How to fix an iPhone X that is stuck on black screen of death, doesn't power on (easy steps)

When your iPhone X gets stuck on black screen and refuses to power on, it may be due to system error or hardware damage. Any device regardless of class or variant can experience similar issues at some point especially with some triggers. In most cases though, the problem is attributed to system crashes. For hardware-related cases of black screen issues, chances are that the device might have incurred some damage from a previous instance of hard fall or liquid exposure.

iPhone stuck on black screen of death?

Simply follow these 3 steps to fix your iPhone with ReiBoot, No data loss, FREE

Click to download ReiBoot to your PC or MAC
Connect your device
Run ReiBoot to resolve the issue

Work for iPad & iPhone 14/13/12/11/XS/XR/S/8/7/6/5s/5

Fix Now

Should this be the case, you’ve got no other choice or restoring your device but repair or service. But if the problem is software-related, then you still can try some workarounds to troubleshoot and fix the problem on your end. Highlighted below are some of the applicable methods you can try on if ever you’ve landed here while seeking for some helpful inputs. You may start whenever you’re all set to troubleshoot your iPhone X that is stuck on black screen of death and doesn’t turn on for some reasons.

Before we move on, if you have other issues with your iPhone, visit our iPhone X troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most commonly reported issues with the device. Browse through the page to find issues similar with yours. If you still need our assistance after that, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire to contact us.

First solution: Force your iPhone X to restart.

A force restart is a recommended method to restart a frozen iPhone. It works similar as the usual reboot or soft reset but the only difference is how it’s carried out. This should be the first workaround to try on when dealing with minor issues with lags and frozen display as primary symptoms. And here’s how to force your iPhone X to restart:

Press and quickly release the Volume Up button.
Press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
Press and hold the Side/Power button until the Apple logo appears.

Usually if your it’s a firmware crash, it would take about 20 seconds or longer for you to press on these buttons until you will see the Apple logo on the screen. So just keep pressing on the buttons until your iPhone system finally boots up.

Second solution: Connect your iPhone X to a charger and let it charge for a while.

Many people mistakenly thought that their iPhone is stuck on black screen simply because it shows nothing on the screen but black and likewise the device refuses to power on again. But what really happened is that their device has just ran out of power and so couldn’t turn on unless it’s recharged. To make sure this is not an issue that you’re dealing with, try to connect your iPhone to a charger and then let it charge for at least 30 minutes. That should be good enough time for your device to accumulate power and turn on. And as always, be sure to use only the Apple-supplied or OEM charger for your iPhone X. Other third-party chargers may not be able to render the desired power output level or not compatible with your iPhone X. This is highly recommended to avoid having issues when charging your device including slow charging or iPhone not charging at all.

Third solution: Force your iPhone X to restart while charging.

Your iPhone can also be in this state when it completely run out of power especially due to some rogue apps. There might be a certain app that’s consuming a massive amount of battery life and thereby caused your device to abruptly shut down. In this case, the problem can be tagged among other charging or power issues that are mainly triggered by certain some buggy applications. You will likely be able to fix these kinds of problems by forcing your iPhone to restart while it’s plugged into the charger. If ever any of your apps has gone rogue and caused massive battery draining on your device, forcing it to restart will likewise clear the erratic app and thus allowing your device to charge normally. Once it has accumulated sufficient power to boot, you would be able to turn it back on.

Fourth solution: Connect your iPhone X to a computer with iTunes.

The next possible solution you can try on if none of the prior methods worked is iTunes. Try to access your iPhone system through iTunes by connecting it to your computer and then manage iOS if possible. In order to get started, you will need to secure a Windows PC or Mac computer that runs a later if not the latest version of operating system and likewise the latest version of iTunes software installed. After you’ve secured a computer, connect your iPhone X using the supplied USB connector or Lightning cable then wait for iTunes to recognize or detect your iOS device. If iTunes recognizes your phone, you can immediately proceed with creating backups of all your critical contents. And when you’re done creating backups, you may then attempt to restore your iPhone X in either recovery mode or DFU mode. Both of these are advanced iOS restore methods you can try on when dealing with major software issues that might have caused your device to get stuck on black screen of death.

To perform a recovery mode restore on your iPhone X, follow these steps:

With your iPhone connected and recognized by the computer, perform a force restart with these steps:

Press and quickly release the Volume Up button.
Press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
Press and hold the Side/Power button when you see the Connect to iTunes screen. Do not release the buttons when you see the Apple logo since you’ll need to enter recovery mode.
On the next screen, you should see the option to Restore or Update.
Select Update first to update iOS. Otherwise, select the option to Restore.

Wait for iTunes to attempt to reinstall iOS without erasing your data. iTunes and then downloads the software for your device. If the download time takes longer than 15 minutes, your device exits the Connect to iTunes screen. If this happens, just wait until the download is complete then go back to the previous steps to enter recovery mode again.

If a recovery mode restore still failed to fix the problem, then you may proceed with a Device Firmware Upgrade (DFU) mode restore. It’s the deepest type of system restore you can do on your iPhone when dealing with more complex system errors that caused your device to malfunction. But it’s also worth noting that a DFU mode restore should only be carried out with your device not having any sort of physical or liquid damage. There is a higher chance for your iPhone to brick if a DFU mode restore fails or won’t be completed due to hardware damage.

To perform a DFU mode restore on your iPhone X, follow these steps:

Close any running programs on your computer. Doing so will prevent any of the running programs to interrupt the DFU mode restore process.
Connect your iPhone to your computer using the Apple-supplied USB connector or Lightning cable.
While your phone is connected, press and hold the Side/Power button for about 3 seconds.
Keep pressing on the Side/Power button then press and hold the Volume Down button for about 10 seconds. If the Apple logo appears, it means you’ve held the buttons too long and that you’ll have to start all over again.
If you see no logo, release the Side/Power button but keep holding the Volume Down button for another 5 seconds.
If the screen stays black afterwards, it means that you have successfully entered DFU mode. At this point, you will be prompted with an alert message on your computer saying that iTunes has detected your iPhone. If you see that message, follow the onscreen prompts to complete the DFU mode recovery process.
If you see the Plug into iTunes screen, it means you haven’t entered DFU mode and that you will need to start all over again.

If you’re not willing to take the risks, then you always have the option to pay for service if not avail for warranties.

Repair options

Take your iPhone to the nearest Apple service center and have it checked by an authorized technician. Your iPhone X might have acquired some sort of physical or liquid damage that made it stuck on black screen of death. In this case, service would be necessary. You may avail for warranties either service or unit replacement, if needed.

Why is your iPhone X Screen Black?

An iPhone screen may turn black or remains on a black screen if its firmware has crashed, which is a minor problem, or if it has a serious hardware issue that’s usually caused by liquid or physical damage. One way to know what the issue is, is to determine if your iPhone has some signs of physical or liquid damage. If there’s none, then you can probably fix this problem by simply doing the Forced Restart or by charging the device.

Most of the time, when an iPhone gets stuck on a black screen, it’s just a firmware crash brought about by some apps and other minor firmware issues. Problems like this can be fixed without having to take that trip to the Apple Store. So, the next time you see your iPhone X screen black, try doing some basic troubleshooting procedure first before bring it to the shop.

Posts you may also like to check out: