How to run this test
Warm up and dim the room
Use the display normally for about 15 minutes. Dim the room, keep brightness at a comfortable normal level, and avoid reflections.
Begin with mid-gray
Mid-gray often makes retained logos, taskbars, and uneven wear easier to see than pure black or white.
Compare several colors
Move through red, green, blue, cyan, magenta, and white. Persistent shadows across several patterns deserve a second check.
Retest before concluding
Return to varied content, use only manufacturer-recommended panel care if appropriate, then retest later to distinguish temporary retention from persistent wear.
How to interpret what you see
A taskbar, logo, window edge, or game HUD that stays in the same location may indicate image retention or uneven OLED wear.
Some low-level banding can be visible on OLED panels, especially at very dark gray. Judge it from your normal viewing distance and compare real content.
Pink, green, or blue tint may be panel uniformity, viewing-angle behavior, or camera white balance. Check visually before relying on a photo.
A sensible retest sequence
Do not run aggressive “burn-in repair” videos for hours. First return to varied content. If your device offers a scheduled compensation or panel-care cycle, follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Retest on the same ScreenVitals patterns under similar room lighting and brightness. A mark that disappears was likely temporary retention; a mark that remains may be permanent wear or another panel defect.
A single test cannot settle that question. Use the image retention vs. burn-in retest to compare the same area again after normal use or manufacturer-recommended panel care.
The patterns can reveal a persistent shadow, but one short session cannot prove whether it is temporary retention or permanent OLED wear. Compare the same area again under similar conditions before drawing a conclusion.