Sony TV Screen Flickering: 9 Ways To Fix It ASAP (2023)

Oh, boy. That’s weird.

I’m blinking too much today…

I think? Something must be wrong with my eyes.

Wait, I’m not.

It’s my Sony TV.

While I can’t diagnose eye diseases…

I can help you cure your TV of flickering.

Keep reading to discover:

9 quick ways to remove the flickering from your Sony TV.
Which settings on your Sony TV can cause flickering, and how to turn them off.
The secret method of factory resetting your TV if it goes to black after flickering.
7 easy steps to reattach ribbon cables and eliminate the flickering on your Sony.
And so much more…

Why is my Sony TV screen flickering?

Your Sony TV is flickering because of its HDMI connection or outdated firmware. Hardware like loose ribbon cables is also known to cause this issue. TV settings like Contrast Processing, Motionflow, and Noise Reduction can also start flickering.

Sony TV screen flickering: 9 ways to fix it

#1: Eliminate Contrast Processing

First, let’s focus on fixes you can do while sitting on your couch…

In particular, let’s talk about Contrast Processing.

“Contrast…what?”

Don’t worry. It’s not something that’s common knowledge…

But it’s something that I can discuss.

Contrast Processing is a different name for the Image Quality Optimization Process.

I know. It’s a mouthful.

Essentially, this allows you to have a wider range of contrast and colors on your TV using its software.

Sounds good, right?

The thing is, it’s not perfect.

Sometimes, it can become buggy.

When that happens, what should you do?

Simple. Just follow my instructions:

Press the Quick Settings or Home button on your remote.
Tap Picture Mode.
Select Custom.
Return to Quick Settings.
Head to Picture Settings.
Press Brightness.
Toggle off Black Adjust.
Toggle off Advanced Contrast Enhancer.

#2: Edit Motionflow settings

Ever notice how motion looks on your Sony TV?

Sometimes it looks so good…

But, there are times that it may look blurry.

This is because of Motionflow.

And it’s Sony’s motion processing software.

What it essentially does is make the movement on your TV smoother.

How? By:

Inserting new frames.
Blurring the frame transitions.
Controlling your TV’s backlight.

Here’s the thing:

Not all movies or shows are filmed at a high refresh rate.

This means that when Motionflow is applied to these media…

Let’s just say a lot of bugs can ensue.

And, yes, that includes screen flickering.

To fix this, you have to get rid of Motionflow using these simple steps:

Press the Action Menu button on your remote.
Head to Picture Adjustments.
Select Advanced Settings.
Change Motionflow to Off.

#3: Minimize noise reduction

Do you often watch old movies?

I do.

And do you know what I always notice about them?

There’s a lot of noise.

No, not the audio kind of noise.

The visual kind.

If you’re not familiar, you might’ve heard of “grainy footage.”

That’s it. The grain in the footage is the noise.

I’ve always been fond of noise, but other people find it distracting.

This is the reason why Sony TV made a Noise Reduction option.

It doesn’t matter if you’re watching a TV broadcast or a movie shot in 4K. Sony’s Noise Reduction can help you eliminate specks on your screen.

Now, you might say:

“Wow, that’s great. What’s the catch?”

Like Contrast Processing and Motionflow, Noise Reduction isn’t perfect either.

And can sometimes lead to continuous flickering when you’re watching shows but not on the menu.

To remove Noise Reduction, simply:

Press the Quick Settings or Home button on your remote.
Head to Display & Sound.
Go to Picture.
Select Advanced Settings.
Tap Clarity.
Set Digital Noise Reduction and Random Noise Reduction to Off.
Decrease Sharpness to 50.
Toggle Modify Creation from Auto to Manual.

You may also be interested in: Is Sony A Good TV Brand? 3 Problems & 4 Reasons

#4: Factory reset

Now, let’s try a more radical approach.

How about we get rid of the bugs on your TV…

By factory resetting it?

That’s right. A full reset of your TV can solve your flickering problem.

How?

Think of it this way…

A software issue might be causing the flickering on your Sony TV.

Instead of trying and failing multiple times to figure out what the issue is…

Why not just reset everything and start from scratch?

What’s more, it’s an easy process too. You just have to:

Press the Home or Quick Settings button on your remote.
Head to your Settings menu.
Select Device Preferences.
Under Reset, go to Factory Data Reset.
Tap Erase Everything.
Choose Yes to complete the factory reset.

The secret method

Here’s a brain teaser for you:

How do you factory reset a TV if it only has a black screen?

Which is the case for some of these Sony TVs after it stops flickering.

But let me tell you about this secret method that technicians use to restart a blank TV:

Through the Service Menu. This is how you can access it:

Note: This only applies to Sony TVs released in 2019 or later. Consult your user manual to find the secret code to access your Service Menu on other models.

Turn your TV off.
Press these buttons in this exact sequence: Help, 5, Volume Up, Power.
Go to General Setting.
Select Restore Factory Defaults.
Tap Enter to confirm.

Do you want to see someone access the Service Menu? Watch this video:

#5: Update firmware

Do you know that after you’ve bought your TV…

The manufacturers still try to improve it?

Yes. They are.

Through firmware updates.

You see, the flickering issue might not just be you. A lot of people could be experiencing the same thing.

When that happens, Sony swiftly resolves the issue by releasing a new update.

Or sometimes, the update goes poorly.

And they’re releasing newer updates to patch the mistakes on the previous one.

Whatever the case is, updating your firmware is actually pretty simple.

With the Settings menu

Press the Quick Settings or Home button on your remote.
Head to Customer Support/Setup/Product Support.
Go to Software Update.
Tap Network.
Select OK or Yes to confirm the update.

With a flash drive

Now, what if, for some reason, your Sony TV just won’t update using the Settings menu.

What should you do?

Force a firmware update using a flash drive.

Just grab your laptop and follow these 7 quick steps.

Go to Sony’s Products page and select your TV model.
Download the latest firmware.
Copy the download to your USB.
Turn your TV off.
Insert the flash drive into the port on your TV.
Open your TV.
Follow the instructions to complete the update.

#6: Power cycle your TV

Next, let’s try something simple.

Have you tried restarting your TV?

No, not just any simple restart.

But a full power cycle.

What’s the difference, you ask?

Well, turning your TV off and then on in quick succession just puts your TV in Sleep Mode.

Instead, to power cycle your TV, you need to:

Turn your TV off.
Unplug it from the socket.
Leave it alone for 30 seconds.
Plug it back in.
Turn it on.

#7: Reattach ribbon cables

It’s time to bust out your screwdrivers…

Because we’re now going to try to fix your hardware.

Now, I get it.

You might be worried that you accidentally make matters worse by opening your TV.

I’m here to tell you that you shouldn’t be.

Because what you need to do is quick, straightforward, and easy.

You just have to reattach your ribbon cables.

And this is how you do it:

Place your TV on a soft surface.
Loosen and remove the screws at the back.
Pry open your TV with a non-flexible blade.
Remove the cover.
Unclip all of the cables.
Blow on it a little to displace any dust.
Properly reattach the cable.

#8: Fix HDMI connection

Answer this:

Do you only get the flickering issue when you’re switching inputs?

If so, your problem is the HDMI connection.

To fix this, simply remove and reattach the HDMI cable.

What? That didn’t work?

Let’s try to clean your HDMI ports then. Grab the following:

Pour a drop of pure alcohol on the HDMI port.
While it’s wet, grab a microfiber cloth and wrap it around something thin.
Use that to clean the crevices.
Next, wait until the alcohol dries.
Lightly dislodge the remaining dirt using compressed air.
Repeat until there’s no more dirt left.
Straighten any bent pins with a tweezer.

#9: Contact Sony

Feel like you’re losing years because of frustration?

I do too.

But don’t let your TV get to you.

If nothing’s working, it’s best to leave it to Sony themselves.