The last stand of the LCD enthusiasts: moto g75 unboxing and usage experience (with a scientific explanation on why OLED screens strain your eyes)

Foreword

Hello everyone, I'm Xi Yuan.

I'm back to sort through some unboxing content that I haven't posted before.

A few years ago, you'd often see people online chanting "LCD will never be enslaved."

Who would have thought that in just a few short years, OLED phones have completely taken over the market, leaving LCD phones on the defensive. Nowadays, they're pretty much relegated to the realm of low-end knockoffs 🤣

As a digital enthusiast and someone with nearsightedness, after learning about the potential downsides of OLED screens, I've made it a point to specifically choose devices with LCD screens whenever I purchase new gadgets.

Unfortunately, mid-to-high-end LCD phones are now virtually extinct.

Currently, I'm forced to use my old iQOO Neo5 Vitality Edition from a few years ago as my primary device (alongside other new OLED phones).

This phone has become so laggy that it seriously hinders daily use. The battery has probably degraded below 70%, requiring three charges a day.

But there really isn't an alternative. The Snapdragon 870 processor in this phone, even when compared to today's LCD phones, is still in a league of its own 🤣

However, dealing with such a sluggish phone can sometimes be truly unbearable.

Back in March this year, when the government subsidy (国补) was still active, I was scrolling through Bilibili one day and saw a content creator reviewing this Moto G75 phone. It looked pretty good, and the system was a clean, near-stock Android interface that I really like. So, I immediately placed an order on JD.com.

Price & Configuration

I purchased the 8+256GB version, featuring the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 (第三代骁龙6) processor. Its performance can't even match the Dimensity 7300, let alone the 870. 🤣

Original price: 1352
After government subsidy: 1149

For this price, what more could you ask for? (Though when I bought the iQOO phone, it seemed like I only spent less than 1500. LCD phones have definitely gone up in price.)

The color is the mid-tone Bamboo Leaf Green.

The Hazards of OLED Screens

This topic has been explained by many content creators (up主).

In summary, there are mainly two issues: direct light (直射光) and flicker (频闪).

• Direct Light (直射光): It can cause people to instinctively squint. Over time, this can lead to eye muscle strain, thereby worsening astigmatism.
• Flicker (频闪): It forces the eyes to frequently adjust light sensitivity. Prolonged exposure can easily result in fatigue, dizziness, and even blurred vision.

The following are some of my own understandings, which may not be entirely rigorous. Please refer to professional explanations for accuracy～

We just need to grasp the general principle; there's no need to delve too deeply.

OLED Principle

OLED is characterized by: the screen is composed of many tiny "self-emitting pixels," where each pixel can independently control its on/off state, but cannot directly adjust brightness like a lightbulb.

Therefore, manufacturers can only control brightness by rapidly switching on and off:

Longer on-time → appears brighter; longer off-time → appears dimmer.

This "rapid flickering" method is known as PWM dimming.

In essence, this is a way to "trick the eye."

This is also the flicker issue that is often discussed. Although manufacturers frequently promote technologies like "high-frequency PWM dimming" or "flicker-free eye protection," a certain degree of flicker still exists.

However, what is even more easily overlooked is the direct light aspect. OLED is a self-emitting screen, where light shines directly into the eyes without a backlight diffusion layer like LCDs to soften the light. This "directness" can actually cause more eye fatigue. Many people find OLED to look more vibrant and clear, but that "dazzling brightness" is essentially consuming the eyes' tolerance.

LCD Principles

LCD is completely different.

Its light source comes from the backlight module. The light first passes through a series of structures such as the diffuser, polarizer, liquid crystal layer, and color filter layer,

before finally reaching our eyes.

Although these many layers may sound "complex," it is precisely these structures that cause the light to be evenly diffused and softened,

unlike OLED, which shines directly into the eyes.

In terms of brightness control, LCD does not require the pixels to flicker.

Brightness variations can be achieved simply by adjusting the intensity of the backlight.

LCD screens generally use DC dimming, which can be considered flicker-free. Some might mention the blue light issue, but all screens emit blue light—it exists in nature as well. Moreover, blue light can be mitigated through eye protection modes, anti-blue light glasses, or screen protectors, while flickering and direct light emission are unsolvable problems.

Packaging

Alright, enough talking, let's get to unboxing.

I like this packaging; it's eco-friendly yet not cheap-looking, with a refined feel.

Front View

You can tell from the mouse pad that this photo was taken before I moved 😄

Back

The texture of this sticker is also quite nice.

I didn't expect the Moto brand, despite its decline, to still pay attention to details like this.

Stand Up

This way looks more intuitive

Stand Up Back Side

Unboxing

This logo takes me back to elementary school 😂

Accessories

Accessories that are not very "eco-friendly"🤣

Includes a charger and phone case

However, this charger looks a bit bulky and unrefined.

A pile of paper manuals

Always-on Display

The effect is quite nice.

The system has fewer features, but after getting used to various "ad-ridden" systems, it feels quite refreshing.

Back

The vegan leather back looks quite nice

The camera looks intimidating, but it's actually just barcode scanning level

The officially promoted camera looks quite professional 🤣

Screen

This screen supports 120Hz high refresh rate

And it can even reach a brightness of 1000 nits!

I tried it outdoors and could basically see it clearly

But does this mean that the screen has removed the diffuser plate or something? The eye protection effect should be questionable then ❓

User Experience

At first, it was quite refreshing to use.

I really like this kind of clean, native-like system without messy ads.

Lenovo has incorporated some localized features into Moto's system.

Multi-Instance

The most well-known feature is the 6-app multi-instance capability, which allows running six WeChat accounts simultaneously (a player's delight 🤣 (joke).

But with such weak performance, won't running six instances lag? 🤣

My iQOO with a Snapdragon 870 processor already lags terribly just using WeChat.

Waterproof

Also has IP68 waterproof (IP68防水), though I haven't tested it underwater.

NFC

Another point worth mentioning is

This phone supports NFC.

I used this phone with Alipay (支付宝) to make a contactless payment at the supermarket, and it worked fine.

For subways and buses, I usually use my smartwatch, so I haven't tested it.

Four-Year Warranty

I see that Lenovo has also promoted a four-year warranty.

I'm not sure if this is a feature specific to Moto or a Lenovo-wide policy.

It seems other phones only offer a one-year warranty.

This is definitely worth praising.

Summary

This phone is honestly just barely usable.

The system might be its weak point, but since it can be rooted, that's not a big deal.

The biggest issue is still its subpar performance!

Even right after unboxing, before installing many apps, I could already notice some lag and stuttering!

Maybe the future for LCD fans lies in 8-inch small tablets… 😭

---

This article took me an entire evening to write.

Research, organizing the logic, formatting, and polishing were all done manually.

If you think the content is decent,

please help by liking or sharing it so more people can see it 🙏

Your support is what gives meaning to my continued writing 💛