You want to take advantage of the nice weather and have set your desk in the sun or are even considering working outside? MeinMMO explains why you should not expose your monitor or display to direct sunlight.
It’s warm, and many users are taking advantage of the nice weather to work outside or at least in the sun. Such a desk can quickly be placed in the sun. However, your monitor does not necessarily appreciate being exposed to direct sunlight.
Heat and UV radiation can damage monitors
Can the sun damage my monitor? The light of the sun itself is not the problem, but the UV radiation. The UV radiation from direct sunlight quickly makes plastics brittle, weak, and accelerates the wear of your hardware.
Windows can filter certain UV radiation. However, it depends on what is installed in your apartment. Windows made of safety glass, for example, filter out UVB radiation. This is the radiation that supplies you with vitamin D but can also cause sunburn.
Long-wave UVA radiation still comes in large part through the window. Experts say that high, constant concentrations of UVA radiation can harm the skin (via Velux Magazin)
The display unit itself can also be damaged by direct sunlight. Both LCD, LED, and OLED displays can be harmed by the sun or at least have malfunctions (via thenaturehero.com). Be sure to also check the manual that comes with each monitor. For older plasma TVs, there was always a warning not to expose the device to direct sunlight.
Additionally, direct sunlight creates heat. This means that the monitor has to operate at higher temperatures, which is always detrimental for electronic devices. In the event of overheating, many devices usually shut down. However, it may be worth it to properly shut down your gaming PC instead of just leaving it in standby mode.
PC hardware does not belong outdoors: Monitors and most computer hardware are not meant to be outside. Monitors or computers are not purchased as outdoor devices, but are usually designed for use in an apartment or an office. So if you see pictures on Reddit of people setting up their equipment in the garden, you should not do the same.
You should generally avoid heat with hardware
No matter if monitor, desktop PC, or laptop, no device likes high temperatures for long. Because if you are not damaging your hardware, at least the processor and graphics card in your PC will throttle their performance to keep temperatures in check.
Therefore, we would generally advise you to take time to cool your computer or hardware. Sometimes it is sufficient to simply relocate your PC and remove it from a dusty corner or clean the dust filters from pet hair:
8 tips to keep your gaming PC cool in summer and make it faster
