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209313
Latitude E7470 External Monitors with Dock Problems
Hello,
I have a Latitude E7470 for work and when I first started using it with my docking station to external monitors, I was noticing a similar issue as was brought up in the thread linked below. One of my two external monitors (seemingly randomly) would flicker once, or periodically to a point where it was distracting. Additionally, I have seen the graphics card crash a few times after such problems appeared.
http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/laptop/f/3518/t/19532685
I implemented the "fix" that was linked (and marked as the answer to the thread) over lunch about a week ago, and more things went haywire from there. Basically, at this point I am unable to connect to any external monitors through the docking station. I have resorted to having a single monitor connected via HDMI, but it is hardly conducive to working and I would really like to have my multiple monitor setup back (even with the flashing problem, at the least).
Is there any way to undo the actions I have run, or is there a more up to date fix for this issue?
Any response and guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'd really like to not have to resort to getting a different style (USB 3.0) docking station if I can prevent it.
Akasata111
10 Posts
0
March 23rd, 2017 10:00
I had a motherboard replacement in my i7-6600U model about a month ago, and I haven't seen the flickering issue since. Unfortunately the wifi remains flaky and the fingerprint reader is still beyond useless, but at least the monitor doesn't flicker anymore... (Needless to say I still wouldn't suggest buying this laptop, but at least a motherboard replacement will make life a little bit easier.)
ido_nl
8 Posts
0
March 24th, 2017 03:00
Just wondering, how did you recreate the issue every time?
And what motherboard/CPU does your laptop have?
I have a DELL Latitude E7470 (DELL 047I5V), with a Intel Core i5-6300U and Intel HD Graphics 520
Issues I have usually happen after unlocking my computer (dual monitor setup), doesn't matter if the computer wakes from sleep or not.
- Sometimes screen flickering (a couple of times)
- resizing of windows
- moving all windows to my main screen
Akasata111
10 Posts
0
March 24th, 2017 06:00
The issues you are describing are different, they are a combination of fundamental flaws in the way Windows deals with high-resolution screens, and the way the hardware behaves when the screen is disconnected or the system goes to sleep. You will see these issues on pretty much any Windows laptop if you enable scaling.
If you disable scaling (set to 100% for all screens), most of the problems you describe go away.
The specific hardware issue with the E7470 is that if you connect the screen through a dock, sometimes the screen starts flickering (going completely black periodically) due to some combination of hardware and firmware issues.
ido_nl
8 Posts
0
March 24th, 2017 06:00
Could be, but I have my scaling set to 100% and I didnt have these problems with my previous dell laptop (E6420), with the same dock and monitor setup. Only difference apart from the laptop hardware is windows 8.1 vs Windows 10.
And I do get the flickering once in a while when unlocking my pc. Goes black back to the desktop screen, black again, etc, for 10 times or so, then its ok.
Po Kwok
2 Posts
2
May 23rd, 2017 12:00
I've went through all the possible solutions in this thread from updating BIOS, Synaptics firmware, changing DVI cables, scaling options, etc etc. Nothing worked. The answer is DP. If you have the E-Port Plus docking station, the solution is to switch both monitor connections to Display Port. The DVI connection is the problem with the E7470. Took several weeks to figure out and I thought I'd share.
ido_nl
8 Posts
0
May 23rd, 2017 23:00
Thanks, thats good to know, so DVI might me the cause. Did you also try VGA?
btw, I must say with the latest windows update (creators edition) and the latest dell drivers and bios update, connected to DVI I don't see these problems anymore
- Sometimes screen flickering (a couple of times)
- resizing of windows
- moving all windows to my main screen (perhaps occasionally)
Only thing is that my pc is sometimes slow when I unlock it, but this could also be out network, or something else.
Po Kwok
2 Posts
1
May 26th, 2017 07:00
Upgraded to the latest BIOS, latest drivers for Iris 540, latest mst hub firmware 3.10.3, confirmed 130w power adapter with DVI connected monitors.. and still had flickering. Switch to DP completely fixed it. The E-Port Plus replicator supports 2 external monitors, connected via 2 DVI ports or 2 DP ports. There is no VGA option.
md.edude
2 Posts
0
June 7th, 2017 05:00
I have this issue from time to time and resolved it by changing the combination of refresh frequencies for the display mode.
By changing the laptop screen refresh and the external monitor refresh to different values I found a set that worked for me.
One combination I had appeared to work until reboot, but changing things back to a more obvious setting afterwards as fixed it for me.
Additional Note: I changed these setting through the Intel tool for the display driver.
jsmink
1 Message
0
June 23rd, 2017 09:00
I struggled with this for months and tried everything in this post and then some but finally stumbled on a simple solution when my laptop wasn't charging correctly while docked. I unplugged the power cord from the docking station and plugged it in to my laptop while still docked and my laptop started charging correctly. I left it like that all day to charge and noticed the blinking issue didn't happen that day. I've left it like that since and haven't had the blinking issue. Hope this helps someone...
ttttubby
1 Message
1
September 19th, 2017 09:00
So I'm having this problem on my Dell Lattitude E5450. I've done everything suggested except for updating the bios (so, updated video drivers, updated the MST driver to the latest 3.10.1_A07). I haven't updated the Bios yet for two reasons. #1 My ITS department is the only one with the privileges to do so and #2 There are two conflicting Bios files for my computer and I'm unsure which one to use. The autodetect program wants me to flash the bios for computers without a docking station, but there is another bios file for computers with a docking station. Since I'm on a docking station, I'd assume that the latter is the one I need, but I know better than to screw around with the BIOS willy nilly.
As it is, I get an annoying screen flicker on one of my screens (the one connected to the DP port) only when I resume from sleep. Super annoying especially when viewing images on a dark grey background.
So which Bios do I need?