What works for you, what do you use now without problems?

So far I've only experienced eye strain from computers. My phone is a galaxy s8 plus and my primary TV is a 2017 samsung series 8. The only time they bother me is if I already have eye strain from using a "bad" computer.

I've been struggling with eye strain for the past 2 and a half years. Since then I've bought and built multiple desktops and laptops trying to figure out what works and what doesn't.

3 things I've noticed while testing different computers

1. 4th gen intel chips don't trigger my eyestrain.
2. Connecting my work laptop with a 6th gen i7 and nvidia quadro cpu through USB-C causes eye strain but when using VGA, it's a lot more bearable.
3. Games trigger eye strain and migraines faster than web browsing and coding

No eye strain

• Surface pro 3 with a 4th gen i5 cpu running win 10
• mac mini 2014 with 4th gen intel i5 (don't remember which version of osx)
• older dell inspiron with a 4th gen i7 and radeon hd 6850 running windows 7
• AMD phenom II with radeon hd 7850 running windows 7

Eye strain

• ryzen 5 1600 with gtx 1060 running windows 10 pro
• ryzen 5 1600 with radeon rx 550 running windows 10, linux mint, ubuntu
• ryzen 7 with 1060 running windows 10 pro
• 7th gen i7 with intel graphics 630 running windows 10 home
• ryzen 7 with radeon hd 7850 running windows 10
• dell laptop 6th gen i7 with nvidia quadro 510 running windows 10
• dell g7 with 7th gen i7 and gtx 1060 running windows 10
• surface pro 6 8th gen running windows 10

Smartphone(custom rom with power profile set to power save, force gpu rendering which is a deprecated setting, older webview, older versions of apps, different firmware radios may influence strain): Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro with Tianma/BOE panel(Lineage 14.1 Oct 2017 by Umang96, Android 7.1.2, 7.6.15 firmware, PureAGNi Kernel v13.3 For LOS-Ng unofficial build by Pzqqt)

Tablet(custom rom with power profile set to power save, force gpu rendering which is a deprecated setting, older webview, older versions of apps like Samsung internet beta 16.06.23/Impulse 1.7.2/Ymusic 3.7.15 , clearing cache and dalvik/system webview/play services, in this order, may reset strain): Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 T813(RR 5.8.5 Oct 2017 by Icewyng, Android 7.1.2)

Desktop(medium strain):

• Monitors: Dell U2515H (2016, IPS, 15% brightness, HDMI, full RGB), Dell P2417H(PLS, 25% brightness, HDMI, full RGB), one connected to the motherboard hdmi port and the other to the dedicated card hdmi
• OS: Windows 10 Education 1511 x64
• Browser: latest Chrome(some extensions that draw over screen like imagus may add strain, changed font to helvetica, video acceleration enabled)
• Video card: Gigabyte Nvidia GTX 780ti 3 Gb
• Motherboard: Z87-GD65 GAMING
• CPU: intel 4790k
• Video driver: intel 10.18.15.4279, nvidia 368.95(older than 2017 intel and nvidia drivers are generally better)
• Bios version: 1.2
• Bios mode: UEFI(legacy mode worked better on some systems)
• Partition system: GPT(MBR worked better on some systems, mandatory on legacy mode)
• Windows update service: disabled(installing updates and features may cause strain)
• Chipset drivers: no(create restore point before installing if you want to compare)
• Others:
  • Rufus(win 7), Ventoy
  • Win 10 1507 Ed
  • Win 10 1511 Ed
  • Win 10 Ltsc/Ltsb
  • Win update blocker, OO Shutup10(all options checked)
  • Nvidia RGB Full/Limited
  • Win 10 DPI fix(adds strain, i use startup script instead)
  • Classic Shell(2 column layout)
  • Ditherig, novideo_srgb
  • PWM utility, PWMhelper(startup)
  • Aomei partition assistant(for mbr/gpt partition conversion wihout losing data, use preOS option)
  • DDU
  • Snappy Driver Installer Origin
  • Double driver
  • NVCleanstall
  • Nvidia INF driver modding guide
  • WUMT 2015
  • UefiSeven

My experience(you need to test for yourself):

• strained my eyes badly after an upgrade, now, i can't even use my previous setup and i get different symptoms from newer phones
• deep in the head, sort of behind the eyes headache that comes instantly after looking at a LED-backlit computer monitor or newer OLED
• seems like problems stem from a combination of display type + PWM + newer video drivers + newer windows build + MBR/GPT + newer software + type of vga output + motherboard bios + video card bios + various win tweaks + video memory brand + system memory brand(if on igpu)
• strain varies between different videocard models and brands, windows feature updates(ex: 22H2) and editions(ex: Education), even machines of the same model(sourced screens are from different suppliers and different versions of firmware are being used)
• newer desktop motherboards(bios related) may increase strain(starting with 8th gen intel)
• windows releases post 1511 feb update may increase strain
• most comfortable, for me, seems to be the 1511 Education edition of Windows 10(build 10586.0), 1507 Ed, Windows 8.1 Enterprise(update 1)
• i usually install Windows 11 builds offline and then apply WUB and O&O ShutUp10 before connecting to the internet(it strains after updating optional features)
• newer AMD and Nvidia video drivers may increase strain
• installing newer .net framework may increase strain
• installing different start menu may increase strain(classic shell gives less strain)
  *special mention to stardock start8/start10 app that affected strain in such a way that i had to reflash bios (reflashing the bios in the windows utility but stopping at reading the bios part reset strain for me)
• running Windows with basic display drivers may reduce strain(high temps without driver)
• adjusting visual effects for best performance in windows may reduce strain(i keep smooth edges of fonts checked)
• disabling gpu scaling may reduce strain(i use the bios option)
• setting Nvidia RGB dynamic range to limited may reduce strain
• uninstalling chipset driver related to pci express may reduce strain(double driver can tell which drivers are updated)
• disabling wifi and bluetooth controller in device manager(even if no driver) may reduce strain
• changing 3D option to performance in intel driver may reduce strain
• reducing cursor blink rate to none in keyboard properties may reduce strain
• installing edge dev + webview may reduce strain
• keeping the computer in hibernate mode may reduce strain
• keeping a notebook on battery may reduce strain
• disabling WindowsColorSystem Calibration Loader service in Task Scheduler may reduce strain
• swapping an iphone oled screen with an cheap version from aliexpress may reduce strain
• converting from mbr to gpt may improve strain
• SATA drivers may influence strain(included in chipset setup drivers)
• EMF/RF may influence strain
• when downgrading bios i strongly recommend using a bootable DOS flash drive with added parameters for the flash utility that will fully erase every block(ex: afudos.exe /p /b /n /e /l /R), if the bios doesn't have the block specified it skips the entire process so i had to delete the parameter and start again
• android versions after 2017 increase strain on both my phone and tablet, magisk and microg may increase strain
• some phones have sensors above the screen that may increase strain(ex: Samsung S8/S9 iris scanners)
• for laptops a safe choice would be 2nd-->7th gen intel(subjective)
• didn't test too many but i'd go with a several years old monitor with maximum 250 nits(TN Innolux or AH-IPS) which should be kept at full brightness all the time
• disabling dithering, changing icc profiles or running windows in audit mode didn't help me
• disabling direct3D acceleration in Windows desktop didn't help me
• disabling font smoothing in Windows didn't help me
• killing dwm.exe didn't help me
• turning off "display power saving technology"(automatic contrast) in intel driver -> power section didn't help me
• windows tweaks like disabling hibernation, disabling index, disabling UAC, using uxtheme patcher, using win 10 dpi fix utility, enabling user autologin, etc., may increase strain
• KMS windows/office activation tasks/services may increase strain, i activate manually
• driver from dedicated video card influences strain even when connected to iGPU
• swapping the video card to a "bad" one and then switching it back requires clean install of video drivers(i needed to reformat os with some AMD cards)
• for AMD graphics cards, the cleanup utility performs a more complete uninstall than DDU
• colours are more saturated in server editions of win 10 and desaturated in ltsb/ltsc
• strain with HDMI<DVI<DP for me
• strain in Manjaro's XFCE<GNOME<KDE Plasma, tested Nobara/Fedora and they seem to be better
• the xf86-video-fbdev driver for linux is more comfortable but lacks support for multiple monitors
• executing new windows setup in safe windows build may increase strain
• some windows/linux iso's may influence strain when downloaded or copied on external usb
• motherboards and video cards tested with strain: Gigabyte Z390 Aorus PRO, MSI Z370-A PRO, MSI B350M PRO VDH, MSI X99S SLI PLUS, Vega 56, GeForce 980ti, R9 280x, Radeon HD 7850(less strain without driver with older cpu)
• also with strain: 24GL600F-B monitor(TN, tweaked gamma and disabled overdrive but still no bueno), quadro k5000(need to retest), chinese X79 MB clones(updated bios), 3 gtx 970's from MSI, EVGA and Gigabyte(gen 1.1), dell latitude e6450(display), acer e5-572g(display)
• less strain: Clevo P651RP6-G(max brightness, downgraded bios+ec firmware, Windows 8.1, test mode, 2015 intel driver, 368.95 nvidia modded driver, intel 3D set to performance, nvidia rgb set to limited, windows visual effects set to performance, nvidia gpu scaling disabled in bios)

Best working for me (22nd of March):

Desktop

• Windows 7
• Intel Skylake CPU (6th gen)
• Integrated Intel graphics with "Standard VGA" driver (better than Intel driver with Ditherig)
• Dell 2208WFP ( TN panel, no FRC, CCFL backlight, can be made PWM free )
• Opera browser, IE 11 (others give eyestrain, worst is Firefox Quantum)

I am not a gamer, so this setup is working for me. Currently waiting on old ATI FireGL graphicscard to test the 10bit mode that worked for me on a Thinkpad W500.

Laptop

• Thinkpad W500 with ATI FireGL chip in 10bit mode (have 2, one is working, the other one not. Could not figure out yet what the difference is... Seems to be related to VBios setting. Bad one has dithering even on BIOS screen)

Phone

Have not found any working phone yet. iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus seem to be ok for some time.

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Update from 26th of March:

Desktop

• Windows 7, Cleartype off
• NVidia Quadro NVS 295 (only one monitor connected, two increase flicker)
• Eizo CG223W ( S-PVA panel, CCFL backlit, has PWM and probably FRC, but way better than previous TN-panel. Do not get "foggy mind" anymore )
• Opera, FF Quantum still "painful"

Best setup yet. May check the NVidia card also with Linux and Windows 10.

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Update from 27th of March:

The Windows 7 / NVidia / S-PVA panel setup is awesome. Best I have had in years! Just found the other devices I used to be worse than expected. Guess I got used to the headache already?

Laptop

• no laptop yet that is as good as my current desktop setup
• Lenovo W500 with ATI FireGL dithers as well (only noticed it after two days sitting in front of my "perfect desktop" setup now )

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Update from 29th of March

Can say that some NVidia cards are just a joy to work with.
Currently I own 3 but only 2 of them are "good".

Good:

• NVidia Quadro NVS 295 (got mine for 4 EUR on Ebay)
• NVidia Quadro K420 (got mine for 40 EUR on Ebay)

Not good:

• NVidia Quadro FX 3800 (no clue why this did not work for me honestly)
• ATI FirePro W7000
• ATI FirePro W5700

deepflame I've been wondering if quadro was going to be the solution. just ordered one to try - $8 on ebay! [edit] pretty nice so far (displayport only fyi). but.. DX11 games, VS Code, Unreal Engine wont even launch & it seems there's no way to switch back and forth between cards in win10?

reaganry Yeah, the NVS 295 are super cheap. Got mine for 4 EUR off ebay. Ordered a Quadro K420 to get more graphics power and to be able to play some games with my son.
I will certainly update on the K420 .

For me it is also the panel it seems. I have different screens here (accumulated them over the past years to figure out what is going on) and will test again.
For now having this S-PVA panel is the best even though it has PWM and FRC. Will get a Dell 2407wfp on Monday. Said screen should also be S-PVA.
TN seems to make me sleepy (tension in the back of my head), the IPS panel I have gives me a different strain. All are CCFL backlit.

diop Windows 7, current driver (430.86).
K420 actually seems to be better than the NVS 295 using Chrome 74. Really a joy working with it.

Tested the NVS 295 also with Ubuntu 18.04 and appeared to be ok. Will test it with the K420 as well.

AGI No, it is definitely the tech for me. The Nvidia K420 is really good (if you don't have apps open that makes it dither again). I can also play videogames with my son with it which is really cool!

Think I have not written down my complete story here yet but it all started around 6-7 years ago, I think when I bought myself a MBP 13'' unibody with LED backlit screen.

Not sure exactly if it was the device or if it got worse after an upgrade. At least more and more devices like iPad, iPhone, DLP projector, made their way into our home and I spent more and more time with those.

I am a software guy and I was quite lucky around 6 years ago that I got into presales and professional services. So I could spend more time at the customer site and did not have to stare at screens all day long.

When I moved back to Germany I remember buying an Eizo LED backlit flickerfree screen that I connected to my MBP. Looking at it made me feel like looking into the bright sun. Also like needles being pinched into the back of my eye. It was very painful to look at!
This is where my journey looking for a good working environment began and it seems that after all these years I have finally arrived.

With the current setup (Windows 7, Skylake processor (for Windows 7), NVidia Quadro K420 and the S-PVA screen having the "wrong" apps closed) is really good to work with.

So the next step would be to get a good laptop that I could at least use for some time (I am looking at the Thinkpad W530 or W540 with NVidia Quadro GPUs, but have LED backlit screens).
And to get a smartphone that is not painful to look at. I get eye strain looking at my iPhone 6s (sorry, I meant 6 Plus) with iOS12 after just a second or so. Same for other devices that are using dithering.

Hope that helps
Please don't hesitate to ask more questions if there are.

deepflame Many thanks! Do you have perfect vision? Have you ever had any thought it might be your eyes to cause digital eyestrain, and got checked? How about LED and fluorescent lamps?

deepflame I get eye strain looking at my iPhone 6s with iOS12 after just a second or so.

Uh, I bought an open box iPhone 6s a week ago on eBay. It should come in a month!?!? Your comment makes me think it will be a long wait for nothing :-(

AGI Do you have perfect vision?

No, I have astigmatism with -4 and -5 spherical value.

AGI Have you ever had any thought it might be your eyes to cause digital eyestrain, and got checked?

Yes, I got it checked and it did not get better with new glasses. When I am away from my screen I do not have issues. So it is certainly the computer.

AGI How about LED and fluorescent lamps?

Had to remove all LED bulbs in our flat. That already calmed down my neural system a lot! Have halogen bulbs now. They last way longer than incandescent ones. No problems with fluorescent lamps as I know.

AGI Uh, I bought an open box iPhone 6s a week ago on eBay

Sorry, my bad. I have an iPhone 6 Plus, not 6s. My wife has a 6s. However that got worse after she upgraded from iOS10 to iOS12. So if the phone still runs iOS10 and you can bear it I would refrain from upgrading it...

deepflame So if the phone still runs iOS10 and you can bear it I would refrain from upgrading it...

Thanks on the tip! I will see when it arrives. It is an "open box" item. I hope they do not update the OS before shipping!

deepflame No problems with fluorescent lamps as I know.

Since I changed job, I have developed eyelid and face muscle twitching. After quite some time, I figured out it is mostly caused by the ceiling fluorescent lamps. I do have fluorescent lamps in the apartment I rent, and I have no problem. I tried to look at the emission spectra and wavelength-wise I cannot find a clear difference although the "bad" lamps look of a warmer color. Funnily, I can see by the naked eye the bulb in my kitchen flicker and it does not bother me. I am clueless.