Screen Glitching after a short amount of playtime.

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Steam Deck OLED

Repair, disassembly, and troubleshooting information for the Steam Deck OLED, a 2023 refresh of the popular handheld gaming console made by Valve. Released on November 16, 2023. Identified by model number 1030.

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HausMaus @hausmaus

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Posted: Aug 6, 2026

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Screen Glitching after a short amount of playtime.

So yesterday I disassembled my deck, repasted the thermal paste. Didn't realize til after I should have put it in battery saver mode in bios before opening it and when I put it back together it wouldn't turn on for a bit. After leaving it plugged in it eventually turned back on and ran as normal for a few minutes. Eventually I got these weird stripes on the screen and now if I turn it on, there is no telling how long it will take exactly but the screen will start showing weird artefacts like no one's business.

I am keeping an eye on the temperatures and I don't think it's related to temps and there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to when it will happen, but it just seems like if I play for it long enough it will sooner than later glitch us usually requiring a reboot.

I know I messed up not using battery saver mode, but is there anything else i might have done wrong here?

Edit: Added Video Warning flashing lights.

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Hi!

Regarding the screen stripes and artifacts, can you post some pictures here?

Adding images to an existing question

Thank you!

Aug 7, 2026 by koppie007

I added a video that was taken.

After I posted the website suggested I ask the Ifixit bot. I went ahead and tried and it suggest that perhaps I didn't screw the screws in on the heatsink in the proper order. Suggested that screwing them in the wrong order can place pressure on the chip in ways to cause instability.

I have since taken it back apart and unscrewed the heatsink and screwed it back in the proper order. After that it seemed to be fixed. Ran furmark for 10 minutes and it didn't have any issue. When I exited furmark it seemed to crash after going longer than it had before without it. I am unsure if the last crash is related to the previous ones.

Aug 7, 2026 by HausMaus

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koppie007 @dan0

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Posted: Aug 9, 2026

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Hi!

Thanks for the video!

Weird issue indeed. Seems more related to the motherboard/GPU. But since you disassembled it and tried again (and it seems better) I would keep it testing to see how it goes.

For now, I would leave it like this. If the issues comes up again, you most likely need to check if all the ribbon cables are connected as they should and check for damage. For now, I would leave it as it is!

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So, as far as I can tell it was because I didn't tighten the screws in the right order. I'll admit I was skeptical at first but it has only had one issue since then and I am willing to accept that maybe the issue I had after that was unrelated because there were slightly different symptoms.

I've played it for now over an hour without any sort of issues happening, I reran furmark for 10 minutes stopped and it didn't glitch again, so for now I guess I've learned my lesson about being more thorough before and when opening up new devices.

Aug 9, 2026 by HausMaus

Glad that it is fine so far :)! No problem, it can happen. Never give up repairing devices! I’m pretty sure it runs cooler now with the thermal paste being replaced!

Aug 9, 2026 by koppie007

Add a comment

Hi!

Regarding the screen stripes and artifacts, can you post some pictures here?

Adding images to an existing question

Thank you! — koppie007
I added a video that was taken.

After I posted the website suggested I ask the Ifixit bot. I went ahead and tried and it suggest that perhaps I didn't screw the screws in on the heatsink in the proper order. Suggested that screwing them in the wrong order can place pressure on the chip in ways to cause instability.

I have since taken it back apart and unscrewed the heatsink and screwed it back in the proper order. After that it seemed to be fixed. Ran furmark for 10 minutes and it didn't have any issue. When I exited furmark it seemed to crash after going longer than it had before without it. I am unsure if the last crash is related to the previous ones. — HausMaus
So, as far as I can tell it was because I didn't tighten the screws in the right order. I'll admit I was skeptical at first but it has only had one issue since then and I am willing to accept that maybe the issue I had after that was unrelated because there were slightly different symptoms.

I've played it for now over an hour without any sort of issues happening, I reran furmark for 10 minutes stopped and it didn't glitch again, so for now I guess I've learned my lesson about being more thorough before and when opening up new devices. — HausMaus
Glad that it is fine so far :)! No problem, it can happen. Never give up repairing devices! I’m pretty sure it runs cooler now with the thermal paste being replaced! — koppie007

Steam Deck OLED

Screen Glitching after a short amount of playtime.

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