
You can find the return instructions here. If neither swapping out the power source nor factory resetting the device solves the blackouts and/or reboot loop, you’ll need to return your Chromecast (if it’s less than one year old for a new unit or 90 days for a refurbished unit). If you want more information about the ins and outs of soft and hard resets, check out our guide here. The short of it is this: hold the physical button on your Chromecast (near the power port) for 25 seconds until the power light blinks. To resolve your issue you can perform a soft or hard reset (although if it is cycling quickly a soft reset is generally out of the question).
RESET CHROMECAST HOW TO
RELATED: How to Reboot or Factory Reset Your Google Chromecast
RESET CHROMECAST UPDATE
If your Chromecast gets stuck in a permanent reboot loop that isn’t resolved by simply unplugging the unit’s power source for a few minutes and plugging it back in, there’s a good chance that something went awry during a firmware update or a key bit of data on the device was corrupted (potentially as a result of a the kind of poor power supply problems we highlighted in the previous section).

While unpredictable black screens and reboots are typically the result of a poor power supply it’s a significantly less likely (but not impossible) culprit when it comes to reboot loops. You’ll spend a few bucks more than a generic charger but you’ll get a higher quality product with a safer and more consistent power supply. While most of us have extra cellphone chargers laying around, if you want a brand new one you can always pick up a highly rated charger like this Samsung OEM travel charger.
RESET CHROMECAST TV
If, after switching the cable from the TV to USB port to the included charger, you find that this doesn’t resolve the spontaneous restarting or video blackouts the next step would be to replace both the charger and the USB cord. If you’re using the USB port on your HDTV to power your Chromecast, your first troubleshooting stop should be to plug it into the power supply that came with the Chromecast and power it off wall current.
RESET CHROMECAST DOWNLOAD
Not only do most HDTV sets cut the power to the USB port when the television is off (therefore you have to wait for your Chromecast to restart and potentially download an update every time you start your TV) but not all USB ports are created equal on HDTV sets and it’s possible that the port, especially on cheaper sets, is out of spec, poorly grounded, or otherwise not provided clean and steady power to your Chromecast. While we don’t fault you for doing it this way (and we, in fact, used to do it this very way as evidenced by the photos in our original Chromecast review) it’s not actually the most ideal way to power your Chromecast. Many users hijack the USB service port on their television as a very convenient way to provide power. RELATED: HTG Reviews the Google Chromecast: Stream Video to Your TV If your Chromecast isn’t stuck outright in an endless reboot loop the culprit is almost always a poor quality power supply.

If your Chromecast’s video output is blacking out sporadically (as opposed to pausing to buffer), the Chromecast restarts altogether, or the Chromecast is stuck in a loop of rebooting constantly, this is the section for you.


The following tricks are focused on improving your general Chromecast experience if your Chromecast is giving you specific error messages we recommend using Google’s handy error troubleshooting menu here. It shouldn’t be very frustrating, however, so let’s run through a list of things you can do to troubleshoot a misbehaving Chromecast to get the smoothest user experience possible.
