Flickering Screen

[Clapham Saint]

My screen has started a weird flickering.

 

I am getting an irregular black flickering when playing games. Almost the whole screen (all except the top cm or so) flashes black, for just a fraction of a second.

 

It can happen anything from 10 minutes or so apart to just a few seconds and although not making the machine unasable is increadibly annoying.

 

I don't think (although I'm a complete IT dunce) its a hardware issue as it is limited to when I'm playing games. Could it be some sort of clash between direct x and something else that's running in the background?

 

It happens even if the game is the only program actively running.

 

Any ideas guys? Any help much appreciated.

 

CS

[hutch]

My first guess would be overheating. A good blowout & check none of the grilles are obstructed.

 

Try running it with the case open, to see if it goes away. That usually confirms an overheating GPU issue.

[Clapham Saint]

Thanks Hutch,

 

I should have said that its a laptop so opening the case is a little tricky.

 

It has been running reasonably hot recently I suppose but it isn't always hot when the flickering starts. if I alt tab away from the game then the flickering seems to stop.

[Clapham Saint]

My first guess would be overheating. A good blowout & check none of the grilles are obstructed.

 

Try running it with the case open, to see if it goes away. That usually confirms an overheating GPU issue.

 

Just got home and tested to see how hot its getting and it does seem to have got very hot very quickly.

 

I can't see any obvious blockage on the fan outlet grill.

 

Is it worth opening everything up to see if I can find anything blocked? I'd be quite wary of my fat fingers breaking something.

 

Is it usually possible to buy a more powerful fan? I guess it depends on the model.

[hutch]

Laptops a bit more tricky. I don't usually open them up, except to fit new components through the removeable access covers (HDD or RAM).

 

It does sound as if the GPU is overheating. Games are notoriously hard on graphics cards (although most laptops don't have a card per se, they have a graphics chip on the MoBo), and the fact that the problem goes away if you shift focus away from the game is a clue.

 

I would start by googling your laptop model number & GPU overheating (like variations of "acer travelmate 4200 gpu overheating"), and see if others have had the problem & found a solution.