Galaxy Note 4 can't install Nougat update, voice calls and internet keep dropping, other issues

Hello #GalaxyNote4 users! Welcome to another article that handles 11 more Note 4 issues. We’re also bringing you solutions to each of these issues of course so take your time. In case you’ll not find any issue that resembles your own problem, consider checking our main Galaxy Note 4 troubleshooting page.

If you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page.

When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Below are specific topics we’re bringing for you today:

Problem 1: Pre-owned Galaxy Note 4 shuts down on its own when battery is at 30%

I just bought a used note 4. the outside appearance of the phone is great but I noticed an issue almost immediately. The phone came dead, I charged it for almost little while just enough to turn it on and get all my information transferred over. at about 30% the phone just vibrated and turned off. the phone would attempt to turn itself back on but once the red verizon screen displays, it vibrates and turns off again. this will continue over and over until I plug it into a charGer.

Once I charge it, the battery life seems to go by fairly quickly. Usually drops about 10% in about hour when in use then once I gets down to 30% it turns itself off again.

I also had issues with the Samsung messaging; it’s constantly freezing, shutting itself down, and not displaying pictures. I eventually got tired of it and went back to regular messaging.

What do you think, is there anything you recommend trying before I send it back to the seller? I really don’t want to deal with the hassle of transferring all my stuff back and sending the phone back to the sender but I also don’t want to settle for a defective phone. Please help! — Chelsea

Solution: Hi Chelsea. We don’t know how old this Note 4 you have right now but if it’s over two years old, there’s a high chance that the battery is nearing its end-of-life. It may be the reason why the phone appears unable to charge properly and shuts down when battery reaches 30%.

To see if you can fix the issue without replacing the battery, do a battery calibration first. Here’s how it’s done:

Use the phone by playing games or doing tasks to hasten power discharge, until the phone turns itself off.
Turn the phone on again and let it turn itself off.
Charge the phone without turning it back on.
Wait until the battery says it fully charged to 100%
Unplug the charger and turn the phone on.
If the phone says it’s not 100% anymore, turn it off, plug the charger back in and wait until 100% charge is reached.
Unplug the charger the turn the phone on again.
Use the phone until you drain the battery down to 0.
Repeat the cycle once.

If you’re willing to invest in a new battery to see if that will save you from the hassle of moving information over to another device and returning the phone to its previous owner, we say you go ahead.

If a new battery will not fix the issue however, get a refund or return the device.

Problem 2: Galaxy Note 4 could not start normally

Good morning. My daughter has a Note 4 and since couple a weeks ago the cellphone restart constantly and showing “couldn’t do a normal boot. ddi: mmc_read failed. Odin Mode high speed.” She told me that the cellphone started the bad function restarting many times, then it wasn’t charging correctly and now appears the couldn’t do a normal boot. ddi: mmc_read failed. Odin Mode high speed. I factory reseted many times, the cellphone open normally and few minutes later, it restart and appears the same problem. Could you please help me with this request Thanks. Sincerely. — Victor

Solution: Hi Victor. An issue like this can be due to software glitch or hardware malfunction. If factory reset did not fix the issue, the only other software solution that you can try is flashing. Flashing is an Android term to refer to the procedure of installing software to a Samsung device. Because it requires several user interventions to accomplish, flashing is risky and can potentially damage a phone’s software if not done correctly. Before you do it, make sure to do some research on how it’s done and what tools you need. Remember, flashing is just a software fix. If the cause of the problem is bad hardware, your Note 4 will continue to act up even after a successful flashing procedure.

You should try flashing the phone’s bootloader first. If nothing will change afterwards, consider flashing the firmware as well.

Below is an example of how to flash a phone’s bootloader. The exact steps may vary depending on your phone’s model so make sure to use a good guide on how to flash the bootloader and/or firmware on your device. The provided steps below are for demonstration purposes only.

Look for the correct firmware for your phone model and download it. Make sure that select the right one. It should be the same exact firmware that ran previously on your device. We assume that you list down the firmware version somewhere. If you did not take note of it before, there’s a chance that you may pick the wrong one. As you may know now, using an incorrect firmware can cause complications so good luck with that.
Let’s now say that you have identified the correct firmware. You then want to download it to your computer. The firmware file should have a bunch of files in it like AP_, BL_, CSC_, etc.
Look for the file that starts with a label BL; this should be the corresponding bootloader file for this firmware. Once you’ve identified the bootloader file, copy it to your computer’s desktop or to any other folder that you can easily access.
Proceed with the rest of the flashing procedure using the Odin program.
In Odin, click on the BL tab and make sure to use the bootloader file you’ve identified earlier.
Now, make sure that the “Device Added” status and its “ID:COM box” has turned blue before hitting the START button. This will initiate the flashing of your phone’s bootloader.
Restart the phone once the procedure is finished.

Problem 3: Galaxy Note 4 drains battery power fast, battery won’t charge to 100%

At first, my phone Samsung Galaxy Note 4 was working well but later on after a few months the battery started draining quicker. The battery did not get fully charged but only up to 80 to 90 percent.

A few days later the battery started to drain abnormally. Below 30 percent the network disappeared while receiving an incoming call. Physically the battery seemed to be normal (not swollen). I replaced the battery and the problem got solved. However a few month later, the new battery started to behave like the previous one. Now I have again replaced the battery. With this new battery the phone suddenly turns off (mostly when I turn on wifi/data) and does not turn on until I put the phone on charging or remove and remount the battery. I have tried switching on my phone in safe mode and replacing two other batteries but the turning off problem still exist. Please help. — Osama

Solution: Hi Osama. If multiple battery replacements did not fix the issue at all, it’s fairly possible that the problem lies on your phone. It can be anything at this point though since there’s no way to know what’s wrong with it unless the hardware is checked properly. As far as software troubleshooting is concerned, there’s really nothing much that you can do at this point. If you haven’t tried some though, make sure that you do these two important possible solutions:

battery calibration, and
factory reset.

Below are the steps on how to do these steps:

Battery calibration

Use the phone by playing games or doing tasks to hasten power discharge, until the phone turns itself off.
Turn the phone on again and let it turn itself off.
Charge the phone without turning it back on.
Wait until the battery says it fully charged to 100%
Unplug the charger and turn the phone on.
If the phone says it’s not 100% anymore, turn it off, plug the charger back in and wait until 100% charge is reached.
Unplug the charger the turn the phone on again.
Use the phone until you drain the battery down to 0.
Repeat the cycle once.

Factory reset

Create a backup of your important files such as photos, videos, contacts etc. You can use Smart Switch for this task.
Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Vol Up key.
Using the Volume Down key, highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
Now highlight ‘Yes — delete all user data’ using the Vol Down key and press the Power key to begin the reset.
When the master reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key.
The Note 4 will restart but it will be longer than usual. When it reaches the Home screen, then begin your setup.

Remember, if you can’t fix the problem after doing the software solutions above, you should have the phone repaired or replaced.

Problem 4: Galaxy Note 4 Phone app keeps crashing

I bought my AT&T Note 4 online, factory refurbished & carrier unlocked. I have had Straight Talk service on the phone for approx 2 yrs & haven’t had any major issues. now i get these pop up error messages that say “unfortunately com.sec.phone isn’t working” and i can not use the dialer pad to make calls. it will crash & say “unfortunately contacts has stopped” after 3 numbers. the only way i can make outgoing calls is to go into my text msgs & swipe right on the conversation. I want to do a factory reset & wipe all the data, but i don’t know if that will erase my unlock code. — Ashley

Solution: Hi Ashley. Factory reset will most likely erase the modifications that unlocked your phone because this process will basically return all software settings to their defaults. If you don’t want that, we suggest that you try wiping the cache and data of the apps involved instead.

Below are the steps to do that:

Open the Settings menu either through your notification shade (drop-down) or through the Settings app in your app drawer.
Navigate down to “Apps”. This may be renamed to something like Applications or Application Manager in OEM skinned versions of Android 6 or 7.
Once in there, click on an application.
You’ll now see a list of stuff that gives you information about the app, including Storage, Permissions, Memory Use, and more. These are all clickable items. You’ll want to click on Storage.
You should now clearly see the Clear Data and Clear Cache buttons for the application.

Problem 5: Galaxy Note 4 voice calls and internet keep dropping, can’t access internet when voice call is on-going

Hi. I’ve been using the Note 4 for around 2 years with T-Mobile. It’s a AT&T unlocked device and worked very well with T-Mobile. Recently, T-Mobile switched to the 4G LTE network and I’ve started encountering various issues although I’ve added the 4G LTE APN on the device. 1. Quality of calls and calls dropping 2. The Internet connection keeps dropping. 3. It does not allow me to make calls and access the Internet simultaneously. Kindly advise. Regards. — Sian

Solution: Hi Sian. For an issue like this, there’s no better support team that can help you other than your carrier. Make sure to talk to their technical support team so they can help you troubleshoot the device and your account.

Problem 6: Galaxy Note 4 slow performance, apps crashing issue after an update

I recently updated as there was once again another update. Shortly after the update I noticed some extremely slow response times followed by Touchwiz actually crashing on me once. Now I keep on seeing extremely slow response time, random reboots, random battery drops (from 90% to 30% in about 20 min) and sometimes odd behavior. When I hit a button, the function of the back button is executed instead. Allot of these symptoms match Sudden Death Syndrome… Should I consider heading down a couple updates? Or should I try and salvage the situation and get a new phone declaring this one to be on its death bed? — Sjors

Solution: Hi Sjors. Well, phone replacement should be the ultimate last resort for you. If you’ve already tried all software troubleshooting for update issues such as cache partition wipe, observing in safe mode, factory reset, and flashing, then you really have no other option but to get a new device.

Problem 7: Galaxy Note 4 can’t install Nougat update

Hi there ! I’ve been trying to install the update from 6.0 to 7.0 for months but there is always an Error (no code) and will not install the update. Even though I have successfully downloaded the update. I’ve tried a factory reset, soft boot, killing all running apps and ensuring I have enough memory (1.2GB) available. I think I’ve tried almost everything I have read about this issue and hoping you can help! Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise! — Keri

Solution: Hi Keri. Was your phone rooted or running a custom/non-official firmware before? If any of these is true, it’s possible that there’s an app or service that’s preventing Android from installing the update. If your phone continues to refuse to install an over-the-air update, you should try to manually update it instead via Odin.

Providing a guide on how to flash a stock firmware is beyond the scope of this article so kindly use Google to search for a good one.

By the way, if you haven’t given it a try, consider using Smart Switch to see if there’s an available update Samsung can provide for you. Simply install Smart Switch in your computer, connect your Note 4 to the PC via USB, and open Smart Switch program. If there’s a prompt from Smart Switch that there’s an available update, go ahead and install it.

Problem 8: Galaxy Note 4 won’t turn on properly after an update

Hi sir! I have Galaxy Note 4 edge. 2 days back an update regarding software upgradation i updated) came. i updated my phone but suddenly a message appeared with after an automatic shut down with that your phone is not uprooted correctly and the phone hangs, neither shuts down and also not starting. After 3-4 times a soft reset starts the phone but again shuts down after 2 hours. Then I reset the factory settings, the situation remained the same but the shut down time established up to 3 hours, please help me in this regard. Thanx. — HASSAN

Solution: Hi Hassan. As mentioned above, the troubleshooting steps that you can do for a phone that stops working properly after an update includes the following:

Cache partition wipe
Observing in safe mode
Factory reset
Flashing an older stock firmware

If these four solutions won’t help, have the phone replaced.

Problem 9: Only one side of headset works when connected to Galaxy Note 4

Dear, hey TDG. I’m so happy I found your blog and it seems like you know your way around with these devices. Thank you for helping the rest of us.

I’ve my Galaxy Note 4 for almost a year and a half. Had no problem with it until yesterday and I find it really annoying. I use my headphones a lot while driving or even at work. Yesterday, as I was working on an assignment, I had my music on for about 2 hours and it was working good. Then i stopped the music and unplugged my headphones after reaching home. when i played the music i could hear only on one side of the headphones. i thought that might be because of headphones damaged, so i tried to play the songs connecting to Bluetooth headsets. i was shocked again i can hear only in one side. Then i connected my Bluetooth headset in another mobile. it was working both side as well as the headphones, so i just want to know can we correct this fault. Is there anything to be changed in settings? Thanks. — Syed

Solution: Hi Syed. An issue like this is not caused by some settings misconfiguration. In some cases, a software glitch can lead to audio problems but a factory reset should be able to fix it easily. If you haven’t tried it yet, make sure to do a factory reset and see what happens from there. If the issue stays after such reset, you can assume that a hardware malfunction is to blame. In this case, you must seek a phone replacement.

Problem 10: Galaxy Note 4 shuts down on its own

Hi. My wife us having issues with her Galaxy Note 4. It will boot up and start normally then after a few minutes it reboots itself. Then it’ll run for about a minute and repeat. I did see a possible is sure or side effect. When I open the full pull down menu from the top of the screen, the multi window and smart pause icons are partially selected. They are green bit a faded green. Like the WiFi icon when it is initially selected before it connects. If I try to turn on or off these options is says they don’t function in easy mode. I checked and the phone is in standard mode. Lastly, it is a used phone. I did a factory reset and full system update before we started using it. It has been perfect for a few months, this started last night. Any help would be excellent. — Josh

Solution: Hi Josh. Did your wife did something different like install an app, update, or non-official software before the issue started? Or was the phone dropped or exposed to water, heat, or direct sunlight for a long period? Any of these things may have directly or indirectly caused the problem so you have to ask for more details. We don’t have enough information to help you identify the problem either and everything you’ve provided here don’t give us any hint at all. We suspect it’s a hardware problem since a factory reset did not change anything at all. Consider having the hardware checked if you can’t figure out a fix on your end.

Problem 11: Galaxy Note 4 keeps freezing

Hi. My Samsung Galaxy Note 4 mobile keeps freezing while I’m using it. i did reset also many times. i changed battery too because it’s getting power off when battery in 50% are 60% but it’s have same problem again and again. i gaved to service center also they added some files which was missed but they also wondering its still gettig freeze i putted my storage also free when its freeze i have to remove the battery n put it again then also its on some time some time its didnt on iam facing this pblm from i just updated software which show in about phone its getti g pblm from that time plsss tell me what can i do for this. — Iqbal

Solution: Hi Iqbal. Like what we said to a number of people in this post, if you can’t fix the issue with software troubleshooting and solutions, you should have your phone repaired or replaced. Freezing problem can be a sign of a hardware malfunction so if you’ve already tried all software tweaks that we mention in this post, it’s time that you consider having the phone replaced.

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Galaxy Note 4 can’t install Nougat update, voice calls and internet keep dropping, other issues