How to fix Samsung Galaxy Note 8 that’s now running so slow (easy steps)
Performance-related problems are often caused by firmware issues. Even a powerful phone like the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 may encounter similar problems as you continue using it. We have some readers who have contacted us because their phones reportedly started running so slow.
In this post, I will walk you through in fixing this problem and doing some basic troubleshooting procedures that may help us determine what the problem really is and prevent it from happening again in the future. So, if you’re one of the owners of the Galaxy Note 8 and are currently having a similar problem, continue reading as this article may help you somehow.
Before going further, if you found this post because you were trying to find a solution to your problem, then try to visit our Galaxy Note 8 troubleshooting page as we’ve already addressed most of the commonly reported issues with the phone. We’ve already provided solutions to some of the problems reported by our readers so try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you and if you need further assistance, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit.
Troubleshooting Galaxy Note 8 that’s running so slow
A problem like this are often too easy to fix provided it’s not a result of either physical or liquid damage. As long as your phone hasn’t been dropped on a hard surface or got submerged in water for a very long time, then it’s probably just an issue with the firmware. However, if this issues started after you rooted your Note 8 and installed a custom ROM, then the best thing you have to do about it is reflash the stock firmware. But assuming this problem started after a few months of use, then here’s what you should do:
Reboot your Galaxy Note 8 in Safe mode
Rebooting your phone in safe mode alone won’t fix the problem but it will give you an idea if your apps have something to do with it. In this mode, all third-party apps are temporarily disabled so if the cause of this problem is one or some of the apps you installed, then your device should work perfectly while in this environment and that’s the reason why you need to do this first:
- Turn the device off.
- Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
- When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
- 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 this mode, continue observing your phone to know if its performance improved somehow and assuming it runs perfectly fine in this environment, then you should look for a third-party app that might be causing the problem and uninstall it.
- From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
- Tap Settings > Apps.
- Tap the desired application in the default list or tap 3 dots icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
- Tap the desired application.
- Tap Uninstall.
- Tap Uninstall again to confirm.
You may have to uninstall more one app to be able to fix this problem as well as countless reboot back to normal mode and safe mode.
But you know what, the easiest way to fix a problem that’s caused by a third-party app is factory reset. So, if finding the app much of a hassle than doing a reset, then backup your files and data and then follow these steps to reset your phone:
- From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
- Tap Settings > Cloud and accounts.
- Tap Backup and restore.
- If desired, tap Back up my data to move the slider to ON or OFF.
- If desired, tap Restore to move the slider to ON or OFF.
- Tap the back button to the Settings menu and tap General Management > Reset > Factory data reset.
- Tap Reset.
- If you have screen lock turned on, enter your credentials.
- Tap Continue.
- Tap Delete all.
However, if the phone is still running so slow even while in safe mode, then move on to the next solution.
Delete all system caches as some might have been corrupted
System caches that got corrupted may also cause the phone to slow down and there are times that it may even lead to freezes and random reboots. But if it is really the problem with your phone, you can easily fix it by following these steps:
- Turn off the device.
- Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
- When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
- Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key until ‘yes’ is highlighted and press the Power button.
- When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
- Press the Power key to restart the device.
If this doesn’t fix the problem, then the next procedure will.
Backup your files and data and then reset your phone
A reset will be able to fix this problem however, you need to backup your files and data as you will lose them and may not be able to retrieve them after the reset. Take time moving your important stuff over to your SD card or computer. After backing up your files, remove your google account to disable the Factory Reset Protection so that you won’t be locked out of your phone after the reset. Once everything is set and ready, follow these steps to reset your phone:
- Back up data on the internal memory. If you have signed into a Google account on the device, you have activated Anti-theft and will need your Google credentials to finish the Master reset.
- Turn off the device.
- Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
- When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
- Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
- 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 restart the device.
I hope that our troubleshooting guide and solutions can help you somehow. If you have other concerns you want to share, contact us or leave a comment in the section below.
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