size. This disables conventional PWM dimming. At first, I thought the inconsistencies were just a side effect of turning PWM off, but even after turning it back off, I could still notice them if I looked carefully.
I tried the same thing on several iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max devices owned by friends and coworkers. Some had the issue, some didn't. On some, it appeared on one side; on others, both. I've attached photos of my own device.
I was confident Apple would replace a phone that was less than a week old. I went to the Apple Store, where an employee told me I could get a replacement but had to wait two hours for an appointment. I was fine with that. After waiting and returning, they offered me a screen repair instead. I refused. I'm not accepting a repair on a phone I bought brand new less than a week ago.
Then came the calls to Apple Support. One representative told me I'd have to pay for the repair, while another said my only option was to return the phone. Meanwhile, I'd found a couple of posts from people with the same issue who said they got replacements.
On another call, I asked if buying AppleCare+ on the spot would guarantee a replacement. The representative said yes, so I paid for it. Then they couldn't provide the replacement and told me to call back a few hours later.
The next day, I called again. This time, they offered a replacement for $99.
At this point, I'd had enough. I paid $1,400, waited a month, spent hours on calls, and even bought AppleCare+ based on what their representative told me, only to be offered a replacement with an additional fee. I told them to refund my AppleCare+ payment and that I'd return the phone.
The last support representative even wanted me to share my screen so they could see the issue. I'm not sure what they expected to establish that way, given that I was reporting a physical display inconsistency, but that's how far this whole process went.
I have recordings of every single support conversation.
The representative also mentioned that they were receiving an overwhelming number of calls about the same issue. I obviously can't confirm how widespread it is, but that's interesting considering what I found when testing other devices.
Out of curiosity, I also checked the panel information on my phone, and it showed a Samsung G9N panel. I don't know whether that's relevant to the defect, but I thought I'd mention it.
The software has also been buggy, and honestly, it feels like some of Apple's new products aren't production-ready. Manufacturing defects happen, but the way Apple handled this was completely unacceptable for a brand that charges this much.
I was trying to avoid returning the phone because I didn't want to transfer all my data and set everything up again. After wasting hours trying to resolve this, I'm done. I guess I'll stick with my iPhone 15 Pro.
If you have an iPhone 18 Pro or Pro Max, try enabling Display Pulse Smoothing (PWM) under Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size. After turning it on, lower your screen brightness and go into a dark environment. Look carefully around the Dynamic Island and the surrounding areas, where the inconsistencies may become easier to notice. Then turn Display Pulse Smoothing off and check again to see if you can still spot them. I'd be curious to know whether others are seeing the same thing.
I never expected this kind of experience from Apple.
