Chrome keeps gitching in a white sheen when playing videos on any website

Troubleshooting Video Playback Issues in Google Chrome: White Sheen Overlay Glitch

If you’ve noticed a persistent white sheen or semi-transparent white overlay appearing intermittently over videos while browsing on Google Chrome, you’re not alone. This common issue can be quite distracting, especially when it affects your viewing experience across multiple websites. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to diagnose and resolve this problem.

Understanding the Issue

Many users have reported that, when playing videos in Chrome, a semi-transparent white overlay appears by default. This overlay can glitch in and out when scrolling, sometimes reappearing unexpectedly, which hampers seamless video playback. Interestingly, this phenomenon tends to be specific to Chrome and does not occur in other browsers such as Opera, even though you might prefer Chrome as your main browser due to its features or familiarity.

Potential Causes

Several factors could be contributing to this visual glitch:
– Hardware acceleration conflicts: Sometimes, Chrome’s hardware acceleration features can interfere with video rendering.
– Browser extensions: Certain extensions may interfere with video playback or overlay rendering.
– Corrupted cache or cookies: Excessive or corrupted cache data can cause display issues.
– Graphics driver issues: Outdated or incompatible graphics drivers might cause rendering problems.
– Experimental Chrome flags: Modifications to Chrome’s internal settings can sometimes lead to unexpected visual glitches.

Troubleshooting Steps

Disable Hardware Acceleration
Navigate to Chrome Settings > Advanced > System.
Toggle off Use hardware acceleration when available.
Restart Chrome and test video playback.
Disable Extensions
Access Chrome menu > More tools > Extensions.
Disable extensions one by one to identify if any are causing the issue.
Clear Browser Cache and Cookies
Go to Chrome Settings > Privacy and Security > Clear browsing data.
Select cached images and files, cookies, and other site data, then clear.
Update Graphics Drivers
Ensure your GPU drivers are up to date by visiting your graphics card manufacturer’s website.
Reset Chrome Flags
Type chrome://flags into the address bar.
Reset all flags to default to eliminate experimental features that might cause conflicts.
Test in Incognito Mode
Open an incognito window (Ctrl+Shift+N) to see if the issue persists. If not, extensions or cache are likely culprits.