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HorridHare
New Participant
January 9, 2024
Solved

Quest 3 blowing air and won’t turn on

  • January 9, 2024
  • 27 replies
  • 22709 views

I just purchased a meta quest 3 about 2 weeks ago and the screen would turn black when I had it on. I wouldn’t even be able to type in my passcode by the time it turned black. I did what was said to hold the power and volume buttons for 10 seconds and once I did that it turned off and started blowing air from the front side of the headset. I’ve put it on a charger, held all 3 buttons for 30 seconds+ and still nothing. It’s been 10 minutes and it’s still just blowing out air. 

Best answer by MetaStoreHelp

Hey there, HorridHare, and thanks for bringing this to the community! Boot/fan issues can be alarming at times but rest assured we're glad to assist! There are several possible causes for what you're seeing, but luckily we can cover many of them with a few simple steps: 

 

  • Remove any unsupported third-party accessories that may affect boot (such as external battery packs, accessories that plug into the USB-C port, etc.)
  • Hard Reboot the headset, by holding down the power button and volume down button for 30 seconds until you hear the boot-up sound, If the boot-up sound is not heard:
    • Hold the power and volume down button down simultaneously again until the boot screen loads on your headset.
    • Use the volume buttons on your headset to highlight "Boot Device" and press the power button.
    • Use the volume buttons on your headset to highlight Yes and press the power button.

 

Your headset should boot up as normal. If not, then you can try a Factory Reset:

 

Factory Reset Your Meta Quest Device

 

Pay particular attention to the Cloud backup portion of that article, and be sure to sign back into your existing account and not inadvertently create a new account. If the issue persists beyond this, please send us a private message by selecting our name to get to our profile page, or clicking here. Next, click "Send a Message" and we'll see your message shortly! Please remember, you must be signed into the community first to send us a private message. Hope to hear back soon!

27 replies

MetaStoreHelp
MetaStoreHelpAnswer
Community Manager
January 10, 2024

Hey there, HorridHare, and thanks for bringing this to the community! Boot/fan issues can be alarming at times but rest assured we're glad to assist! There are several possible causes for what you're seeing, but luckily we can cover many of them with a few simple steps: 

 

  • Remove any unsupported third-party accessories that may affect boot (such as external battery packs, accessories that plug into the USB-C port, etc.)
  • Hard Reboot the headset, by holding down the power button and volume down button for 30 seconds until you hear the boot-up sound, If the boot-up sound is not heard:
    • Hold the power and volume down button down simultaneously again until the boot screen loads on your headset.
    • Use the volume buttons on your headset to highlight "Boot Device" and press the power button.
    • Use the volume buttons on your headset to highlight Yes and press the power button.

 

Your headset should boot up as normal. If not, then you can try a Factory Reset:

 

Factory Reset Your Meta Quest Device

 

Pay particular attention to the Cloud backup portion of that article, and be sure to sign back into your existing account and not inadvertently create a new account. If the issue persists beyond this, please send us a private message by selecting our name to get to our profile page, or clicking here. Next, click "Send a Message" and we'll see your message shortly! Please remember, you must be signed into the community first to send us a private message. Hope to hear back soon!

If you're the author of a thread, remember to mark a reply as the Accepted Solution to help others find answers!
Thesilliestofthemall
New Participant
May 4, 2024

Hi. I tried this and my headset still wont turn on no matter what I do...

    MetaStoreHelp
    MetaStoreHelp
    Community Manager
    May 4, 2024

    Hi @Thesilliestofthemall! We've received your PM and will continue to assist you there! 

    If you're the author of a thread, remember to mark a reply as the Accepted Solution to help others find answers!
    MetaStoreHelp
    MetaStoreHelp
    Community Manager
    January 24, 2024

    Hey again, HorridHare! We just wanted to follow-up with you and see if you're stil having issues with your Quest blowing air and not turning on. We'd love to help, so let us know!

    If you're the author of a thread, remember to mark a reply as the Accepted Solution to help others find answers!
    Codett1974
    Participant
    March 16, 2024

    I dk about them but mine is doing this now

      Codett1974
      Participant
      March 16, 2024

      Got it fixed 

      JustinAlexander1987
      New Participant
      November 29, 2024

      Well I held my power off button and my volume down button and it turned on and hold it for 30+ minutes and it should work because it did for me. 

      jenintexas
      New Participant
      January 23, 2025

      Me too, I used the power button and low volume to get to the boot screen.  I used the volume button to turn it off, then plugged it in.  No more air issues I hope!   So weird, I thought it was the volume at first, but it’s air!  Maybe I’ll set it outside for a bit once charged…

      XEMAjax
      New Participant
      July 30, 2025

      Hello mate I'm having the same issue following a forced update by Meta, haven't been able to switch it back on since, just fans turning on with black screen. Factory resetting remotely hasn't worked for me either. Any luck finding a solution? 

        gabedilaurentis
        New Participant
        August 8, 2025

        Same thing happened to me too just now, now I'm frantically looking for a solution. 

          veloc3t3
          New Participant
          August 18, 2025

          Avísenme si lo solucionan por favor, tengo el mismo problema 

            sythelvr
            New Participant
            February 10, 2026

            I am having the same issue with screen backlit in dark mode, fan blowing hot air and white led near the meta logo flashing, tried support and all I ended up with is get a refurb for $350++ as it is out of warranty.  This is the third refurb under the warranty period, and each refurb consistently has problems.  Not happy.  

            Tried Factory Reset, sideload update, leaving it on with the prox sensor tape up, drain battery, nothing works.  Spending lots of time researching this so any idea would be great.

            steve40
            steve40
            Honored Contributor
            February 10, 2026

            You have a corrupted bootloader. Your headset is stuck in EDL mode (emergency download mode). There is no fix as far as I know. If you still have warranty, return it.

            JohnnyWRZ
            Participant
            February 17, 2026

            I have the same issue. I cannot Contact meta support. Im receiving a error that the account is not associated with no device but thats is not true. Can someone help please?

            steve40
            steve40
            Honored Contributor
            February 17, 2026

            I replied to you in your own thread.

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