How to Test a New Monitor Before the Return Window Closes
A five-minute checklist for catching dead pixels, backlight bleed, and uniformity problems while you can still send it back.
Most retailers give you 14–30 days to return a monitor. Manufacturing defects that are easy to miss during a quick setup — a dead pixel in a corner, mild backlight bleed, a warm patch in one corner — often only show up once you've actually used the thing for a week, by which point the return window may have closed or a restocking fee applies. Run through this before you commit.
The order that catches the most
- Dead and stuck pixels first. Run the dead pixel test, then the stuck pixel test. Sit at arm's length, then lean in — dust on the surface moves when you tilt the panel; a real defect doesn't.
- Backlight bleed, in a dark room. Fill the screen with black using the backlight bleed test and dim the lights. Look at the edges and corners specifically. Some bleed is normal on LCD/LED panels; a bright, sharply-defined patch is not.
- Uniformity, on grey. A flat mid-grey field (the uniformity test) shows patchiness and clouding that white or black can hide.
- Colour and gradient. Run the colour test and gradient test to check for obvious tinting or banding.
- Refresh rate, if it matters to you. If you bought a high-refresh-rate panel for gaming, the refresh rate test gives a rough in-browser sanity check — it won't replace a proper tool, but it'll catch a monitor stuck at the wrong setting.
What's worth a return
A single, hard-to-see dead pixel that only shows on one colour is a judgment call — most manufacturers have a minimum defect count before they'll accept a return (see our warranty policy guide). Backlight bleed that's visible in normal room lighting, a stuck pixel showing a bright, obvious colour, or a whole section of the panel that's visibly warmer or dimmer than the rest — those are worth acting on while you still can.