Have you experienced screen flickering with one or more liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). In recent decades, LCD has become the preferred display technology used in computer monitors, TVs, smartphones, tablets, human machine interfaces (HMIs) and other display devices. When compared to cathode-ray tube (CRT), LCD is more energy efficient, longer-lasting and offers better image quality. But LCDs aren’t immune to problems, one of which is screen flickering.
What Is Screen Flickering?
Screen flickering is a phenomenon in display devices that manifests as either white or black frames “flashing” between images. It’s most common with CRTs and plasma display devices, though it can occur with LCDs as well. It’s called “screen flickering” because it literally looks like the display device’s screen is flickering. At various intervals, the screen will flicker with either white or black frames.
Is Screen Flickering a Problem?
The good news is that screen flickering typically won’t harm or otherwise damage an LCD. Nonetheless, it can still negatively affect the performance and utility of an LCD. If an LCD suffers from screen flickering, it may strain your eyes when you use it. When the black and white frames appear, they’ll force your eyes to transition, which can cause eyestrain when viewed for a prolonged period.
How to Fix Screen Flickering
There are several steps you can take to reduce or even eliminate screen flickering, one of which is to raise the refresh rate of your LCD. Refresh rate refers to the number of times an image is refreshed each second. If an LCD has a low refresh rate, images will update more slowly on screen. And between these updates, the LCD may show white or black frames, resulting in screen flickering. By raising your LCD’s refresh rate, images will update more quickly so that screen flickering isn’t a problem.
In addition to raising the refresh rate of your LCD, you should also check your display device’s connection cable. Whether it uses an HDMI, A/V or other connection, a loose cable can cause screen flickering. Therefore, you should unplug the cable and reconnect it to ensure a tight and secure connection. If that doesn’t work, you may want to try a different cable.
LCDs are often preferred over CRTs and other display devices because of their energy efficient, long-lasting properties. With that said, some LCDs may experience screen flickering. This phenomenon is usually the result of either a low refresh rate or improper cable connection. By tackling these two issues, though, you can protect your LCD from screen flickering.
