Galaxy S8 And S8+ Red Tint Fix Arrives On T-Mobile, But It's Imperfect

The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ phones are a hit, but they're not quite perfect. Users have complained about a strong red tint on some of the handsets' displays which Samsung has denied is a bug. In response to the user complaints, the Korean company developed a software fix or sorts that gives users manual control over the various colors of the screen, enabling them to adjust the colors to their own preference. That fix has rolled out to T-Mobile customers, but not everyone is happy about it.

Despite Samsung's claims, the red tinted displays appear to be a 'bug' of some variety due to its scattered nature; only some Galaxy S8 handsets feature the red screen tint, which is quite noticeable and, in some cases, is strong enough to wash out the dark blue wallpaper. The update that gives users manual control over the screen's color first began popping up in Korea, then in Europe. Now it is making its way to the U.S.

Once the update makes it to your Galaxy S8, you'll find sliders that allow you to adjust the color profile one color at a time. If your display is too red, you can slide the adjustment slider to a less saturated hue to dial back the excessive tint. It's a simple enough solution, but some people on the receiving end of the update are reporting it as less than effective.

READ: Samsung Galaxy S8 Review: On the shoulders of giants

The Galaxy S8 subreddit has a thread in which T-Mobile subscribers detail their experience with the update. Some say the change worked perfectly, but others say the fix merely changed the color of the 'tint' from red to something else — green or blue or multiple colors, in many cases. User 'Wixul' says, in part, '[The] update makes my red tint into blue tint.' Another user says, 'Mine is green and red now...'

Some users say the problem has been lessened but not completely eliminated. The red tint, in some cases, diminishes but does not completely disappear. One user reports seeing a red tint when the phone is angled, and also seeing it on the curved edges where many report color problems. User 'durkester' says, 'Screen still looks terrible and pink when put at a 30 degree angle...'

The reports are stirring up controversy and contention, with some Samsung fans claiming many of the display issues users are experiencing boil down to the nature of the panel itself and are something to be expected. Others argue that the red tint is saturated beyond the expected red nature of AMOLED panels, and that it affects the usability of the phone. Ultimately it cannot be ignored that some Galaxy S8 phones are displaying 'off' colors in ways that don't affect other S8 handsets, indicating a problem rather than an expected and consistent reality.

This is an unfortunate issue for Samsung, which is still recovering from the massive failure that was the Galaxy Note 7. Sadly, the red tint problem doesn't appear to be the extent of the S8's troubles. Many users are reporting issues with the handset restarting on its own, in some cases being stuck in a rebooting loop that forces a factory reset as a temporary 'fix.'

Users report trouble with the SD card in association with this problem; reports indicate that moving apps onto the microSD card may be triggering the issue, though the official cause is still unknown. Samsung appears to be treading around this issue carefully, and reports thus far indicate the company is merely advising users to send their phones in for repair or replacement. Some users who have received a second phone complain that the new handset is likewise affected by the problem.