What to do if Galaxy Tab A runs slow | fix slow performance

Have you noticed that your Galaxy Tab A runs slow at this time? This article will help you fix slow performance on your tablet. Learn what you need to do below.

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What to do if Galaxy Tab A runs slow | fix slow performance

There can be a number of factors that can lead to slow performance. If you’re wondering why or how to fix your Galaxy Tab A that runs slow at this time, this troubleshooting guide might help. Follow our suggestions below and see if there’s a solution that can help.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #1: Check the Memory

One of the common reasons for slow performance issue on Android is poor RAM management. In theory, Android Operating System is supposed to manage RAM on the fly but in reality, this does not always happen. Problems may sometimes occur as RAM runs low. The resulting problem often manifests as slowing down a device. If you’ve done nothing different before noticing the problem, all you might need to do is to simply clear the RAM on your device. You can do this either closing apps or by using the Optimize Now option under Settings.

Having too many apps running at the same time can slow a system down. We suggest that you try to close apps first. If you’ve been running resouce-demanding apps like games or video streaming apps, try to close them first.

To close an app on the Galaxy Tab A:

  1. Tap the Recent Apps soft key. This is the one on the left-most side.
  2. Swipe from the left or right to select the app you want to close.
  3. Swipe up to close it.

If you want to just simply close all apps:

  1. Tap the Recent Apps soft key. This is the one on the left-most side.
  2. Select Close All button at the bottom of the screen.

Alternatively, you can also use the Optimize Now option to clear the RAM and do a general checkup of the system. Here’s how it’s done:

  1. Open Settings app.
  2. Tap Device care.
  3. Tap Optimize now.
  4. Wait for the tablet to optimize, then tap Done at the bottom.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #2: Restart device

If your Galaxy Tab A still runs slow after optimizing it, your next move is to restart it. This can work if the cause of the problem is a temporary bug that developed after leaving a device running for a long time. Try restarting it normally first by pressing the Power button to access the boot menu. Then, select Restart option and see if that works.

Another way to restart the device is by pressing and holding the Volume Down button and the Power key at the same time for 10 seconds or until the device’s screen turns on. This simulates the effect of having disconnected the battery from the device. If this works, this may unlock the device.

If doing the regular restart won’t help, then try this:

  1. Press and hold the Volume Down button first and don’t release it.
  2. While holding it down, press and hold the Power key.
  3. Keep both keys held down for 10 seconds or more. 

The second and third restart procedures try to simulate the effects of removing the battery pack. On older devices, disconnecting the battery is often an effective way in fixing unresponsive devices. If nothing changed though, proceed to the next suggestions.

Rebooting your device regularly at least once every week can be beneficial. If you tend to forget things, we suggest that you configure your phone to reboot on its own. You can schedule it to do this task by doing these steps:

  1. Open Settings app.
  2. Tap Device Care.
  3. Tap the 3-dot at the top.
  4. Select Auto restart.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #3: Clear cache partition

Some Galaxy devices may reboot on their own if there’s a problem with the system cache. This had been observed in some few older Samsung Galaxy models in the past after a system update corrupted the system cache. To check if you have system cache problem, follow the steps below:

  1. Turn off the device. This is important. If you can’t turn it off, you’ll never be able to boot to Recovery Mode. If you are not able to shut the device off regularly via the Power button, wait until the phone’s battery is drained. Then, charge the phone for 30 minutes before booting to Recovery Mode.
  2. Press and hold the Volume Up button and the Power button at the same time for 5 seconds.
  3. Release the Power and Volume Up buttons.
  4. The Recovery screen menu will now appear. 
  5. Use the Volume Down button until you are highlighting ‘Wipe cache partition.’
  6. Press the Power button to select ‘Wipe cache partition.’
  7. Use Volume Down to highlight Yes.
  8. Press the Power button to go ahead with clearing of cache partition.
  9. After clearing the cache partition, press the Power button again for Reboot system now.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #4: Install updates

Keeping the Operating System and apps up-to-date is an underrated solution for most people. What most Android users don’t realize though is that some problems are not fixable on their end. Some of these apps may have roots deep within the software so only a coding modification can fix them. It is for this reason that you should always install updates for both Android and apps if they are available.

To see if there’s a new system update, open Settings > Software update > Download and install.

In the same vein, it’s important that you update your apps as well. This is to lessen the chances of bugs from developing. To check for Play Store app updates on your Galaxy Tab A:

  1. Open Play Store app.
  2. Tap More settings icon at the upper left (three-horizontal lines).
  3. Tap My apps & games.
  4. Tap Update or Update All.

If you are on Cellular Data connection, we suggest that you update via wifi only to avoid additional charges. Here’s how:

  1. Open Play Store app.
  2. Tap More settings icon at the upper left (three-horizontal lines).
  3. Tap Settings.
  4. Tap App download preference. 
  5. Select Over wifi only (select Over any network if you don’t have wifi).
  6. Tap Done.

Make sure to also keep your apps updated all the time by enabling auto-update option.

  1. Tap Auto-update apps.
  2. Tap Over wifi only (select Over any network if you don’t have wifi).
  3. Tap Done.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #5: Observe on Safe Mode

Running your tablet on safe mode may help if you suspect that the issue might be due to a bad app. If you recently installed a new app, it’s possible that that app might be to blame. To check, try running the device on safe mode. When on safe mode, no third party app can be activated. If your tablet runs normally on safe mode, you can assume that one of the apps is to blame.

To run your Galaxy Tab A on Safe Mode:

  1. Turn off the device.
  2. Press and hold the Power key.
  3. When Samsung appears on the screen, release the Power key.
  4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
  5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting. This may take up to 1 minute. Just be patient to wait for it.
  6. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode on the device.

Remember that third-party applications are disabled in this mode so what you can use are pre-installed apps. Uninstall the app you recently installed and see if that will fix it. If the problem remains, use the process of elimination to identify the rogue app. Here’s how:

  1. Boot to safe mode.
  2. Check for the problem.
  3. Once you’ve confirmed that a third party app is to blame, you can start uninstalling apps individually. We suggest that you begin with the most recent ones you added.
  4. After you uninstall an app, restart the phone to normal mode and check for the problem.
  5. If your Galaxy Tab A works on safe mode but misbehaves on normal mode, repeat steps 1-4.

In order to return to normal mode or turn off safe mode:

  1. Press and hold the Power key.
  2. Tap Restart.
  3. The devices restarts in normal mode.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #6: Check for overheating

An overheating device may become sluggish. If your Galaxy Tab A still runs slow at this time, be sure to do a manual check for overheating first. If it’s becoming uncomfortably warm to touch, try to shut it down and let it cool down for at least 30 minutes. Afterwards, use the phone again and see if it’s working normally.

Your tablet may overheat if you use it for gaming or video streaming for a long time. To prevent this problem from happening, just turn it off for 5 minutes after using it for an hour of gaming or streaming. 

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #7: Check for malware

Have you noticed an increasing number of ad pop-ups lately on your tablet? Although not technically malware or viruses, ad pop-ups are usually indicators of presence of bad apps or malware in a device. Malware developers nowadays wants to make money and the easiest way to do that is by running countless ads on targeted devices. In order to do this, they usually employ bad apps or malware to compromise a device. Once they’ve hijacked a device, they can then run ads or add more bad apps that can run in the background. The presence of these unwanted malware may hog resources and eventually slow a device down. In most cases, malware presence can be fixed by installing a good antivirus app. If you are still able to open Google Play Store (this app is often the first one to be disabled by malware), try to install an antivirus app and scan your device. Do a quick Google search on what are today’s good antivirus apps you can use. 

If you can no longer open Google Play Store, or if the device has become too slow to be usable, you should do the next step, which is to factory reset your device.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #8: Factory reset

Speaking of factory reset, this is your last resort if none of the suggestions above has helped so far. You can either do this solution at the start of your troubleshooting (if your tablet is will no longer run properly), or as the final one to fix an issue of this type. 

There are a couple of ways to factory reset your Galaxy Tab A. Learn each of them below. To avoid losing irreplaceable photos, videos, documents, contacts, and other stuff, be sure to back them up first. You can use Smart Switch for that.

Below are the two methods on how to hard reset or factory reset your Galaxy Tab A.

Method 1: How to hard reset on Samsung Galaxy Tab A via Settings Menu

Under normal circumstances, factory reset under Settings menu should be the primary way for you. It’s simpler to do and does not require pressing hardware buttons, which some users may find difficult to do.

  1. Create a backup of your personal data and remove your Google account.
  2. Open Settings app.
  3. Scroll to and tap General management.
  4. Tap Reset.
  5. Select Factory data reset from the given options.
  6. Read the information then tap Reset to continue.
  7. Tap Delete All to confirm action.

Method 2: How to hard reset on Samsung Galaxy Tab A using hardware buttons

If your case is that the tablet is not booting up, or it boots but Settings menu is inaccessible, this method can be helpful. First, you need to boot the device to Recovery Mode. Once you successfully access Recovery, that’s the time that you begin proper master reset procedure. It may take some tries for you before you can access Recovery so be patient and simply try again.

  1. If possible, create a backup of your personal data ahead of time. If your problem prevents you from doing that, then simply skip this step.
  2. Also, you want to make sure that you remove your Google account. If your problem prevents you from doing that, then simply skip this step.
  3. Turn off the device. This is important. If you can’t turn it off, you’ll never be able to boot to Recovery Mode. If you are not able to shut the device off regularly via the Power button, wait until the phone’s battery is drained. Then, charge the phone for 30 minutes before booting to Recovery Mode.
  4. Press and hold the Volume Up button and the Power button at the same time for 5 seconds.
  5. Release the Power and Volume Up buttons.
  6. The Recovery screen menu will now appear. 
  7. Use the Volume Down button until you are highlighting ‘Wipe data/factory reset.’
  8. Press the Power button to select ‘Wipe data/factory reset.’
  9. Use Volume Down to highlight Yes.
  10. Press the Power button to confirm factory reset.

Galaxy Tab A runs slow fix #9: Get help from Samsung

If your Galaxy Tab A still runs slow after a factory reset, you can assume that there might be a deeper reason for your problem. It may be hardware-related or something deep within the software. Either case, you want to let Samsung take care of the problem. Visit your local Samsung store or Service Center for help.

 


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