Predator Acer X45 Monitor - Recurring burn-in notification + Auto dimming

Dear Acer,

I own a Predator X45 gaming monitor and use it for gaming and home office work. It has the best on-paper specs on the market to do both. I therefore made an exception and forgot about my prejudice about the Acer brand as somewhat buggy, bloatware infested, lower tier quality products and invested a lot of money in this one.

Judging from the specs on-paper I was expecting to get a great return on my investment in excellent gaming experience and home office productivity.

HOWEVER…

The product have SERIOUS flaws that unless addressed will make me cement my impression about the Acer-brand and NEVER buy an Acer product again - and will recommend others to do the same. I am one of those guys who happily shells out $1600-1700 on on a good gaming monitor to match my top tier gaming rig and peripherals. My friends take my recommendations seriously because I take my equipment seriously.

So what did I get with the X45? I got a phenomenal OLED panel that delivers unparalleled gaming experience - right until the center-screen non transparent red box burn-in notification shows after 4 hours of use … and then 4 hours after that … and 4 hours after that … that CANNOT BE DISABLED! What the hell is up with that?

Then the screen sporadically shift and flickers in some games when running HDR 240Hz Ultra Quality (Need for Speed Unbound being one and it happens in the CS2 menus too from time to time). I tried switching to a 240Hz Samsung monitor on the same DP-cable (that came with the X45) and the problem goes away.

Then when I do office work and typically run two side-by-side windows, the dynamic screen dimming / brightness goes completely bonkers. Office work for me is typically running Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel and Power Point and switching between these all the time.

Every time I open a window with a white background, the screen brightness automatically adjusts and it does it again when I open or switch top the next one and so it goes on all day until I am at the verge of having an epileptic seizure.

I got the monitor 1 year ago, I am running a full- and well cooled ASUS Strix rig with a i9-13900K and 4090 RTX card and a nice 1000W PSU. There has not been a single firmware release since then and no useful response from Acer on the above issues, also pointed out by many other owners.

At least, just let us disable the terrible burn-in notification. I'll buy a new monitor if this one breaks … I don't need to be reminded every fourth hour!

So, if this is the Acer consumer experience I've been avoiding all these years, then I am out of here along with all of my great user experience mindful well-off gamer friends!

[Edited the thread to add issue detail]

Accepted answers

StevenGen

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/714124/acer-x45-recurring-burn-in-notification-auto-dimming

That is very unfortunate that you feel this way about Acer and this exceptional X45 OLED monitor, but you have to realize that Acer is a responsible manufacturer of monitors that can cause harm to eye sight and that is why the "Burn In Warning" appears after 4 hours, as anyone that is sitting continually in front of a 45" OLED pixel screen is asking for serious eye damage and that is why Acer has that warning to protect them from any liabilities.

The requirement for burn-in warnings on monitors isn’t universally mandated by law. However, manufacturers often include these warnings to inform users about potential risks and to limit liability. Burn-in, also known as image retention, can be a concern for certain types of displays, particularly OLED and plasma screens.

Read up on articles on OLED screens as they can be harsher on the eyes in this regard and can cause damage. There is a lengthy guide in the Acer X45 eManual monitor in regards to this also, please read that too:

Note: Taking care of your vision Long viewing hours, wearing incorrect glasses or contact lenses, glare, excessive room lighting, poorly focused screens, very small typefaces and low-contrast displays could stress your eyes. The following sections provide suggestions on how to reduce eye strain.

Eyes at X45 eManual Reference

Rest your eyes frequently.
Give your eyes regular breaks by looking away from the monitor and focusing on an isntant point
Keep your display clean.• Keep your head at a higher level than the top edge of the display so your eyes point downward when looking at the middle of the display.
Adjust the display brightness and/or contrast to a comfortable level for enhanced text readability and graphics clarity.
Eliminate glare and reflections by: placing your display in such a way that the side faces the window or any light source• minimizing room light by using drapes, shades or blinds
using a task light• changing the display’s viewing angle
using a glare-reduction filter• using a display visor, such as a piece of cardboard extended from the display’s topfront edge• Avoid adjusting your display to an awkward viewing angle.
Avoid looking at bright light sources, such as open windows, for extended periods of time.

Be aware of all this and I suggest that you take a break from gaming after at least 2 hours and let the monitor go into sleep mode and let your eyes/brain relax as that "Burn In Warning" only comes on if the monitor is continually used for 4hour. Good luck and hope this helps you out for safe and enjoyable gaming.

If this answers your question and solved your query please "Click on Yes" or "Click on Like" if you find my answer useful👍

All comments

StevenGen

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/714124/acer-x45-recurring-burn-in-notification-auto-dimming

That is very unfortunate that you feel this way about Acer and this exceptional X45 OLED monitor, but you have to realize that Acer is a responsible manufacturer of monitors that can cause harm to eye sight and that is why the "Burn In Warning" appears after 4 hours, as anyone that is sitting continually in front of a 45" OLED pixel screen is asking for serious eye damage and that is why Acer has that warning to protect them from any liabilities.

The requirement for burn-in warnings on monitors isn’t universally mandated by law. However, manufacturers often include these warnings to inform users about potential risks and to limit liability. Burn-in, also known as image retention, can be a concern for certain types of displays, particularly OLED and plasma screens.

Read up on articles on OLED screens as they can be harsher on the eyes in this regard and can cause damage. There is a lengthy guide in the Acer X45 eManual monitor in regards to this also, please read that too:

Note: Taking care of your vision Long viewing hours, wearing incorrect glasses or contact lenses, glare, excessive room lighting, poorly focused screens, very small typefaces and low-contrast displays could stress your eyes. The following sections provide suggestions on how to reduce eye strain.

Eyes at X45 eManual Reference

Rest your eyes frequently.
Give your eyes regular breaks by looking away from the monitor and focusing on an isntant point
Keep your display clean.• Keep your head at a higher level than the top edge of the display so your eyes point downward when looking at the middle of the display.
Adjust the display brightness and/or contrast to a comfortable level for enhanced text readability and graphics clarity.
Eliminate glare and reflections by: placing your display in such a way that the side faces the window or any light source• minimizing room light by using drapes, shades or blinds
using a task light• changing the display’s viewing angle
using a glare-reduction filter• using a display visor, such as a piece of cardboard extended from the display’s topfront edge• Avoid adjusting your display to an awkward viewing angle.
Avoid looking at bright light sources, such as open windows, for extended periods of time.

Be aware of all this and I suggest that you take a break from gaming after at least 2 hours and let the monitor go into sleep mode and let your eyes/brain relax as that "Burn In Warning" only comes on if the monitor is continually used for 4hour. Good luck and hope this helps you out for safe and enjoyable gaming.

If this answers your question and solved your query please "Click on Yes" or "Click on Like" if you find my answer useful👍

skurken_dk

I understand how this kind of guidance applies in a legal system like that of the US. However in Europe (and Denmark, where I live), people are capable of thinking independently and hardware manufacturers are not liable for misuse of their equipment.

So, since the burn-in warning is not mandated by law - why are consumers not given the choice to permanently turn it off?

I am very rarely sat in front of my monitor for 4 hours straight. During a home-office day take calls on my phone, I prepare lunch, i take bathroom breaks, i go outside etc. I don't manually turn off my display as my power management plan turns my display off after 15 mins of inactivity and a screen saver comes on after 5 minutes before that.

The warning still appears every 4th hour and it's like the monitor does not register the power plan and screen saver is running. This is particularly annoying during a gamins sessions.

I also typically take breaks every 30-60 minutes but leave the machine running - so the warning will appear in the middle of a competitive online game in the middle of my screen (for no reason).

I would be wiling to sign a waiver for both the monitor and my eyes breaking (this is not needed in Europe … but still) to get rid of the warning.

OKNotCool

I have the same issue with the warning message except its not every 4 hours, ITS EVERY 20 MINUTES on my X49, and comes up 1 minute after powering on.

Makes the monitor completely unsuitable for gaming, as you have to get up and switch it off using the button at the bottom of the monitor.

There is an option in the menu where you can set image retention refresh to no, but it makes no difference, the warning comes up every 20 minutes no matter what setting.

It's absolutely infuriating and totally ruins the user experience, so much so that I want it fixed or a return for full refund.

What I find more infuriating however, is Acers response which is 2% about the issue and 98% about "protecting your eyes". The warning is 100% about not burning an image into the monitor, and 0% about eye health. If it was in any way eye health related, it would say something about the risks, recommend taking a break or anything like that, but no. The screen will turn on and off and apparently you're good to go. Shocking execution Acer.

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