Your screen flickers or flashes at random times
Screen flicker is caused by a display driver problem, a loose monitor cable, or the wrong refresh rate setting. The fastest way to figure out which is a 30-second test with Task Manager.
Your monitor constantly receives signals from your graphics card. When that signal has a problem — a driver glitch, a loose cable, or a mismatch in refresh rate — the screen flickers. You can narrow down the cause by watching whether Task Manager flickers along with the rest of the screen.
- ✓Have Task Manager ready to open by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc
- ✓Check that the monitor cable is visible so you can see if it's loose
- ✓Note whether the flicker started after a Windows Update, driver update, or new program installation
Fix-IT-Bot will walk you through each step, just tap, no typing needed.
Skip, I just want a technicianCommon mistakes to avoid
- Updating the display driver without first testing Task Manager — if Task Manager flickers too, a driver update is correct; if it stays still, updating won't help
- Ignoring flickering that gets worse — this is a sign the hardware is degrading
- Assuming the monitor is broken when it's actually a cable that costs 10 dollars to replace
Signs you need professional help
- Driver update didn't fix the flicker and refresh rate is already correct, or the screen goes black during a flicker and takes several seconds to come back. Give us a call and we'll diagnose whether it's a hardware or driver issue.
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