I've purchased a Dell XPS 15 9520 with the OLED screen, that is said to be great in all reviews. However, I find it to have a very annoying defect. It seem to have a consistent "dot" pattern to all the screen, especially noticeable on white/gray backgrounds.
Not that it's the end of the world, since I can use the laptop anyway, and in dark screens it looks good, but I'm very disappointed after spending a lot of money to find a defect like that.
Has anyone the same problem? Is that a defect of the screen, that can be replaced in warranty, or it's a common problem with OLED units?
It's up to you, but if it's objectionable, consider returning the system rather than accepting a replacement of the screen. There is a certain subjectivity to perception of image quality.
Returning the computer is not an option (since I use it to work). I asked to see if other had this issue, since I only read positive review on the screen. If it's only my unit that has the issue I think it should be replaced under warranty.
But I don't think it is OLED. I never touch it and it looks great.
Reason I'm posting is because @ejn63 seemed to think you were talking about "screen door effect". I have an old Inspiron like that. The panel is either TN or IPS, but it's the Touch-Screen layer that makes it look like that. I came to that conclusion because others has same model with no-Touch and they said screen looked fine.
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It's mentioned in the Ars Technica review, so does not sound like yours is defective:
"You may notice a slight “graininess” to the screen when you’re looking at the monitor up-close, especially when viewing solid colors. This is a side effect of some OLED screens’ subpixel layout. It’s not a deal-breaker for most uses but it’s something you may want to avoid for high-end photo editing or graphic design, despite the display's 100% coverage of the sRGB color gamut and 98.7% coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut..."
That Reddit thread does mention it being an OLED display, not TFT (TN/IPS). And since the OLED option on this model is a touchscreen, it could well be an artifact of the digitizer, meaning that the solution may well be to return the system and order with a non-OLED screen, particularly if the owner wants the touch feature.
It seem to me that the issue is related on how the pixel are disposed. They are not arranged in a classical square grid but rather in a diamond pattern. That makes the effect more or less noticeable based on how the screen is focused. When taking pictures to it there are ones that is perfectly fine and one that is visible much more than in real life.
I asked coworkers and friend and they seem to make it not so much a big deal. Is it possible that this is a combination on how my glasses focus the screen?
Overall the screen is great, and to be fair I mostly use dark themes so it's only noticeable on white webpages, still I think that a laptop that costed me more than 3000$ shouldn't have these problems...
Every display technology has advantages and disadvantages. OLED panels excel in rendering true black, which backlit LCDs do not do anywhere near as capably. There are trade-offs, however: OLED displays generally have shorter lifespans, are still susceptible to burn-in that conventional LCDs are not, and they're more expensive.
You need to prioritize your needs -- if the appearance of the lighter screens on OLED are not acceptable, you do have the option to return the system and order one with a backlit LCD display. Only you can decide what's acceptable and what is not.
What you're calling problems are simply limitations of OLED technology. If they're not acceptable, order a system accordingly.
> What you're calling problems are simply limitations of OLED technology
Well I'm not complaining about the life span, or the possibility of burn-in, or the extra cost, since these are all things that I knew before making my choice. What I'm complaining is about something that I've never seen mentioned, that is that the pixel layout produces this effect that I didn't even know it existed.
Anyway, I will keep the laptop, since I need it and otherwise everything else works very well, and still I consider this the best laptop on the market, but I'm not that happy with it.
1. It's mentioned in the Ars Technica review, so does not sound like yours is defective:
"You may notice a slight “graininess” to the screen when you’re looking at the monitor up-close, especially when viewing solid colors. This is a side effect of some OLED screens’ subpixel layout.
2. It’s not a deal-breaker for most uses but it’s something you may want to avoid for high-end photo editing or graphic design,
1. So, Ars caught it. Notice they say "some OLED screens" . Could very-well be just the ones with the Touch-Screen overlay (it doesn't work by magic you know) from various laptop manufacturers. To verify, you would have to see identical OLED Panels ... one with Touch-overlay and one without.
Personally, I would rather non-touch as I don't touch mine (who wants finger-prints on their laptop screen?). In fact, I doubt many users touch theirs. This is not a iPad or tablet (not even a Surface tablet or Yoga convertible). The laptop form-factor is not really conducive to touch anyway... Non-Touch and slightly matte would be perfect.
2. Yikes. Did you catch that?
You can do what you want, but this is a lot of money to not be happy with it. Especially if planning to use it's screen mostly (and not an external monitor).
Pretty sure it is an IPS-Panel. The brightness and colors are good, as are the viewing angles. It's Touch, but I never touch-it. Sure, it's glossy (due to the Touch-layer), but the Anti-Reflective treatment really helps it not be so "mirror like". It's very close to the Retina-class screens on the Apple MacBook Pros. It's like a screen from a mobile-phone (except much bigger). In Windows-11, the Windows Scaling works fine on modern programs and apps. You just turn-up the Scaling until the text is not too small the read any more. Maybe go to a local store and view it with one-or-the-other (display panels)
Dell Rockstar
Microsoft Windows and Apple iOS Developer (Retired) - Like many of you, I can appreciate a good game-engine. - I answer questions here, but I'm not a Dell employee. - Consider giving posts you like a "thumbs-up" - Posting models-numbers and software versions speeds trouble-shooting. - Click "Mark as Accepted Answer" on any post that answers your question best.
ejn63
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Posted September 15th, 2022 12:00
It's up to you, but if it's objectionable, consider returning the system rather than accepting a replacement of the screen. There is a certain subjectivity to perception of image quality.