How to fix Samsung Galaxy Note 3 that can’t detect or connect to any Wi-Fi network [Troubleshooting Guide]
We’ve been contacted by some of our readers about their problems with their Samsung Galaxy Note 3. In this post, I will focus more on two problems with the device; it’s inability to detect and connect to any Wi-Fi network. Internet connectivity is one very important function that many smartphone owners can live without especially those who are using their devices for emails and other instant messaging services.
While Galaxy Note 3 can connect to the internet via mobile data and Wi-Fi, the latter is often more preferred for some obvious reasons. But what if it couldn’t detect any network? Or worse, what if it couldn’t connect to any available Wi-Fi network?
Read on as I will walk you through troubleshooting your phone in case any of the situations I mentioned happens to you. I will show you how to safely determine what the problem is and fix it as fast and as economical as possible.
But just to set proper expectations here, there are things we cannot fix on our own. The best example would be the hardware-related problems, which need intervention from a technician who can physically inspect your phone and closely diagnose the issues.
If you have other problems, visit our Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Troubleshooting page as it contains hundreds of issues we addressed before. Try the solutions we provided and if they didn’t work for you or if your problem couldn’t be found on that page, then email us at [email protected] and we will be happy to assist you. If you want to get in touch with me directly, visit my profile page to know how. You may also visit our Facebook and Google+ pages for more support.
- Galaxy Note 3 can’t detect any Wi-Fi network after an update
- Galaxy Note 3 can’t to connect to any Wi-Fi network at all
Galaxy Note 3 can’t detect any Wi-Fi network after an update
Problem: Hi there, I have the Note 3 and recently with the new update a few days ago the phone cannot connect or detect any Wi-Fi network at all. I have tried resetting, turning the phone off. I have tried at least 4 different Wi-Fi networks and someone next to me can use the network so i am assuming its my phone. Maybe the new update did something to it. If you can help that would be great because the last thing i want to do is reboot the phone.
Troubleshooting: If this problem happened immediately after an update, then it could have been the new firmware that caused it. There are, of course, things you need to check prior to troubleshooting the problem and the first thing I want you to do is boot your phone in safe mode to rule out the possibility that a third-party app has something to do with it. Also, while in safe mode, the phone works normally without the intervention from apps you downloaded.
- Turn the device off.
- Press and hold the Power
- When ‘GALAXY Note 3′ appears on the screen, release the Power Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
- Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
- ‘Safe mode’ will display in the bottom left corner of the screen. Release the Volume down key when you see ‘Safe Mode.’
While in safe mode, try turning the Wi-Fi on and off to see if it can detect a network, if not, then you need to wipe the cache partition.
- Turn off the device.
- Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power
- When ‘GALAXY Note 3′ appears on the screen, let go of the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home
- When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home
- Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
- Press the Power key to select and wipe the cache.
- With ‘reboot system now’ highlighted, press the Power key to restart the device.
At this point, the problem may have already been fixed. For radio issues that occur after an update, it’s often the caches that may have been corrupted during the process. Just wipe the directory where they’re stored so that the system will be forced to created new files that will work well with the new firmware. But just in case the problem persists, a factory reset is necessary. Of course, you need to backup every bit of data you don’t want to lose.
Galaxy Note 3 can’t to connect to any Wi-Fi network at all
Problem: We have two Note 3 phones. Identical models. Mine appears to have done an update (without my approval) and the only thing that has happened to mine is the loss of some of my contacts. I will get them back. My partner’s phone though, will not now connect to any wi-fi device whatsoever. She has tried the fixes listed on your site, with no change to the situation. I have suggested she try a system restore, but the problem with this is the loss of data, or the hassle of backing everything up. Can you suggest a fix for the ‘no wi-fi at all’ problem? Cheers.
Troubleshooting: Reboot, that’s very first thing to do when it comes to problems like this. There are times when the service that handles wireless connectivity crashes and reboot is often the most effective way to bring it back to life. After such procedure and the problem still persists, then the real troubleshooting begins.
Just like what I suggested in the previous problem, boot the phone in safe mode to isolate the issue. If it was caused by a third-party app, then the Wi-Fi function should work properly in safe mode. Otherwise, it’s almost certainly a firmware issue. Just follow these steps first to boot your phone in safe mode and try toggling the Wi-Fi switch on and off:
- Turn the device off.
- Press and hold the Power
- When ‘GALAXY Note 3′ appears on the screen, release the Power Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
- Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
- ‘Safe mode’ will display in the bottom left corner of the screen. Release the Volume down key when you see ‘Safe Mode.’
After turning the Wi-Fi on and off and it can detect a network but can’t connect to it, then try to reboot your network equipment just to refresh your network. After, try connecting other device to it just to find out if the network works the way it should and if it does, then proceed to performing master reset. I understand the hassle of backing everything up but it appears that the reset is necessary to make your phone work again. It’s worth it. This is how you effectively reset the device:
- Turn off the device.
- Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power
- When ‘GALAXY Note 3′ appears on the screen, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home
- When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home
- Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset.’
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘delete all user data.’
- Press Power button to select and start the master reset. When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
- Press the Power key to turn the restart the device.
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