Steps to Troubleshoot Display or Video Problems on a Dell Laptop

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Dell laptops have excellent quality materials and build, stylish design, high power, and a backlit keyboard, which is very comfortable to type on. Overall, it can long sing the praises of this brand’s tech, but it doesn’t change the fact that one day you may run into display or video problems with your Dell laptop. And so that it doesn’t strike you like a thunderclap, read this article, which offers a few practical steps you can take to troubleshoot the issue before calling a professional.

Best Ways to Troubleshoot Display or Video Issues on Dell Laptops

1. Black Screen

It could be an alarm bell if you see a black screen on your Dell laptop. However, take your time with the service center, as you’ve just started reading this article. And this means that here are six steps to help you solve the black screen problem. So, what are they?

1. Check the power source: Ensure your Dell laptop is connected to a power source and the battery is charged. Lack of power can cause the screen to go black.
2. Check the brightness: Sometimes, the screen may turn off due to low brightness levels. To check this, press the brightness function key (F12) to increase the brightness level.
3. Check the display cable: Ensure the display cable is securely connected to the laptop’s motherboard. Don’t be surprised to see a black screen problem appear if it is loose or damaged.
4. Check your video card: Check your graphics card drivers. Sometimes outdated drivers can cause problems with your computer. So update them if needed.
5. Check for viruses: Viruses or malware may also cause a black screen. To rule out this cause, you should run a virus scan to detect and remove potential threats.
6. Contact the experts at the Howly consulting service: If none of the above methods helped solve the issue, go to the Howly website and type in the pop-up window: “How to fix a Dell computer,” and within minutes, the service experts will offer you an alternative solution for your benefit.

2. Flickering Screen

A flickering screen is a display problem in which the screen repeatedly flashes or flickers, causing discomfort to the user and making it difficult to read or work on the laptop. Flickering can be intermittent or continuous and occur on one or both sides of the screen. Several factors, including hardware, software, or display driver problems, can cause the issue. And here are some steps to help you to resolve this malfunction.

1. Update drivers: Check for updates to your Dell laptop’s graphics card drivers, as outdated drivers can cause flicker problems.
2. Disable adaptive brightness: Dell laptops have an adaptive brightness feature that adjusts screen brightness based on ambient light. This feature can also cause flicker problems. Disable this feature by going to Control Panel, Hardware, and Sound, then Power Options. From there, select Change Plan Settings, then Change Advanced Power Settings. Expand Display, then disable the Adaptive Brightness feature.
3. Check for malware: As with the black screen, viruses or malware can also cause the flickering screen. So, in this case, you should run a virus scan.
4. Check the display settings: Right-click on your desktop and select Display Settings. Adjust the resolution and refresh rate and see if that solves the problem.

3. Distorted or Garbled Images

It refers to display problems where images look unclear, blurred, pixelated, or have strange colors or shapes. Solving distorted or garbled images on your Dell laptop in time is crucial to avoid possible damage to the device or loss of essential data. To do this, you need to do the following steps:

1. Check the cable: Ensure the display cable is securely connected to the laptop’s motherboard since a damaged cable may cause a problem.
2. Update the drivers: Check that your Dell laptop video card drivers are current.
3. Adjust the display settings, namely, resolution and refresh rate.
4. Check for malware by running a virus scan.

4. Problems with Screen Resolution

This problem is as follows: the image on the screen does not appear as clear and sharp as it should be, or when the text and images are too small or too large. Consequently, this can make reading or working on your device difficult. To fix the problem, you may need to try several solutions, depending on the cause of the problem.

1. Check your display settings: Right-click on your desktop and select Display Settings. From there, ensure the resolution is set to the recommended resolution for your Dell laptop.
2. Update your drivers: In this case, don’t rule this solution out either.
3. Adjust your scaling settings: If text and icons seem too small or too large, adjust your scaling settings. First, go to Display Settings, then click Scale and Layout. There, change the scaling percentage to your preference.
4. Check for malware: If none of the above methods helped, run a virus scan.

5. External Display Not Working

External display not working on your Dell laptop is a typical problem for many users. So what to do if the external monitor or projector connected to your computer does not display any content or an error message? Here are a few steps you can take to resolve the problem.

1. Check connections: Ensure the external display is connected to your Dell laptop through the correct port (HDMI, VGA, DisplayPort, etc.). Also, make sure the cable is securely connected at both ends.
2. Switch display mode: Press the Windows + P key to open the Display Mode options. Select the appropriate display mode (Duplicate, Expand, etc.) to ensure an external display is used.
3. Update the drivers: Check for updates on your Dell laptop video card drivers.
4. Check for hardware issues: If none of the above solutions work, there may be a hardware issue with your Dell laptop or external display. Check the external display with another device to ensure it is working correctly.

Conclusion

Dell laptops are reliable and high-quality devices, but display and video problems occasionally occur. Fortunately, this article will help you identify and solve this problem with specific actions that will take little time. Of course, as a last resort, you can always seek help from the experts on the Howly website. However, as a preventative measure, always check for video card driver updates and perform virus scans to ensure your device works correctly.