Introduction
Liquid crystal display (LCD) technology was first invented decades ago and has been improving ever since—to the point that today’s high-quality flat panel displays deliver crisp, clear visual quality at a reasonable price. Even so, some LCD monitors may harbor tiny defects due to the extreme complexity of the manufacturing process. To deal with these inevitable minor flaws, HP has developed a set of policies and detection methods to help ensure that each customer receives the highest quality product available.
Executive summary
Flat panel LCD technology is a complex subject. To help you understand how pixel and sub-pixel defects occur, and what HP does about them, this white paper explains:
What are sub-pixels and how do they work? A detailed look will show that millions of tiny sub-pixels cover the typical flat panel screen, producing the mixture of color and detail that forms the sharp, vibrant images flat panel users have come to expect.
How do pixel and sub-pixel defects occur? The HP specification does not allow for any full or complete pixel defects. It does, however, allow for some minimal sub-pixel defects. This is because the current state-of-the-art in manufacturing processes still may produce a few sub-pixel defects per screen. These defects can be extremely hard to see unless they are viewed under special conditions, or unless they happen to be clustered in groups. Nevertheless, special practices and policies have been devised to reject any complete pixel defects and minimize sub-pixel defects.
What is HP doing about it? HP has conducted a detailed study of its standards for sub-pixel defect specifications, and as a result, has adopted a more stringent unified standard for all models, which is discussed in greater detail later in this paper.
Why is this important to me? Doing business with HP gives you the advantage of dealing with a company that strives to consistently deliver a higher standard of quality to its customers. In this case, no full or complete pixel defects, and fewer sub-pixel defects than most competitors. This means better quality for the customer and ultimately greater satisfaction for the end user because the user is viewing a cleaner image without the distraction of pixel defects.