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Nintendo Switch Black Screen: Fix The Blank Screen Here

Nintendo Switch Black Screen: Fix The Blank Screen Here

Does your Nintendo Switch show a black screen, but you can hear the sounds from the console speakers? Are you having trouble turning on your Nintendo Switch, or the console won’t wake up after placing it in sleep mode? This article will show you troubleshooting steps for the black screen issue associated with Nintendo Switch.

Many users complain that the Nintendo Switch goes black after turning on or waking up from sleep mode. Sometimes, users can hear the sounds coming out of the console, but they cannot view anything on the screen.

Let’s find out why your Nintendo Switch is not working and what is causing the black screen issue.

Why is my Nintendo switch screen not working?

switch power cable

If you are experiencing a black screen on your Nintendo Switch, it could be due to any one of the following reasons.

  • You may realize that your console shows a black screen after turning it on. In this case, the battery indicator shows up for just a second, meaning that you have not charged the battery enough to juice up your console.
  • The console’s charging adapter or charging dock is going bad.
  • The Nintendo Switch hardware components are almost similar to a smartphone. However, if the screen is damaged, Switch will show a black screen, but you can hear the sounds from the console speakers. Therefore, if your console’s battery is full, the screen is the possible cause of it going black.
  • The gaming console is broken because of failing hardware components and needs to be repaired or replaced.
  • A temporary glitch in the Switch software is causing the black screen on the console.

How do you fix a black screen on a Nintendo switch?

update nintendo switch

Try the following troubleshooting steps to fix the black screen issue on your Nintendo Switch.

Force reboot Nintendo Switch

The first potential solution to fix the black screen issue on Nintendo Switch is to do a force reboot. To do this:

  • Connect the AC adapter to the console and wait 15 minutes to charge the battery.
  • Next, press and hold the Power button for 10-15 seconds.
  • Now, press the Power button on the Switch to turn on the console and see if the issue persists.

Reset AC adapter

Another quick way to troubleshoot Nintendo Switch black screen is to reset it. You can do this by unplugging the AC adapter from both ends. Afterward, leave it unplugged for 30 seconds and then charge the Switch battery with the AC adapter. Hopefully, the charger will start charging the console and power it back on.

Check Nintendo Switch AC adapter

If resetting the AC adapter didn’t work for you, you must check whether you are using the original AC adapter model, i.e., Model No. HAC-002. If it’s not the actual make, borrow an AC adapter from your friend or family that plays the Nintendo Switch. Now charge your console with the borrowed AC adapter for at least 3 hours.

If the Nintendo Switch turns back on and you no longer see the black screen, replace your adapter with the original one from the Nintendo online store. Otherwise, check your dock’s charging functionality and replace it if needed.

Do a soft reset without deleting saves data

If you intend to troubleshoot the black screen on your console, one of the basic options is performing a soft reset. The soft reset process will wipe the software, but you will not lose your saved data, video, and screenshots.

To do this, you need to access the console’s recovery mode in the following way.

  • Ensure that the Nintendo Switch is completely powered off, meaning it should not be in sleep mode as well.
  • Press the Power button on the Nintendo Switch for 12 seconds to power it off.
  • Now press and hold the Power button and both volume buttons until you see the recovery menu.
  • Scroll through the option and select the “Restore factory settings without deleting save data” option (You may need to enter your PIN if parental controls are set up).
  • Read through the instructions and select “Next” at the end of the page.
  • Wait while the console completes the process.
  • Finally, power on the Switch in normal mode and see if this fixes the issue.

Contact Nintendo for repairs

If you cannot get rid of the black screen on your Nintendo Switch after checking the charging accessories, force rebooting, and the soft reset process, you should contact Nintendo and ask them to perform the necessary repairs on the console.

Furthermore, make sure that the Nintendo tech guys will also look at your AC adapter and charging dock. They can test to rule them out to be the cause of the issue. If you can not visit a Nintendo store, content them directly on their website.

How do I factory reset my Nintendo Switch?

nintendo switch homepage

If the soft resetting of the Nintendo Switch does not fix the issue, you may want to perform a hard factory reset to get rid of the software glitch that is causing the black screen. The whole process approximately takes 5 minutes to complete, and you can do it as follows.

  • Select the Settings option with the gear icon from the Nintendo Switch Home menu.
  • Next, scroll and select the System option.
  • Now scroll again to the bottom and select the Formatting option.
  • Enter the PIN if prompted and select Initialize Console to remove the user profile and other data.
  • Finally, reboot your console, make a new profile and verify that is black screen issue is fixed.

Conclusion

Hopefully, this guide helped you fix the Nintendo Switch black screen issue. We recommend that you start the troubleshooting by fixing battery issues such as AC adapter/charging dock malfunctioning. If that doesn’t fix the problem, proceed to the other fixes.

Author

  • Michael Stokes

    Over 10 years of experience working as a technical support engineer. Highly skilled in fixing any technical issue, including app configuration and account setup, gaming errors, television problems, and any other electronics-related issue. You can find out more about him at helpfixthat.com/author/spark-wit/

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