Fix That Burn! Gameboy Color LCD Screen Burn Repairs & Causes Explained

[@LRM12o8]

So, moisture and heat, it is. UV of course can heat the screen up, but the imo the window test showed that unless you have a really high UV intensity for most of the year, your Gameboy is not gonna get screen burn from lying on your windowsill. I wonder during which month you did this test and what the average and maximum in temperature and UV index were during that timeframe.

[@gamejaeger]

I did the test in May in Wisconsin so it wasn't super hot out yet but it was warm each day and we had plenty of sun during that time too. I've since left that same screen in the same window and I'm going to come back and take a look at it in May this year. I'm guessing it just needed more time to "burn" itself and I wanted to confirm that. I'll post something on the channel once the experiment is done so check back in a few months and I'll have an update for you!

[@shahrukh8211]

Hey great video man the i replace those with my develop method takes like 5 mins to replace all you need to do is use a heat gun at 200c from a distance for like 30 seconds it will melt the glue beneath and will make it alot easier to peel off.

[@shahrukh8211]

Also forgot to mention when removing the lcd from the shell easier and more safer method to use is pickup the shell and twist it firmly couple times and the adhesive will just crack and your lcd will be free.

[@gamejaeger]

That's a great idea, I'll have to try that next time. Thanks!

[@dyXurChannel]

It's good to know how this happens. I have quite a few handhelds displayed, but thankfully not near a heat source and out of the sunlight. I also did this repair just yesterday. Spent hours getting rid of the glue, tried the polarizers until I remembered I only had DMG/GBP ones and had to wait weeks for GBC/GBA ones to arrive.

[@gamejaeger]

Glad to help, it's a longer repair than you think but way worth it when its done!

[@djostrerozdecieokreznicy8149]

Honestly, great video. So much information in 10 minutes. thanks :D

[@gamejaeger]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@matt4193]

To separate the screen from the shell you can twist it in opposite sides top and bottom. Much more secure than randomly applying force with a metal tool.

[@gamejaeger]

True. If you twist too much though, it can break the housing. I've had that happen a few times when I had a screen that was really stuck on. I've started to use my small screwdriver to loosen it and it seems to work pretty well for me but I'm sure there are other ways to do it that work great too.

[@RetroVaultOz]

Ok man, that reaction to the cracking sound made me laugh! Been there, done that! It's worth suggesting a firm plastic spudger to pry the screen up as opposed to a metal micro-screwdriver.

[@gamejaeger]

Haha yeah its terrifying taking those off sometimes, they just make the worst cracking sounds. But good tip on the spudger.

[@Bleats_Sinodai]

A safer way to remove the screen from the case is to twist the case slightly until the screen pops off. The plastic is way more flexible than the screen, so it'll basically peel itself off the screen.

[@gamejaeger]

Good tip!

[@arzarello]

HI, great video. Can you know what type of polarizer has the Sega Game Gear? Thanks.

[@gamejaeger]

Thanks! That unfortunately I don't know. I'm sure it is similar to the GBC's though. The polarizer films are pretty cheap so you can always buy a few different versions and see what works with it. Sorry I can't be of more help...

[@SHINdanny]

hahaha, reminded me when I had to change the polarizers of a Pocket Operator because I used acetone to clean the screen. I don´t remember why I even used acetone :/ The adventure starts when you have to look for the right one that also sticks

[@gamejaeger]

Nice, I didn't know you could even use acetone for these.

[@SHINdanny]

@@gamejaeger I just wanted to clean the screen and eta was not enough so I used acetone without thinking and damaged the polarizer ;)

[@gamejaeger]

I read it wrong at first haha, that makes a lot more sense to me now lol. That would certainly be a mess...

[@prod.temporaryy]

Wow awesome video bro well made content also i was pleasantly surprised at how much I laughed lol thanks

[@gamejaeger]

Thank you, I'm glad you liked it!

[@Neruomir]

The common denominator was heat which prob causes delamination.

[@gamejaeger]

Very true, never thought about it that way but heat could be a big factor as a whole.

[@ApplesOfEpicness]

A lot of windows filter out UVB. It would be interesting to see you put a screen under a UV lamp for awhile.

[@gamejaeger]

Good point, I totally forgot about that. I'll have to try it sometime and see if that would cause additional issues. Thanks for the reminder!

[@Ukysseus]

Welp I killed my screen. My new polarizer needed to be twisted to be in the correct position which I didn't now. When I tried to remove it removed parts of the bottom layer...

[@gamejaeger]

Sorry to hear that... These are a bit tough to work on but hopefully your screen isn't too bad off where you can put another polarizer on. I've done that before and I truly feel your pain. If the main screen isn't damaged then you should be good, you just need to go through the whole process again sadly.

[@Ukysseus]

@@gamejaeger Actually I still have some hope. I think I have to remove the layer I thought I shouldn't remove. What's getting me really confused is that the sticky side of my polarizer seems to be the wrong one... I'll try to figure this out this week-end. Thank you for this video it's really helping!

[@gamejaeger]

I'm glad it helped! From doing many of these I've found you don't always know if you have removed all of the old polarizer until you're cleaning what you think is the last layer and it's just not coming off like it should. Basically anything above the glass part of the screen needs to be removed and cleaned. And it will take some time so don't feel bad if you're there for a while, its just part of the process...

[@unkono]

You forgot to do a cold test.

[@gamejaeger]

Good call, I'll add that to the list of future videos. Thanks!

[@katt2002]

BULLSHIT! my GBC was kept in a dark cold dry desk drawer and it developed fine cracks and screen burn.

[@gamejaeger]

Well maybe it wasn't as dark, cold, or as dry as you thought... Or it could be that there's still a lot of variability with screen burn causes too. I can only tell you what my tests showed, and the data was pretty clear.

[@katt2002]

@@gamejaeger it's well known lcd screen will get damaged from heat like putting in a car under summer sunlight. It's just not the only reason it get damaged. it's not only me who reported that's not the case. look at 2nd hand market, most of them have burnt screen, do you think everyone put their gameboy under sunlight? Even the one brand new in box showed sunburn damaged screen like, really? and why would you doubt my storage place? I'm showing my data as well.

[@gamejaeger]

Like I said, there's still variability with these units and I agree there could be many reasons why they get burns and sunlight isn't the only one. I tried to cover the most common protentional causes of the screen issues and I believe it provided some clarity to those. I think humidity is a long term cause that not many people think about and may be causing issues even if items were stored away from sunlight in the best of conditions. Small amounts over long periods of time could 100% cause screen burn. I also don't know what 2nd hand market you're referring to but even though screen burns can be an issue, there are literally thousands of units on eBay right now that are in great shape. I would still say its a common issue with GBC's for sure. But to say that's so common that there are hardly any in good shape anymore is a bit of a stretch for me.

[@katt2002]

@@gamejaeger I was referring to GBC and yes mine that has screen damage is also a GBC. BTW I know it's not you who invented the word "screen burn" but this is quite misleading, it appears like the screen got burnt but in fact it's just a damage to the polarizing layer. The reason can be anything that also degrades plastics. UV light and heat are those but it can be moisture, lost of plasticizer, or as wild as bio-degrade by bacteria. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymer_degradation The severity can differ for various reasons, like you said GBC is more prone. It's really bugging me when the conclusion is heat but many people like me who stored their game boy away from heat also got screen damage.

[@gamejaeger]

I think the term screen burn really came from screens like the one in the thumbnail. Before fixing video game items I always thought screen burns referred to the burned in images on TV's and monitors. Of course that's less of an issue now. (at least I thought it was lol) But I don't know if there's a solid conclusion for what really causes the defects to start. I just wanted to show the most common ones I could think of and see what would happen to a few screens during testing. It could be a variety of factors, sort of a death by 1000 cuts situation too. The screen could be exposed to some minor heating and cooling cycles, at the same time it also gets a small amount of humidity increases/ decreases here and there too, then maybe it was left in a hot car one time for a few hours. I'm weaving a tale here, but you get the idea. I'm wondering if the defects start as a reaction to a totality of the circumstances, rather than a single situation to "burn it".