Burn-in Test
Six full-screen fields that expose image retention and permanent burn-in on OLED, AMOLED and LCD panels — plus a fixer that may clear the temporary kind.
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Burn-in or image retention?
They look identical and they are not the same problem. Image retention is a ghost that fades by itself, usually within minutes to a few hours of normal use — the pixels are temporarily biased, not damaged. Burn-in is permanent: the subpixels that displayed a bright static element for hundreds of hours have aged faster than their neighbours and can no longer match them.
The practical test is time. Run this page, note where the ghost is, then use the screen normally for a day and check again. If it has faded, it was retention and there is nothing to fix.
What to look for on each field
| Field | Reveals |
|---|---|
| Full white | The clearest view of a faint ghost — taskbars, logos, HUD elements |
| Grey 50% | The most sensitive field for uneven wear; the eye reads brightness variation best in mid-grey |
| Red / Green / Blue | Channel-specific ageing. Blue subpixels degrade fastest, so blue often shows it first |
| Black | Uneven glow, lingering shapes, and on LCDs, backlight problems rather than burn-in |
About the fixer
The fixer cycles red, green, blue, white and black rapidly. Driving every subpixel through its full range can even out a temporary bias, which is why this technique clears image retention reasonably often. It cannot repair burn-in — nothing running in a browser can, because the damage is physical.
Ten to thirty minutes is the useful range. If nothing has changed after that, the mark is permanent. Many OLED televisions have a built-in pixel-refresh routine in their service menu that is more thorough than any web page.
Which panels are actually at risk
- OLED and AMOLED — genuinely at risk, because each pixel makes its own light and wears out individually. Phones, high-end TVs, newer laptops and monitors.
- Plasma — historically the worst offender, though few are still in use.
- LCD / LED / IPS / VA — essentially immune to permanent burn-in. They can show temporary persistence, and they have their own faults worth checking: uneven backlight and dead pixels.
Preventing it
Static, bright, high-contrast elements left on screen for hours are the cause — a news ticker, a game HUD, a paused video, a taskbar. Moderate brightness, auto-hide docks, a screen blanker after a few minutes, and simply varying what is displayed will keep a modern OLED healthy for its normal life. Ordinary mixed use is not what damages panels.
While you have the panel under inspection: the dead pixel test covers individual faulty dots, the backlight bleed test covers light leaking at the edges, and the screen colour test covers banding and uniformity.
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Frequently asked questions
How do I test my screen for burn-in?
Run the test fullscreen and step through the solid fields. Burn-in shows as a faint permanent ghost of something the screen displayed for a long time — a taskbar, a channel logo, a game HUD. It is easiest to see on the grey and white fields, because a uniform bright surface leaves nowhere for a dim patch to hide.
What is the difference between burn-in and image retention?
Image retention is temporary: a ghost that fades on its own within minutes or hours once the screen shows something else. Burn-in is permanent, caused by subpixels ageing unevenly so they can no longer reach full brightness. If your ghost disappears after an hour of normal use, it was retention and nothing is wrong.
Can burn-in be fixed?
True burn-in cannot be repaired — the affected subpixels have physically degraded. Image retention often can be cleared, which is what the fixer here does: rapidly cycling colours exercises every subpixel evenly. Many OLED TVs also have a built-in pixel refresh cycle that is more effective than anything a web page can do.
How long should I run the burn-in fixer?
Ten to thirty minutes is usually enough for mild retention. Longer will not help if the mark is genuine burn-in. Do not leave it running unattended overnight; there is no benefit and the panel is working the whole time.
Do LCD screens get burn-in?
Rarely, and not in the same way. LCDs can show temporary image persistence from liquid crystals settling, which almost always clears. Permanent burn-in is an OLED, AMOLED and old plasma problem, because those pixels generate their own light and wear out individually.
How do I prevent OLED burn-in?
Vary what is on screen, use a screen saver or auto-off, hide static taskbars and docks, avoid leaving a paused frame up for hours, and keep brightness moderate. Static high-contrast elements at high brightness are what actually cause it — normal mixed use is not a problem.