Screen goes off when making call

[RWPhoto]

When I select a number from my contact list and dial, the screen goes completely black. I can't do anything until I have pressed the power button a few times, and then the lock screen appears.

[Emir1]

Hi @RWPhoto, I am sorry to hear about that.

There is a proximity sensor located at the top of your device next to the SONY logo which purpose is to detected your ear during calls, and in turn make sure that the screen deactivates so that you don't accidentally end the call with your cheek, as an example.

If the screen is constantly black as soon as you partake in a call without covering the sensor, then it sounds like there could be something interfering with it. For example, do you use a screen protector or cover? Try removing it and see if that helps, as it could disturb the sensor if the sensor does not have a clear view. In addition, could you make sure that there's no dirt or something else covering the sensor which could cause it to react instantly?

If it still persists despite you not using a cover and you made sure that the sensor is clean, could you try to see if the same behaviour persists while in safe mode? This will let you know if there is a third party app causing the behaviour, as all third party apps are disabled in this mode.

In addition, you can also test the sensors functionality in Diagnostics by going to Settings > About phone > Diagnostics > Test > Ear proximity, how does it fare in the test here?

Let's start there, let me know how it went! If one of the solutions helped, feel free to kudo this post and mark it as an accepted solution so that other users facing similar behaviour easily can find the post.

[DanNash]

I had this tempered glass cover on the screen to avoid scratches and thins. I had to remove it because it was interfering with this sensor on top of the phone. Once removed it, everything was fine. 

[Emir1]

@DanNash Happy to hear that it's resolved! I've had similar experiences personally, I had mounted the screen protector slightly off so that it covered the sensor which in turn interfered with the proximity sensor.

@RWPhoto any updates, how did it go?