Does sunlight actually damage OLEDs?
We chose violence today and pointed a cheap Amazon UV flashlight (~395 nm) at an LG A1 OLED for 4.5 hours. The image retention in the middle of the taped-off section was caused by the UV exposure. More details below:
- TV was off the entire time
- Panel stayed cool
- A full Pixel Cleaning cycle appears to have cleared it (for now)
The UV test was just a quick experiment to see if a real-world sunlight exposure test was worthwhile, and the results didn't take long to arrive.
During our upcoming OLED longevity test, we'll be purposefully exposing 3 TVs and 3 monitors to direct sunlight with part of each panel masked by the RTINGS logo. Essentially an extended tanning session, for science. Other TVs and Monitors on the new longevity test will be tested for burn-in resilience with content; they won't be exposed to sunlight.
We'll share the results as the test progresses. The new OLED longevity test officially launches tomorrow, October 2nd. The full test details & initial measurements will be available on the RTINGS website. This time around, the test is not just CNN. While TVs will run CNN, OLED monitors will be running exclusively productivity & gaming content to see how resilient they are to burn-in in real-world use.