If you constantly need to cover your phone’s screen while using it under the sun, the display may have a problem. While most smartphones are legible under direct sunlight, some outdated displays may struggle to keep up with outdoor lighting. Luckily, there are a few ways to get around this issue. In this article, we bring you the top 7 easy methods to increase brightness beyond maximum on Android smartphones.
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Turn off Adaptive Brightness
Adaptive Brightness is turned on by default on most Android smartphones. As the name suggests, it alters the brightness of your phone’s display depending on the surrounding light. This means that under direct sunlight the display will be at its brightest. Conversely, the display will automatically dim itself when your phone is under a shade or its night time. Walking in and out of rooms can change your phone’s brightness, which some may find annoying. If you want your phone to be bright at all times, simply turn off Adaptive Brightness. Here’s how.
Step 1: Go to Settings and select Display.
Step 2: Switch off the toggle bar for Adaptive Brightness.
You can also swipe down from the status bar and tap the ellipses next to the brightness level to toggle Adaptive Brightness. Once you’ve switched it off, drag the brightness level to the maximum to use your phone at its brightest setting.
Turn on Extra Brightness
Sometimes your phone’s highest brightness level may not be enough to counter the direct sunlight that falls on it. To get around this issue, some smartphone manufacturers let users boost the brightness by a bit, which makes the phone usable in outdoor light. Samsung calls this ‘Extra Brightness’. Here’s how you can enable it.
Step 1: Go to Settings and select Display.
Step 2: Make sure Adaptive Brightness is turned off.
Step 3: Switch on the toggle bar for Extra Brightness.
Turn on Sunlight Mode
Like Samsung’s Extra Brightness, Xiaomi smartphones have a Sunlight Mode to boost the brightness of the display and improve its legibility in bright daylight. Here’s how you can enable it.
Step 1: Go to Settings and select Display.
Step 2: Tap on ‘Brightness Level’ and turn off Automatic Brightness.
Step 3: Switch on the toggle bar for Sunlight Mode.
Note: Boosting your phone’s brightness more than the maximum level can drain the battery much faster. Always ensure that you are using Extra Brightness and Sunlight Mode only for a short duration of time.
Expose your phone to bright light
You may have noticed that your phone automatically becomes super bright when you pull it out in bright sunlight. If you check your phone’s specs, you will notice that there are two figures for brightness. While one is the figure for regular brightness level under ordinary conditions, the other figure denotes ‘peak brightness’. Your phone achieves ‘peak brightness’ only when it is subjected to hard external lightning. You can trigger this by taking your phone out in the sun or putting it directly under a table lamp. The brightness will slowly fall down to its normal level once your phone is no longer subjected to the light.
Turn off light filters
Some smartphones have a blue light filter for the display that makes the colour tone of the screen warm and easy on the eyes. While your display can achieve maximum brightness with these filters on, turning them off can restore the cool colour temperature which many associate with natural brightness. On Samsung smartphones, swipe down from the status bar and disable ‘Eye comfort shield’ from the quick settings menu.
Stream content in HDR
HDR content is more detailed and gives off a ‘brighter’ feel than regular video content. If your smartphone supports HDR content, you can easily spot the difference. To enable HDR in YouTube videos tap the gear icon in the media player and select ‘Quality’. Go to the ‘Advanced’ section and select an HDR format.
Perform a diagnostic test for the light sensor
Your smartphone’s light sensor detects ambient light and triggers your smartphone to change its brightness according to the intensity of the surrounding light. If this sensor is broken, your phone may not hit peak brightness outdoors. You can run a diagnostic test for this sensor using a dialer code. Samsung users can access this test by dialling *#08*#. This code may differ for other manufacturers. Once you dial the code, you will be presented with a diagnostic tool menu. Tap on Sensors and then select Light Sensor. Subject your phone to different intensities of ambient light to check if the sensor is working.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I increase the brightness of my phone above maximum?
Go to Settings>Display and turn off the toggle bar for Adaptive Brightness. Now manually slide the brightness bar to the maximum level. To boost the brightness even further, take your phone out under direct sunlight.
How do I force maximum brightness on Android?
To increase the maximum brightness on Android, turn on Extra Brightness mode or Sunlight Mode from the display settings.
Why is my phone’s brightness so low?
If Adaptive Brightness is turned on on your device, it can lower the brightness of the display when you are in a dimly lit room. Your phone’s brightness may also take a hit when it gets too warm.
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Conclusion
These are the top 7 ways to increase brightness beyond maximum on any Android phone. If you still aren’t satisfied with the level of peak brightness, it may be time to upgrade your phone. Modern flagship smartphones like Samsung Galaxy S23 and Apple iPhone 14 are equipped with displays bright enough to be perfectly legible even under harsh sunlight.
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