SPIN 3 SP314-53N started to flicker

lrubin
lrubin Member Posts: 6

Tinkerer

edited September 2021 in Swift and Spin Series
Hi - my Spin 3 has started to flicker and it's pretty annoying.  I've Googled and tried a few things like disabling various startup software in start up, booting in safe mode and also the task manager 'trick' which leads me to think it might be hardware.   Anyway, when I check the refresh rate it reports it as 60.049 which I thought was kind of a strange number - I thought it was usually exactly 60. It doesn't allow me to change it.  I'm wondering if that difference could be causing the flicker?  Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks!

Answers

  • William_mk2
    William_mk2 Ally Posts: 4,044
    edited September 2021
    @lrubin

    We need to determine whether it is a hardware or software issue..   Turn off the computer.   Tap f2 while turning on the computer.   It will go to bios.   Please stay on the bios screen for 30 mins.    If the display is looking good on bios then it is a software issue.   If the display is not looking good on the bios screen then it is a hardware issue.   

     

    If it is a software issue try the following the steps..

     

    Try windows x 
    go to device manager 
    expand display adapter
    right click on display driver - uninstall 
    Restart the computer 

    It should work fine.. 

    If it is still not working 
    Uninstall the display adapter from device manager 
    Don’t restart the computer. 
    Go to support.acer.com 
    chose your country 
    type snid or chose your model 
    go to drivers 
    Install the display driver 

    It should work fine...

    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful 

    Click on "Yes" if it answers your question.


    Please click YES if I answered your question

    I am not an ACER employee
    B  Thank you and have a BLESSED AND HAPPY DAY  B


                                         ★★ WILLIAM - MRK ★★

  • Easwar
    Easwar Member Posts: 6,727 Guru
    Hi @lrubin,

    Is the screen flickers in BIOS page also.

  • lrubin
    lrubin Member Posts: 6

    Tinkerer

    Thanks for the help.  I've delete the Intel driver several times but it doesn't seem to change anything. I also tried reinstalling the driver from the website; I used the "HID Monitor" driver but I wasn't sure if this was right because there were also a couple of VGA drivers I saw as well which I didn't reinstall.  Is that right?

    When I went into BIOS (this was before the driver reinstall) I didn't see it flash, but I was only in there for a few minutes.  I guess I need to go in for longer.  

    I would still like to know if the refresh rate of 60.049 could be causing me a problem??
  • Easwar
    Easwar Member Posts: 6,727 Guru
    Hi @lrubin,

    Reset this PC and keep my files
    1. Shutdown the unit. Press and hold alt+F10 key. Then turn ON the unit.
    2. You will get a blue screen. Choose the option troubleshoot. 

    3 Ways to Reset Acer Laptop to Factory Settings without Password​​

    3. Select Keep my files to refresh your PC and reinstall your operating system without removing your personal files. Click Next to continue. Important If you have apps installed on your PC, they will be removed. 
    4. Resetting the PC will reinstall Windows, change settings back to their factory defaults and remove all preinstalled apps and programs without removing your personal files. Click Reset to continue.
    5. You will be shown the reset progress on the screen. The screen will turn off during the reset process.
    6. The screen will turn back on when it is installing Windows. Your PC will restart several times during the reset process.
    7. Follow the process until it completes.
    8. When your PC has completed the reset process, Windows will have been reset back to its factory default settings without removing your personal files.​

  • lrubin
    lrubin Member Posts: 6

    Tinkerer

    Hi - thanks for that.   I had already been to that screen several times. I tried to restore to a previous date but for some reason it couldn't.  I was tempted to reset the computer, but I didn't want to lose all of my apps unless I thought it was going to work.  And now I'm thinking that maybe it's a hardware problem, not software?
  • William_mk2
    William_mk2 Ally Posts: 4,044
    lrubin

    We need to determine whether it is a hardware or software issue..   Turn off the computer.   Tap f2 while turning on the computer.   It will go to bios.   Please stay on the bios screen for 30 mins.    If the display is looking good on bios then it is a software issue.   If the display is not looking good on the bios screen then it is a hardware issue.   

     

    Since it looks like a software issue, try to do keep my files  ( only applications will be lost.   You can always reinstall it if you have a disk or by downloading it from internet ) 


    It should work fine.. 


    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful 

    Click on "Yes" if it answers your question.


    Please click YES if I answered your question

    I am not an ACER employee
    B  Thank you and have a BLESSED AND HAPPY DAY  B


                                         ★★ WILLIAM - MRK ★★

  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 31,454 Trailblazer
    The refresh rate of 60.049 isn't an issue...
    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.
  • lrubin
    lrubin Member Posts: 6

    Tinkerer

    so does anyone know where I can get info on where to look inside the laptop for something that could cause flickering?  I opened the Spin3 up but didn't see any obvious loose connections, but I'm not sure where the likely problem spots might be...software fixes like updating drivers haven't done anything. Thanks
  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 31,454 Trailblazer
    Let's start from the beginning... When do you see a flicker on the screen? Does it always have the issue or only sometimes? If you boot into the BIOS does it show up there? Looking for hardware issues when the problem is a driver or app isn't going to help much. Your SP314-53N has the Intel GPU that is part of the CPU/chipset. Which version of the drivers are you using?
    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.