C720-2848 won't function

I have a "used" C720-2848 Chromebook. When the power cord is plugged into it, it flashes a white screen, then the screen goes gray, then black. Each for about three to five seconds. This goes continually, but it can be stopped by holding down ESC + Refresh + Power. I have plugged a recovery USB stick into it but cannot get it to do anything other than that same white, gray, black screens, so I cannot enter developer mode, or any other mode for that matter. I have tried all of the keystroke patterns and combinations on at least twenty different sites to try to find any mode I can work with.

Occasionally, if I haven't tried to do anything to it for a few days, I get either a Chrome OS flash on the screen, or a picture of some girl (probably a previous owner's girl). But then it goes into the same white, gray, black screens again after a few seconds.

I got an M2 - NGFF enclosure to look at the contents of the SSD. When I use a linux (Ultimate Boot CD 5.30) boot cd on my desktop, I can see the many partitions on the drive. I don't see any real OS looking files, though, just a few txt files and a log file or two. Of course, I really don't know what Chrome OS should look like, other than it is a linux clone of some nature. I can see some normal looking folders on the /dev/sdc1, 14 gig partition.

Is there anything else I can try? I hate to just give up on the thing. Without the ability to alter the strange look at boot, or change the boot device, I am stuck. Any help would be appreciated.

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Sharanji

You may try and check if the Chromebook boots to Developer Mode.

Turn off your Chromebook.

Press and hold the Esc key and refresh (F3) key and then press the power button to turn on the Chromebook.

The Chromebook will boot to Developer Mode., If it boots into developer mode Press Ctrl + D to turn off OS verification.

When prompted to turn OS verification off, press Enter and the Chromebook will restart.

At the OS verification is OFF screen, do not press the spacebar. The recovery process will start automatically after approximately 15 seconds.

The restore process takes about 5 minutes. The Chromebook restarts and prompts to re-enable verification. Press the spacebar. Press Enter to confirm that you wish to turn OS verification on. OS verification is back on and Chromebook reboots automatically. The "Welcome!" screen will be displayed and you can complete the on screen instructions.

If the above steps do not resolve the problem, and you have a unit from US or Canada, you may also live chat with an Acer technician at : Acer live chat

If you have purchased the computer in any other country, you may contact Acer support here : Acer Global Support

Click the Kudos to say “Thanks” for helping! select "Accept Solution" if your issue is resovled.

larrythethird

I can't get to any mode. The unit is either off or in this white, gray, black screen scenario. I even tried hooking up the HDMI jack to my TV. If I hold down the F5 (change screen output) key after I power it on, I do see a flash of red during the white on the Chromebook's screen. But nothing more. I cannot get to any useful screen to save its life.

I had read the Esc + Refresh + Power then CTRL + D (I read it has to be a capitol D) and tried it many times. No help. I have seen a Chrome OS screen a couple of times and a picture of a female a few other times. But they go away and it goes back to the white, gray, black pattern again.

I have tried to boot it with and without the SSD in. With or without a USB recovery image, but I can't change the boot device, even without the SSD installed. With and without the battery.

Since I do occasionally see the Chrome OS screen or the picture of a female, I reason that there is a major issue within the OS, but the hardware should be functional. The drive seems to look OK when I put it in an enclosure and hook it up to my desktop through a USB port. I wish there was a way to reload the SSD while it is connected to the desktop, but I haven't found a way to do that, yet. I might try to load a linux variant onto the SSD just to see if it will boot at all. But loading an real OS on a USB drive can be a hassle. A live CD or DVD loaded on the USB stick is another option. I don't know, but I'm still looking for an answer.