Common Display Problems
No image / black screen: verify monitor power (LED on monitor, power cable). Verify video cable is connected at both ends. Try different video cable (cables fail — HDMI, DisplayPort cables can fail intermittently). Try a different video input (monitors have multiple inputs — ensure correct input selected on monitor). If laptop: external display works but internal screen is black — internal display cable or panel failure. If desktop: try integrated graphics port (remove GPU from PCIe slot first) — if that works, GPU is faulty.
Incorrect resolution or low resolution: appears blurry or elements look oversized. Cause: wrong display driver or driver not installed (Microsoft Basic Display Adapter shows at 1024×768 or similar). Fix: install correct GPU driver from manufacturer website (NVIDIA, AMD, Intel). OR: wrong resolution set — right-click desktop → Display settings → Resolution → select native resolution.
Flickering or flashing: loose cable connection (reseat cable at both GPU and monitor). Bad cable. Monitor refresh rate set too high for the connection type. GPU driver issue — update driver. Monitor hardware failure (slowly getting worse over time).
Discoloration or color issues: incorrect color temperature/gamma settings in display settings. Faulty cable (damaged pins in VGA cause missing colors). GPU hardware failure (partial VRAM failure can cause color artifacts). Single color tint — check cable connector for bent pins.
Dead/stuck pixels: dead pixel (permanently black — pixel receives no power), stuck pixel (permanently shows one color — pixel receives constant power). Test with a pixel-test image (solid red, green, blue, white, black screens). Warranty coverage: most manufacturers cover dead pixels above a certain threshold (e.g., 3+ dead pixels). Pixel-fixing software/videos cycle colors rapidly to attempt to unstick stuck pixels — effective for some stuck pixels, not for dead pixels.
Burn-in: ghost image of previously displayed static content permanently visible. OLED displays (smartphones, some monitors) are most susceptible. Prevention: screen savers, auto-dimming, avoid displaying static images long-term. Recovery: partial improvement possible by displaying rapidly changing content. Prevention is far more effective than recovery.