MSI and Asus flipped the script on their OLED monitors | Digital Trends

MSI and Asus are stepping up their monitor game. Both companies are now offering burn-in protection as part of the warranties on their OLED displays, which is a welcome layer of security considering how many displays both brands have launching this year.

Although we’ve had OLED gaming monitors for close to two years, most brands have paid very little attention to the risk of burn-in. In January, we took a look at the burn-in protection that the largest brands offered on their OLED monitors and found only three of the eight we looked at explicitly mentioned burn-in protection. MSI and Asus jumping on board brings that number to five, joining the ranks of Alienware, Corsair, and LG.

MSI took to its newsroom to announce a three-year warranty on its upcoming OLED displays (spotted by VideoCardz). MSI’s warranty says that the MSI OLED Care function must always be on in order to make a warranty claim, but it’s enabled by default. Here are the models the warranty covers:

• MAG 271QPX QD-OLED
• MAG 321UPX QD-OLED
• MAG 341CQP QD-OLED
• MPG 271QRX QD-OLED
• MPG 321URX QD-OLED
• MPG 491CQP QD-OLED
• MEG 342C QD-OLED

TFTCentral spotted on X (formerly Twitter) that Asus recently updated its product pages to note a two-year warranty on its OLED displays that covers burn-in.

Asus have updated their warranty for all their OLED monitors (inc the latest PG34WCDM and PG32UCDM models) to now include a 2-year burn in cover. It's listed in the specs section on each product page, although their main warranty page hasn't been updated yet pic.twitter.com/I0MKMJHnPk

— TFTCentral (@TFTCentral) February 5, 2024

Previously, neither Asus nor MSI mentioned burn-in as part of the warranty, leaving open the question of if it was covered. In addition, MSI previously only offered a one-year warranty. The extended time means MSI, at least, now matches Corsair and Alienware with warranty coverage on its OLED displays.

Here’s an updated look at the major brands selling OLED monitors and their warranty coverage:

As OLED gaming monitors become more prominent among the best gaming monitors, burn-in protection is important. Burn-in happens when the organic materials of OLED start to degrade at different rates. Static elements — think a banner for a news channel — will degrade faster than images that are constantly moving, leading to a ghostly defect that looks like the static element has burned into the screen.

It’s a point of contention for OLED adoption on desktops, even if the practical risk of OLED burn-in isn’t as big as it may seem. Still, additional warranty coverage is a good thing. Burn-in isn’t something you should encounter during the life of an OLED gaming monitor with proper maintenance, but it’s still nice having peace of mind.

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