When Might an LCD Monitor Experience Distorted Geometry?

Do you see lines or shapes on your LCD monitor that are not part of the image on display?

It’s not unusual for a monitor to experience issues when it’s running. Distorted geometry is one of the rare issues you can have with your monitor. If you bump your monitor, you are most likely to experience distorted geometry, which can be the lines or shapes on your screen. 

Distorted geometry can be a temporary issue that resolves itself with time.

So, when might an LCD monitor experience distorted geometry?

What Makes an LCD Monitor Experience Distorted Geometry?

The most significant cause of distorted geometry in an LCD monitor is incorrect resolution. If you set the monitor resolution beyond the native resolution, you will likely experience distorted geometry.  

Some of the other reasons you may experience distorted geometry on your monitor include:

• Distorted geometry can result from recently installed video device driver updates
• Your LCD monitor can experience distorted geometry if you bump it, especially if the impact comes from the side of the display
• Overclocking your monitor can also cause the issue
• You may also experience the issue if your monitor has issues with the backlight
• The monitor can also have distorted geometry issues if it’s displaying too bright or dark images
• A damaged or improperly connected graphics card can also cause distorted geometry on an LCD monitor

The connectivity options on your LCD monitor may not cause distorted geometry. Whether you’re using HDMI, VGA, or DVI connection, it’ll not cause distorted geometry. 

What Is the Most Common Cause of a Monitor Showing Horizontally Torn Images?

If the video card is not properly seated, you may experience horizontally torn images on your monitor. 

You can deal with the issue by ensuring the video card is installed correctly. 

How Do You Fix the Distorted Geometry Issue?

If you are experiencing the distorted geometry issue on your monitor, here are solutions you can try:

Restart Your Computer

If you have a distorted geometry issue on your monitor, you can try restarting your computer. The screen resolution will likely be restored to the native resolution when you restart the PC. 

You’ll not experience the issue if your monitor is set at the native resolution. 

Sometimes, you may have issues restarting your computer using the windows “Restart” button. If you have such an issue, you can use the physical “restart” button on the PC. 

Check the Monitor Cables

You can get distorted images on your display if you have a loose or deformed cable.

You can check if any cable has any issue by disconnecting it from the back of the monitor. Check if the cable is broken, burned, or any pin is bent. 

Reconnect the cable if it has no issues. 

Change the Monitor’s Resolution 

The next remedy you should use is to change the monitor’s resolution. 

Since the distorted geometry issue is due to a resolution set beyond what the monitor can support, you should try resetting it. 

Set the resolution to the “Recommended” option or a lower setting. If you have a Windows 10 operating system, use the following steps to reset the resolution:

• Right-click on your monitor’s desktop
• On the drop-down menu that appears, go to the “Display settings” 
• Under the scale and layout field, there’s the “Display resolution” option where you can change the current resolution
• Click the down arrow or the box with the current resolution. You’ll get a drop-down list with different resolutions
• Click on the “Recommended” option, which is your monitor’s native resolution
• Next, you’ll see a prompt on your display with two options. Click on “Keep Changes” to change the monitor’s resolution to the native resolution 

Update Your GPU Drivers

Outdated or corrupted GPU drivers could be another reason you’re experiencing the distorted geometry issue on your monitor. Therefore, installing the latest GPU drivers or updating the current ones can help eliminate the issue. 

Change the Refresh Rate

The images on your display can also appear distorted if you’ve not properly set the monitor’s refresh rate. 

The refresh rate can also cause flickering and screen tearing or game stuttering when playing games. 

Ensure you set the monitor’s refresh rate to what the monitor can support. 

Fix or Change the Monitor

If you use the solutions above but still have distorted geometry issues, your monitor may be faulty. 

You can verify whether the monitor is defective by connecting it to another computer. If the distorted geometry problem persists, your monitor might be defective, and you should consider repairing it or changing it. 

If the monitor displays well when you connect it to another computer, there may be an issue with your video card. 

What Are the Two Types of LCD Monitors?

The two common classes of LCD monitors include the VA (Vertical Alignment) and Twisted Nematic (TN) panels. 

The LCD monitors are divided into three-panel technologies, and each technology has its unique features. 

As a buyer, you need to be aware of the technologies to make the best buying decision. The panels include:

Vertical Alignment (VA) Panel 

The VA panel offers the best contrast ratio and perfectly displays bright and dark colors. 

It also offers life-like images due to the enhanced color reproduction and accuracy. However, it doesn’t offer the best color shifting. 

If you are looking for a panel for professional work such as video and image editing, the VA panel may not be the best due to the color shifting.

However, it offers a fast response time and working ability, perfect for home use. 

Twisted Nematic (TN) Panels

A TN panel monitor is an excellent choice if you are a gaming enthusiast. The panel offers the best response time, perfect for gaming, including fast-paced games. 

It’s an affordable monitor panel with a working ability that you’d find in premium monitors. 

However, the TN panel monitors aren’t the best choice for people in the creative industry, such as graphic designers. The panel doesn’t offer the best colors, making it not the best for professional editing work. 

In-Plane Switching (IPS) Panel

The IPS panel is the best panel type. 

It’s versatile and ideal for workers, avid gamers, or content creators. 

Why is the IPS panel the best?

• It offers a fast response time ranging from 5ms to 8ms
• It offers billions of colors on the palettes that you can work with
• The panel type offers the best contrast ratio and color resolution for the most life-like images
• The In-Plane Switching panel also offers the best viewing angles. You’ll enjoy high-quality images irrespective of your viewing position 
• Color-shifting and image quality are excellent

What Icon Might You See on Your Device Manager That Indicates a Problem With Your Device?

When you open the “Device Manager” option on your monitor, all the items in the list should have arrows or +’s next to each category. The list shouldn’t include “Unknown devices” or “Other devices.” 

However, if your device has an issue, you might get an error such as:

• You can know that your device is conflicting with other hardware if it has a yellow circle and an exclamation mark under the “other devices” option
• If a device is removed, disabled, or windows cannot locate it; you’ll see a red “X”
• A small down arrow on Windows Vista also indicates a device is disabled

Conclusion

If you set your monitor’s resolution beyond what the monitor can support, you’ll have a distorted geometry issue. You can deal with it by resetting the monitor to the recommended solution. Additionally, ensure your graphics card drivers are updated and check the connection cables to ensure they’re not broken.  I also recently posted a new article about how to fix a monitor that turns black randomly. 

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