One of the strong sides of the new Samsung Galaxy A3 smartphone is its capability to recharge fast. Based on prior tests on the battery life and charging time, it turns out that the Galaxy A3 does not necessarily require Samsung’s powerful Adaptive Fast Charger wall plug because it is capable of fully charging the battery in a little less than 2 hours. That is even faster than the Google Pixel device.
Nonetheless, not all users have the same positive charging experience as some people also claimed that it takes forever to fully charge their Galaxy A3. What causes this difference and how is it possible for other people to have the same device completely charge faster than others? This is the main question that is going to be addressed in this post. Read on to find out what causes your Samsung Galaxy A3 to charge slowly and what to do as remedy.
Before we proceed, if you have other concerns with your phone, make sure you visit our Galaxy A3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many of the common issues with this device. Find issues that are related or similar to yours and use the solutions we suggested. If you need more help from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.
Why is your Galaxy A3 taking so long to fully charge?
Aside from the charger, adapter, charging port and battery, you also have to consider the possibility of a software glitch that is affecting your phone’s overall functions, including the program or system responsible for charging. In addition, bad charging habits like using the device or playing mobile games while charging are also among the reasons why it would take forever for your phone to fully charge. Let us further elucidate how each of these factors is tied to an issue on slow charging on your Galaxy A3.
- Charging cable. USB cable or charging cables are typically built to be less robust than the charging port. With all the wear and tear your charging cable goes through in the course of daily use, it is expected to beat up eventually. That’s when charging performance starts to depreciate. However, this is likely not the case when it comes to new devices given that everything that comes with the device including the charging cable is expected to be at its most robust state unless it has factory defect. A bad adapter can also be the culprit. Often times the adapter gets busted due to a power surge or hard impact. Any of these can cause trauma to your adapter, making it no longer capable of charging full-speed.
- Power source. Another possible reason as to why your Galaxy A3 battery takes so long to get fully charge is a weak power source you are using. This is usually the culprit when you charge your phone using a computer, power bank, or other power sources other than wall outlets. The same thing can happen when charging your phone on any damaged USB port. As much as possible, plug your charger into a dedicated wall charger that supplies the right amount of power (energy output) for your phone.
- Bad battery. Although it sounds so bizarre for a new device to have a bad battery, it can happen. In fact, there have been many instances when manufacturers issued recalls for certain batches of batteries or devices (with built-in batteries) due to some flaws.
- Software glitch. Most people usually failed to consider this among the possible triggers. Note that your phone charges when triggered by the charging system to do so. Mobile devices are created with several programs to carry out specific purpose. That being said, there is a program responsible for charging and it’s referred to as charging system on your Galaxy A3. Its main task is to monitor that battery status or percentage reading. When it detects that the battery percentage is already 0, it triggers the phone to die so you’ll need to recharge. When the charging system or program detects that the battery meter reads a higher percentage level or goes back above a certain threshold, it will then trigger the device to power on and resume operations. Among the factors that can ruin charging system operations are bad updates, including major updates to Android that contain bugs. Poor charging habits like charging the device when it’s above 50 percent, leaving the device connected to the charger for a long period of time even after the battery is fully charged, as well as leaving the device dead for so long prior to charging.
How to speed up charging on your Galaxy A3?
Since the main issue tackled in here is on slow charging, our goal is therefore to make your phone charge faster as it is supposed to. As much as possible, be sure to eliminate the possibility of the problem being caused by charging equipment.
Consider the following options, recommendations and workarounds.
First things to do and check:
- Try alternate charging cords or AC adapter. If you haven’t already, try to use alternate charging cords or AC adapters. Doing so will help you rule the possibility of a bad cable or faulty AC adapters being the culprit. Also rule out the charging port on the phone. If the charging cord snaps into place with an audible click and fits snugly without any room for wiggling, the charging cord is not the problem.
- Remove casing (if there’s any). If you’re using a case as protection from possible trauma, try to remove the case then charge your phone without it. Some cases especially from third-party manufacturers may possibly intervene the charging port, causing unstable contact or connection between the charging cable and charging port.
- Try a different power source. If you are using a computer to charge your Galaxy A3 and noticed that it is charging very very slowly, then try to charge it into a wall outlet instead. Or it could be the other way around. Other charging ports you can try are car chargers and power banks.
- Don’t use your phone while charging (if possible turn it off). This one is self-explanatory. Apparently, this is a bad charging habit that you need to rid of. Aside from letting your device to speed up charging, doing so is also for your safety. You may have heard of many cases when a device exploded as users were found to continue using the device while charging. Also refrain from installing any apps for 24 hours to make sure that the problem is resolved.
After you’ve done the prior recommendations and still couldn’t get your Galaxy A3 to charge faster, you may take your chances with these subsequent workarounds.
Examine battery usage
You can check your phone settings and then review the battery usage details. To get there, navigate to the Settings-> then Battery menu. In this menu, you will see a graph depicting the rate of charge. It should be a relatively straight line that is going upwards. Below the graph, you will see a list containing apps or services along with the amount of power they consumed. If the graph shows apps or services that are using significant power than the display, the problem is more likely software-related. To possibly remedy this problem, try to uninstall the faulty app. If that doesn’t work, consider the next workaround.
Factory reset
Yes, it’s a tedious process but might be the only thing you need to do in order to rectify any software glitch that is slowing down your phone’s charging capability. However, the final decision would still be on you. If you’re willing and decided to give it a shot, then backup all critical information stored on your device then proceed. Here’s how a factory reset or master reset is done on your Samsung Galaxy A3:
- Tap Apps from the Home screen.
- Tap Settings to open the Settings app.
- Tap Backup and reset under Personal section.
- Scroll down then tap Factory data reset.
- Read and review the details then tap Reset device to continue.
- Tap Erase everything to confirm action.
Wait until your phone completely resets to factory defaults. Then try to charge it again. Once it is fully charged, you can proceed with restoring data from your Samsung account.
Reset and calibrate the charging system.
Calibrating the battery can help it optimized and improve charging functions. If you haven’t already and you wish to try it, follow these steps to calibrate your Galaxy A3’s charging system:
- Connect your phone to the charger and plug into the power source.
- While it’s connected to the charger, hold the Power button down for about 1 minute or when the Samsung logo animation starts flashing.
- When the screen is black, let go of the Power button.
- The phone should now be turned off. If it turns back on, turn it off.
- When you see that it starts to charge and the battery meter may seem a bit odd, do not worry because it’s part of the charging system’s resetting and recalibrating process.
- At this point, your device is already able to re-determine the maximum capacity of the battery. Finally, turn on your device and then use it as you normally do.
Seek more help
If you find no luck on any of the prior recommendations and workarounds or your Samsung Galaxy A3 is still charging very slow, then at this point you should already consider escalating the problem to Samsung Support for further assistance and recommendations. If your device is still under warranty, then you should consider availing for warranty instead. You can decide on which type of warranty to avail based on the assessment result.
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