Low persistence

Persistence is how long each frame stays lit on a display. On a normal monitor a frame remains visible until the next one replaces it, which is called full persistence. In a headset this causes a problem: while your head turns, your eyes keep moving across an image that stays still for the whole frame, so the scene appears to smear.

How low persistence works

A low-persistence display lights each frame for only a small part of the frame time and stays dark for the rest. Because the image is shown so briefly, it does not drag across your retina as your head moves, and motion looks much sharper. The flicker is fast enough that most people do not notice the dark periods, especially at higher refresh rates.

Where it is used

Low persistence has been a standard feature of consumer VR headsets for years, on both OLED and LCD panels. LCD headsets achieve it by strobing the backlight, while OLED panels can switch pixels on and off directly. The trade-off is that a shorter lit period means less brightness, so headset makers balance motion clarity against peak brightness.