SCREEN Burn-in FiXES: Xiaomi Mi A1 and Redmi Note 4

Repair Burn-in Screen: Xiaomi Mi A1 and Redmi Note 4

Xiaomi devices excel at packing strong specifications in affordable packages. But there is something about their LCD screens that are a little disappointing. People complain about the way they suffer from burning screen problems.

When you use an old application on the Xiaomi Mi A1 or Redmi Note 4, for example, the screen holds the image even after you exit.True, this does not affect cellphone use in a significant way. But that certainly makes the experience less pleasant.The debate is whether the burn-in screen is a software or hardware problem. Well, that's not a hardware problem. Look, many devices use LCD screens. But not all suffer from image retention. Plus, modders have come up with a way to reduce the problem of using software tweaks. Thus shows that the problem is the problem of how manufacturers calibrate their screens.

Mi A1s which display Tianma LCD screens are vulnerable to ghosting. On the contrary, very rarely hear the same thing from those who use the BOE panel.

How do you know the LCD variant that your cellphone uses?

Open the Settings then About mobile
Tap the Kernel version five times
Select option 1

If you see something like mdss_dsi_nt35532, then your phone uses the BOE LCD. Those who read mdss_dsi_nt35596 were by Tianma.If you have the guts, there is also a way to identify the LCD variant by opening the phone internally.All the same, the problem seems to mostly affect the notification area.See shots below.

SCREEN Burn-in FiXES: Xiaomi Mi A1 and Redmi Note 4

Screen ghosting is not limited to Xiaomi devices. Google Pixel Cellphone itself has displayed this problem too. Pixel users 2 XL, for example, have reported that their devices suffer from ghosting.

What Causes the Screen Burns?

Leaving images displayed on the panel for long periods of time is usually the main cause. But that cannot be avoided in some cases. Take the notification area, for example. This element shows regardless of what application you have opened. So it's difficult to avoid this burning in the display area.

Indeed, Android has a way to change the color of the notification area. However, if you ask the user, the OS approach does not make the problem disappear.

Static UI elements continue to be a common feature in both pure Android and MIUI experiences. This increases the chance of leaving ghost images on the screen.

But as the points below show, there are ways of preventing the issue in the first place.
How to Prevent Screen Burn-in

Preventing screen ghosting boils down to reducing the time any UI element displays. Reducing the brightness of the entire panel also seems to help.

1. Deal with Brightness

Mi A1 users have the Adaptive Brightness option for setting auto brightness. And the Redmi Note 4 has the Automatic mode in the display settings.

These two promise to change panel brightness according to ambient lighting. Yet, some users have found them ineffective at best.

So, a viable option would be to install apps to replace the native offerings. See examples below.

Lux Lite: com.vitocassisi.luxlite.apk or from Play Store link
Velis Auto Brightness: com.velis.auto.brightness.apk or from Play Store link

2. Reduce Screen Timeout

It is even better to make the screen stay on for as short a time as possible. When you use this option with the auto brightness feature, you reduce the stress on the device’s panel considerably.

The option is somewhat straightforward on the Mi A1. But, as you’ll see in a second, it takes a bit more work on the Redmi Note 4.

On the Redmi Note 4 (MIUI)

Go to Settings, System & Device, then Lock screen & password
Press Sleep
Change it to a faster timeout value, say, sleep after 2 minutes

On the Mi A1 (Android One)

Go to Display, then Sleep
Change the Sleep setting to the desired value

But what if you want to get the Screen timeout option on the quick tiles?

You’d have to install an app that exposes Quick Settings Tile API. One such app is Quick Settings. Download or find it in the links below.

3. Disable Navigation Bar on Redmi Note 4

Whereas the navigation bar on the Mi A1 is physical, the one on the Redmi Note 4 shows on the screen.

So, since the bar is prone to leaving artifacts on the panel, you’d have to make it show when you want it to. Here’s how to do it:

First, find the Buttons option on the quick settings/toggle panel.

What if it’s not on that panel already?

Go to Settings, Notifications & status bar, then Toggle positions
Drag the Buttons toggle button to the quick settings bar

Otherwise, you can also set when you want the navigation buttons to show. For this you’ll need to:

Go to Additional settings, Buttons, then Automatically disable navigation buttons

Once there, you can set the apps you’d want the navigation bar to show.

Well, these tips work when your screen doesn’t have burn-in showing in the first place. But what if you’re LCD has image retention issues already? Read on to see how you can fix it.

How to Fix Screen Burn-in

Users have reported varying levels of success when remedying screen burn-in. It all depends on how bad the problem is on your device. If it’s a trivial matter, apps could reduce ghosting for you.

But, when the issue is persistent you may have to consider installing a custom ROM. The good thing about this approach is that it gives you more control over how your screen behaves.
Using Apps

Using apps is only a matter of installing a given option and testing it out on your device. Here are some options:

LCD Burn-in Wiper: appinventor.ai_avaworks00.LCDBurnInWiper.apk or from its Play Store link
Display Tester: com.gombosdev.displaytester.apk or from its Play Store link

Using Custom ROMs

Custom ROMs are excellent at using tweaks to deal with issues that users complain about.

Take LineageOS, for example. It has inbuilt protection against screen burn-in. See the pertinent code below.

<dimen name="burnin_protection_horizontal_shift">3dp</dimen>
<dimen name="burnin_protection_vertical_shift">1dp</dimen>

So, if you have LineageOS running on your device, you are lucky.

When the problem remains clear, you may have to use color calibration.

How to Calibrate Color on LineageOS ROMs (and other AOSP-based ROMs)

Go to Settings, then Color calibration
Increase the RGB value to a value higher than 90%. See the screenshot below

How to Calibrate Color on the Resurrection Remix ROM

1. Go to Settings then Display

2. Press LiveDisplay, then Color calibration

Using a kernel tweaking tool

If your Mi A1 or Redmi Note 4 has root access, this method may work for you.

Related: [Guide] How to Root Xiaomi Mi A1

Install a kernel tweak tool. An excellent app is the Kernel Adiutor. (And yes, “Adiutor” is the correct spelling.) See links below.

Kernel Adiutor: com.grarak.kerneladiutor.apk or from its Play Store link

After installation, open the app and navigate to Screen (Color Calibration [RGB])

Set the RGB values to something higher than 230. (This is equal to 90% of the max RGB value of 255—see screenshot below.)

Reboot to apply the changes

Final Thought

Screen burning affects how you enjoy using your device. Some people may not be very interested in recording it. However, in high resolution panels, ghost images are usually annoying.

Fortunately, there are a number of ways to reduce the possibility of screens displaying ghosting. They include reducing brightness and making the screen run out faster.

If your device suffers from a burning screen, some applications can help you solve the problem.

However, it is recommended to install a special ROM if you want more control about how the panel behaves. And for those who have root access, the kernel auditor can fix better problems.

Search This Blog

SCREEN Burn-in FiXES: Xiaomi Mi A1 and Redmi Note 4

Ditulis pada: September 11, 2018