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kolovratsigyk
New Participant
September 12, 2026
Solved

into a dull gray screen on Quest 2

  • September 12, 2026
  • 8 replies
  • 120 views

Recently, I bought a used helmet secondhand, and after 4 weeks of active use, a gray screen started appearing when I turned the helmet on. The sound from opening the menu was there, and I could even hear the centering, but everything only worked when I enabled the demo from the Quest mobile app. The boot menu also worked, so I did a full reboot through it, but that didn’t help. Then I decided to reset it to factory settings, which also didn’t succeed. I had to leave the helmet gathering dust on the shelf for about two weeks, after which I took it out again, and lo and behold, everything was working properly again. My joy knew no bounds, but two days later, everything was back to that awful gray screen. Previously, I played both in standalone mode and via a cable using ALVR. If you ask why I didn’t take it to a service center or something like that, I’d like to note that I live in a country where the service sector isn’t very well developed, and repairing VR headsets isn’t very common — at least, in our case, one of the few service centers is located in another part of the country. Is there any way to solve my problem without resorting to the help of experts?

    Best answer by Choleni

    Hi kolovratsi_gyk​ 🙂

     after 4 weeks of active use, a gray screen started appearing when I turned the helmet on.

    Active use like... doing workarounds or playing games that makes you sweat?

    If so, sweat /moisture that found its way into the headset might cause the black/grey screen.

    Maybe that's why it worked again after not using it for two weeks??

    You can try if using a hairdryer(no heat) like shown in the video can help.

     

    I forgot to add that when the helmet shows a gray screen, it goes into sleep mode after about 5 seconds.

    Make sure, the proximty sensor isn't blocked by something. If the headset does not detect that it's worn, the screen won't turn on.

    If nothing works, you may have to send it to a repair center.

    8 replies

    kolovratsigykAuthor
    New Participant
    September 12, 2026

    I forgot to add that when the helmet shows a gray screen, it goes into sleep mode after about 5 seconds.

    Maccyb123
    Honored Contributor
    September 12, 2026

    That's not good. It looks like you bought a defective headset my friend. When you had the issue first and let it sit unused for a while, then it was working fine again, before grey screening once again, it's a component failure in the device. I know you save money buying a second hand headset but there's always the risk that what happened is exactly why the previous owner sold it. Your best bet is to try to find the repairer with the best reputation and arrange to ship it to them, maybe they can fix it for not too much money. 

    Before you do all that though, I see you tried a factory reset, but if there is a software error, a factory reset won't necessarily fix it. There is one more last ditch thing to try if you haven't done it. Connect your headset to your pc and run the Meta software update tool which can repair a janky download. After you connect the headset go to the web page on your PC Might be worth a try. Good luck!! 🤞🤞😌🍀🍀

    https://www.meta.com/en-gb/help/quest/software_update/

     

      kolovratsigykAuthor
      New Participant
      September 12, 2026

      I can’t connect it to the computer, at least not because it turns off every second, but I dare to assume the problem lies with my motherboard.

      Maccyb123
      Honored Contributor
      September 12, 2026

      OK, why not try letting it sit idle again just for a couple of days and then immediately connect it to the pc if it's open. You never know. 

      Choleni
      CholeniAnswer
      Honored Contributor
      September 12, 2026

      Hi kolovratsi_gyk​ 🙂

       after 4 weeks of active use, a gray screen started appearing when I turned the helmet on.

      Active use like... doing workarounds or playing games that makes you sweat?

      If so, sweat /moisture that found its way into the headset might cause the black/grey screen.

      Maybe that's why it worked again after not using it for two weeks??

      You can try if using a hairdryer(no heat) like shown in the video can help.

       

      I forgot to add that when the helmet shows a gray screen, it goes into sleep mode after about 5 seconds.

      Make sure, the proximty sensor isn't blocked by something. If the headset does not detect that it's worn, the screen won't turn on.

      If nothing works, you may have to send it to a repair center.

        kolovratsigykAuthor
        New Participant
        September 12, 2026

        I literally just used the helmet, went through the demonstration, and then put it aside to charge for 5 minutes — and now everything is working again. I have no idea what the connection is.

        Choleni
        Choleni
        Honored Contributor
        September 12, 2026

        Be happy!👍😅

        Next time it goes black, you have at least some things you can try.

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