Tough call, but probably not. There is nothing magical about the Xbox – or any game console – as far as screen burn-in is concerned. The problem rests with the fixed graphics that most games have on-screen: Health meters, scores, timers, etc. These fixed objects are no more or less dangerous than the CNN logo or the ESPN score box in a football game. Anything that sits in the same place on the screen for a long time *might* cause burn-in.

Burn-in is typically more of a risk to rear-projection TV’s than it is to regular direct-view TV’s.

How you can lower your risk of burn-in:

  • READ YOUR TV OWNER’S GUIDE for information or warnings.
  • Lower the contrast and brightness of your TV. Most TV’s come from the factory with contrast and brightness near 100%. Lower yours as far as you can without degrading picture quality beyond what you consider acceptible.
  • Better yet, calibrate your TV (especially HDTV’s) with a DVD like Avia’s Guide to Home Theater or Video Essentials.
  • Don’t play the same game for hours and hours on end. Mix up your games a bit so the fixed elements are different.
  • Don’t leave a game paused for extended periods. Turn off the TV if you need to pause for a long time.
  • Be especially careful with a new TV. For the first one or two hundred hours, the screen is more vulnerable. Kind of like a new car engine.

Filed under: FAQs

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