Galaxy S23 green and pink display line reports resurface after One UI 8.5 update

Smartphone displays have come a long way, but a familiar and incredibly frustrating ghost continues to haunt modern OLED panels: the dreaded permanent green and pink lines.

If you own a Samsung Galaxy S23, you might want to proceed with caution before hitting that “Install” button on your next software patch. A growing number of users on Reddit, X (formerly Twitter), and the official Samsung Community forums (via SamMobile) are reporting that permanent green and pink lines are appearing on their displays immediately after installing the recently released One UI 8.5 update.

Historically, Samsung smartphones have been somewhat notorious for developing these display artifacts when the device heats up significantly. Installing a major system update like One UI 8.5 pushes the processor to its limits, generating substantial heat, especially for an aging device like the Galaxy S23 family. This thermal stress, combined with what is widely believed to be an underlying hardware or manufacturing vulnerability, is causing the display connectors or panels to fail. This is particularly prevalent in hot and humid regions, where the ambient temperature prevents the device from cooling down effectively during the update cycle.

If you haven’t updated your device yet, the prevailing advice is to ensure your phone is in a cool environment, perhaps in a well-ventilated or air-conditioned room, while the software is installing to mitigate any extreme thermal spikes.

Green and pink lines are not just a Samsung problem

While Samsung is currently taking the heat for the Galaxy S23 green and pink lines, it is worth noting that they are far from the only brand battling this defect. The smartphone industry at large has been quietly wrestling with display longevity.

In fact, this issue extends well beyond software-induced overheating. For instance, my own Infinix ZERO Flip (see below) recently developed a permanent pink line running straight up from a point along the hinge crease. This spontaneous hardware failure had absolutely nothing to do with One UI 8.5 or any other software update.

What’s next for affected Galaxy S23 owners?

Currently, Samsung has not issued an official statement or a dedicated fix for the users whose screens were ruined during the One UI 8.5 update.

Notably, this isn’t the first time the Galaxy S23 series has faced this exact problem. Previously, Samsung acknowledged the hardware flaw and ran a program offering free display replacements for affected Galaxy S23 units. However, that specific program expired on December 25, 2025.

If your Galaxy S23 has fallen victim to the One UI 8.5 green or pink lines, your best course of action right now is to reach out directly to Samsung Customer Support to log the issue and check if they will honor an out-of-warranty replacement on a case-by-case basis. For those who bought the phone from third-party retailers, you may have to foot the bill on your own.

Has your smartphone ever developed a green or pink line? Let us know in the comments below!