If your monitor is stuck in a bright room, try this

Not everyone has the luxury of choosing between several rooms for their PC installation. If you only have one room you can fit your computer in and it has a window, you’ll likely encounter an age-old monitor problem: glare. Glare can wash out the image on your PC screen, while creating distracting reflections. If you’re gaming or watching a movie, a dark scene can be ruined by bright light coming in through the window or coming from above. It can become tiring or even uncomfortable to constantly look at a monitor with a glare problem, and it can interfere with your work if you can’t read what’s on the screen. But there are steps you can take to lessen this effect, starting with trying to control the light.

One of the simplest and most effective solutions is to install a blind or curtain that blocks or diffuses some of the light. You can then think about adding a lamp, LED strips, or even a non-glare monitor light bar to introduce dimmer, more controllable light when (and where) you want it. If blinds or curtains are not an option and you have the space, try positioning the monitor away from the window, or ideally perpendicular to the incoming light, rather than having the light source behind you. Other solutions include increasing the monitor brightness to a point where it reduces glare, but not so much that it causes eye discomfort. You might also consider attaching an anti-glare matte screen protector to your screen to disperse incoming light rather than reflecting it directly back at you. Another option is a monitor sunshade, a physical housing placed around the screen to block (at least partially) incoming light rays.

With monitor glare, some changes may seem helpful, but don’t necessarily make a big difference. While increasing the brightness can help to some extent, a very bright image can be tiring to look at, so it’s not always a good solution. Likewise, increasing the contrast can make the image more defined, but it won’t actually reduce glare. Dark mode on your PC may also seem like the solution, but in a bright room, reflections from windows and lights will stand out more on a dark screen, sometimes making the glare worse.

How you arrange your room and position your monitor can also be confusing when it comes to glare. For example, placing the monitor in front of a bright window – but in the opposite direction – may seem wise, but the light can create a distracting, high-contrast background behind the monitor, making what is displayed harder to see. Blackout curtains and blinds are also not a perfect solution. Yes, they can significantly reduce glare, but unless you add another light source, you’ll end up with a very dark room and a bright screen, which could cause eye strain. Additional ambient light can create a more balanced viewing environment if you opt for the blackout option.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to monitor glare, but judicious placement and the right monitor display settings can make a significant difference, as can controlling how light enters your room. Certainly, with trial and error, you should be able to create a more comfortable space where glare is much less of an issue. And once you’ve solved your glare problem, you can make sure that you also avoid the monitor placement mistake that most people overlook.