How To Fix Common HTC One M8 Problems and Errors [Part 22]

Welcome to the 22^nd part in our series of troubleshooting articles dedicated to the HTC One M8. This is one of the best mobile phones that the company has released so far and it’s expected to be succeeded by the M9 this year. In terms of performance this model is generally stable and shouldn’t give owners a lot of problems. There are however a few instances where issues appear, which is quite normal for electronic devices. This is where we come in as we try to help our readers resolve the issues that they are facing with this particular phone.

If you own an HTC One M8 or any other Android device for that matter then feel free to send us an email at [email protected] regarding any issue that you may have with your device. We will be more than happy to help you with any concern that you may have. This is a free service we are offering with no strings attached. We however ask that when you do send us an email try to be as detailed as possible so that an accurate assessment can be made and the correct solution can be given.

If you would like to check out the previous parts in this series then head out to this link.

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M8 Google Account Sign in Error

Problem: Recently I changed the password on my gmail account and now I constantly have a notification in my tray (attached picture) that says “sign in error. Tap to learn more details” however tapping on this just raises the notification tray and does nothing else. I am still able to access mail and make purchases on the Google play store, but i would like this notification gone. I’m not sure if I’m really signed in on my whole phone or just certain apps but I would like to know for sure. Thank you.

Solution: You will need to remove your Google account from your phone and sign in again with the new password. To do this go to settings> general> accounts> Google and then choose your Google account. Remove your account then add the account with the correct password.

M8 Battery Icon Shows Up Even If Not Charging

Problem: Hi.   I’ve had the M8 for about a month now, and twice, the battery icon has come on when I’m nowhere near a charger. The phone is not magically charging itself, but instead, the battery drains sure quite fast, and the phone becomes hot. Powering down doesn’t resolve the issue, but a hard restart does.  (down, +power)   this may be a tactical solution and I was wondering if there is a more permanent fix you could suggest?

Solution: There are two things to consider for issues such as this. The first is if this is caused by a problem in the software and second if it is caused by a faulty hardware.

The quickest way to check if this is caused by a software glitch is to first update the phone to the latest software version and then do a factory reset. Make sure to back up your phone data before doing the reset.

If the issue still persists then it’s time to check the hardware. In this case you will want to check the charger port for any dirt particles. If you spot any dirt try cleaning it with a toothpick. Make sure to turn off your phone first.

You should also check if the charging port contacts are not bent or deformed. If they come in contact with each other your phone will think that it is charging. Just like the procedure above, use a toothpick to push the contacts back to its original position if it is misaligned. Don’t use a needle or any metal object as this conducts electricity and may damage the internal components of your phone.

M8 Opens Webpage When Unlocked

Problem: As the title says, every time I unlock my screen it automatically opens a webpage. It just recently started. I have not recently added any new apps. I am running Android 4.4.4. Any ideas on why this is happening and how to stop it?? Thanks much everyone.

Solution: This issue is most likely caused by a caused by a certain app installed in your phone. To check if this is the case you should start your phone in Safe Mode. In this mode only the default apps are loaded while third party apps installed from the Google Play Store are disabled.

• Press and hold the Power button until the ‘Phone options’ prompt appears then release.
• Tap and hold Power off until the ‘Reboot to safe mode’ prompt appears then release.
• From the ‘Reboot to safe mode’ prompt, tap RESTART to confirm.
• Note Allow approximately 1 minute for the process to complete.
• Note Upon reboot, ‘Safe mode’ appears in the lower left of the unlock/home screen.

If the issue does not occur in this mode then it is most likely caused by a third party app installed in your phone. Find out what that app is and uninstall it.

You should also clear the cache of the browser app that opens the web page when you unlock your phone.

• From the home screen, the tap Apps icon
• Tap Settings.
• From the DEVICE section, tap App manager.
• From the ALL tab, tap the browser app.
• From the Cache section, tap Clear cache.

M8 Not Receiving Text/Voice Mails

Problem: Hello! I have a Harmon kardon edition HTC one m8 with Sprint. I love this phone, however, lately I haven’t been receiving texts and voice mails, go in and out of LTE service but always have at least 3g. Most of the day I have a Wi-Fi connection as well. I read your guides last night and soft booted a few times but the 3rd time I got 20 texts from the day and the day before. I use my phone for work and I was wondering if there was more of a long term fix. I thought my clients were ignoring me! Please help!

Solution: Assuming that there is no problem with the network coverage in your area the first thing that you should do when you are not getting text messages or voice mails is to restart your phone. This allows your phone connection to refresh itself with the network servers.

The next thing you will want to do if the issue persists is to do a factory reset. This eliminates any software glitches that may be causing the problem. Make sure to back up your phone data first as this will be deleted in the process.

• Press and hold the VOLUME DOWN button, and then press and hold the POWER button.
• Wait for the screen with the three Android images to appear, and then release the POWER and VOLUME DOWN buttons.
• Press VOLUME DOWN to select FACTORY RESET, and then press the POWER button.

If the issue still persists even after performing a factory reset then you should consider getting a new SIM from your carrier. This may be a SIM related issue and the only way to check this is to replace your current SIM.

M8 Sprint No SIM Card Error

Problem: Hello, I’ve had my htc for about 6 months. Ever since I activated it and transferred my data, I’ve been getting an error that says (“warning 4G LTE will not work as sim / UICC is removed please insert Sprint / UICC into the device.)  I’m assuming/hoping this is a memory card, but I tried my micro sd card and it  will not fit in the memory slot.  Is there a smaller version of the memory card I need to put it in the phone?  I don’t think sprint in the United States uses SIM cards. Also, I think as a related issue it will not allow me to set up wifi calling. Could you please provide some guidance?

Solution: Sprint does not indeed use any SIM card if you use your phone for calls and text since it is not a GSM network. However, if you would like to access the carrier’s LTE network then a SIM card is required. Print provides these SIM card to their customers who wish to access their LTE network. If your phone does not have a SIM then contact your carrier regarding this.

If however your phone has an LTE SIM installed and you are still getting the error message then follow the troubleshooting steps listed below.

• Make sure your phone is running on the latest software update.
• Take out the SIM then reinsert it making sure that it is properly seated.
• Toggle the airplane mode.

M8 Broken Photos

Problem: I have the HTC One M(8) for Android and every time I take a picture I go to look at it and it is black with a triangle and an ! mark.. please tell me its fixable.

Solution: Are the photos stored in the microSD card of your phone? If so then the card may be causing this. Try replacing this with a new one.

If the photos are stored in your phone internal memory then you wiping your phone cache partition may help resolve this problem.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the Volume Down key.
• Press and release the Power key to turn the phone on.
• Continue holding the Volume Down.
• Release the Volume Down key when the three Android images appear on the bottom of the screen.
• Press the Volume Down key once to move the cursor from FASTBOOT to RECOVERY.
• Press the Power key to begin the wipe.
• The device displays the bootup screen followed by a phone with a red triangle.
• Press the Up Volume key and Power key at the same time.
• Press the Down Volume key three times to select Wipe cache partition.
• Press the Power key to initiate the wipe.
• Wait until the phone displays Cache wipe complete.
• Press the Power key to select Reboot system now.

M8 Wrong SMS Timestamp

Problem: Droid Guy, I have this HTC One M8 Harman Kardon edition phone, it’s my second one after the first was defective. The issue I am having that no one at sprint can seem to resolve is a problem with SMS messaging. When ever i send a message…it says the correct time/date for sent, but when the person replies, even if within 30 seconds, the time/date stamp is 6 hours ahead of me. I’ve tried everything known to man to fix this and so has sprint. I’ve factory reset the phone i don’t know how many times, pound codes, data roaming on and off, switched between lte and cdma….all of the troubleshooting and nothing works. Time, date and time zone are correct on my phone as well. Also all software/firmware is up to date as well. New sim card also did not help. Any ideas??

Solution: Try this solution. Send yourself a text message. If the timestamp is correct then I think the issue lies with the sender of the text message. Have them set their time to automatic on their phones then let them send you a message.

You should also try using a third party messaging app. If the timestamp issue does not occur when you use the app then the problem is with the stock messaging app itself. If this is a bug in the app then it may be resolved in future updates.

M8 Modified Software

Problem: Hello, I have a HTC one m8 h.k edition. It was recently replaced by HTC because of a cracked screen. So now with this phone every time it goes to do a software. Update I always get a variant system warning saying that my software is a modified version of the original HTC software and it cannot update the software. I have never modified the software or anything of that nature. Can you please help me make the software official so I can update it?

Solution: Your phone may be rooted or may be running on a custom ROM which prevents you from getting the official software updates.

To make your software official you will need to flash the original ROM of the phone which is a lengthy procedure. It’s best to contact the store where you got this from and inquire regarding this issue.

M8 Unsupported File Format Error

Problem: Hello, I was wondering if you could help with an issue I’ve been having with my m8. It’s been happening ever since I’ve had the phone. It has different branches of the issue but it is basically just the phone not recognizing file types. If I take a video and put it in a different album, it won’t be able to play it because of ‘unsupported file format’ but if it is in camera roll, it can play it. Also I’ve not been able to insert pictures into messages if they are not in camera roll for the same reason. It’d be great if you could help. Thanks.

Solution: Are the files stored in the microSD card o your phone? If they are then this may be the cause of the unsupported file error warning. Try replacing the SD card with a new one.

You should also wipe the cache partition of your phone as this issue may be caused by a corrupt temporary data.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the Volume Down key.
• Press and release the Power key to turn the phone on.
• Continue holding the Volume Down.
• Release the Volume Down key when the three Android images appear on the bottom of the screen.
• Press the Volume Down key once to move the cursor from FASTBOOT to RECOVERY.
• Press the Power key to begin the wipe.
• The device displays the bootup screen followed by a phone with a red triangle.
• Press the Up Volume key and Power key at the same time.
• Press the Down Volume key three times to select Wipe cache partition.
• Press the Power key to initiate the wipe.
• Wait until the phone displays Cache wipe complete.
• Press the Power key to select Reboot system now.

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