How To Fix Oculus Quest 2 Black Screen of Death
Something that makes every Oculus Quest 2 user tremble is when they experience the black screen of death. This phenomenon manifests itself in a way where the screen is entirely black. You can see that the Quest 2 is turned on, but nothing is happening. In some cases, the Oculus logo might appear before the black screen of death shows up, but sometimes it does not.
However, as scary as this event might sound, you would be pretty surprised how common the black screen of death is and various solutions can fix it.
What Causes The Oculus Quest 2 Black Screen of Death?
Considering that the Oculus Quest 2 is getting updated quite often, it is a given that the reasons behind the black screen of death are numerous. The most common cause is that the Quest 2 is low on charge, which is preventing it from turning on properly, something might have interrupted the update, something in the firmware got corrupted, or in the worst-case scenario, you might have a hardware problem.
How To Fix The Oculus Quest 2 Black Screen of Death
There are several solutions to this problem, so you should try the fixes in this order:
- Check the battery and charge your headset
- Try opening the Quest 2 menu with your controller
- Perform a hard reboot
- Check the Oculus app on your phone
- Leave the headset on charge for 30 minutes while powered on
- Check the proximity sensor
- Factory reset your Quest 2 (last resort)
1. Check The Battery And Charge Your Headset
One of the most common reasons why your headset might be experiencing the black screen of death is because the power is completely drained out. While the Quest 2 will usually inform you about this by displaying an empty battery once you attempt to turn it on, that will not be the case when the black screen of death occurs.
Make sure to connect your Quest 2 to the charger you got with the headset (as there is a known issue that can damage your headset if you use a different charger), and leave it alone for a bit. If the headset shows that it is charging, try turning it on and see if your problem is solved.
2. Try Opening The Quest 2 Menu With Your Controller
Another common reason for a Quest 2 to display the black screen of death is simply because the main menu glitches out when the headset loses tracking with controllers as you take it off your head while it is still turned on. Once you put it on your head, try entering the main menu by pressing the Oculus symbol on your right controller. Pressing the menu button on the left controller can also solve the issue.
3. Perform A Reboot
The third best solution for the black screen of death is to hard-reboot your headset. You can do this by pressing and holding the power button for at least ten seconds. Doing this is a solution for a lot of problems, and not just only the black screen of death.
If you cannot hard-reboot, you should try booting using the bootloader menu. To do this, do the following:
- Press and hold the volume and power button together for at least ten seconds.
- Using the volume buttons, highlight “Boot device.”
- Press the power button to reboot your Quest 2.
4. Check The Oculus App On Your Phone
Log into the Oculus app on your phone and make sure it is connected to your headset. If the app can see your Quest 2, try to run an app from your phone. After the game launches, check on your headset to see if the black screen of death is still there.
5. Leave The Headset On Charge For 30 Minutes While Powered On
Updating the Quest 2 can sometimes lead to questionable moments, and if your battery happens to be low while it is updating, those moments can be even weirder. While this solution is quite similar to our first suggestion, instead of just checking if it is charging and then turning it on, leave it on the charger for at least 30 minutes. Then, after you turn it on, let it finish before you unplug it from the charger if there is an attempted update.
You can also check if your Quest 2 is getting updated on your Oculus app and if the headset is connected to it. If something happened to the Wi-Fi while the update was in progress, you might have to update the Quest 2 manually.
6. Check The Proximity Sensor
Did you know that there is a sensor between the lenses called the proximity sensor? This sensor turns the screen on and off as you put on the headset, and sometimes it can get bugged if it gets smudged.
If you are getting a black screen on the Quest 2, but you can still hear sounds when you move your controllers around, then something may be interfering with the proximity sensor.
Some third party VR accessories like VR Cover’s facial interface replacement kit can cause the black screen of death by interfering with the proximity sensor. If you have a third party accessory, try removing it to see if it fixes the problem.
If the problem is caused by a third party accessory, you might have to adjust it around in order to get it “right.”
If that’s not the problem, try covering the proximity sensor with your thumb to see if the black screen of death is going away, and if not, try cleaning it with a microfiber cloth that you would use to clean your lenses.
If the blacks screen goes away once you are covering the sensor with your thumb but not when the headset is on your head, then you should check if there is a gap anywhere on the headset which would let light hit the sensor (which would make it think you are not wearing it).
7. Factory Reset Your Quest 2 (Last Resort)
Once you have tried out everything else, the last thing you can do is attempt to factory reset your Quest 2. Make sure you did not skip to this solution without trying the ones beforehand, as everything on your Quest 2 will be deleted.
While you will keep all the purchases on your Oculus account, you will have to download and install everything again, as your Quest’s software will be in the state like you just took it out of the box. This means that you will have to wait for the updates as soon as you connect it to Wi-Fi!
To do the factory reset, do the following:
- Press and hold the volume and power button together for at least ten seconds.
- Using the volume buttons, highlight “Factory reset.”
- Press the power button.
Are You Still Having A Black Screen Of Death?
If you tried using all of the possible fixes we listed, there is a high chance that the issue is related to the hardware. Unfortunately, suppose the black screen sticks around after the factory reset. In that case, the only thing you can do from that point on is to seek help from Oculus by sending your headset to their closest customer support center for repairs or a replacement.
It is imperative not to attempt hardware repairs by yourself, as you will void the warranty, making it ineligible for repairs or a replacement once you send it to Oculus!
