Feel the excitement as your laptop boots up, only to be met with an ominous black screen—a real head-scratcher, even for tech-savvy folks. This perplexing scenario, where the laptop turns on but shows nothing on the display, delves deep into the intricate web of hardware components and system intricacies, involving the laptop’s display, RAM, BIOS, GPU chip, and a whole bunch more.understanding the topic

To navigate through this labyrinth of potential issues, it’s crucial to thoroughly explore both the hardware and software realms. From scrutinizing the display connections to probing potential glitches in the memory modules (RAM), each element plays a crucial role in deciphering this technological enigma. Within this tangled complexity lies the prospect of reviving the dormant display, providing a beacon of hope amid the frustration of encountering a silent screen on an otherwise operational laptop.

In case you are having this problem on the desktop: PC Turns ON But No Display On Monitor! – Every Possible Solution

And in case your laptop’s feeling a bit lifeless and refuses to show any power signs, that’s a clear signal of a separate issue in the device realm. One move to shake things up is giving a different power adapter (one of the same breed), just to see if it works its magic and brings your laptop back to life. If this little switcheroo doesn’t do the trick, it’s probably time to march that laptop of yours straight to the repair shop.

This scenario might be waving a big ol’ “Dead Condition Laptop” banner in your face. There’s a solid chance some glitchy piece of hardware is playing hard to get, keeping your computer from even thinking about firing up. In these dire straits, calling in the technician cavalry becomes a non-negotiable move to uncover and fix the gremlin lurking in your laptop’s hardware shadows.

So, lets see how to fix a black blank screen problem, a.k.a., No Display!

To tackle the hiccup from the user’s side, we’ve got three main troubleshooting tricks to try before waving the white flag and surrendering to the pros. Keep your cool, as the chances of kicking the laptop gremlins to the curb on your own hovers around a respectable 60%. Now, let’s dive into these three maneuvers:

Solution #1: Display Checkup

When you flip the power switch on your trusty laptop and are greeted by the anticipated symphony of startup sounds, the root of the issue might just be lurking within the confines of the laptop’s display screen. The potential culprit? It could be a glitch in the display screen itself or, on the flip side, a not-so-tight connection of the display cable to the motherboard.Laptop's Display Checking

A savvy troubleshooter’s move is to cast a discerning eye on the laptop’s display output on an external monitor. This nifty step serves the purpose of unveiling whether the hiccup is an internal one or a display-related conundrum. If the external monitor showcases the display in all its glory, letting you effortlessly navigate your digital realm, it’s an eloquent hint that the internal gremlin is probably cozying up to your laptop’s display screen.Laptop's Display Checking By Connecting To External Monitor

In this intriguing scenario, the mischief-maker might be traced back to a nonchalant connection or a cranky display screen. To tackle this enigma, you’ll need to delicately disassemble your laptop, unraveling its internal tapestry to pinpoint the exact hiccup. This intricate process entails a meticulous inspection of the internal components, ferreting out any loose connections or screen hiccups that might be sulking within.

Solution #2: Memory (RAM) Checkup

RAM, or Random Access Memory, is a big deal in the realm of computers. It’s like the speed demon of the digital world, zipping around to grab and deliver crucial info and instructions that the CPU hungers for. Picture it as the race car, ensuring tasks get executed without a hitch.

Now, let’s talk startup – when your computer revs up, the BIOS takes the wheel, kickstarting all the hardware, especially the RAM. It checks if the memory is on its A-game because any RAM issues could turn the boot process into a fiasco, giving you a blank screen or a computer acting like it’s had too much caffeine.

When your computer pulls a ‘no display’ stunt, RAM often takes the fall, being the culprit around 90% of the time. A wonky RAM stick can throw a wrench into the entire operation, making it the prime suspect in the detective work to fix things. The go-to fix? Swap out the troublesome RAM module with a shiny new one. This switcheroo is often the magic touch to bring your computer back to life and erase the chaos.

To Fix RAM Issues, Here Are Some Tricks:

  1. Unplug and Replug RAM: Start by pulling out one RAM stick (if your computer’s got a collection) and firing up the system. If the issue lingers, shuffle the RAM to a different slot. >> How To Install RAM (Memory) Stick In A Laptop? Laptop's RAM Checkup
  2. Trial with a Functional RAM Stick: If you can, borrow a well-behaved RAM stick from elsewhere to figure out if the problem is specifically tied to your RAM. >> RAM Compatibility With Motherboard: Identifying Supported/Installed Types
  3. Give Your RAM a Spa Day: Occasionally, a bit of pampering for the RAM stick’s connectors can work wonders. Gently scrub those connectors to boost connectivity, successfully resolving issues in around 80% of cases. >> RAM Cleaning – One Solution To Fix Memory Related Problems Laptop's RAM Cleaning
  4. Advanced Troubleshooting: If a spa day doesn’t cut it or your RAM insists on being nonfunctional, you might have to explore more sophisticated methods, like attempting to resurrect a seemingly lifeless RAM stick. Online guides can be your guiding light through these intricate procedures. >> How To Repair A Faulty Dead RAM Stick? – Fixing Damaged Memory Stick
Need A RAM?

Solution #3: BIOS Reset

The BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) acts as a fundamental piece of software stashed away in a computer’s motherboard ROM (Read-Only Memory) or firmware chip. Serving as a go-between for a computer system’s hardware parts and the operating system, the BIOS plays a pivotal role by doling out crucial instructions during the boot-up process. It takes charge of hardware initialization and eases communication between the various hardware bits and the operating system.

Nestled on the motherboard, the CMOS battery is a wee cell-shaped power source that breathes life into the CMOS chip. This chip hoards important info like BIOS settings, date, and time. When you snatch out the CMOS battery, power to the CMOS chip gets cut off, triggering a reset of the BIOS settings back to their default setups. This troubleshooting trick works like a charm for certain issues, like dealing with a pesky black or blank screen.

CMOS Battery Location

NOW, What?

If all the troubleshooting steps mentioned earlier don’t show any positive results, it strongly points to a substantial hardware glitch in your laptop. Trying to tackle this issue on your own might be a tough nut to crack or, in some cases, downright impossible.

The troublemakers for these persistent hardware issues could range from a wonky BIOS chip, calling for a flashing process, to a GPU chip that might benefit from a reflow or reballing procedure. Moreover, there could be other intricate problems woven into the motherboard, demanding the use of top-notch testing tools and specialized techniques for a precise problem diagnosis.

In such situations, seeking professional help becomes paramount to pinpointing the problem accurately and carrying out the necessary fixes. Trying to tackle these knotty hardware issues without the right tools and know-how might just make things worse. Hence, it’s advisable to consult with a qualified pro armed with the proper tools and expertise for an effective and lasting solution to your laptop’s hardware headaches.


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75 COMMENTS

  1. Thanks, I first tried #2 (Bios Checkup), it looked like I was going to get a result but then the screen went black again. Then I tried #3 (RAM Checkup), and boom! that was my answer.
    I cleaned my two Rams as instructed and put them back. I decided to run a check up while the system was boothing, at a point the pictures started cracking and went black again. This time I decided to remove one of my RAMS and that was it, the screen displayed fine.
    I discovered one of my RAMS was bad so I’d have to change it. PROBLEM SOLVED 👍
    Thanks again.

  2. Sometimes its motherboards fault. How to explain it… part on motherboard get stupid cuz they had some minor electric failure and all you need to do is plug battery out of your laptop press the on button for 30 seconds and then return battery and try to start your laptop.

    by Stefan Vukosvljevic, IT engineer at laptop servis Quantum

  3. My lapi has stopped working and I think it’s a same problem as discussed above.But I am getting a sound for some time while starting, does anyone know what exactly is wrong ??

  4. Hi,
    I have a U310. I power on and get a black screen, I connect to my tv and it looks fine. Sometimes when I restarted the monitor works fine and looks fine but if I restart it again I get the black screen but I connect to the tv and it’s working fine. Any idea why it’s doing this?
    Thanks for your advice

  5. hello
    my laptop dell latitude has got a problem with its display , i took out ram and place it back after cleaning but nothing happened!
    when this problem started my laptop used to start after 4 or 5 tries … then after 9 or 10 and now it does not give any display? repair guy said its problem with its chipset
    Tell me if i could solve problem myself?
    Thankyou

  6. Hi could bios upgrade cause the no display issue because I observed that after month of upgrading my system bios, I start experiencing the no display issue…and am not sure it’s the display issue cos I have changed the display I.C but I keep experiencing the same issue. And am also not sure that the ram is the problem because the system displays after 14-15 hours of no display. So please can the BIOS upgrade cause the no display issue and if it is what’s the way out. Please I need an answer soon. Thanks

    • I can’t say anything without troubleshooting the system.
      Maybe you should need to hire some local computer engineer and I think, he will figure it out.

  7. I tried everything as you said but no work was done. Please tell me approximately how much cost to pay change the GPU chip. I think my laptop GPU chips have gone bad.

  8. Thanks a lot Madhur. My laptop is up and running again after following the ram cleaning steps that you recommended. Keep up the good work!!

  9. Hi, my laptop sometimes give me blank screen upon start up
    I went to repair it , the guy said it was the IC or the joint is dirty, not the LCD
    He replaced the IC, however I still got the same problem…
    He then told me to “smack” my laptop from below & restart….it did work but I feel that he is trying to destroy all components by doing this solution,
    Did I get cheated??
    He did said he will take responsibility but only by cleaning the “joint”, is he referring to the ram?

  10. Hi Madhur
    My laptop was woking perfectly. Yesyerday while using the laptop, i clicked on the home screen icon, ans was unable to come out of the home screen display. Thereafter I got three options on the desktop. i clicked on restart button. The screen went blank and stayed that way. i I unplugged the power cord and connected it back and pressed the power on button. i can see the red and white LED on the laptop but the display is blank.
    Please suggest.
    Brgds
    Ashis

  11. dear all ,I want to share my black screen LENOVO Z460 is due to DDRM 3 ram not working cos it….i send to pc repair they replace 2GB ram is fine my original 4GB ram….
    symptom was fan is working and non window start up ‘beep’ like on panel fan/battery /lite up.
    thanks to all……those input info

  12. I have a new hp laptop that I was never able to use. I take it out of the box, plug it in to start charging it and do the first time initial setup of the laptop. I leave it plugged in overnight to get a full charge. Next time I go to use it it powers on but is only a blank screen. Could something have happened to cause this from a possible power outage? I tried the steps taking out the battery and still nothing.

  13. MADHUR TJ BRO PLS HELP ME MY LAPTOP WAS NO POWER ON AND NO BLINK LED LIGHT AND DONT WORK MY LAPTOP SUDDENLY PLS BRO WHAT PROBEM BRO PLS TELL

  14. bro I have the same problem with my laptop.. but the one difference is that it displays the screen sometimes and sometimes it doesn’t… what do I have to do now because its not the issue of RAM as far as I know.. plus I have done this bios checkup too..

  15. Hello, please help me with my laptop. It bumped on the wall but not so hard a slight when i was carrying it ito my room. The screen part was bumped. And it turns to black screen. The screen has light (dark gray that u can see while opening windows). What do u think its problem? Its still working but i can’t see anything.

  16. Hello from Greece
    My dear friend Madhur Tj
    You saved my life. And i am not talking about money or job, i am talking about my personality and how i feel.
    Before 2 weeks, my cοusιn gave to me her laptop. She told me that the problem was that in random time, stop, hang. The laptop was for one year out of work. The last thing she did , was to gave it to a specialist to fix it. He told her that the problem was thε Hard Drive, and he wanτed 150 euros to replace it.
    First time i turn on it, i understood that it was not the HD, because the drive run normally and i understood it from its sound. It was ok. The first think i notice that it was strange, was that the air fun was working in very high speed and for ever. I mean, from the start to the shut down. Οfcourse the BIOS battery was out of wοrk, and the first thing i did was to disassemble the laptop and replace the BIOS battery. Then i understood why the fun was working in this speed and for ever. Somebody (there was a paper inside indicate that there was a previous service before 3 years) cut the power cable of the fun (the red) and link it to the USB on the motherboard. As a result the fun did not communicate with the CPU temperature sensor on the motherboard to take the proper current, and because of this, it receives all the time 11 volt from the USB. There was a moment, when i by mistake touch on metal on the laptop (one of 3 USB) and voltage hit me ! He left a very small piece (4mm) of cable, and it was very difficult for me to join the cable to its proper place, because i do not have the proper equipment. Any way i did it, then I assemble the laptop. After this, there was many problems with BIOS corruptions because, laptop suddenly shows green lines on display and then stooped. And when i reboot, the HD was working but i have no image on display, just a black screen. So many, many times i shut it down not the right way, and the BIOS was corrupt. It was a very big pain to find how to recover the BIOS. And you know that if the BIOS do not work, you can do nothing. No bootable CD, no bootable USB, nothing. Finally i manage to recover BIOS. Windows start to loading , but only to the state where i could see the mouse (aalso move it) nothing more. I though i must make a clean reinstall of Windows, and i did it. After this clean installation, Windows start normally, and works for one day. I thought that i repaired it, but the next day, nothing but a black display. I heard the welcome in windows sound, but i did not realize at this point that Windows launch normally, with a black screen. I have check the display with other monitors and i know that the display was ok.
    For 7 days nigh and day working on the laptop. I was sleeping only for 3-4 hours a day , I was gone crazy. I know that i could fix it, but i did not know what exactly was the problem. I was sure that the HD was ok. From the green lines on the display i understood that there was a problem with the graphics, but i though it was a drivers issue. Also i noticed that in the motherbord there was 2 micro-proccessors that was cracked, but i did not know what exactly was these micro prossesors, and i thought one of them was the graphic chip. But i did not have the equipment to replace it.(finally i see that these two microprocessors were not the GPU. The only think i did it was to cover the crack with a silicon, not humidity enter) So the only option i had it was to replace the motherboard. I did not find a new one, but a used, for about 50 euros.
    Fortunately i read, (after i had read thousands of sites, videos,blogs, forums, after i disassemble and assemble over 15 times the laptop), your site and it was described exactly the same problem. Windows starts but not display. I completly did not know about the air flowing method. I could not imagine that there was such a method. I was 100% sure that this was the problem and i will managed to fix the laptop.
    It was 7 pm (stores closed at 8.30) I call to my girlfriend if see can give me her hair hot air gun, because i did not know the differences in heat between hot air gun and hot air gun for hair. Fortunately in the middle of the route to my girlfriend, there is a store. I stopped there , look for a hot air gun, and buy one.
    I follow a procedure little different from yours because i wanted to have live watch, so i watched a video, where there were a few differences in the times (40 seconds preheat from far , 30 seconds heat from close, and also heat from far on the opposite side)
    You cannot image how i felt when i push the on button of the laptop, and the display started.
    Thank you very very much !
    I wish every good to you life !

  17. i read the re-balling method in the above link (thanks for the link), and i think i will try it, next time.
    But before i will try, i have two questions, if you please.
    1) Can i remove the Graphic card, from the motherboard, by just heating it with my hot air gun (do you know the time ?), or must i have a special tool ? And if there is a special tool, what is the difference (i want to understand why one method is OK and the other, is not the proper, in order to (may be) found a solution of my own (you never know…)
    2) i read in a couple of sites that the re-balling method, do not repair the card. As they say, the problem with these cards is not the balls under the bottom surface of the card, but the balls inside the card, and with the material that “hold” these balls (that are smaller than the outside balls) inside the card. And this is the case in certain brand graphic cards of a certain years. So the reason that re-balling (as well as re-flowing) fix the card, is the heat and not the balls replacement. The heat, force the, inside the card, material that holds the inner, small balls, to come to the right (initial) formation and shape, and this, also, make the inner balls comes to the right (initial) formation and shape, having as result, fixing the card, but not permanently. Because this inner material that holds the inner balls, is defective, the “deformation” will happen again.

    Because i believe that you are good and serious in what you are doing, i am interested in your opinion.
    And finally, if the above mentioned sites (against re-balling) have right, what can we do ? Can we replace the card, of course with no the same brand (because we assumed that they are defective) ? With what card can we replace it ? Is it easy to find the drivers and will it work to our system ?

    • First of all, don’t try to do all the things by your self. Not every laptop works without a graphics chip. Let the hot gun only remains to the reflow, you can’t think about to reballing with it. Everything needs a proper and professional machinery to fix it. Or otherwise, you’ll definitely make your board dead.

      Second, reballing is good. You can’t doubt about that, even the repair shop will give you at least 3 months warranty of its work. In case, if your GPU chip is faulty, then nobody in the world can fix it and you’ll do need to replace the chip.

      And no, you can’t use any other GPU chip (only some laptop model supports).

  18. Hi MJ,
    Thanks for ur wonderful tips. My Acer laptop of 4 years had a flickering screen and I could not log on nor access files on it two weeks ago. After following ur tips today, I pulled out the battery and checked the Ram but did not have the necessary cleaning tools/items to do a thorough cleaning. I installed the ram and tried switching on the laptop and now it has gone totally blank. Grateful for ur expertise advice on how I can fix the problem. Thanks

  19. I decided to try to get an old laptop going again. It had a broken screen so I bought a new one, took the lid apart and replaced it. Everything fitted well and I began to screw everything back together. There was a small magnet stuck to the side of the frame that held the screen in place. I replaced it where I thought it had been and put everything back together. When I switched the machine on, however, the screen remained blank.
    I tried leaving the battery out and draining the power. No help. I tried cleaning the RAM. Nothing. Then I happened to find something online about a ‘magnetic switch’ that told the laptop to power on when the lid is lifted. The poster said to try moving a magnet over the place on the keyboard where the magnet in the lid would touch it when the lid was closed. I thought, “It can’t be that simple!”. Lifted the lid of the laptop, ran a magnet over the top left hand side of the keyboard, and pushed the power button. The screen burst into life! Everything working perfectly. I was flabbergasted.
    I’m still not sure of the correct postition for the magnet in the lid, but at least I know what the problem is now and that it’s nothing disastrous. I hope that this helps anyone else with the same problem. It’s certainly something to be aware of if you’ve had the screen apart, and worth checking before moving on to more advanced solutions.

  20. Hello Madhur Tj,

    Iam using 5 years old Dell Vostro 3550 Laptop. Suddenly it is showing no display (blank Screen). But when i connect it with external monitor it working fine. But display is not coming in Laptop Screen. I went to the local shop, He said that it was motherboard problem. He also said LCD and display cable has no problem. He wants me to change new motherboard.

    Does it really mother board problem ? If so why it is coming in external monitor.

    Now iam in confusion what is exact problem with my laptop.

    My repairer saying the cost is 6000/- RS price that too without warranty and I have doubt on the repairer. Is he telling me right or he wants to loot me?

    Can you please help me with this

  21. hi..
    while using lap my cousing unknowingly hit the lap and it got flickering display, was nt able to do anything.
    as i was nt able to off the lap i did removed the battery out and did on the lap bt it showed three option
    1. exit n continue
    2. trouble shoot
    3.shutdown ur pc
    i did selected first option bt it got blank again n after few min again it showed three option so i choosed option 2. i did troubleshoot
    my dell laptop got on bt i lost my dad on desktop.. is der is anyway to get back r restore my data n setting back?????

  22. hi….
    why using my laptop it suddenly went blank, and i tried rebooting the laptop and it showed up, but after sometime it started displaying different colours on the screen, and sometimes it displays white colour,
    please i seriously need your help

  23. You explained on the above few steps. i followed these steps and fixed no display laptop issue. Thanks for providing such information.

  24. hello Madhur,

    indeed i must say you have done a good job here by providing this article. it was really helpful, with the above tips and steps i can now restore back any black blank laptop systems. thanks for sharing.

    have a nice day!

  25. Hi ….. my laptop screen is black but when i connect on monitor its work very well ……. tell me its problem with display or motherboard

  26. Sir. Mein laptop mein jab Radeon Wala graphic card on kru toh screen black aa jati, jab normal Intel ka on kru usmay koi problem Ni hoti, sir gaming k doran Radeon card on that toh laptop achanak se off ho gya, uskay bad ab yehi issue ha k Radeon graphic card on kro toh black screen aa jati display par….koi solution ha?

  27. I am impressed by your article writing skill and your every article are like very easily understandable and quite helpful for me. Keep it up

  28. laptop doesnot shut down and sleep properly

    if i turn on the laptop and use it for only 30min-1 hour, it goes normally into sleep and it also shuts down normally. but if i use it for 2-3-4 hours, wheneveer I try to turn it of or put it into sleep it doesn’t work. more explicitly, (in the chase of shutting it down) windows closes all applications, the screen goes black, the hard drive activity led flashes, then turns on for 2-3 seconds then it goes out like the os is shut down, but the power button still remains lit and the same with the power on led from under the screen.

    hope i will fiind solution here

  29. My Toshiba laptop has the problem of black out but i tried all the above but its still will not come i even went ahead to heat the VGA but still black out, i again washed the Board but still it wont come on….. so what should i do next

  30. Hi Mr.Madhur,
    I am using Lenovo G580 until yesterday evening my laptop was working perfectly fine with windows 8 with 2 GB ram. Its been long time i laptop getting slower day by day so today i thought to downgrade laptop with windows 7 but while trying to boot with CD, I restarted laptop several times that caused laptop getting stuck on lenovo screen. After fed up with this i turned off the laptop. After sometime I tried to give one more chance to myself and turned on the laptop but seems like this time laptop doesn’t want to give any chance to me 🙁 . Now I end up with no display on the screen but only fan is running. I did some basic troubleshooting like; ram cleaning, bios reset, HDD clean, output display via VGA cable but no luck.
    I just need your help to sort out the issue or if you can tell me what can be the root cause of it. Your response would be appreciated.
    Thank you
    Dev

  31. Hello man I have an issue with my laptop when power it on but it shows an black screen after sometimes I figured out that leaving laptop being hot it would power on normal like that I started leaving laptop on sun and that s how I used my laptop and when I had the black screen problem I couldn’t power off laptop by pressing power buton only by unplugging the charger and when I leaved laptop on sun I powerd up laptop normal and if I will shut down my laptop it shows a black screen after some times without powering it on and everyday laptop needed to be more and more hot and till some days ago it didn’t work even making it hot please help

  32. hey Madhur my laptop is hp core i5. i used my laptop for rendering and when i had the black screen problem and the laptop is deformed. but plugging the charger there is no light but its some sound.

  33. Hey from Nigeria
    My laptop display has been blank for years
    Made me dump the system. Now I got to see this ill try out the whole step.
    But now my problem is I don’t think the battery is still accepting charging like it only on when I input the charger to it automatically

  34. You are a wonderful guy, Madhur ! Hats off to you !! You have explained complex issues in such a simple way, even children can understand. A great salute !!

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