Why Is My VIZIO TV Power Light Blinking White? (Fix It Fast!)
Not that long ago, I was dealing with the same problem and asking why is my VIZIO TV power light blinking white in frustration.
If this sounds familiar, then you have found the correct guide!
The blinking white light on VIZIO TV could either be indicating something harmless, such as an ongoing firmware download, or a serious hardware defect.
So, before doing anything, let’s start with…
Understanding the Blinking White Power Light
There are several indications when your VIZIO TV’s power light is blinking white, and they could either be harmless or show severe defects.
The only way to diagnose the white blinking light is to check if you can turn on the TV and use it normally, or if the VIZIO TV is not showing a picture.
Note: If your VIZIO TV works just well, but when it’s turned off, it blinks white, just wait for a few hours for the firmware update to download (no need for troubleshooting).
Why Is My VIZIO TV Power Light Blinking White & How to Fix?
Note: Have you tried power cycling your VIZIO TV by unplugging it from the outlet for ~60 seconds?
1. Inspect the Power Supply
The first and simplest thing to do is to confirm that your TV is properly connected to the outlet and nothing is interfering with the power supply.
There are two general things to inspect:
1.1 Power Cable
Verify that the power cable is firmly connected on both sides.
We recommend disconnecting it, checking the ports and prongs for issues, and connecting it securely.
1.2 Power Outlet
The next thing to do is check the power outlet, and if you’re using too many peripherals such as dividers, extenders, or smart plugs, connect your TV directly.
Quick Tip: If there was a recent power outage, your VIZIO TV might be undervolted, so either wait a few hours or try resetting the power from the main circuit board.
2. Try to Update TV Manually
If your TV is stuck in a boot loop or can’t go past the initial setup screen, a manual firmware update should resolve the white blinking light.
To manually update your VIZIO TV, you need to download the latest VIZIO Firmware on your computer and prepare a FAT32 formatted USB flash drive.
Then follow these steps to update your TV:
- First, extract the update (.utv) file in a folder on the PC.
- Upload the extracted file to the empty USB flash drive.
- Then, disconnect your VIZIO TV from the power outlet.
- Connect the firmware flash drive to the VIZIO TV USB.
- Plug the TV into the power outlet and wait for an update.
The update should begin automatically. If it doesn’t work, reset your TV to the defaults following the steps in the next solution and try again!
Quick Tip: You can check the firmware of your VIZIO TV at “System” → “System Information”, and compare it with the latest released build from the same page that you’ve downloaded the (.utv).
3. Reset VIZIO TV to Defaults
If your VIZIO flashing white light and not turning on, there is another quick thing to do before going into more advanced troubleshooting.
We recommend factory resetting your VIZIO TV, even if the screen is fully black, by locating the physical buttons “Volume (Down)” and “Inputs/Source”.
So, while your TV is working and the white light is blinking, press and hold both buttons for ~15 seconds, which will trigger the factory reset.
If your TV displays the initialization screen, then the problem could be resolved, and you can test whether the white light will keep blinking when off.
⚠️Warning: Factory resetting your VIZIO TV will erase everything permanently!
4. Diagnose a Faulty Backlight
If your VIZIO TV is not showing anything, only the white blinking light, the problem could be with the backlight, which is what illuminates the TV pixels.
This mainly happens when the mainboard is not receiving power, which occurs when there is a blown capacitor due to power fluctuations and outages.
Luckily, there is a quick way to diagnose a faulty backlight by using the flashlight method.
The way this works is by shining a light close to the TV screen and checking whether there are any silhouettes, indicating that the TV is working, or worse, no visuals, meaning the screen is off.
If your TV screen is not working, we’ve got some bad news.
The main board or power supply board might be defective, but you can justify this at home.
5. Test the TV Circuits Power (Advanced)
If you can’t identify why your VIZIO TV is blinking in white light, there is a way to check whether your power supply board receives and delivers power to the mainboard.
This solution is quite technical and expert-vetted, so if you’re not willing to disassemble your VIZIO TV, just skip it.
⚠️Warning: Disassembling your VIZIO TV instantly voids the warranty!
Step #1: Disconnect the TV Power
The first step, of course, is to unplug the TV from the outlet and position the TV horizontally on the floor.
You can use your sofa or couch to put your VIZIO TV screen against the soft surface.
Step #2: Open your TV Back Panel
The next step is to unscrew and remove the back panel of the TV.
There are quite a few screws, spread across the panel’s back side and frame that you must undo via a Philips-head screwdriver.
Step #3: Find the TV Power Board
If your TV is standing upright in a horizontal position, the power board is going to be on the left, and the mainboard will be on the right.
If you’re not sure, the power board is typically the largest board in your TV and has a lot of big capacitors, transistors, and the power cable goes into it.
Step #4: Measure the DC Voltage
⚡You need a Multimeter!
Power Board
To measure if the power board is receiving a voltage, trace where the power cable comes from and disconnect it from the power board.
Configure your Multimeter to a “DC” voltage and test:
The readings should be stable, not fluctuating, and not zero.
The correct DC voltage must be ~12V, ~5V, or ~3V, based on which exact pin you’re touching.
The power cable supplies power to the backlight, USB ports, and CPU/memory with different pins from the AC cable connector.
Main Board
If you can confirm that the TV power board is receiving power from the power cable, it’s time to check if the main board receives power from the power board.
So, disconnect the power cable from the outlet and plug it into the connector on the power board.
Then disconnect the other side of the cable from the main board and test:
The readings should be similar, ~12V, ~5V, or ~3V.
This allows you to understand whether your power board is defective and is not sending power to the main board, which is why the TV could be blinking white.
If your power board is not sending power to the main board, you no longer need to wonder why is my VIZIO TV power light blinking white.
It’s now clear, your VIZIO TV requires servicing.
Note: You can check what VIZIO customer support will say about the issue, or purchase a new power board and replace it yourself.
Finn Wheatley, a Master’s graduate in Computer Science from UCL, London, honed his skills at small data science consultancies. There, he helped large corporations enhance their data capabilities by deploying cutting-edge machine learning analytics and resolving technical hurdles.
