Burn-In vs Image Retention
LG describes image retention as any image that sticks on the screen when the content changes. It usually looks like a faint ghost and fades after a moment or two.
Burn-in is image retention that lasts much longer. LG says it's usually visible even while other content plays. Samsung names static images shown for a long time as the cause on OLED screens.
LG lists three common triggers. The first two are a channel logo left on for hours and a paused game with the TV still on. The third is a vivid picture mode or high brightness used all the time.
Run the Check
- Close anything that sits in one place, such as a game's HUD or a streaming overlay.
- Open the monitor test and press Start Monitor Test to go full screen, so the taskbar is hidden too.
- Step through White, 50% Gray, Red, Green, and Blue. Burn-in shows up best on flat color, where nothing distracts the eye.
- Look for a faint outline, a darker band, or a tinted patch. Compare it with where your taskbar, logos, or game menus usually sit.
- Take a photo of anything you find, so you can compare it after the steps below.
Hardware Test can't detect burn-in for you. A browser can't read the light the panel gives off, so your eyes and a photo are the judge.
Run the Screen's Own Pixel Refresh
OLED screens from Dell, LG, and Samsung have a built-in routine that evens out the pixels. Run it before you decide a mark is permanent.
- Alienware OLED monitors: Dell says Pixel Refresh takes less than 10 minutes, and an on-screen message asks you to run it every four hours.
- LG OLED TVs: Pixel Cleaning (Pixel Refresher on older models) runs on its own after every 4 hours of use. A manual run takes more than an hour, and turning the TV on stops it.
- Samsung OLED TVs: go to Settings, All Settings, Picture, Panel Care, Pixel Refresh. The TV turns off for more than an hour, and turning it on cancels the refresh.
Leave the screen off until the refresh finishes. Then repeat the check and compare it with your photo.
Keep It From Getting Worse
- Leave the maker's protection on. Samsung OLED monitors have Pixel Shift on by default, and Samsung recommends it for content with many static images.
- Turn on logo dimming where the screen has it. LG and Samsung TVs both have a logo brightness setting that dims static logos.
- Let the screen saver run. LG's starts after about 2 minutes of a paused video or no signal, and Samsung's after 2 minutes of the same still image.
- Avoid a vivid picture mode at high brightness for hours of static content.
Samsung notes that Pixel Shift can move the edges of the image slightly past the screen border. That's expected, not a fault.
When to Claim the Warranty
If the mark is still there after a full pixel refresh, treat it as burn-in. Check your screen's warranty before you buy anything new.
Coverage differs by maker and model. Dell says the warranty on its Alienware QD-OLED monitors runs up to 3 years and includes burn-in. Send the maker your photos and the screen's model and serial number.
While the screen is in front of you, run the dead pixel test as well. A single dot that never changes is a pixel fault, not burn-in.