iMac Screen Going Black intermittently

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iMac Screen Going Black intermittently

My iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2012 running macOS Catalina 10.15.4) recently started having an issue with the display. A few times an hour, the screen will go black for less than 5 seconds, then it goes back to normal. It happens regardless of what application I'm using and has persisted after restarting it. It appears that it is only the display, as I can continue typing during the blackout, and when the screen comes back, what I have typed during the blackness is there. Additionally, the screen isn't off. It looks like it is displaying an all black screen.

I couldn't find anything similar to this in the forums. It is quite annoying however, especially with all of the working from home lately.

Does anyone have any idea how to fix this? Thanks in advance.

iMac Line (2012 and Later)

Posted on Jun 4, 2020 10:01 AM

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Answer 1

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den.thed

Level 10

82,138 points

Jun 4, 2020 10:56 AM in response to oak10

That sounds like an overheating issue, a failing back-light inverter or perhaps a failing back-light in the display.

there is a similar thread at > Black Screen 27 inch IMAC 2010 model - Apple Community

When was the last time the iMac was service and cleaned. If never, then the bottom air intakes could be clogged with dust and causing it to over-heat, which is temporally shutting down the display.

For more, have a look at > https://www.macworld.com/article/3209746/imac-screen-blackout.html

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