LG C8 OLED Burn-in & other issues Discussion

[vij]

I am considering purchasing the LG 65" C8 OLED. There's been a lot of complaints about OLED as a technology wrt burn-in (should be called screen burn really).

From what I have read, the following seems to apply.

1. The Rtings burn tests (with older C7) show that burn in problem is real and appears to showup with around 4000 hours of runtime containing large static content, especially if it is red in color and more-so if it is not interspaced with enough varied content. So if you watch news channel Red tickers (and other static colors to a lesser extent) and logos for 2 hours daily, you could see it in in 4-6 years. Ofcourse you could see it earlier too, but less likely. The burn scenario in the tests are less-likely but possible with people who watch news news and news. Also the 25% window issue (uniformity problems) has been identified by LG and they have confirmed it will not be a problem in C8 panels. They will even fix the older C7 panels free of cost.

2. The newer C8 reportedly has a better and bigger RED subpixel according to this HDTVTest video (watch after 10 min mark) and mitigates to some extent its problem with red static. There is also a Logo Luminescence adjustment feature to further reduce risk.




Anyways it seems the way to reduce the risk is to do the following
1. Dont watch news channels (or) only watch News channels in cinema mode and not more than 2 hours a day . Red statics are the worst (remains to be seen if C8 reduces the risk) If you watch more than 50% news - don't get OLED.
2. watch varied content in cinema mode if you can or with less light/brightness.

My questions to 2018 C8 owners
1. Do you watch DTH programs. Has any Logo burn-in occured? What do you do with the Tata Sky logo thats omnipresent at all times? How has it affected your screen?
2. Are you seeing any artifacts/flicker in certain dark scenes with the C8 (not present in C7). Some people are reporting having to increase brightness in C8 to combat this.

Alternatives not good
Looking to go OLED. I thought about going LED route...but I am especially sensitive to the "uniformity issues" and "Dirty Screen Effect" that is prevalent in all LEDs. I watch sports a lot and the camera pans expose LED panel horrors (I have been a plasma guy). Also shows up in some landscape scenes.

 

[vij]

To add to this - LG might honor screen-burn(in) warranty for 1 year according to this. I suspect this might not be the case everywhere.

 

[vij]

30-40% of the time will be spent by my kid watching cartoons on nicklodeon, pogo... Their logos are less static and keep popping regularly but as you might imagine, they are full of solid colors (cartoon characters). Will that put me at increased risk of burn-in.

Any views?

C'mon oled owners!! participate in this important discussion

 

[thegr8anand]

Current Stance (11/05/2018 - 5371 hours)
After more than 5000 hours, there has been no appreciable change to the brightness or color gamut of these TVs. Long periods of static content have resulted in some permanent burn-in (see the CNN TVs), however the other TVs with more varied content don't yet have noticeable uniformity issues on normal content. As a result, we don't expect most people who watch varied content without static areas to experience burn-in issues with an OLED TV. Those who display the same static content over long periods of time should consider the risk of burn-in though (such as those who watch lots of news, use the TV as a PC monitor, or play the same game with a bright static HUD). Those who are concerned about the risk of burn-in should go with an LCD TV for the peace of mind.
Note that we expect burn-in to depend on a few factors:

• The total duration of static content. LG has told us that they expect it to be cumulative, so static content which is present for 30 minutes twice a day is equivalent to one hour of static content once per day.
• The brightness of the static content. Our maximum brightness CNN TV has more severe burn-in than our 200 nits brightness CNN TV.
• The colors of the static areas. We found that in our 20/7 Burn-in Test the red sub-pixel is the fastest to degrade, followed by blue and then green.

To see how the results at this 5000 hour point compares to your usage, divide 5000 by the number of hours you watch each type of content per day to find the number of days. For example, someone who plays call of duty or another video game without bright static areas for 2 hours per day may expect similar results after about 2500 days of usage. This corresponds to about 7 years.
We will continue to run this test and collect data, and our stance may change as we obtain more information.

Its not a major issue. My samsung plasma had developed some burn-in at the bottom(only noticeable when watched from close and looking for it) after years of use mostly playing NDTV. Even if the cartoon channel is changed the content is different so it should not be an issue. Personally i will be happy if the whole tv lasts 6 years with minor burn-in. Rtings run the tv 20 hours a day in 5 hours usage 1 hour off and the same channel over and over. Its extreme case.

From the main 'Picture settings' page, there is a menu called 'OLED Panel Settings'. Inside there is the 'Pixel Refresher' function, 'Screen Shift' option, and 'Logo Luminance Adjustment'. 'Pixel Refresher' is the function that will attempt to clear any image retention or other screen issues that can happen when the TV is left turn on for a long period of time. This function needs at least one hour to run and will only start once the TV is turned off. There is also an automatic 'Pixel Refresher' that is run automatically once the TV is turned off after 4 cumulative hours of use. The 'Screen Shift' is a feature that will slightly move the screen at regular intervals to prevent image retention (the screen shift is not noticeable). We recommend to turn on this feature. Logo Luminance Adjustment is an LG feature which detects static logos on screen and automatically dims them to help prevent them from causing permanent image retention. We recommend the 'Low' setting since 'High' can dim some areas too much.

You have these options too and i have set the Logo Luminance Adjustment at High for peace of mind.

 

[vij]

Its not a major issue. My samsung plasma had developed some burn-in at the bottom(only noticeable when watched from close and looking for it) after years of use mostly playing NDTV. Even if the cartoon channel is changed the content is different so it should not be an issue. Personally i will be happy if the whole tv lasts 6 years with minor burn-in. Rtings run the tv 20 hours a day in 5 hours usage 1 hour off and the same channel over and over. Its extreme case.


You have these options too and i have set the Logo Luminance Adjustment at High for peace of mind.

Thanks for the reply. I am actually concerned seeing the CNN thing(extreme case I know) because that burn in is severe and it seems like plasma burn in issues are milder compared to this.

But again my question to you - how long have you used the Oled (C8?) in terms of total hours? If CNN tickers and logo can be burned in, maybe other static logos can be burned in eventually. And LG has confirmed that the burn in issue can crop in with cumulative hours and does not have to be at a stretch...

Further reading of other forums for hours on end has me thinking:
1. Possible that a home that does around 6 hours of viewing per day could have all kinds of logos plastered on the screen in as early as 3 years.
2. Some paranoid folks can never be at ease and the Indian news channels (most have red statics) are a concern even if you rack up only 20-30 hours a month. For instance - Election days I will have it ON at a stretch... If I have Oled, I'd be wary of news channels. Freedom goes for a toss!
3. There's another theory floating around.. That these TVs are more susceptible to "burn-in with static images" after a few thousand hours (of even varied content). Meaning you use the TV for 2 years with varied content...and then a mere 2 hour flirt with CNN can cause burn in.
4. Sony has a warning - that hot/humid environments can increase risk of burn in and also cause smearing of the organic stuff inside the TV. We are in India and India is hot and many places are humid too

Seriously considering Samsung Q7Fn or Sony 900F now. Maybe I read too much.

 

[thegr8anand]

Def go with X900f then, i was buying its 55' as it was cheaper than C8. Only because the 65' C8 dropped much lower than 65' x900f i went ahead with the C8. I do think C8 is the better TV overall but with x900f no burn-in issues and brighter tv.

I doubt it will be worse than plasma and in this case you can't do anything just wait a couple of years for the result. I am sure nobody remembers plasma for their burn-in issues just it was so good.

 

[vij]

Def go with X900f then, i was buying its 55' as it was cheaper than C8. Only because the 65' C8 dropped much lower than 65' x900f i went ahead with the C8. I do think C8 is the better TV overall but with x900f no burn-in issues and brighter tv.

I doubt it will be worse than plasma and in this case you can't do anything just wait a couple of years for the result. I am sure nobody remembers plasma for their burn-in issues just it was so good.

I agree.. the price is what makes the incomparable oleds irresistible now. I guess the price drop also sort of indicates LG knows there is a trade off for the performance.

 

[mathan]

I had bought this 47 inch LG LED 3D TV around 4 years back and have used it extensively. Yes, the burn-in has happened. It is not intrusive to watching and is more visible during white background. The image retention is the Sun Tv logo along with mild NDTV logo. Mostly these two channels are watched extensively for several years. Tried all the tricks after googling to get rid of the image retention but nothing worked. One of the service personnel from LG told that it is common for all LED/OLED TV to get image retention after 3 to 4 years and that is when we need to buy/exchange for a new tv as the image retention would get more visible when used for a prolonged time.

 

[vij]

I had bought this 47 inch LG LED 3D TV around 4 years back and have used it extensively. Yes, the burn-in has happened. It is not intrusive to watching and is more visible during white background. The image retention is the Sun Tv logo along with mild NDTV logo. Mostly these two channels are watched extensively for several years. Tried all the tricks after googling to get rid of the image retention but nothing worked. One of the service personnel from LG told that it is common for all LED/OLED TV to get image retention after 3 to 4 years and that is when we need to buy/exchange for a new tv as the image retention would get more visible when used for a prolonged time.

Are you talking of OLED? Which model?

 

[mathan]

Well it is a LED TV model lg led 47la6910. It is quite old now but still one of best tv with great picture quality. I wanted to highlight the fact that the burn in happens after 4 years (if you still have the same tv) of extensive use (around 6 hours per day) even for a OLED tv the burn-in will happen after extensive use.

 

[vij]

Completely different scenario @mathan. I was hoping to have OLED specific discussion here.

 

[mathan]

I do have this model LG OLED55C8PTA 55 inch model installed in one another room. However screen burn-in issue is more susceptible to OLED TV also as per the LG technician (he is also a close relative of mine). After I bought it I was also worried at screen burn out in LG TV and specifically asked about the burn out that happened with the LG LED TV I had and that is when he told that for OLED TV the burn out happens as quickly as 4000 to 6000 hrs whereas for the LED TV the burn out happened after 35k hours. If it happens within a year for OLED TV, hope LG would cover under the warranty, though I am not sure.

 

[raghupb]

@vij
Like many here who have commented earlier, OLED panels are more susceptible to image retention issues.
It would be difficult to get a sense of the "alleged" issue since most HFV members have switched to OLED sets recently.

Yes, channel logo stickiness can be an issue. But then practically speaking, "at-home" viewing habits are varied.
So a couple of hours of this channel and then that channel should ideally not affect the panel.

I recently got the LG55C8 (2018 Oct). As a part of TV upgrade I ditched DTH (no more logos/tickers).
Most of the usage at my home is (in descending usage order):
- Netflix/Prime for movies/shows (no sticky logos)
- Hotstar/SonyLiv for sports/movies/shows (some sticky logos)
- YuppTV for quickie news (some sticky logos)
- YouTube for time pass (varied content)

If your family's viewing habits are varied, you need not split hairs.
The set should last until the next latest/greatest tech comes to town.
FYI, I moved from Panasonic Plasma (9 years) to LG OLED.
The plasma is still doing great after serving us for limited number of channels viewed.

Thus ends my 2 cents ...
Cheers,
Raghu

 

[milestoneseeker]

I have a 65" C7 for more than a year now and most of my viewing is on Netflix interspersed with Amazon Prime. I do watch sports occasionally on TataSky. While I did have apprehension around the burn-in issues when I was buying my TV, the fact that I haven't seen anything so far on my screen and that the TV is gorgeous in its ability to project content far outweighs worrying about it. Plus, a lot of these new TVs come with built in mitigating solutions such as screen saver which allows you to refresh your pixels. My TV also has a periodic pixel refresh which I observed around a month a back (after a year worth of watching). When switching off my TV one night, I saw a prompt for the "period pixel refresh" program which will be run in the background. I was happy to see the prompt and let it do the job.

 

[raghupb]

2. Some paranoid folks can never be at ease and the Indian news channels (most have red statics) are a concern even if you rack up only 20-30 hours a month. For instance - Election days I will have it ON at a stretch... If I have Oled, I'd be wary of news channels. Freedom goes for a toss!

Apologies in advance Couldn't resist commenting on this.
Our law makers are debating simultaneous polls. This might be the most relevant reason in so far to do so.
Elect once in 5 years; do all the reporting/yelling/tickering/logoing at one stretch and then leave me and my TV alone.
Cheers,
Raghu

 

[vij]

I have a 65" C7 for more than a year now and most of my viewing is on Netflix interspersed with Amazon Prime.

Both you and @raghupb are not the typical Indian users. Your usage is ideal for Oleds... you both are Oled's poster boys

I myself dont watch the DTH stuff except for sports (lot of cricket, IPL etc) - but my family and especially my kid (cartoon crazy) watch DTH.

 

[raghupb]

If you already have Netflix/Prime account, there is a fair amount of kiddie content.

Check it out. If you are impressed by OLED and have time to make decision, doesn't hurt to give VoD subscription services a spin before putting money down on panel.

I did this; tried them for a year before TV upgrade. Wife completely stopped watching dth. Boy (14 yrs) needed it for football.
Made my panel decision easier.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[thegr8anand]

Only wish Hotstar and SonyLiv were available on sony/lg tvs so i could watch football directly.

 

[vij]

@raghupb yes... Hv Netflix and Amazon. We watch it in our HT room. I don't watch sports on projector... Like to watch in living room with company... Although we might watch some netflix/Amazon on TV too after getting a 65".

I have 2 questions.
This 4 hour pucel refresh thing, can it be shortened? And how long it takes. What happens if someone switches tv on while it's doing the refresh.

Also, what's difference btw manual refresh and auto refresh?

 

[milestoneseeker]

Only wish Hotstar and SonyLiv were available on sony/lg tvs so i could watch football directly.

You can always cast them! I do so if I need to watch anything on these apps.