How much is considered bleeding?

Question

I got a new LED panel (Dell's 1080p B+RGLED) and it is great as far as color goes. Blacks are also very dark.

However, the center 1/3 to 1/2 of the screen at the both the top and bottom edges has a slightly brighter black. It is only noticable when the screen is covered entirely in a black image. It's not exactly "flashlighting" that I've seen elsewhere, as that tends to be very prominent. This is a barely noticable glow, along the top and bottom edges, slightly less visible on the top edge.

I tried to take a photo to illustrate the issue, but because of the glossiness/reflection of the display, I've had issues. I'll try again with a better camera in a few days.

My real question is, is this a defect? I have noticed other LED panels with similar glows along different edges (my Toshiba laptop glows along the sides particularly, instead of the top/bottom).

_{I tried replacing it however the replacement was faulty. I am not entirely sure I want to mess with getting a third replacement.}

It almost appears to be be a gradient. With the screen getting ever so slightly brighter as it reaches the bottom edge.

Answer 1

Yes, it's a defect but it's a defect that almost every display panel is going to have to some degree. Here's an article that explains the whole issue. Quoting from that article:

Unfortunately, almost all LCD panels suffer from at least a small amount of backlight bleed because the opacity of LCD panels is not enough to block all light, though it only causes problems if it can be easily detected by the human eye.

Only you can decide if the problem is bad enough to warrant a repair or replacement of the display. You might check Newegg or Amazon reviews to see if this particular model of display is known for this problem.