Monitor has blue tint!! Samsung 18.5 inch LCD

Monitor has blue tint!! Samsung 18.5 inch LCD

Hi Iambert,

Your monitor issues are indeed tough from your point of view and my suggestions may be of some help to you. Like all problems, we have to pinpoint the cause before we can make our conclusions. By doing some checks, both on the hardware and software side, let’s hope that it helps you in finding out what’s wrong with your monitor.

1) Hardware (Monitor Check)

The most common causes of display problems on monitors range from lose RGB/DVI cables to faulty AC plugs or sockets. This can be done by physical inspection (gentle rattling or shaking of the connectors from the CPU to the monitor and vice versa). More often than not it could just involve some tight connector screwing. If you have some extra monitor connectors around it would not hurt to test them to confirm if problem persists.

If the RGB/DVI connectors check out OK, then it’s time to check the graphics card. A lose RGB/DVI connector on the graphics card itself could cause the symptom you described. Also, check if the graphics card has been unseated. If so, just unscrew card, clean the copper contacts at the end, and reinsert card.

Temperature may play an important part too as to the condition of the graphics card. There was a graphics card I encountered that manifested the blue tint on the display when warmed up. Make sure that adequate cooling and ventilation is practiced.

An alternate but effective quick check involves using another monitor to conclude whether your monitor is the one causing the problem. You can also swap out your current graphics card with another just to rule out the possibility of it being the problem.

Another thing involves using all the other ports accessible to the Samsung LCD monitor. Does it have an S-Video connector? Look for other video inputs present and if available test those ports by plugging in any device such as a gaming console like an X-Box, or a video cam with a compatible video port. Confirm if you get the bluish tint on them as you do with the PC connected to it. Mark your observations well. It will give you a clue as to where the problem is coming from. The source (PC/CPU) or the monitor itself.

Fluctuating mains on the AC outlet could also spell monitor problems on your end. A handy analog or digital multi meter could tell you if you have normal AC power or not. The LCD monitor’s tolerance in such case goes from  90 to 250V. This means your monitor will operate and compensate for any changes between 90VAC (Low) to 250VAC (High). An AC outlet reading out of this range could cause problems.

It also may be a dead pixel problem on the monitor. To do the pixel check download this simple utility and run, Astris . Anything wrong with the images in terms of pixels should show on this check. Go on to the next step if it turns out fine.

2) Checking the operating system (Software side)

Make sure you are using the correct graphics drivers that are constantly updated. Default windows drivers may cause some issues on several monitors pertaining to image resolution. Graphics card drivers may be bundled as an install disk for some or just downloadable from the manufacturer’s website depending on the brand. Well known brands include NVIDIA, ATI, or the built-in Intel GMA chipset.

To check for graphics driver properties just right click on my computer, properties, then device manager. Relevant information regarding drivers for you specific chipset are shown along with the driver version and date.

Make sure that the display resolution is something that your monitor supports. A typical 18 inch LCD type monitor should display 1366×768 resolutions without any issue. Anything higher could cause loss of sync resulting in tearing and/or image distortion.