5 Ways To Fix A Stuck Pixel On Your Screen
A dead or stuck pixel on an LCD screen or TFT can be incredibly annoying. You’ll be staring at it for days on end, wondering for how long you’ll be without your screen or maybe your entire laptop if you decided to turn it in for repair or replacement. All that grieve over something as unimportant, yet highly irritating as a malfunctioning pixel.
Before you run the item back to the store though, you should try to see whether you can fix it yourself! This, if done carefully, will not hamper your warranty and might save you a lot of time and worries. So let’s see what you can do yourself.
Let me say that any new LCD or TFT monitor should be tested for pixel errors. This can be done simply by running it through a palette of basic colors and black and white in full screen mode. The software, which we’ll get to in a second, can do that.
First let me explain what you may be seeing. Is it just a stuck pixel or is it in fact dead? A stuck pixel will appear in any of the colors that its three subpixels (red, green and blue) can form, depending on their functionality and brightness. In a dead pixel all subpixels are permanently off, which will make the pixel appear black. This may result from a broken transistor, in rare cases however even a black pixel may just be stuck. So if you’re seeing a colored or white pixel, your chances are pretty good and if it’s black, there is still hope.
Let’s turn to the software now. If you’re not on Windows, scroll down for some online tools!
UDPixel (Windows)
I recommend UDPixel to quickly identify and fix pixels using a single tool. The program requires .NET Framework 2.
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With the dead pixel locator on the left you can easily detect any screen irregularity that may have escaped your vision until now. Should you have identified a suspicious pixel, switch to the undead pixel option, create sufficient amounts of flash windows (one per stuck pixel) and hit start. You can drag the tiny flashing windows to where you found the pixel in question. Let it run for a while and eventually change the flash interval.
LCD (online)
This is one tool that lets you find and eventually fix stuck pixels. It packs many options into a singly tiny window, but once you have an overview it’s straightforward and easy to use.
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To test the screen click the small ‘pick a color’ box. The colors you should test are red, green and blue. Additionally you should test white and black. Follow the instructions in the box to gain the best results.
Online Monitor Test (Online)
This is a very thorough test not only meant to identify bad pixels, but also powerful enough to test the quality of your monitor. You can choose between three different modes to test your monitor. This tool either requires flash (online version) or it can be installed in the executable mode.
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What you will need to just test for stuck pixels is the HTML window. Toggle full screen by hitting F11. What you will see is displayed below.
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Move the mouse to the top of the test window and a menu will appear. There is an info window that you can turn off with a button in the top right of the menu. Then click on the homogenity test point and move through the three colors as well as black and white. Fingers crossed you won’t discover anything out of the ordinary. In the unfortunate case that you do, you may find the following online tool helpful.
JScreenFix (Online)
Alternatively, and if you’re not using Windows XP, you can use the online tool JScreenFix which launches a Java applet to fix stuck pixel.
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The tool launches a small applet in a separate browser window and you can drag the window to the respective spot or run it in full screen.
Hands On (Offline)
Should none of these tools resolve your pixel issue, there is one last chance. You can combine any of the tools and the magic power of your own hands. There is a very good description of all available techniques on wikiHow. Another great step by step guide can be found on instructables.
But let’s go through one technique real quick:
- Turn off your monitor.
- Get yourself a damp cloth, so that you won’t scratch the screen.
- Apply pressure to the area where the stuck pixel is. Try not to put pressure anywhere else, as this may trigger the creation of more stuck pixels.
- While applying pressure, turn on your computer and screen.
- Remove pressure and the stuck pixel should be gone.
This works because in a stuck pixel liquid in a subpixel has not spread equally. In combination with the backlight of your screen, this liquid is used to allow different amounts of light to pass through, which creates the different colors.
Should all of these approaches fail to fix your pixel warrior, at least you’ll now know it’s not simple to fix and the LCD may indeed need to be replaced. But please do let us know if these tips helped you to fix your pixels. In any case, good luck!
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Thanks you very much. It’s good !
don’t rub the LCDs
These techniques are all very practical. I’ve found that if it can’t be fixed with an application or by gently massaging the affected pixel(s), then sometimes you may need to try repeating both processes a few times and be patient. Don’t apply too much pressure when touching an LCD and I encourage using a microfiber cloth so you don’t scratch it.
Yes, using a cloth to prevent scratches is highly recommended.
Thanks!
Interesting things to try - I’m looking forward to ‘freeing’ my poor pixels.
for those really pesky ones, try tapping the screen with your finger
how about some help for the many non-pc devices this happens on, e.g. my ipod
I’m afraid I don’t currently have advice for you. I don’t even know whether the “hands on” technique will work. Regarding the iPod I can only refer you to a forum: http://forums.ilounge.com/showthread.php?t=148919
I have been massaging pixels for years. It has always worked. Stuck pixels always right themselves if pressed firmly enough. You don’t need to turn the screen on while doing it. Just get to where you can see it and push -gently at first and move your finger around it to be sure that at some point you hit it properly. You might need to use a finger nail through a cloth for more accuracy. Apply more pressure if you need to, but it usually won’t take a lot. Don’t be too alarmed at the waves of discoloration at the pressure point. They will disappear when the pressure is released.
Thanks Mystigo, I tried ran UDPixel for over 2 hours trying to get rid of the bright lime green stuck pixel on my lcd tv then I tried what you said and after about 30 seconds of gentle rubbing it disappeared! I’m just so relieved, thanks.
May be 5 tools to find and fix rather than just 5 ways to fix
These are some great tips to fix my stuck pixel problem.
I will make use of one or two of them.
thanks from tony
great article. gonna try this next time.
If someone would have told me that before, i would’nt believe it!!
I have just repaired one (the only) dead pixel on my brandnew monitor.
Only by pressing gently with my fingernail during executing the undeadpixel software.
Thanks for the tip!
Bertl
Bertl if u revived a dead pixel i can find a cure for HIV.
If u did revive a “dead pixel” it was probably a stuck pixel. it also maybe have been dirt, since it was during the software. Just some suggestions, not a dead pixel revived
this is really interesting,thanks
I tried the software (Jscreenfix and UDPixel) several times and it didn’t help. I have a brand new toshiba a300. However, when I pressed gently against the affected pixel and turned the screen off and on, the pixel was unstuck. It came back to life! Sometimes it gets stuck again, but with a simple tapping on the screen, it can be repaired!
I seem to have a confused pixel, it doesn’t seem dead (Never lighting up), it doesn’t seem stuck (Constantly one colour) but it changes colour depending on what colour background its on.
On a Red background its black, on a white its turquoise, blue is blue, yellow is green… I am really confused and so is the pixel,
Can Anyone help?!
Hello Mercury,
I’m afraid I have no diagnosis for your pixel. Did you try to fix it as described above?
You may also try to clean your screen thoroughly with a damp cloth, maybe with alcohol. It could be a small droplet of liquid that dried on your screen and is causing this phenomena. Just an idea.
If that didn’t work you should get in touch with the manufacturer of the TFT. Maybe they can tell you what this strange behavior is caused by.
Good luck! And if you find out what it is, let us know!
Thank You for quick reply, I never expected anyone to respond to me! So thank you.
I’ve tried clean the screen and I don’t think I could see alcohol touch my screen (My laptop is very important to me lol) I’ve checked, its not a droplet of water, but good thinking! Oh whats TFT?
(Comments wont nest below this level)TFT = Thin Film Transistor, as http://www.google.com/search?q=define:TFT will tell you.
Good News! It was a Stuck Sub Pixel, when one of the colours within the pixel dies but the others are fine, I got it fixed
So alls well that ends well
(Comments wont nest below this level)How did you get it fixed? I have several streaks on my LCD that behave the same way yours did. Guessing that it’s several thousand stuck sub pixels. I’ve tried all the methods described and nothing works.
I had to take mine to Apple and get it fixed, if its still under warranty, they’ll do it for free, as you have so many they might do that for free, unless you have a windows computer, in which case I would send it off to get fixed
Hope this helps ^^
Sounds like a stuck (or dead) red subpixel, a pixel is made of red, green, and blue subpixels. Our eyes contain cones that detect these wavelengths. Yellow is made of red + green.
is there anyway I can fix it other than the above suggestions? I have tried changing the pixels colour at a fast rate and rubbed it gently but nothing
(Comments wont nest below this level)Nice post, thanks
i have a unibody macbook and there is something over the lcd screen. you can’t touch it as you do with normal lcd’s. i need to push very hard to to make liquid move, and after a point, i can’t push forward. i’ve tried the java apps and they didn’t work, what shall i do?
I have many dead lines running down my screen. White, blue, green, cyan, red. Tons of them.
How do I fix the dead pixels on a Sony LCD HDTV? They’re blue, you can only see them when the screen is black or dark, I tried UDPixels but didn’t worked, help.
I want to try some of these as my nice new 20″ iMac has a stuck pixel (stays light blue) whic is very annoying but I can’t can’t do the “hands on” method as these computers have a glass cover in front of the LCD. What can I do?
so unfair…seems to work 4 evry1 else but i cant get rid ov myn….it was ther since i first bought the LCD O_o