LCD Etching

I had pretty much decided to use a top end Sharp monitor for this application since my own Sharp monitor has worked so well for so long. I priced it accordingly.

I had never experienced it before that job, but its pretty bizarre. Since I didn't supply the monitors I wasn't too worried about it. Basically there are artifacts left on the screen. The worst is where you get the bright imaging from the on screen text.

When I looked into it I had two different LCD mfgs (probably relabelers) tell me it was common for that type application.

I have only a handful of sites with LCD monitors (all Sharp) and I had never encountered it before, but I like to do jobs, take the money, and not have to do any service on them or have to make excuses for poor performance. I figured before supplying a flat screen for this customer I would ask around again.

I've installed numerous DVRs with LCD monitors and never once seen "etching" occur. In the office we have one on a test bench that's been in use for over two years (a 15" Sharp), often with the same DVR displaying on it for three or four months straight, and never a problem.

Frankly, I've never heard of this phenomenon... a quick Google search of "lcd etching", and the first three pages, the only references to "etching" refer to manufacturing methods, not display failure.

I've sold dozens of LCD monitors and never encountered "etching"... What the heck is it (what does it look like)??

I think someone is blowing smoke up your ass. Either that or they're using REALLY cheap third-rate liquid crystals. Why would a DVR suffer this any more than any other display that's left on all the time? You'd think there'd be talk of the Start button, taskbar and desktop icons being "etched" on a regular basis as well.

I'm with Frank on that as I've not seen it either, the reason a TV will etch is due to the scanning of the photo-ray (whatever they call it) on a phosporus (however they spell it) background which over time degrades. An LED pixel I would think wouldn't do that. Otherwise wouldn't we see that on keypads?

I did, and found this on a thread: Create a white image in Photoshop (or similar) the same size as your screen. Use it as yiur screen saver and let it run for as long as possible. I had the same problem, ran the screen saver for 24 hours and and then rebooted and the burn-in (Apple call it "ghosting") was gone. I've seen it recommended that you run the white image as screensaver for as long as you've had the ghosting problem, but in my case a week was too long for me to have no computer access so 24 hours did the trick. The problem hasn't since re-occured... This solution was recommended by Apple, it's somewhere in their knowledge base... Here's the link:

Bought a 17" Westinghouse at Worst Buy less than a month ago and you can see all 9 cameras with the system off already. Very unhappy with this as the regular monitors don't have this problem.

Who are the manufacturers?? I have monitors up and running all day and none have demonstrated "etching" or "artifacts on the screen".

Check that the customer has the proper drivers installed for the monitor(s) they're using. If it's an "embedded" DVR that's going to be tough to do though. Most often there may be "compatibility" issues and a list of approved monitors to run with the specific machine. The problem may also be the video card and not with the monitor itself. You could test this utilizing another monitor (if the customer has the manuals for the machine make sure it's one that complies with the DVR manufacturer's "recommended" specifications).

Bob. The nice people at Viewsonic's tech support finally responded about your "burn-in" problem. They pointed me to a link on their website which states:

Unlike CRT monitors, image persistence or "Burn-In" is not permanent on your LCD panel. To recover from "Burn-In", leave the panel OFF for an extended time. We recommend the use of a screen saver when the ViewPanel is not in use.

(From

I hope this helps.