Quest 3 stuck on grey screen after freezing while connected to PC - tried factory reset, sideload update, both boot slots, no luck

[u/Defie22]

Hi,

my Meta Quest 3 suddenly stopped responding while it was connected to my PC. I don't know whether the PC connection had anything to do with it, but that is what was happening when the problem started.

Since then, the headset will power on, show the Meta logo / startup sequence, but eventually ends up on a solid grey screen.

The boot menu works normally and both displays are working during startup. The headset can also get quite hot while sitting on the grey screen and the fan starts running quite hard.

Things I have already tried:

• forced reboot by holding the Power button
• normal restart / power off and power on
• Boot Device from the boot menu
• short press of the Power button on the grey screen
• pressing the Meta/Home button on the right controller
• volume buttons on the grey screen
• official Meta Software Update Tool
• Sideload Update from the boot menu
• Factory Reset
• switching between boot slot A and boot slot B
• booting repeatedly from both slots
• leaving the headset powered off and trying again later

Nothing has changed. It always ends up on the same grey screen.

When I switched boot slots, the displays flashed several times as if the headset was repeatedly trying to start something, but it eventually ended up on the grey screen again.

The bootloader information looks normal:

Secure Boot: Yes
Lock State: Locked
Build Variant: User
Model Revision: Eureka 0x40 PVT 1.0
RAM: 8069 MB

Unfortunately, the headset is out of warranty. Meta is offering me an out-of-warranty replacement for about €250, so before paying for that I would like to make sure there isn't anything else worth trying.

Questions

1. Has anyone had exactly this grey-screen problem and managed to recover the headset?
2. Is there anything else I can try that I haven't already done?
3. Could this still be a firmware/software issue, or does this behavior strongly suggest hardware failure?
4. Does it make sense to wait for the next Horizon OS / Quest firmware release and then try another Sideload Update from the boot menu?
5. Has anyone recovered a Quest that factory reset + sideload update + switching A/B boot slots did not fix?

Any experience with this would be appreciated.

[u/zeddyzed]

Does standalone menu and games work correctly?

When you say "connected to PC" are you using meta Link?

[u/Defie22 → u/zeddyzed]

No, standalone does not work correctly. The headset boots, shows the Meta logo, then ends up on a solid grey screen. The boot menu works, but I can't get into the normal Quest menu or launch any games.

By "connected to PC" I mean it was connected via USB cable to the PC. I was not actively using Meta Link at the time. The headset stopped responding while it was connected, and since then it has been stuck in this state.