Do you want to protect eyes from Blue Light Emissions? Android phones are an unavoidable part of our lives. However, there is nothing wrong with it. But also this handheld gadget has its share of drawbacks that appear after long hours of use. Blue light is one such con that can impact your vision after prolonged use.
Before we proceed into fighting the big, bad blue, we must first know a few things about what the blue light is and why is there so much hype about its prevention.
Contents
- 1 What is blue light?
- 2 Why are blue rays harmful?
- 3 How to Protect Eyes from Blue Light Emissions
- 4 Use third-party apps
- 5 Best Anti-Blue Light Apps To Protect Eyes From Blue Light Emissions
- 5.1 Blue Light Filter & Night Mode – Night Shift
- 5.2 Blue Light Filter – Night Mode, Night Shift
- 5.3 Blue Light Filter
- 5.4 Bluelight Filter – Eye Care
- 5.5 Bluelight Filter
- 5.6 Blue Light Filter for Eye Care
- 5.7 Twilight: Blue light filter for better sleep
- 5.8 Low Brightness, Blue Light Filter – Light Delight
- 6 Conclusion:
What is blue light?
Blue light has the shortest wavelength and the energy of all the visible light rays. Because of their nature, blue rays spread significantly easier rather than the other members of the spectrum. When they press or hit elemental molecules in the atmosphere i.e making the sky appear blue.
As you expect, daylight is the major source of blue light. But man-made light sources like TV-screens, LED lights, and, of course, handheld/PC screens also produce a good chunk of blue rays.
Why are blue rays harmful?
Maybe you don’t know but sunlight is the major source of blue light. But the fact is we spend more time on our Android and digital screens instead of outside, under the sun. Also, we’re bound to be affected more by the sources we’ve made.
Many of us are already aware of the harmful effects of the ultraviolet rays (UV). However, nasty as they are, the human eye, also without UV sunglasses, is more than capable of blocking 99% of UV rays from reaching the retina. But, when we talk about blue light, almost the whole of visible blue light passes through to our retina.
Science concluded that prolonged exposure to blue light can cause swear damage to the light-sensitive cells in the above-mentioned retina. This can also lead to macular degeneration, blurred vision to entire or partial vision loss. Short-term effects also include eye-strain, headaches, tiredness, and signs of insomnia.
How to Protect Eyes from Blue Light Emissions
Hopefully, there are some great methods to block these nasty rays. Also, a couple of them can’t cost you a dime.
Use Anti Blue Light glasses
The first and most important one is getting a yellow-tinted, blue-light filtering PC glasses. If you have casual glasses, just go to your ophthalmologist and ask him to suggest an anti-glare set.
Use the in-built blue light filter on your phone
A few years ago, almost all major Android manufacturers have implemented their take on blue light filters. Earlier like Samsung to OnePlus, it’s not difficult to find and configure the blue light filter.
Generally, it’s stuck under Display settings. But also it’s available as a toggle in the Quick Settings menu. As you get it when you pull download notifications bar two times, with toggles for internet, Bluetooth, Mobile data, Auto-rotate, much more. You can also tweak the opacity of the filter and also set a custom schedule. To simply find the setting by looking for ‘blue light’ in the Settings app after using the search bar at the top.
- Samsung: Move to Settings > Display > allow the Blue light filter option using the toggle.
- Huawei and Honor: Move to Settings > Display & brightness > Colour & Eye Comfort > Eye Comfort > allow the Blue light filter option using the toggle.
- Google Pixel: Also, move to Settings > Display > Night Light > turn on it by clicking on the ‘Turn on …’ option. Option to schedule is also available right there.
- Just like, for every Smartphone OEM, you can easily find the options for Blue Light filter under Display settings. However, it may be called differently but nowadays we assume it is available for the phones.
Use third-party apps
While it’s another great that Android manufacturers are going the additional mile to limit your eye-strain. However, the built-in filters can’t exactly be known for their endless customization choices. So, if you like a bit for freedom and expand your legs, there are some other best, great alternatives you can find on the Play Store.
Best Anti-Blue Light Apps To Protect Eyes From Blue Light Emissions
Come let’s take a look at the best apps you can install or download from the Play Store to protect against Blue Light emitted by your Android phone.
Blue Light Filter & Night Mode – Night Shift
The night shift is an optimum night filter that protects blue light to leave you with an amazing night screen. Using the blue light filtered, you have a satisfying night reading experience. The app also offers a total of 5 blue light filters to secure/relieve eye strain.
You can also schedule timer for when you like the filter to be enabled on but it can’t work occasionally. Also, it is best to flip on or off the timer and make your eyes strain-free.
Pros
- Minimalistic UI
- Display usage timer
- Choices to create personalized schedules
- Widget support
Cons
- Status bar widget isn’t the best
- Some features, like Dark mode not available in the free version
Download: Blue light filter
Blue Light Filter – Night Mode, Night Shift
The blue light filter also works by adjusting the screen to natural color to limit blue light. However, doing this limit stress on the eyes and enables you to read at night with an amazing effect. The app is very easy to use where you can set the color temperature you want and make your eyes relaxed.
The app also works well when you want to read anything on your smartphone before you go to bed or in the morning just when you wake up. However, you can also use the app screen dimmer to reduce your phone’s brightness beyond its default capability.
Pros
- Eight presets to select from
- Can vary intensity using Status bar widget
- Built-in Screen dim feature for enhancing the effectiveness
- Auto-timer available
Cons
- Irritating ads
- No widgets
Download: Blue Light Filter
Blue Light Filter
The Blue light filter app also works by modifying the color of your phone screen. You can also use it for playing games in a dark room or reading at night time. It also enables you to make instant adjustments to screen brightness and desist blue light from messing your cardiac rhythm.
Also, the app protects your eyes from the damaging light by dimming or lowering it. But it also keeps it bright enough to make your screen readable. Enabling on can really help you fall asleep instantly at night.
Pros
- Breezy, straightforward UI
- Six helpful color choice to select from
- Small footprint
Cons
- The user interface can also feel a bit too drab
- Notification shade toggle has reduced the functionality
- No widgets
Download: Blue Light Filter
Bluelight Filter – Eye Care
Another best choice you have is the Blue light filter – eye care. However, the app works smoothly while providing a clear and simple interface to use where you adjust the light to secure your eyes from straining. Especially for those who can’t sleep at night and use their phone just to drift to sleep.
The app displays a small share of ads that are annoying. But overall it’s the best and decent utility app for those who spend lots of time with their Android.
Pros
- Simple user interface
- Small/Mini footprint
- Takes little expertise to get started
Cons
- Intrusive ads
- Usage access permission needed
- Status bar widget also offers practically no functionality
Download: Bluelight Filter
Bluelight Filter
The Bluelight filter offers several filters by which the night mode filter is decent to use for night reading. Also, the app widget is bigger but you can always move it to other parts of the screen so that it can’t block you from using your phone.
This app can’t consume more space and is totally ads-free. Also, it makes it a good choice over those which display more irritating ads that impact the user experience.
Pros
- Virtually endless filter color choices
- Customizable Screen Widget is a quite handy addition
- Half Preview provides a good overview of the filter you’re applying
- Darkness adjusting slider
Cons
- No Home screen widget
Download: Bluelight Filter
Blue Light Filter for Eye Care
For securing prolonged exposure to blue light, this filter for eye care is another app you can get. Also, it can also be used with the kindle app that can’t go dim to soothe the eyes at night.
Excellent! This is the easiest, simplest and most essential light filter. I just block evening blue light and bright light so I can sleep comfortably at night. Samsung devices can’t dim enough. My Kindle ap has a black background but the text is still bright white no matter how much I lower it. This ap resolve those issues perfectly. It never ever crashes either. I’m a big fan of it!
Not to mention that the app widget makes it quite easy to enables/off the filter from the home screen itself.
Pros
- Simple, straightforward interface
- Having 6 colors presets
- Built-in battery saver
Cons
- Several permissions required
- It might not be fully compatible with Android 10
Download: Blue Light Filter for eye care
Twilight: Blue light filter for better sleep
Twilight is a tool to enjoy night reading without burdening out your eyes. You can also play with the settings and set the app for sunrise and sunset to adjust your screen light as per your need.
However, many users with Android 10 updated devices are having a tough time because of app crashes. But this majorly results from memory leaks in the system and can’t arise in some cases.
Pros
- Provides the ability to set the Blue Light schedule according to the location
- Some handy pre-defined profiles, choices to add more
- Handy widget
- Adjustable sliders provide more control than regular Toggle
- Filter home screen/lock screen wallpaper
Cons
- Status bar widget don’t have adjustable sliders
Download: Twilight
Low Brightness, Blue Light Filter – Light Delight
After using Light delight, you can dim your phone’s brightness to secure your eyes from blue light and protect you from its nasty effects. The app also offers a simple user-friendly UI where you can adjust the intensity of blue light by making use of the temperature control feature.
The existence of an on/off shortcut feature also makes it more convenient to use the app. However, the app shows ads the non-intrusive nature of the ads makes them bearable.
Pros
- Most versatile in terms of color choices
- Very easy and simple to use
- Customizable brightness and opacity
- Brightness can be tweaked using the Status bar widget
- Has a dedicated Home screen widget
Cons
- No scheduling option
Download: Light Delight
Conclusion:
Here’s all about “Protect eyes from Blue Light Emissions”. You must try out these Blue light filtering apps and the above-mentioned methods and let us know what worked for you the best. Waiting for your valuable feedback!
Also Read: