Many users of a Galaxy S9, S9+, S10 or S20+ experience a problem with the touch screen of their Samsung smartphone. Supporting videos and photos, testimonials claim in particular that the AMOLED panel flashes, turns yellow or displays black and white bands. On the brand's official forums, they point to an update.
For several months, Galaxy S9, Galaxy S9+, Galaxy S10, or Galaxy S20+ users have noticed intermittent display issues. We have also been contacted by a reader who noticed screen problems on his Galaxy S9. "When I updated my Samsung Galaxy S9 in August 2020, it seems that the screen has become 'yellowish', washed out or discolored" testifies the reader. We noticed similar issues on our Galaxy S9+.
On Samsung's official forums, there is no shortage of testimonials to the same effect. A Telegram group dedicated to the problem, and comprising nearly 2,000 members, has even been opened. “Sometimes there is a sort of blue-green filter, like when you put the blue filter on but it's not the same hue. horizontal white and black on the top” explains a user. Most of the testimonies come from France, the United States, India and Malaysia.
“When my phone is locked, screen off, if I unlock it normally (with fingerprints, Iris…) my screen lights up but has a display bug (yellow screen)” says a Note 9 user The bugs noticed by users are very varied. For some, the AMOLED touchscreen sometimes turns blue-green, yellow, flashes, goes black, flashes for a few seconds, or shows horizontal lines.
Related: Galaxy S20 FE – Samsung still hasn’t fixed screen bugs after 3 updates
Users accuse an update deployed by Samsung
The first testimonies appeared around February. For many users, the screen bugs started right after installing an update. Some believe that it was the update to Android 10 that caused the screen malfunctions. "Since the update to Android 10 (updated for a month or two) I noticed that my screen bug" underlines a user. After investigating the forums, it seems rather that the first testimonials have multiplied after the March 2020 update.
In the past, a software issue has caused the screens of some Samsung devices, Note 20 Ultra and Tab S7, to turn green. It is therefore not impossible that the problem is the consequence of an update. This green screen problem is not restricted to smartphones made by Samsung. Many flagships released in recent years have encountered a similar failure. This is particularly the case with the iPhone 11 following an unlocking bug, the OnePlus 8 Pro, the Pixel 4 or the Mate 20 Pro.
Despite the updates and patches rolled out by Samsung, screen bugs still appear intermittently. To correct the problem, many of them have reset their smartphone, cleared the cache or restored it to factory settings. Without success. To avoid daily failures, Internet users offer several workarounds. For some, leaving the Always-On screen on all the time helps prevent glitches. Indeed, the problems encountered occur in most cases right after unlocking the smartphone. Unfortunately, this trick does not work for all users.
More like an overheating problem?
On Reddit and Telegram, users are starting to suspect an overheating problem. Following a software bug, some smartphones have indeed started to heat up abnormally. Several users believe that overheating may have damaged the AMOLED panel, causing abnormal reactions. "The cause has also been found, an 'overheating' would have caused this irreversible damage to the screen, all this from the famous update" advances the user who contacted us. Similar problems have already appeared on smartphones sold by competing manufacturers after overheating. This track is therefore not to be excluded.
This is not the first time that users have complained about a bug with the OLED screen of the Galaxy S9. Only a few weeks after the release, users claimed that the screen was not displaying correctly. At first glance, this failure is not related to the problems encountered over the past few months.
For the time being, Samsung has not yet reacted to the many testimonials that have appeared on its forums. Fortunately, some users have managed to obtain a replacement unit from an authorized Samsung center. Other aggrieved buyers say the brand is turning a deaf ear to their complaints as the warranty period is over. Have you encountered similar problems with your smartphone? We invite you to share your testimony in the comments below.