iPad iPad 4 image retention

SBruv · Dec 12, 2012

Hi all,

My iPad 4 seems to be having image retention issues. I'm wondering if this might be a common problem due to the LG display, so would anyone care to try this and confirm/deny? This is only for iPad 4 users.

Download the attached PNG (it's a screen from Letterpress, since that particular grey seems to highlight the problem particularly well) and load it into Photos on your iPad 4. Zoom in on it a bit to get rid of the text and make the whole screen grey.

Then, either

1. Load the App Store and just leave it sitting on the front page for a couple of minutes without moving it at all, or...

2. Load Chrome and leave it on screen for a couple of minutes.

Then, flip back to the grey picture (get rid of Photo's top and bottom bars to make it fill the screen). Do you see retention of either the app icons from the App Store, or the URL bar and tab top from Chrome?

Post your results!

Cheers,

SB

Even Longer · Dec 12, 2012

Hi, I went through your test with iPad 4 (LG screen) as well as iPad 3 (Samsung).

Well, I can fully confirm screen "burn in" effect on iPad 4.

iPad 3, on the opposite side, had none.

Thanks for submitting that issue, - you made my decision about whether to keep the iPad 3 or stick with iPad 4 very easy: I will return the iPad 4 and stick with 3 waiting for IGZO next iteration.

mattopotamus · Dec 12, 2012

is it just image retention? or is it actual burn in you are experiencing? I could live with retention b.c that does not last long at all, but that is really bad if it is burning in. Honestly, I would not be surprised at all by retention. I guess I always buy plasma's so I have seen retention a lot of the years and even if I leave a still image on screen for 30+ minutes it goes away after about 5

SBruv · Dec 12, 2012

Oh, it's definitely just retention (so far!), as it goes away after a few minutes. I'm betting they all do it, thanks to LG's crappy screens.

Between this and my green-for-2-seconds-on-waking iPhone 5, my eyes have never been so disappointed in Apple.

Anyone else tried the grey screen test?

Even Longer · Dec 12, 2012

Well, it seem to be a retention, but I did that experiment with drawn bold black test for about 10 minutes... Result: see for yourself.

20 minutes later I can still read it clearly!

It is very dissapointing, since iPad 3 in the same test had nothing at all...

I will bring it back an buy a mini to make the waiting time for the iPad 5 / retina mini somewhat sweeter.

HabSonic · Dec 12, 2012

My iPad 4 does the same thing, but it's only on grey background and it only stays several minutes or, at most, a few hours. I just can't notice it in real use, so who cares?

SBruv · Dec 12, 2012

HabSonic said:
My iPad 4 does the same thing, but it's only on grey background and it only stays several minutes or, at most, a few hours. I just can't notice it in real use, so who cares?

Well, it's not the end of the world, obviously, but given that I've owned every other model of iPad in the past and not had it happen with any of them, it's also not a 'good thing', is it? I'm not about to start marching up and down with a placard outside my local Apple Store or anything, but I don't have to be happy about it, either.

briansolomon · Dec 14, 2012

Image retention is a common issue with IPS displays. I've had two iPad 1s with the problem. Apple replaced one of them and gave me an iPad that didn't have the problem, but had major backlight leak issues. The one that replaced that also has image retention. It's frustrating, but there are worse problems.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5455?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

Even Longer · Dec 14, 2012

briansolomon said:
Image retention is a common issue with IPS displays. I've had two iPad 1s with the problem. Apple replaced one of them and gave me an iPad that didn't have the problem, but had major backlight leak issues. The one that replaced that also has image retention. It's frustrating, but there are worse problems.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5455?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

IPS displays - maybe, but not all IPS displays. I work on IPS displays since 12 years and there are very different in quality. The best example for this is Samsung screen on my retina MBP 15" (which is nearly perfect concerning retention) vs mass of LG screens having ghosting as their brand feature.

Same goes for the ipad screens. Ipad 3 (Samsung) has no retention, where ipad 4 with LG matrix does.

Please do not be blind for Apple marketing propaganda, - of course they will tell you, that that is normal and not a issue, especially, when they just lost Samsung as their supplier. What are you expect them to say? "Sorry, our every second ipad has an inferior display. so we hope, that you will get the right ones."?

It is not about praising the Samsung displays, but much more about the issues on the LG ones. IPS alone is no panacea.

Zcott · Dec 14, 2012

Yep, I'm seeing this on my iPad 4. Never saw it on the 3.

RenoG · Dec 14, 2012

Wirelessly posted

Welp that settles it, i will be buying my wife a cheaper refurbished iPad 3.

dazz87 · Dec 14, 2012

Just ran the test on my ipad 4. Full brightness and left it on the apple store for 2 mins and switch back to the grey background and NO IR.

Jinzen · Dec 14, 2012

Seen and tested 2x iPad 4s.

First had IR and a strange light banding (like light bleeding in middle of screen)

Second has no IR.

So again, another display lottery.

Nothing new, iPad 3s had a far worse display lottery.

Redjericho · Dec 14, 2012

Well the Apple/Samsung conflict has officially begun its negative effects on us customers. First it's poor displays, what's next?

AzN1337c0d3r · Dec 14, 2012

I made a thread for this almost as soon as the iPad 4 Wifi came out:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1487480/

LG displays are garbage.

mykem · Dec 14, 2012

SBruv said:
Bump.

Anyone else with an iPad 4 fancy giving this a go? Can anyone say they're not getting retention?

Tested my 4th Gen iPad and the result is negative (ie. no image retention). I actually left the test screen for 2 minutes and when that came up empty, did another one for 5 minutes and still no image retention or any screen anomaly. Am I suppose to turn the screen brightness to certain level? I had both tested at about 80% brightness although my normal viewing brightness at night is around 35%.

BC-2 · Dec 14, 2012

Just tried it on my iPad 4 and thankfully no IR. I turned the brightness all the way up as well.

forza69 · Dec 14, 2012

Tested right now on my two week old iPad 4 and there is very little IR. If I wasn't looking for IR, I would have never noticed it.

Abecedario · Dec 15, 2012

Can someone confirm this problem only affects ipad 4 or it is also present in some other devices like iPad mini?

dazz87 · Dec 15, 2012

I think a better test with be with a lighter background then OP's gray picture example a white background. Also when you run the test crank up the brightness all the way up.

SBruv · Dec 15, 2012

dazz87 said:
I think a better test with be with a lighter background then OP's gray picture example a white background. Also when you run the test crank up the brightness all the way up.

Yep, upping the brightness makes it more apparent, but grey - for some reason - shows it better than white.

AzN1337c0d3r · Dec 15, 2012

Just use the image from the rMBP Image Retention thread on a grey background.

SnowLeopard OSX · Dec 15, 2012

I ran your test -- I saw virtually no letter retention. I opened the App Store, left it on screen for a couple minutes then switched back to the grey image that you provided up close -- no image retention.

My brightness is set around 45 - 50

JD92 · Dec 15, 2012

Even Longer said:
Hi, I went through your test with iPad 4 (LG screen) as well as iPad 3 (Samsung).

Well, I can fully confirm screen "burn in" effect on iPad 4.

iPad 3, on the opposite side, had none.

Thanks for submitting that issue, - you made my decision about whether to keep the iPad 3 or stick with iPad 4 very easy: I will return the iPad 4 and stick with 3 waiting for IGZO next iteration.

How can you tell which company manufactured the screen? Is it just judging by their traits (e.g. image retention means it's probably an LG) or is there a definitive way to find out the manufacturer?

teeteetee · Dec 16, 2012

does ipad mini have this problem?

iPad iPad 4 image retention

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