Mozilla has quickly rolled out an emergency update, Firefox 139.0.1, to fix a serious graphics issue that appeared after the release of Firefox 139 on May 27.
While the update introduced useful features like Full-Page Translations, it also caused visual problems for users with NVIDIA graphics cards.
Many users reported problems on Reddit, saying that videos flickered or flashed while browsing, and that webpages like Instagram were affected too. Mozilla traced the issue to a change in how Firefox handles graphics on systems with mixed-refresh-rate monitors.
Specifically, Firefox 139 re-enabled a graphics feature called DirectComposition. In earlier versions, Mozilla had blocked this feature on systems with NVIDIA GPUs and mixed refresh rates (for example, one monitor at 60Hz and another at 144Hz) because it caused glitches. Unfortunately, this block was removed in Firefox 139, and it led to video and webpage artifacts appearing during use.
The glitch happened when playing 60 FPS videos on a 60Hz monitor while scrolling or interacting with content on a high-refresh-rate display. Parts of the video would bleed into other areas, creating flashing or corrupted visuals. This issue didn’t affect 30 FPS videos, and users with only one monitor or using AMD or Intel graphics were not affected.
Mozilla has now released Firefox 139.0.1, which brings back the original blocklist and prevents this issue from happening. According to the release notes, the update “fixed graphics corruption with certain NVIDIA graphics adapters and multiple monitors running at mixed refresh rates.”
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If you’re affected, you can install the update by opening Firefox settings and checking for updates. Mozilla also mentioned that a new graphics system, called the Layer Compositor, is being tested in Firefox Nightly and may provide a more stable solution in the future.
