Screen Image flicker BIOS 3309

I did a search and also did an advanced search so no yelling.

I noticed from the day I got my AA1 that on very rare occasions (maybe once a week), the image flickers or goes distorted. What seems to happen is that the screen image just jumps for a split second or the distortion makes diagonal colored lines for a split second.

To me it seems it is either a hardware issue or a driver issue. And I have my drivers up to date with Acer's latest.

I had assumed, from what I have read in past posts, it was a BIOS issue. Past post also say lowest brightness setting but unclear on whether it is an image flicker or lamp flicker. Well, I updated to the latest BIOS (I believe 3309 here in the US) and it still does it. Rarely at that but when it does it I am expecting my computer to blow up

Keep in mind this is that actual screen image that flickers, not the lamps. If i missed something in past posts I am sorry but I did do a search (177 results).

Thanks,
g

 

Are you hooking it up to an external monitor at all?

I seem to be getting something very similar to this, and sometimes it will go black with the back lights clearly on. When I go in and out of suspend the screen comes back. I have found that these issues only occur when I connect it to my external monitor running 1680x1050.

 

No, mine just does it when it feels like it. I wonder if it is just getting too hot. There really is no telling when it is going to happen, Battery power or plugged in.

 

I have the exact same problem.
Only happens after connecting to an external monitor, sometimes it just flickers once, at random intervals, and twice it has gone completely blank on me but the backlight was still on.
Funny thing is, the last time I hooked up to an external monitor I had left it hooked up to the AAO even though the monitor wasn't on and it wasn't set to use it and it didn't happen until I unplugged the monitor 2 days later.
It also happens when I hook the AAO up to out 46" LCD too.
Doesn't seem to matter what resolution I use though, just the fact that a monitor gets plugged in is enough.
Bringing it into and out of standby, or rebooting does fix the problem.


I was running bios 3304, when it was happening to me.
I just upgraded to 3309 for other issues with my touchscreen so we will see if that works it out but I am doubtful now seeing this post.

 

Since I bought mine at Sam's Club I think I still have almost a month left until I can't return it, so I am just debating if it is worth returning because of this. I feel it is not hardware and most likely software, and its not too much of an annoyance. The fact that you are also having this happen leads me to believe getting another AAO won't fix the problem. If this thing wasn't so awesome for everything else I throw at it, it would be a much easier decision.

 

meh, it doesn't bother me too much either.

As soon as I see the screen flicker I just close the lid put it in standby, wake it up and start where I left off.
Now if I had to reboot the thing everytime that happened I'd be a little more impatient.
It would be nice if they would fix it though.

 

I agree

 

It may not be a easy a fix as a simple BIOS or driver update. Though it could simply be a driver issue it seems to me that it actually a hardware problem. I am starting to wonder if it is a heat issue? When it happens it is almost as though something is being unplugged and plugged back in (example). If I where trouble shooting a problem as this the first thing I would look for is a faulty connection. With that in mind, the faulty connection could be an overheating issue with in the chip and only a "replace" would fix it which in this case would mean a new AA1 or motherboard.

Hopefully Acer will address this issue and admit there is a problem or even better, fix it with a simple update

Large companies have things that they call "Internal Campaigns", or the likes. What this means to them is there is an issue with a product they sell but they won't go public with it. If you call repeatedly you may actually finally talk to someone that will address the issue with out stating fault. What it means to you and me is that the company knows there is an issue but does not want the general public to know since it will cost them $$$$$$. This could be one of those issues

 

It makes sense to me for them, as a company, to do that. I doubt there are that many people that are hooking netbooks up to external monitors, and even so that many people that would actually be observant enough to notice the problem to begin with. A resolution would be nice, it still leaves me debating a return though.

 

I'm not convinced it is a heat issue or a loose connection at all.

As I stated in my previous post it ONLY happens after unplugging an external monitor.
I left my external LCD connected for a couple of days after needing to use it one day, it was only physically connected though, monitor was off and the video setting were changed back to notebook only.
During the entire time it was connected it did not flicker, once I unplugged the external LCD it began to flicker periodically.
Maybe 3-4 times over the course of 30 minutes.
The flicker completely stopped once the AAO was put into and brought out of standby.

I can leave my AAO running for DAYS, on my lap, suffocated by blankets, fan running constantly and this NEVER happens unless I have just unplugged it from an external monitor/tv.

I believe this could be rectified by a bios update or a video driver update.

 

This statement goes right along with my experiences...we may be having a different problem than the original poster. I am even running 3-d cad software and other analysis soft wares.

 

I also had the trouble of getting an occasional blank screen and a flicker when using a data projector or an external monitor. I contacted support, and the agent had me reinstall the VGA driver. I had already updated the bios to 1.09, but the bios update did not fix the problem. The reinstallation of the VGA driver SEEMS to have fixed both the flicker and the blank screen problem. It seems that some Windows update that was done sometime in the past may have created a driver conflict. Reinstalling the VGA driver seems to have fixed the issue. I have an Aspire D150 model.

 

I ended up returning the unit, I love Sam's Club , and then purchased a Dell 14Z to replace the netbook and my desktop. No more screen flicker .

 

Hi take my last post back. I went into class today, and the screen still blacked out on me in the middle of a presentation using a data projector.

 

OK. The problem is resolved. I did a couple of things. First, I reformatted the hard drive, re-installing everything from scratch. The second thing I did was to use a different method for initiating the extermal monitor (actually, a data projector). In the past, I used the hot key combination of Control-Alt-F1, and then to get back to normal, Control-Alt-F3. But now I am using the function key Fn plus the F5 combination, tapping F5 a couple of times to get the combination I want. Now there is no intermittent flicker or occasional blank screen. I tested it on a data projector for 5 hours, and it was solid as a rock. I am not going to re-experiment with the Control-Alt-F1 to see if that was the problem or if the reformatting did the trick. If another user has the same problem, start with using the Fn and F5 combination. If that does not work, then reformatting may be the way to go.