Facebook Videos Black And Pixelated (How To Fix)

 

Videos on your Facebook Newsfeed occasionally show a black, fuzzy, or pixelated image and then go back to normal after a few moments.

The situation occurs either at the beginning or halfway into the video and may last for different amounts of time.

Although this is not a serious issue, it can get on your nerves because you have to watch the video with breaks.

Sometimes, you have to wait until the video ends and then go back to the starting point.

In this article, we’ll give you a few hacks to sort out the problem.

We’ll cover remedies for all platforms, including PC, mobile app, and browser.

 

Facebook Videos Black And Pixelated (How To Fix)

 

 

Troubleshooting usually requires you to tinker with system settings.

It’s only logical to try a few quick check-ups before poking around with the settings.

Whether you’re using the mobile, Windows, or browser app to log on to Facebook, these initial attempts may get the job done.

 

1. Reboot Your System

 

Restarting can work most often when facing an issue with your device, especially if you haven’t done it for a long time.

The first place to start is to do a quick reboot to refresh your operating system.

If the grainy playback is still there after the reboot, go on with the following solutions.

 

2. Check Your Internet Connection

 

Sometimes, a black screen video error occurs due to a slow internet connection.

Check if the problem exists with other streaming videos and not just Facebook.

If so, switching to a more stable WiFi or network may prove practical.

Another move is to visit your device’s internet configurations and reset the network.

Just find the option to forget the network and rejoin once again.

 

3. Force Stop The Facebook App

 

Jitters in a Facebook video may also indicate too much RAM or CPU consumption.

When that happens, the software fails to function properly or may delay loading the content.

However, force quitting your Facebook application can resolve the problem.

Just go to Settings to open the application manager.

Then, scroll down to find the Facebook app, and hit the “Force Stop” button.

Re-launch the app to see if the problem is gone.

 

4. Close And Reopen Your Browser

 

Restarting your browser also works as a system reboot, refreshing its functions.

All you need is to hit the exit button and turn back to it by double-clicking on the app’s icon.

You can also enter Browser’s name://restart in the search bar to fresh start the app.

Now, go to Facebook again and play a video.

 

5. Make Sure You Have Enough Storage

 

If you overload your phone with photos, videos, and other information, it stops working properly and can even take its toll on your video streaming capacity.

Before tweaking any settings, go to your phone’s internal storage settings to see if there’s enough room.

If you’re running out of storage, delete unnecessary files to free up some space for its working memory.

 

Get Down To Settings

 

If the initial efforts don’t prove helpful, tweaking your Chrome or system settings is your next resort.

 

1. Switch Off Hardware Acceleration

Hardware acceleration is the technique most browsers use to offload some of their computations directly to your hardware components, thereby technically bypassing your OS.

This is supposed to enhance your performance, but it can influence your video streaming and lead to a black screen issue.

Therefore, disabling the option may fix the problem.

1. Launch your browser and go to its “Settings” menu by clicking the three dots at the top right.
2. Then, go to the “Advanced” heading for more options.
3. Spot the “System” section. (It may appear with a wrench symbol at the side.)
4. Right underneath it, you’ll see two checkboxes. One of them says, “Use hardware acceleration when available.”
5. Uncheck the box and close the browser.
6. Reopen it to see if your Facebook videos work fine.

 

Note: Not all browsers have this option, but if you use Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and other feature-rich, modern web browsers, you’ll most likely find it.

 

2. Erase Junk Data From Browser

Corrupted data and cache items that pile up gradually on your browser can sometimes slow it down.

Deleting them can instantly relieve the app and give you a smooth video playback.

1. Go to your browser settings through the menu icon in the upper corner.
2. Find the “Privacy & Security” header.
3. Right underneath it, expand the “Clear Browsing Data” option.
4. Select “Advanced” and mark the top four options: Browsing History, Download History, Cookies and other Site Data, Cached Images, and Files.
5. Press “Clear Data” to approve changes.
6. Restart Chrome and sign in to your Facebook account to see if the issue persists.

 

Note: You can also remove items within a specific period by choosing a time range in step 4.

Depending on when the problem has appeared, you can choose a Time Range from the last hour, day, week, month, or all time.

 

3. Clear Facebook Cache

Cached data doesn’t just accumulate in your browser but also in your Facebook application if you’re using one.

For the desktop software, open the Facebook app and go to its Settings.

Then, select Browser History and click on the “Clear Data” button.

For a mobile app, go to your settings and hit “Manage Apps” as in the “Force Stop” method.

Choose your Facebook app, tap on the “Clear Cache” and “Clear Data” icons.

Next, go back to “Settings” and this time, tap “About Phone > Storage > Cached data.”

Press “Yes” when prompted to do so in each step to confirm your choices.

You should also watch this video to see the steps in action:

 

4. Restore The Browser To Default Settings

Sometimes, the extensions you install on a browser can mess up your configurations, and this, in turn, may wreak havoc on performance.

To check whether this is the case, open Facebook with an alternate browser.

If the blurry video isn’t an issue on your other browser, chances are you can fix it by restoring your browser’s factory settings:

1. Open your browser and select the vertical ellipsis at the top right corner.
2. Hit “Settings” from the list, and a new window will open.
3. Expand the “Advanced” tab at the left-side column, and then go to “Reset and Clean Up.”
4. Select “Restore settings to their original defaults.”
5. Finally, click on the blue button saying “Reset settings” to confirm your choice.
6. Restart the browser and go to the Facebook web to see if the issue continues.

 

Note: This method won’t remove your bookmarks and passwords if you’re logged into your Google account, but you may lose other customized options such as your default home page, site data, content settings, pinned tabs, and extensions.

 

5. Disable Video Autoplay Option

Videos in the Facebook feed usually play automatically to give you a more hassle-free experience.

If you use the app frequently, this feature can adversely affect your experience and produce video playback disruption.

Go to your Facebook app’s Settings and disable the feature to rectify the error.

From that point on, you will need to hit the Play icon to open each Facebook video.

 

Update Everything

 

If Facebook videos still play in a glitched black frame despite changing the settings and clearing the cache, maybe it’s time for an update.

Here’s what you should update:

 

1. Your Browser

Go to your browser’s official web store, download its newest release, and install it.

You can download the latest versions for Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, and Edge from the official websites.

 

2. Video Card Drivers

Outdated display drivers can create a host of problems, including stuttering, pauses, and pixelization for your videos.

Updating them may help.

1. Hold the “Win” and “R” keys together to initiate the Run box.
2. Type “devmgmt.msc” inside the existing bar and hit Enter.
3. Once you’re in the device manager, select your graphic drivers under “Display adapters.”
4. Choose “Properties” and then “Update Driver.”
5. Select “Search automatically for updated driver software” and continue with the subsequent guidance.

 

3. Your Operating System

Whether you’re running Windows, Linux, or macOS, an update is always a solid solution for system functions.

 

4. Facebook App

Not only Facebook, but any other app may bring up crashes if you don’t update it for a while.

For a mobile app, head over to the Google Play Store or Apple Store to get its upgraded version, and for the Facebook desktop, visit its provider website.

If updating doesn’t work, you could try uninstalling and installing it again.

 

5. Flash Player

Adobe Flash Player is a browser plug-in that helps you view media content on a browser.

Updating it can be a potentially great fix for glitchy videos or any other streaming issues.

Go to your browser’s settings to reach your installed extensions.

Follow the Adobe Flash Player plug-in to its source, and download the latest version.

Note: Flash Player is known to have multiple security issues, and Adobe doesn’t support it anymore.

If you’re still using an old browser that uses the plug-in, make sure to migrate to a new version.

 

Use A Video Repair Tool

 

Sometimes, there’s nothing wrong with downloading or displaying the video, meaning that the issue is with the video.

Another possibility is that the user you’re following has uploaded the wrong video format because Facebook only supports certain formats.

Whatever the case, a reliable assistant such as Wondershare Repairit can correct your blurry, grainy, or wavering video.

Remember that you have to download the video and insert it into the app.

It only works if you’re having an issue with downloadable videos, not all of them.

 

Report The Problem To Facebook

 

If you’ve tried all of the above remedies and still see a grainy screen at the beginning of a Facebook video, chances are the issue is with Facebook, not your system.

You can report the problem to Facebook as a last resort.

The platform will identify what’s wrong and fix it as soon as possible.

1. Open Facebook and log in to your account.
2. Click on the “More” button at the upper right of the screen. (This is usually indicated by a triple bar or expander arrow symbol.)
3. Scroll downward to select “Help and Support.”
4. Press “Report a Problem” and clearly explain the broken function in detail.
5. Include when you’ve run into the issue and attach relative screenshots if possible.
6. Submit the request and wait for the response.

 

Note: If Facebook replies that it has resolved the bug, but you’re still experiencing the same situation, don’t give up and report again.

 

Prevent Facebook Video Problems

 

Now that you’ve successfully gotten rid of the annoying issue, you don’t want it to return.

Here’s how to put a stop to similar future troubles.

• Keep your smartphone, Windows, browser, Facebook app, and drivers up to date and if possible, turn on their auto-update feature.
• Don’t overwhelm your system by running several apps in the background.
• Steer clear of untrusted extensions, codecs, or video players.
• Have a modern and up-to-date anti-malware program on your device.
• Clear your cache every once in a while.