Do you have the issue where your monitor occasionally goes black and turns itself back on after a few minutes?
The issue tends to affect Windows users more frequently. Although we will examine operating system issues in this article, other factors may be at the base of the problem. The main point is that no error message is displayed on the screen, making it impossible to determine what is wrong. To help you escape the annoying black screen, we’ve listed all the causes of computer and laptop screens abruptly going black, along with all the treatments that may work.
What Causes The Screen To Black Out At Random?
As was previously said, there might be several causes for the screen to go black, making it impossible to pinpoint the exact issue, whether it be a hardware or software problem. The following list includes potential causes for the screen issue.
Unreliable Power Source
The most fundamental cause of a black screen is an unreliable power supply, which implies that a power supply unit may have issues. A computer’s most essential component is the motherboard’s power supply. It has nothing to do with screen issues if the motherboard is not receiving a specified voltage that complies with its specifications; all you need to do is replace the power supply unit.
VGA/HDMI video cable malfunction
Whenever individuals encounter a computer problem, I’ve noticed that they frequently turn to clumsy fixes before investigating more specific causes. I advise you not to overlook the fundamental factors that affect how computers behave. If you have a black screen issue, ensure your video cable is in good working order. You may verify it using a different video cable, which you can borrow from a friend or buy for as little as $2 to $3.
Verify the monitor display cable and the power cable.
You should also ensure your power cable and video wire are in excellent working order. Verify that the power cord is firmly inserted into the monitor’s power port. Sometimes, due to a loose connection, the monitor loses power but quickly regains it so soon that you might not even notice a potential power problem.
CPU/GPU overclocking
An unexpectedly black screen can be brought on by overclocking the GPU or GPU. There is a potential that certain parts of your computer are damaged and need to be replaced immediately. If you installed a specialized graphics card known as a video card, then overclocked it without using an additional cooling method like water cooling.
It is not advisable to overclock your CPU or GPU because doing so would only result in a component burn and obsolete or missing graphics drivers. The crucial applications in your computer that run the graphics card and essentially link your operating system to the hardware are known as video card drivers or graphics drivers. Your system would not operate as intended if they were corrupted, accidentally removed, or the victim of the malware. Software errors or unexpected results, such as a black screen, might occur. To repair the problem, follow the simple steps in the solution below. Just keep in mind not to remove any of the existing driver files.
Battery Problem with Laptop
A buddy was having trouble with their Windows 10 laptop’s screens going black and coming back randomly a few days ago. The computer would automatically restart, and the screen would go black whenever he tried to install a new application. The actual issue was found to be with the battery, which was then changed, and he was no longer experiencing this issue.
Independent Software
If you use a low-end computer to conduct demanding tasks like 4K video editing, app development, debugging, or high-end gaming, your computer may use a lot of power, RAM, and GPU. This will inevitably cause it to crash. Even if this is uncommon, you are advised to study the minimum system requirements before installing any program.
How to Fix a Monitor That Blacks Out Suddenly
Here, we’ve covered every approach that could work to fix the black screen problem. Quick advice: save and make a backup of your files before troubleshooting, then log in as the system administrator. Here are several quick fixes for the black screen problem.
• Test switching the HDMI/VGA cable.
• If the battery is too old, replace it.
• Disable Overclocking
• Remove CPU-intensive applications and software
• Update/Install Graphics Drivers
• Update Windows/your operating system to the most recent version.
• Examine the external power source
• Consider changing the power supply unit
You can follow the instructions found here. If one of the below methods doesn’t work for you, try another one because each is conditionally effective.
How do I examine or replace the HDMI/VGA cable?
The video cable may become loose and have frequent connection drops from the CPU if it is too old. Test a different thread to see whether your video cable is functioning correctly or not. You may try a line on another system before you buy one. The cable is probably broken if it doesn’t work; get a new one!
If your HP or Acer display randomly turns dark, you use a different input device, such as a laptop. Try various input sources in this situation, such as another laptop or CPU. If the external monitor displays the anticipated output, there is a problem with the video ports on your main laptop or input device.
Can an old battery affect my monitor?
Having a laptop battery problem may result in a blank screen. Suppose a black screen occurs unexpectedly, and your laptop restarts when performing CPU-intensive operations like video editing or installing large-sized apps or software. In that case, it may be a battery problem. In my experience, a laptop battery has an average lifespan of no more than three years. Thus, replacing the battery is advised, which will resolve your problem.
How can my monitor be affected by overclocking?
Overclocking is a legal method of enhancing your PC without expanding any hardware components. However, several individuals claim that when they overclocked their CPU, they encountered black screens, and when they switched it off, the problems went away. Therefore, it is advised to disable any overclocking on the CPU or GPU and try using your computer at its default speed.
If you want to improve the performance of your computer, you may upgrade the hardware by adding more RAM, updating the CPU or GPU, or adding an SSD. Additionally, delete any performance-enhancing software you may have installed on your computer because these programs attempt to interfere with the processes by either overriding them or deactivating them.
Can CPU-intensive applications and software make my monitor go black?
Even though it happens extremely seldom, if your computer’s settings prevent it from doing a specific activity, it will automatically shut down or turn off partially. Your PC is still functional in this state, but it cannot produce any output. If you perform any CPU-intensive activity, such as editing super HD movies or playing games on a low-end computer, you risk developing this issue. Consequently, updating your hardware to satisfy the requirements listed in the software’s documentation is simple.
Why should I update graphic driver software?
As was already said, drivers are crucial for your computer to function correctly. Your computer would only be a collection of hardware parts without graphics drivers and no way to display video. A black screen might occur if specific graphics driver applications are corrupted, missing, or out-of-date. Consider updating your graphics drivers in this situation.
Manual method:
- Press Window + S and type Device Manager. A list of devices will appear.
- Check for terms like “intel,” “Nvidia,” etc., that correspond to your graphics card. The graphics card option is often found under the Display Adapter option.
- To open a new window, double-click on the graphics card choice. From the tab menu, pick the Driver option, then click Update Driver.
- You will be prompted to choose manually from the computer or let the system search drivers for you.
- The first option is the best choice since it will determine whether the driver is present on your machine or online. Select the second option if you have already downloaded the driver file.
- Your driver will be updated to the most recent version as soon as you click next.
Here is an automated solution to install and upgrade drivers if you don’t want to take the dirty processes that some individuals encounter while installing drivers manually.
Automatic Method:
- Download and install the free snappy driver program, which will automatically locate any missing drivers on your machine. Although several programs are available for automated driver installation, including Driver Easy, Avast, Driver Booster, and Driver Finder, none is free and charges you based on usage.
- The snappy driver app’s UI is simple and intuitive. After installation, adhere to the instructions displayed on the screen. Without you having to bother about looking for the drivers on official websites, Snappy will identify all the missing or out-of-date drivers and install them.
- Upgrade your operating system (Windows) to the most recent version.
- You should consider updating to the newest OS version if you use Windows.
The improvements work around driver changes, faults, and malfunctions. Therefore, all of the necessary stable versions of files and drivers will automatically download and update to the most recent OS version. Type “check for updates” into the search box to see if Windows updates are available for you and if they are, download and install them.
Can verifying the external power source prevent my monitor from becoming dark?
Although it may sound childish, if your motherboard is not receiving the necessary power supply, your screen may act oddly, such as flashing, or it may not display any output even though the CPU is on. Therefore, testing other home peripherals is wise to see if the power supply is enough.
What if I modify the computer’s power settings?
Your computer has power settings that determine how much power it should use and how quickly it should complete tasks. You have three choices on Windows: Balanced Power Saver and High performance. Your computer operates in a balanced mode without being too fast or sluggish. Although High performance is an option, it is advised that you set your power plan to Balanced.
By using less power and lowering the computer’s performance, the Power Saver is designed to conserve energy. Now all you have to do to get your computer running at its best is set the power plan to either Balanced or High Performance.
Hints to solve a black screen on a computer
- To see if your Samsung monitor is functioning correctly or not, you might try connecting to another monitor. Replace the first Samsung monitor if the second one is functional.
- By swapping the ports, you can attempt to connect a monitor to a laptop with an HDMI-VGA or HDMI-HDMI connection. VGA-HDMI or VGA-VGA can be used to check whether the monitor is showing anything. Determine whether the cable has broken or the port is damaged if switching the line or the port works.
- The random blackout of an Asus monitor might be caused by a malfunctioning or broken cooling system, which would result in excessive heat and shut down the machine. The same factor brings on the MSI monitor problem.
- One of the top monitors on the market is made by LG and Dell. Dell and LG monitors randomly goes black due to a weak or unstable power source. You may get on-call assistance from Dell customer care if your monitor’s screen suddenly turns black.
Conclusion
Overusing a computer or laptop results in overheating, affects battery life, and can cause problems such as unexpected power outages, driver malfunctions, etc. Black screens will emerge more frequently unless you stop abusing your device.
Your computer monitor going dark at random may not be a software problem. Damaged HDMI/VGA ports, faulty cables, and open ports are potential causes of the screen’s darkness. Therefore, if your Dell monitor suddenly turns dark, you should check to see if the cables are correctly plugged into the ports.
If everything is good, try the cables on additional devices to see if they are in good shape. You may have to surf the net for a solution using terms like “display randomly goes black Reddit” or “Dell monitor randomly goes black and comes back on.”
However, after reading this post, you won’t need to look for solutions to the problem again on the internet since we have listed all possible remedies to fix it.
