Phone companies see red signal, start work on green line

New Delhi: Smartphone brands are working on removing the ‘green-line’ fault cropping up on screens after software upgrades through stringent quality controls, advanced display technologies, and extended lifetime warranties.

The move comes even as the issue, unresolved for nearly four years, has led mobile phone retailers to dissuade customers from purchasing certain brands and models.

The green-line issue is a hardware glitch where a vertical green line appears on the display permanently - often after a software update or after prolonged use. The problem affects models across leading brands - Samsung, OnePlus, Vivo, Realme, Xiaomi and Apple.


Vivo, Realme, Xiaomi and Apple did not respond to emails seeking comments. Brands are now working with their supply chain to source better quality displays that can withstand the country’s extreme weather conditions, indicating that the fault is arising due to environmental factors of high temperature and humidity, industry executives said.

“We have increased the number of quality control checks in our factories, ensuring the devices can withstand high temperature and humidity that got the circuits to overheat, leading to faults in the display,” a top executive at a leading smartphone brand told ET.

The executive added that the mobile phone supply chain has now come out with solutions to ensure these issues don't crop up on future models. This includes the use of better adhesives and sealing techniques, as well as improved cooling solutions to keep the phones from overheating.

The hardware fault, which some smartphone brands have acknowledged as a quality issue in some of their products, have hurt sales as customers became wary of purchasing phones from these brands. In letters to brands, industry associations representing mobile phone retailers have sought better policies to tackle the ongoing issue.

“Fraudulent activities linked to various exchange schemes have amounted to loss of crores of rupees. This malpractice seems to extend to the Green Line service, where large sums have been fraudulently collected from OnePlus. Distributors and service center agents have reportedly misused funds for extravagant expenditures, such as lavish cash distributions, gifts, parties, and even foreign tours,” said the All India Mobile Retailers Association in a letter to OnePlus in September.

The retailer association plans to submit a memorandum to the consumer affairs ministry, advocating for free screen replacement for up to six years from the date of activation.

In response, these brands have announced they will be repairing these devices free of cost even if the warranty has expired. However, the on-ground situation is quite different, industry insiders said, alleging service centers are imposing additional requirements before agreeing to repair the fault.

"To enhance after sales support, we offer a lifetime screen warranty on all affected devices. Users experiencing green line issues, regardless of their phone's age, can visit their nearest OnePlus Service Centre to receive a free display replacement," OnePlus said in a statement.

For instance, a leading smartphone brand is only servicing three models, where the issues have been reported in more than that, along with asking customers to ensure there are no scratches or dents on the body, and was purchased not more than three years before.

For others, availability of spare parts, especially of older models has been a major deterrent in getting the issues resolved. OnePlus, for instance, has agreed to offer a steep discount on exchange for a fresh model.