ACER Swift Edge 16 Model# N23Q21 USBC Video Output is not present

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

I have an ACER Swift Edge 16 Ryzen laptop which is less then 3 weeks old. I use the USB C to output video to a 2nd screen (Dell U3219Q) with a USB C connection also. When first purchased the video, data and laptop charging were present. Now for no apparent reason the video is not working. I have tried new cables and even re-built Windows from scratch without success. I have an HP Envy which I use with the same screen and cables without a problem. Device manager is not showing any errors and I've update the BIOS on the laptop and checked the firmware of the screen which is up to date. Next step is to return it to the shop for a replacement ! Any clues ?

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

Final Update

The dealer, ACER support & Microsoft support were unable to sort this out. So after much time, effort, 2x laptops and money spent I have returned the Acer Swift Edge and accepted a full refund. There comes a point after 15+ Windows installs and hours of your life that you will never get back that you have to draw the line !

I'm now officially laptop less but for some reason life feels a whole lot better. Thanks for the help btw, hope you don't get stuck in this loop yourselves :>/

Puraw · May 2024

ACER Swift Edge 16 USBC Video Output is not present

stevesmith7461

May 14, 2024

I have an ACER Swift Edge 16 Ryzen laptop which is less then 3 weeks old. I use the USB C to output video to a 2nd screen (Dell U3219Q) with a USB C connection also. When first purchased the video, data and laptop charging were present. Now for no apparent reason the video is not working. I have tried new cables and even re-built Windows from scratch without success. I have an HP Envy which I use with the same screen and cables without a problem. Device manager is not showing any errors and I've update the BIOS on the laptop and checked the firmware of the screen which is up to date. Next step is to return it to the shop for a replacement ! Any clues ?
[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

This USB-C 4 port supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort so there is an issue with the BIOS settings or the Monitor DP port.

StevenGen · May 2024

ACER Swift Edge 16 USBC Video Output is not present

stevesmith7461

May 14, 2024

I have an ACER Swift Edge 16 Ryzen laptop which is less then 3 weeks old. I use the USB C to output video to a 2nd screen (Dell U3219Q) with a USB C connection also. When first purchased the video, data and laptop charging were present. Now for no apparent reason the video is not working. I have tried new cables and even re-built Windows from scratch without success. I have an HP Envy which I use with the same screen and cables without a problem. Device manager is not showing any errors and I've update the BIOS on the laptop and checked the firmware of the screen which is up to date. Next step is to return it to the shop for a replacement ! Any clues ?
[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

Which Swift SFE16-XX model do you have, as your laptops model online manual has instructions what types of USB-C it has, like shown below. You Swift USB-C port should support DisplayPort™ over USB-C™.

If these ports don't work, then either your monitors USB-C port has a problem, or you are using a faulty cable or both or the USB-C ports on your laptop are faulty, systematically troubleshoot these problems and narrow the problem down that way. Good luck

If this answers your question and solved your query please "Click on Yes" or "Click on Like" if you find my answer useful👍

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

Hi StevenGen, Thanks for the response, it is an Acer Swift Edge 16 Model# N23Q21. As I understand it I have 2xUSB-C connections that support DisplayPort audio/video and are compatible with USB4 communication protocols. I have 2 USB-'C' to 'C' cables that were supplied with the 2x DELL U3219Q displays I have. I have tried both cables and both displays with the Acer without any joy, I only want to run one of them but potentially both off the Acer in the future. So the chances of both leads or both displays being damaged is highly unlikely I'm afraid.

When connected, I get data and charging through the port and originally had video also, but no longer. These DELL displays & cables work fine with an older HP Envy I am also using without fault or fuss. For information the cables are tagged as being Type C Gen2 5A, I presently have a new cable on order from Amazon in the hope it might solve the issue (Silkland USB4 for Thunderbolt 4 Cable, Compatible with USB C 3.2 Gen 2, 40Gbps, 8K@60Hz) but it is a real last chance saloon move. I have also tried running the same connection configurations with the power brick connected also in case the problem is somehow related to that.

I attach a copy of the USB4 host information from the laptop in case you can see anything going wrong there ?

Tomorrow is 'D'-day its going back to the shop, amazingly I have to take my monitor also, all 32" of it as they don't have a monitor with a USB-C connection lol…..

USB4 Host Router 1- Topology ID 000.txt

Uploaded May 15, 2024882 B

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

Puraw

May 15, 2024

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/705711/acer-swift-edge-16-usbc-video-output-is-not-present
This USB-C 4 port supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort so there is an issue with the BIOS settings or the Monitor DP port.

Hi Puraw, Thank you for your suggestion. As you say, yes laptop supports USB-C 4 with power delivery and DisplayPort. I checked in the bios but couldn't find any settings pertaining to this. I then could see that a new bios was available so I updated that also and still no settings pertaining to USB-C or USB4. I run the monitor with automatic port detection and also have forced the monitor to only look to the USB-C for input again nothing. The Dell Display Manager software is not seeing that a monitor is connected and neither is the device manager monitor entry.

This has got to be software as I have 2 Dell U3219Q displays and 2 USB-C cables and both work with an HP Envy laptop!

StevenGen · May 2024

stevesmith7461

May 15, 2024

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1275602#Comment_1275602
Hi Puraw, Thank you for your suggestion. As you say, yes laptop supports USB-C 4 with power delivery and DisplayPort. I checked in the bios but couldn't find any settings pertaining to this. I then could see that a new bios was available so I updated that also and still no settings pertaining to USB-C or USB4. I run the monitor with automatic port detection and also have forced the monitor to only look to the USB-C for input again nothing. The Dell Display Manager software is not seeing that a monitor is connected and neither is the device manager monitor entry.
This has got to be software as I have 2 Dell U3219Q displays and 2 USB-C cables and both work with an HP Envy laptop!

What is the exact Swift model number of your laptop, as your reference of Model# N23Q21 is NOT what your laptop is recognized by, it should be something like Swift Edge SFE16-XX-XXXX.

The above caption that I've referenced of the left side USB-C ports is from the Swift Edge SFE16-44 model online basic manual and it appears that these laptops don't have Thunderbolt ports. Give us the exact Swift model laptop model number that you have and then we can give you the exact side ports specifications that your laptop has.

Btw and as an example, I've got a Swift X model SFX14-51G and the below caption is this laptop left side where its USB-C/TBT4 ports look like, if your ports are not maced with the TBT icon then its not a thunderbolt port.

Swift SFX14-51G left side TBT4/USB-C ports

If this answers your question and solved your query please "Click on Yes" or "Click on Like" if you find my answer useful👍

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

Hi StevenGen, Sorry for sending the wrong info.

"What is the exact Swift model number of your laptop?" It is SFE16-43-R7GP.

The new cable I bought from Amazon didn't work either. So I now have 4 USB-C to C cables and a USB-C to HDMI that don't work. The only output that does is HDMI-HDMI which as you know doesn't charge or pass through data.

This image is from the manual found using the SNID number.

Who would have thought that USB-C USB4 and Thunderbolt would be such a minefield !

This is from the Dell manual;

Is that any help to you.

billsey · May 2024

USB4 is an AMD thing they did in response to Thunderbolt. It's very similar to USB-C but does act slightly differently. It should work though… I'd go ahead and open a ticket with Acer on it.

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

billsey

May 16, 2024

USB4 is an AMD thing they did in response to Thunderbolt. It's very similar to USB-C but does act slightly differently. It should work though… I'd go ahead and open a ticket with Acer on it.

Thanks billsey, I have been back to the dealer with it and took with me my screen and all the cables. Their tech guy had a good go at it too and nothing doing so we believe there is actually a hardware fault of some kind and the laptop is be8ng replaced with a new one. I am not convinced that we are on the same page and the whole question of what hardware is compatible with what is a minefield it seems!

I will post back here in a week either way once I have used the replacement.

Thanks all for the support.

billsey · May 2024

Yeah, I find that Windows works better in most cases on Intel systems that it does on AMD. Little things like this seem to keep cropping up on the AMD designs.

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

UPDATE

So obtained a replacement same model laptop from the store. Run the windows/microsoft account setup all monitors and cables working as expected from USBC ports just as it was when I first got the last one! Then ran Windows update and neither USB port will pass video. Windows went from 22H2 to 23H2 and I'm pretty sure that is the real cause of the video outage.

USB-C charging and data works fine and the USB port recognises the cable is present even stating that the connection may be limited in some way pointing the finger at the monitor with the notification;

The notification send you to this which is as much use as a chocolate fireguard !

Fix USB-C problems in Windows - Microsoft Support

I previously tried rolling back windows using Recovery but it didn't fix it then !

Any suggestions anyone ?

stevesmith7461 · May 2024

Final Update

The dealer, ACER support & Microsoft support were unable to sort this out. So after much time, effort, 2x laptops and money spent I have returned the Acer Swift Edge and accepted a full refund. There comes a point after 15+ Windows installs and hours of your life that you will never get back that you have to draw the line !

I'm now officially laptop less but for some reason life feels a whole lot better. Thanks for the help btw, hope you don't get stuck in this loop yourselves :>/