How to fix Sony Xperia L2 that keeps freezing and lagging (easy steps)

Most performance issues transpiring in mobile devices are tied to memory problems like insufficient memory or when the device is running very low on storage. Common symptoms would include frequent crashes, freezes, sluggishness, and random restarts (boot loops). Aside from memory problems, there are also other factors that can trigger these symptoms to occur. The worst among the possible causes in hardware damage. This is usually the case when you happened to drop your device or got it wet. Hardware-related issues would usually need service or repair options for ultimate solution. Other factors that may inflict the same symptoms are software glitches, incorrect settings, minor firmware bugs and malware. Should any of these factors is causing your device to freeze and lag, then there’s a higher chance for you to fix it at home with some workarounds.

Highlighted in this context are some suggested workarounds and generic solutions to deal with performance issues depicted by constant freezes and lags on a Sony Xperia L2 smartphone. You can refer to these walkthroughs whenever you need more inputs in dealing with the same issue on the same device. Read on and get help.

Before we proceed, if you’re looking for a solution to a problem with your phone, try to browse through our troubleshooting pages to see if we support your device. If your phone is in the list of our supported devices, then go to the troubleshooting page and look for similar problems. Feel free to use our solutions and workarounds. Don’t worry it’s free. But if you still need our help, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

First solution: Restart your Sony Xperia L2 (soft reset).

A soft reset is the first recommended workaround when dealing with random device issues that are attributed to minor software glitches like errant apps. It also helps clear your phone’s internal memory from corrupted cache or temporary files that might have caused apps and system instability. Having said that, perform a soft reset on your Xperia L2 with these steps:

1. Press and hold down the Power key for a few seconds until the menu opens.
2. Tap Restart from the menu options. Doing so will trigger the device to restart automatically.

If your phone is freezing, the usual restart may not be applicable. In this case, you can force your device to restart instead. It does similar output to your device as a soft reset does but done in a slightly different way using hardware keys. For starters, here’s how to force restart your Xperia L2:

Press and hold the Power button and Volume Up button simultaneously for about 10 to 20 seconds until the device power cycles.

Like a soft reset, a forced restart won’t affect data and personal information you stored on the internal memory of your device.

Second solution: Force close errant apps.

Errant apps can also affect the overall performance of your device. You may think that it’s your phone but it’s actually the app you’re using that’s freezing or lagging. That app might have been corrupted and so unable to carry out its routine. In this case, forcing the rogue app can help. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Tap Apps from the Home screen.
2. Scroll to and tap Settings.
3. Tap Apps.
4. Navigate to the Downloaded and Default Apps section, then tap to select individual app to shut down.
5. Tap Force Stop then OK to confirm.

When you’re done shutting down apps, restart your device and then try to see how it performs.

Third solution: Update software to the latest version available.

It is recommended to keep your device software up to date to ensure that it has optimal performance and enhanced system. New updates also contain fix patches to get rid of any existing bugs that might have caused your device to become unstable and perform sluggishly. Unless you have set your device to auto-install updates, you will need to manually check for and install new updates with these steps:

1. Navigate to Settings.
2. Tap About phone.
3. Tap Software Update.

You will see an update notification if a new software is available for your device. Before you proceed, be sure to back up all your critical data for safekeeping. And should you wish to go for an OTA update installation, make sure your phone has strong and stable Internet connection and sufficient power to complete the entire updating process. Ample memory storage is also needed as update files can come in huge file size. That said, you will need to allocate more storage space for the update.

Fourth solution: Boot into safe mode and diagnose apps.

Downloaded apps or third-party services can cause your device to misbehave unexpectedly and perform sluggishly. To find out if any downloaded apps is causing the problem, you can boot your device into safe mode. In safe mode, all system apps and pre-installed services are allowed to run. It’s therefore easier for you to determine whether a third-party app is to blame or not. Here’s how to enable safe mode on your Sony Xperia L2:

1. While your device is turned on, press and hold the Power button until the menu options appear.
2. Tap and hold the Power off option.
3. When the Safe Mode prompt appears, tap OK.
4. Wait until your device restart in safe mode. A Safe Mode label will then appear at the bottom left corner of the screen. It means safe mode is activated.

Use your phone as you normally do while in safe mode and see if it lags or freeze as it does while in normal mode. If it doesn’t, then any of your downloaded apps or contents is most likely to blame. At this point, think of which from your recently downloaded apps is the trigger. To give you some clues, think of when your device started to freeze or lag. The app you’ve installed before this happens is most likely it. To find out, try to disable or uninstall your recently downloaded apps individually with these steps:

1. While your device is running in safe mode, go to the Home screen.
2. Tap the Apps icon.
3. Scroll to and tap Settings.
4. Scroll to Device section then tap Apps.
5. If necessary, tap the screen and slide right to view and access the Downloaded screen.
6. Select the most recent app you suspect.
7. Tap Uninstall then tap OK to confirm.

Alternatively, you can uninstall apps with these quick steps:

1. Tap and hold on the app icon until the device vibrates.
2. From the menu that opens, tap X.
3. Then tap OK to confirm.

Wait until the app is completely uninstalled then restart your phone. If that fixes the problem, then you’re good to go. Otherwise, you will need to continue uninstalling other suspected apps one by one. Don’t forget to test your device after deleting an app to see how it works. You can always reinstall all good apps later.

Fifth solution: Wipe cache partition on your Sony Xperia L2.

Cache or temporary data stored on the phone’s cache partition can also be considered among the underlying causes. Just like other files, cache can also become corrupted at some point and when that happens, there is a tendency that the device system performance will be affected. To rule this out, you can wipe cache partition on your Xperia L2 to clear temporary files and data that might have crashed from within the system’s cache folders. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Power off your device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up and Power buttons simultaneously for a few seconds.
3. When the Sony Xperia L2 logo appears, release both buttons. The Recovery screen will then appear.
4. Press the Volume Down button to scroll to and highlight wipe cache partition option.
5. Then press the Power button to confirm selection.
6. Wait until the phone has finished wiping cache partition and highlights the Restart option.
7. Press the Power button to confirm restart.

Unlike a factory reset, wiping the cache partition won’t affect any data saved in the internal memory of your phone, hence won’t result to data loss. Even so, you may still opt to back up critical data beforehand.

Other options

• Master reset. You may opt to perform a master reset to wipe everything out from your phone system including any complex errors, software bugs and malware that might have hindered your device from performing smoothly. Make sure you back up all your important data from the internal memory to your other backup devices or storage media because they will all be deleted in the process. As final output, you can have your Sony Xperia L2 running better and fresh as new.
• Service. If your Sony Xperia L2 still ended up freezing and lagging after performing all prior procedures even a master reset, then it likely needs service. Certain hardware components of your device might have acquired some sort of physical or liquid damage from a previous drop or liquid exposure and the way it acts right now is the emerging symptom. To check and further assess your device, you can take it to the nearest Sony service center in your place.

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