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Many MacBook Pro users have been having trouble with their multi-screen setups that use DisplayLink. The problem is a flickering screen, which happens most often on MacBook Pro 2018 and MacBook Pro 2019 laptops with discrete graphics. Even though it’s annoying, there is a simple way to stop the screen from flickering. Let’s look quickly at how you can figure it out on your own. When you use your Mac like you always do, something never before seen happens: your MacBook screen flickers and sometimes shows green lines.
Isn’t it terrible? In fact, most users have trouble with their full-screen MacBook Pro screens flickering. You can do things to make it better. While this article gives you tried-and-true ways to fix the flickering on your MacBook Pro screen. If you upgrade to macOS 10.15, your screen might start to flicker. After you update to 10.15, your screen may flicker when you watch YouTube videos, on the Mac menu, or even on your external monitor. Even though it’s common for the screen to flicker after updating to 10.15, that doesn’t mean you should be okay with it. We mentioned below are the ways to Fix Flickering External Screen on Mac.
Ways to Fix Flickering External Screen on Mac
Disable Automatic Graphics Switching
If you have a MacBook Pro with both an integrated graphics processor and a separate graphics processor, the computer will automatically switch between the two to save battery life and make the most of the work being done. But the graphics driver can sometimes crash and cause the screen to flicker.
To turn off the automatic switching of graphics, open the System Preferences app, click on the Battery category, and then click on Battery again on the sidebar. Then, uncheck the box that says “Disable Automatic Graphics Switching.” If that helps, your Mac might need an update (more on that next).
Update macOS and Mac Apps
Check to see if there is a system software update that needs to be installed. If there is, it might fix your MacBook Pro’s flickering or flashing screen. Open the System Preferences app and choose Software Update to do this.
You should also update the apps on your MacBook while you’re at it, since newer versions have fixes and improvements that make it less likely that the screen will flicker.
Restart Your MacBook
This sounds easy, but a simple restart is all it takes to get rid of most strange graphics on a MacBook. If you haven’t already done that, open the Apple menu and choose Restart. On the confirmation dialogue, uncheck the box next to Reopen windows when I log back in for the best results.
If the problem keeps happening, try turning off your Mac before you turn it back on. Open the Apple menu and choose Shut Down to do this. Again, turn off the setting that reopens windows when you log back in.
Disable Your Browser’s Hardware Acceleration
Hardware acceleration is used by third-party browsers like Chrome and Firefox to make rendering faster and better. But it can cause problems with certain kinds of hardware.
If the flickering screen only happens when you’re using your browser, like when you’re streaming video, you might want to turn off hardware acceleration for your browser. Click on the three dots at the top right of Chrome, then go to Settings > System and turn off Use hardware acceleration when available.
If you use Firefox, click on the icon with three lines, go to Settings, and scroll down until you see the section called “Performance.” Now, uncheck the boxes next to Use recommended performance settings and Use hardware acceleration when it’s available.
Disable the True Tone Feature
True Tone is a feature built into Macs that changes the colors and contrast based on how much light is in the room. But it can also make the screen flicker or shimmer just a little bit.
Open the Control Center on your MacBook, click Display, and then click the True Tone icon to turn it off. Or, go to System Preferences > Displays > True Tone and uncheck the box.
Clear Your MacBook Cache
Your MacBook Pro’s screen may also flicker if an application or system cache is broken or no longer supported. Onyx is an app that helps you deal with this problem by quickly flushing cached data.
Install Onyx and give it access to the whole hard drive by going to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Full Disk Access. Then, open the programme and go to the tab for “Maintenance.” Then, leave everything as it is and click on Run Tasks.
Boot Your MacBook in Safe Mode
Next, try starting up your Mac in Safe Mode. By itself, that action clears your Mac’s kernel cache, runs a number of automatic disc checks, and fixes a number of problems with the operating system.
To get into Safe Mode on an Intel MacBook, just turn it off and turn it back on while holding down the Shift key. If your MacBook has an Apple silicon chipset, shut it down and turn it back on without letting go of the Power button. When you get to the Startup Options screen, hold down the Shift key and choose Macintosh HD > Safe Mode.
Perform the Apple Hardware Test
By running Apple Diagnostics, you can find out if the flickering or flashing on your MacBook Pro’s screen is caused by a broken display or graphics processor. On an Intel Mac, hold down the D key while it starts up.
If you have an Apple silicon MacBook, turn it off and turn it back on while holding down the Power button until you see the Startup Options screen. Then, on your keyboard, press Command + D.
When your Mac’s diagnostics are done, you will get a reference code. ADP000 means that there is nothing wrong with the hardware, while VFD001–VFD007 mean that the display or GPU is broken.
Final Words
Some people who use an external display with their M1 MacBook Pro, M1 MacBook Air, or M1 Mac Mini have found that the display doesn’t work right. The most common problems with an M1 Mac’s external display are a flickering screen, a screen that won’t wake up from sleep and stays black, or a screen that shows white noise after the Mac wakes up from sleep or after the display has been turned off and the Mac tries to use it again.
If your M1 Mac’s external display is flickering, showing white noise, showing black screens that won’t wake up, or having other problems, read on to learn how to fix or work around these problems. We hope our article on “How to Fix Flickering External Screen on Mac” will surely help you to do so. If the problem still exists and you can’t fix it with the steps above, you can go to Apple’s official support website and ask for more help.