Screen Burn In

[pardonmyfreedom]

Well guys, some bad news over here. Last night while playing around, I noticed that on a blank full screen, in the upper right corner there is a "PM" burned into my Incredible screen where the notification bar would be. It's very faint, but obvious that the screen is burnt in. I've had my Incredible since the pre-orders were shipped.

After doing some research it seems that some people with N1s are having the same issue. Apparently, AMOLED is very susceptible to burn in. Another thing that may factor in is that almost since day one I have run my Incredible at max brightness. I couldn't help it, it's so beautiful.

If anyone wants to test their Incredible, I suggest downloading the Dead Pixel Detect application on the market. It will show blank full screens in different colors. My burn in was most noticeable in blue. I will try to take pictures when I get home tonight and see if it can capture what it looks like.

A few things I've done since I found this:

• Run on Auto brightness (although some N1 users said they ran on auto and it still happened).
• The latest version of LauncherPro (which I use) has the option to hide the notification bar on the home screens, which I enabled.
• Reduced the screen timeout.

 

[qwho]

I notice the M from AM/PM when I use the screentest app, but only on the all blue screen.

I leave my brightness set to 75% at all times. I have now also disabled the top bar in launcherpro, but now I don't know if I have alerts or anything, so it is kind of annoying to have to turn off the notification bar.

Really I bet there is a google voice count widget, and I know there are counts on email and sms available, but the bar is just so usable for that. Maybe we could disable the time up there?

 

[jasonb1985]

i wonder if it's really permanent burn in or just image retention that will go away.

plasma screens can suffer from what is called image retention. play a video game and the hud will be stuck on the screen for a few minutes or a few hours, depending on the display.

i have noticed very light, but still noticeable image retention on my Inc when waking up in the morning to an app i left on. i very frequently fall asleep while listening to music on XiiaLive(formerly DroidLive). the white volume slider will be burnt into the screen for a few seconds and then completely go away.

i ran the app you mentioned and i also notice the PM in the top right corner. i wonder if it would go away if that app was run for an hour or two while alternating colors every few minutes. i used to run a slideshow of solid colors like the ones in that app on my plasma TV when i first got it and it definitely very quickly removed any image retention i saw.

 

[NoShftShck16]

the only thing i am noticing is the top 3 or 4 pixels going across the entire phone seem darker (not dead)

can someone confirm that they are or are not seeing this?

whats a good screenshot app so i can show what i am seeing??

 

[jasonb1985]

the only thing i am noticing is the top 3 or 4 pixels going across the entire phone seem darker (not dead)

can someone confirm that they are or are not seeing this?

whats a good screenshot app so i can show what i am seeing??

i noticed that too. i would say it's more like the top 2 or maybe 3 lines.

this is all very faint though. you'd have to be looking for it to see it.

 

[mrjerryk]

I just search Wikipedia for AMOLED screens and yes they do have image burn-in

Organic LED - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You would think that manufactures these days would stay away from screens that would have burn-in.

 

[NoShftShck16]

You would think that manufactures these days would stay away from screens that would have burn-in.

Well, I mean most expensive TVs are guilty of the same thing, but people still drop thousands on them. In this day of technology, quality > longevity

 

[pardonmyfreedom]

I'm trying to decide if I should try to get it replaced at this point. My screen is also quite pink at low to medium brightness. I've heard others were getting replacements for the pink issue as well.

 

[mrjerryk]

Well, I mean most expensive TVs are guilty of the same thing, but people still drop thousands on them. In this day of technology, quality > longevity

The Inc has only been out for a very short period of time and it's already showing cases of burn-in.

 

[jasonb1985]

The Inc has only been out for a very short period of time and it's already showing cases of burn-in.

anybody have proof that it's actually permanent? play a slideshow of solid colors for an hour or two and i bet all the burn in you guys are seeing will go away.

it's the same way on plasma screens, but i bet it's much less of an issue on OLED.

 

[pardonmyfreedom]

anybody have proof that it's actually permanent? play a slideshow of solid colors for an hour or two and i bet all the burn in you guys are seeing will go away.

it's the same way on plasma screens, but i bet it's much less of an issue on OLED.

There's another app on the market called jScreenFix, made to fix stuck pixels. It runs a color static pattern. I've run it for quite a while to no effect.

 

[jasonb1985]

well we are never going to see this in normal day to day use. the am/pm is displayed there 99% of the time the screen if on. i really don't see why this is a huge issue anyway. even if i am running these solid colors i have to put the phone like 6 inches from my eyes to even see it. i'll never see it unless i am looking for it, and even still it's not obvious at all.

maybe it's worse for others though, i can only speak for my display on my phone.

anyway, the pro's for OLED outweigh the cons in my opinion. i love the vivid colors and the deep black blacks. i have never been a fan of LCD.

 

[mrjerryk]

well we are never going to see this in normal day to day use. the am/pm is displayed there 99% of the time the screen if on. i really don't see why this is a huge issue anyway. even if i am running these solid colors i have to put the phone like 6 inches from my eyes to even see it. i'll never see it unless i am looking for it, and even still it's not obvious at all.

maybe it's worse for others though, i can only speak for my display on my phone.

anyway, the pro's for OLED outweigh the cons in my opinion. i love the vivid colors and the deep black blacks. i have never been a fan of LCD.

This may be true right now. 5 months down the road the burn in may be very noticeable.

 

[pardonmyfreedom]

This may be true right now. 5 months down the road the burn in may be very noticeable.

This is my concern as well. My burn in is very faint, but it's burnt in nonetheless, on a one month old phone. This is very disconcerting for the life of the panel IMO. What if I'm playing full screen games a year from now and there's letters and icons burned into the top of the screen? That would certainly take away from the experience of the phone. Right now, it doesn't really make much difference other than to worry me.

As far as AMOLED, with burn in and the color problems (PenTile), I've changed my mind. It is beautiful no question, and I really didn't mind the color problems, but now add the burn in and I think TFT is a better choice for a phone. The problem of burn in can be managed on a TV, but not on a phone where elements of the screen will be fixed for long periods of time.

 

[RyanZ]

Here's my current home screen and some pics of the burn-in. I am not pleased. If you can't see the burn-in, tilt your monitor a little. Rest assured, it is quite visible to the naked eye.

 

[Divine_Madcat]

Indeed, it seems that our screens are susceptible to burn-in/burn-out (the blue pixels are already wearing out, which is why you see a burned-in image).

Others have had this issue, and were able to get a warranty replacement, but this should not be happening this fast - AMOLED is not supposed to burn out this quickly...

 

[qwho]

This looks pretty dismal for those of us that will keep the phone for 2 full years... I change my background and the layout of the icons all the time, and I don't use the flip clock or sense, so maybe I will be ok. I will have to check my wife's phone, she has had the same 8 icons, wallpaper, sense, and flip clock layout since she got hers on release day.

 

[Mischka7]

Here's my current home screen and some pics of the burn-in. I am not pleased. If you can't see the burn-in, tilt your monitor a little. Rest assured, it is quite visible to the naked eye.

That's very noticeable, I can see it in the middle picture too. If this is what it looks like just 2.5 months after release, I really hate to see what it's going to look like in a year. Hopefully by then, we can at least get a replacement.

 

[RyanZ]

Admittedly, I left my screen on all day while at work. Stupid me...I thought I could use it as a desk clock. Still...8 hours * 30 days = only 240 hours.

I've heard Incredibles are now shipping with LCD screens. I will be taking mine back and getting a replacement that they GUARANTEE is LCD...or I will complain until they let me switch to Droid X.

 

[dixonba]

I've had the phone since launch day. Just looked at mine and no burn in at all. However, I keep my phones brightness cranked way down 1/4 to conserve battery power. That probably explains why I dont see it. I'm wondering if this had any effect in the decision to switch to TFT?

 

[iowabowtech]

Yeah, I run my brightness low also for the battery savings alone. I'm usually around 40% and I don't have any sign of burn in.

 

[sabrewings]

Indeed, it seems that our screens are susceptible to burn-in/burn-out (the blue pixels are already wearing out, which is why you see a burned-in

At last. Someone who understands. These are not stuck pixels. The blue pixels actually wear out the fastest and thus their ability to produce light is reduced. This is not burn in. It is burn OUT.

Running at full brightness will do that. That said, no issues with mine and it stays on auto except for movies and some games.

 

[qwho]

I run mine at 75% brightness at all times. Though like I said I change my layout all the time. I do, however, see a PM burned in but it is so faint I doubt I would be able to see it if I tried to take pictures of it.

 

[drkrishall]

Does the SLCD fix this problem?

 

[Taylored]

the only thing i am noticing is the top 3 or 4 pixels going across the entire phone seem darker (not dead)

can someone confirm that they are or are not seeing this?

whats a good screenshot app so i can show what i am seeing??

I have this issue as well. There is a slightly darker area where the notification bar stays. I am not too worried about it though. I plan on replacing the phone in 9 months anyway.

Those with real burn in should demand a replacement. This screen should last at least 18 months.

Does the SLCD fix this problem?

Yes. Lcd does not suffer from burn in... Just lame, grey images.