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m14x R2 Display Flickers on Keypress & Trackpad use!?
Ok this completely baffles me.
Yesterday, out of the blue my m14x's display starts flickering. The display would actually go black, as in off, when I would press any key on the keyboard. The same problem would come up if I used the trackpad at all. So I plug in my mouse, and the problem stops. But as soon as I hit a key, or touch the trackpad, even while the mouse is plugged in, the screen goes crazy again.
So I download the new BIOS, update it. Still doesn't work, problem persists. I download the new GT 650M drivers from Dell's support page for the m14x, problem still persists. I look up flickering issues here on Dell's support site and follow some instructions. I disconnect from the AC, disconnect the battery, hold down the power button do disperse any static electricity, hook everything up...and...the flickering stops, for a few minutes, then it's back.
I start the computer up in safe mode, to see if it persists there. It doesn't, the display works fine. Restart again and everything seems to be normal, and I start hoping it was all just some weirdness that has now passed. I fire up a game (Star Wars: TOR) and for a few mins everything's good, and then the flickering is back, just the same, and still timed with key presses or the trackpad. Then I wonder if it's an issue with the GT 560M driver, so I uninstall it, fire her up in safe mode, reinstall the driver, restart...same issue.
I'm at a complete loss. Any insight into what I could try, or what might be wrong would be much appreciated.
Alienware-Alex_
24 Posts
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June 18th, 2012 18:00
Hi Chris, The troubleshooting steps you have follow are very accurate, everything seems to be leading to a hardware issue. There’re a couple of more things that I would try though:
1. Have you try plugging the computer to an external display to see if you get the same problem?
2. In regards to the video driver reinstallation; here's an article from the Dell support site that explains the proper video driver installation process in systems with Optimus technology such as yours. I’d also recommend to run a driver sweeper program after uninstalling the video drivers to ensure a completely clean installation.
Let me know how it goes after trying this 2 steps, I'll follow the thread.
ChrisMadden
10 Posts
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June 18th, 2012 19:00
Thanks for the response Alex.
I hooked up my m14x to an external display and I set it to mirroring and the external display did NOT flicker, while the notebook's display did.
I also followed the steps on the video driver uninstallation/reinstallation and the flickering still persists.
I'm tempted to just try reinstalling Windows 7 on the notebook to see if it helps. I don't have a lot of stuff stored locally. But I'll wait to hear what you have to say.
ChrisMadden
10 Posts
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June 19th, 2012 09:00
Ok I reinstalled Windows after formatting the hard drive. And it's still flickering. How should I proceed on this?
Alienware-Alex_
24 Posts
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June 19th, 2012 12:00
If the operating system reinstallation didn’t fix it, it sounds like you might be having a hardware issue.
You mentioned above that the issue only happens when you use the keyboard or the mouse pad... Have you try using the system with an external keyboard and mouse? Just to see if the issue would happen as well.
If it does we might need to do a deeper troubleshooting; for that please send me an email to awsocialmedia@dell.com including your service tag, phone number and name so we can get in touch with you directly.
ChrisMadden
10 Posts
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June 19th, 2012 13:00
When I plug in an external keyboard and mouse, they do NOT trigger the flickering either. So basically it looks like the flickering doesn't happen using any external peripherals. But if I use the notebook's keyboard, or trackpad, even when an external mouse and keyboard are plugged in then the display flickers.
Alienware-Alex_
24 Posts
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June 19th, 2012 18:00
Ok we got your email, the case will be assing to a rep to reach you in the next 48 hours.
ChrisMadden
10 Posts
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June 20th, 2012 12:00
Ok well I got ahold of your guys tech support and they're sending me a box to ship it to you guys. Thanks for your help though.
Alienware-Alex_
24 Posts
0
June 20th, 2012 14:00
You're very welcome! :)