Random Screen dimming (while brightness slider stays at 100%) after A12 update

did you open a ticket? I did so 2-3 days ago as it seem to be reproducible in sunlight. Instead of downgrading, did you think about installing a Custom ROM, I think I havent seen any report that this bug is also showing in any Custom ROM so far? They will not manage two Android Versions at the same time, so downgrading would mean you stick to security patch level what makes your phone insecure over time.

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I opened a Ticket and they said they would forward it to the respective department.
I would rather use an insecure andorid Version without this problem than a secure one with this problem. Actually it is the most annoying problem I ever had with a mobile phone ever since it makes the phone nearly unusable in a bright environment.
And I am really not motivated at all to read stuff about custum roms. I just want a phone that works but android 12 update really fucked up

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I believe that they do:

  1. Visit

https://support.fairphone.com/hc/en-us/articles/4405858261777?s=09

  1. Download

https://fairphone-android-builds.ams3.digitaloceanspaces.com/FP4%2FFP4-FP4K-factory.zip

  1. Install it.

Just be very careful I guess this latest A11 version is the version that was only provided to some specific carriers and countries and installing this just might bring a lot more trouble. And whatever you do, def do not relock the bootloader else you will end up in completely useless bricked phone that needs to be send in.

Normally they def do not provide the option to manually downgrade for good reasons I guess

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Because of the downgrade, or just generally, nobody should relock it? I was just about to relock my phone to recover access to Google Pay, since I believe that a locked bootloader is the last hurdle to overcome to pass SafetyNet validation.

Just have a look here… In short: yes in general, be careful, main factor seem to be the security patch date…

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I saw that there is now a button for “extended darkness”. It’s just stupid that the display doesn’t behave the way it did before this new function, but that it’s STILL darker than it already is. Fairphone turns more and more into extremely half-hearted implementation of features.

Yeah, I’ve realized that I was wrong. It always occurs in brightness. I erroneously concluded that it was due to heat because the place I tested it was dark and thus cool.

That’s just a feature of #android12.

You probably just don’t have the screen above 70% in the first place if you’re in the dark. :grin: I do think it’s responding to heat. The issue usually kicks in a few minutes after opening a heavy game, or soon after hitting “update all” on google play, and it’s also much more unstable while charging. I’d reckon the function is designed to reduce burn-in on OLED screens, although of course it doesn’t make sense here as the FP4 doesn’t have an OLED screen.

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I don’t see how wobbly luminosity would prevent that, I agree less luminosity would slow the process a wee little bit, but is it enough to be worth the hassle? Especially if it’s potentially annoying (“it doesn’t matter you’re not able to read your screen, the important thing is it will live longer…”)?

Also in this case there would 1. be a proper setting somewhere, 2. the phone would just go down a few notches and stay there, and 3. it would not report full brightness when it has knowingly scaled it back.

IMHO all points to a bug somewhere between Android’s brightness management and the backlight firmware.

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I would not agree to that, as it for me happens just by typing a response here in the forum or an email (so really nothing heavy or creating really heat) and it def was and still is at 100% when it happens and it always happens (or it just noticeably happens) when you are out in the sun.

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Maybe it would make more sense if I said “warmth” rather than “heat”. In any case it’s very easy to demonstrate that it’s not dependent on the brightness sensor.

How do you demonstrate? I could link it to this sensor, doing the sensor test in sunlight fails…

Maybe its caused differently or your issue us different!?

Either in a dark room or taping over the sensor. I reproduced it just now in a dark room by setting brightness to 100%, plugging in the charger, and playing Stumble Guys for about 5 minutes. That was starting from cold, but if I had been using the phone before that it would probably have been sooner.

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Interesting observation :+1:

Most of the times my screen suddenly got dimmed was with Duolingo, which can be a very resource hungry app sometimes. Not on the charger, but happened in very different lighting conditions.

Could this be a function that is supposed to reduce power draw going rogue :thinking:
I remember some people having issues with Google Maps showing a “overheating” message a while back, maybe it’s meant to prevent the system from overheating by limiting some components.

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:thinking: Well, my FP4 does get warm (not hot) often, at least more often than my previous Samsung, but it never complained about overheating (definitely not while using Google Maps!), and some of this warmth is most likely due to being in my (warm) pockets and having that metal chassis which readily conducts heat.
I’d vote “likely”.

If this is true, summer is coming and we should notice even more/stronger brightness fluctuations.

So really different things can make this happen, again even with a Custom ROM. not sure if it helps or make more complicated to figure it out. So everyone on FPOS could help by contacting support…

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I’m experiencing this bug too. This rollout of Android 12 is horrible and the Fairphone team has also been horrible in handling it. The rollout was rushed, bug reports often get ignored and they don’t even seem to know how their own product works. I’m very, very displeased by this. I discover new bugs almost daily now, and I think it’s time to either install an alternate OS or refund the phone entirely.

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Hi! Does anyone know the maximum nit level (brightness level) of the fairphone 4 I find it hard to see anything much on the screen in sunlight and it seems to be as bright as it can, kindest regards

JL