LCD and plasma burn-in advice
Image retention, the kids call it "burn-in" on the street, is something every flat-panel has to deal with. HD Guru dug up a case involving not a plasma but, gasp, an LCD. It seems like logos were "burned" into the the right of the screen. The issue is something that rarely pops up -- even more rare on an LCD -- but when it does, we're sure most owners shave a year or two off their life as their heart skips a beat. There is no reason to fear that your pricey, little baby will always have that Sony DVD logo burnt in, as most burn-in can be easily eliminated. Follow the jump for some DIY tips on prevention and elimination.
Prevention
- Burn-in is most likely when the TV is the brightest making the first 24-36 hours of life critical. Even some manufacture set-up screens can cause nasty image retention. (not burn-in but rather, ghosting for a short period of time.)
- Turn down the brightness past 50%. Plus, you will get a lot deeper picture.
- Avoid static images. This does not mean the ESPN banner or ABC logo but rather the Window's Start Bar or OS X's Dock. Use the plasma as a TV because you WILL get burn-in if used as a monitor. If you pause the Xbox, turn of the TV.
Elimination
-
Turn the TV off and go grab a snack
- Change the channel to something fast moving for a few minutes
- Check the TV menu for burn-in utilities
- Unplug the flat-panel for twice as long as the image was on the display
- Contact the manufacture for advice
- Produce an all white JPEG and present it to the set
- Return to the retailer and demand a new set - that is the American way, right?
- Last step - remember Office Space and the fax machine...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
alex @ Aug 23rd 2007 7:36PM
the jpeg should be blue not white because most tv's have a hard time making white and if the screen is white for a long time yellow spots can form ive seen it!
Joe @ Aug 23rd 2007 7:54PM
The amount of ignorance on this is staggering.
LCD's don't get burn in. They can get retention. This occurs because LCD's rely on the twisting of a crystal compound. IF left in the same position for too long the crystals have a problem relaxing. How long is this too long you as , 15-120 minutes.
Thats right! It happens ALL THE TIME on computer LCDs. There is substantially no difference between a computer LCD display and a TV display.
The crystals never loose their ability to untwist. So even if you show the same image day after day for years the display can go back to the reference position. Unless it is damaged by uv or temperature exposure .
The severity of the problem is what changes. Typically it just manifests as slower than normal response time.
On tv's the image is always changing so you are very unlikely to see this problem manifest as long as you change the channel once every few hours.
Really this has always been happening it is absolutely not permanent. It can be 'fixed' by shutting off your TV or playing a movie. Any constant image be it white, black or blue will cause the pixels to get stuck in their new position, just maybe in a uniform fashion.
Brightness has no effect on this. No setting on the set will change this unless one happens to cause the pixels to dither slightly and randomly.
This is NOT the same for plasma. Plasma get honest to goodness burn that will not go away in LCD's can not unless you use a UV source to damage them.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Aug 23rd 2007 8:42PM
LCDs don't burn in. Ghosting/image retention on LCDs is temporary, unlike burn-in, which is permanent.
Your advice isn't great either. Turning down the brightness on an LCD will do nothing to save the panel, as the brightness is the brightness of the backlight, and the image retention ("sticking") is on the panel. The panel would suffer from sticking even if the backlight were completely off.
Also, the idea that burn-in is most critical in the early stages of a plasma's lifetime is just false. Burn-in happens on plasma because as the pixel is used, it gets dimmer (this is why plasmas get dimmer over time). Now, this is a decay cycle, like radioactive half-lives. If the panel is new, and a pixel gets "burnt", the pixel may be (let's say) half as bright as the rest of the panel. But if the panel is older, the whole panel will be half brightness and the burnt pixel will be 1/4 brightness. In that way, the burn in later is of lower magnitude.
But in the end, your eyes see light exponentially anyway. If a pixel is half as bright as the rest, it looks just as bad, even if the rest is down to 1/8th brightness and the burnt one is 1/16th.
The only way to prevent burn-in on a plasma is to be careful about what you display. If you get burn-in, the only way to remove it is to burn the non-burnt pixels a bit more to come down to the brightness of the burnt ones (burn with an inverted image). It sounds drastic, but given how minor burn-in usually is on plasma, it's not a big deal.
If your LCD gets image sticking, just play some constantly moving images for a while. Play a long movie on loop. The statement above that you need to run the unstick material for about twice the time as you ran the material that made it stick is a good guideline, modify as appropriate.
In general, a good LCD will not stick noticeably unless you show the exact same image for 30 mins or more. In more normal use you don't need to sweat it.
Joseph R @ Aug 24th 2007 3:16AM
< "Also, the idea that burn-in is most critical in the early stages of a plasma's lifetime is just false." ≥
Really? Your statement is just the opposite of what Panasonic says!
Panasonic's website gives an introduction to plasma use and "break in" of the early stages of your new plasma. They specifically give certain settings not only for the first 100 hours [use lower contrast, keep all content to full screen [1:78:1 with or without gray bar modification], avoid static images, etc, but for the next 900 hours also (similar settings but contrast can be increased some).
Also, you should never use the "dynamic" or "vivid" picture setting on a plasma, unless you have the brightness and contrast at very low settings.
As for anti burn-in protection, I recently learned that all 2007 Panasonic plasmas have the built-in feature with the pixels moving ever so slightly, and never fully stationary.
One guy's recommendation for the first 100 hours, is to play the PLANET EARTH HD-DVD or Blu-ray disc [1:78:1 native ratio] in a loop for about 8 to 10 hours a day, for around 10 days. Then your new plasma is broke-in, and you can increase the brightness or contrast to a mid-setting for the next 900 hours.
hd guru @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:32PM
They photos here do not do a good job displaying the "burn in" . There are additional photos that are clearer at www.hdguru.com
You will also find more information at the HD Guru website. Thanks.
The HD Guru
Ben @ Aug 24th 2007 8:07AM
As if the dedicated read link to your page wasn't enough of a plug.
Christopher Perry @ Aug 23rd 2007 10:45PM
I have a Samsung LCD TV, purchased about a year ago. I began to notice some "white" spots on the set... specifically, on a black background, there was some definite graying of the panel is specific areas. I had a tech look at it, and he said it was burn-in (even though it's an LCD). So, make the call, is it burn-in?
Phour ZwanZig @ Aug 24th 2007 1:01AM
Nah.. sounds to me you may have had stuck pixels..
I bought an LCD monitor a few months ago and had to return it the next day for an xchange, due to 2 stuck pixels.. They were green and one was just off center, bugged the hell outa me.. Replacement was flawless..
why not the LS2LS7? @ Aug 24th 2007 6:24PM
I would say your panel is busted. My RP LCD did a similar thing. You can argue whether it's because the panel was defective or you just got unlucky, but it's not burn-in because it isn't related to what is on the screen at all (other than it is more visible at some times than others).
EricDJ @ Aug 24th 2007 2:04AM
I've seen serious image retention on an older 42 inch Westinghouse LCD. Can't think of any others i've seen it on.
Jeb69 @ Aug 24th 2007 2:28AM
yeah, it amazes me how you can go into a Circuit City or Best Buy and see plasma monitor with burn in. I saw one with some major logo burn-in. Plasmas seem to be built better for home theatre use - while LCDs might be better for all around use.
JeffDM @ Aug 24th 2007 9:46AM
I've never had or seen an LCD that does "image retention" for anything longer than the milliseconds it normally takes to change the image anyway. I think it mainly really happens when the image is left steady for days at a time.
Thrasher @ Aug 24th 2007 4:23PM
When displays are used primarily as a TV, especially with HD content, there is a consistent problem you might run into: the difference between standard def images and HD. The SD image covers roughly the middle 2/3 of the screen, while the 2 ends are black. When I turn my LCD TVs off (I have 30" and 37" Sceptre LCD displays), you can see that the middle section is lighter than the ends. I do not normally notice this when watching full-screen HD content, but it does show up sometimes.
Rick
gc @ Nov 20th 2007 10:00AM
Following is an excerpt from a Philips Manual for 47" Philips Widescreen Full HD LCD TV. Model # 47PFL7422D/37. Please read, then comment.
1.3 Warning concerning stationary images on the TV
screen
A characteristic of LCD Panels is that displaying the same image for a
long time can cause a permanent after-image to remain on the screen.
Normal use of the TV should involve the showing of pictures that
contain constantly moving and changing images that fill the screen.
Examples of stationary images (this is not an all-inclusive list, you may
encounter others in your viewing):
- TV menus;
- Black bars: when black bars appear at the left and right side of the
screen, it is recommended to change to a picture format so that the
picture fills the entire screen;
- TV channel logo: present a problem if they are bright and stationary.
Moving or low-contrast graphics are less likely to cause uneven aging of
the screen;
- Stock market stickers: presented at the bottom of the TV screen;
- Shopping channel logos and pricing displays: bright and shown
constantly or repeatedly in the same location on the TV screen.
Examples of still pictures also include logos, computer images, time
display, teletext and images displayed in 4:3 mode, static images or
characters, etc.
Reduce contrast and brightness when viewing.When the same image
is displayed for 10 minutes, brightness will be reduced automatically.
Once burn-in occurs it will never disappear completely.
) Carefully pay attention to these remarks.The warranty does not
apply to damage caused by not taking into account the above
mentioned warnings on stationary images.