Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Problems, Errors, Glitches, Solutions and Troubleshooting [Part 56]

Welcome to the 56^th part in our series of troubleshooting articles dedicated to the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. The latest Android Lollipop update is now rolling out for this phone which should make owners excited. The latest software update brings new features to this model which is more than a year old. Aside from these new features some owners will also experience some issues that may occur after updating their phones. This is what we will be trying to resolve in this series.

In this latest installment, we will tackle some of the latest emails sent to us by our readers concerning this model. We will provide some troubleshooting steps to resolve any issue that the phone may have.

If you own a Galaxy Note 3 or any other Android device for that matter then feel free to send us an email at [email protected]. We will be more than happy to assist you with any concern that you may have with your device. This is a free service we are offering with no strings attached. We however ask that when you do send us an email ty to be as detailed as possible so that an accurate assessment can be made and the correct solution can be given.

If you would like to browse the previous parts in this series then check out this link.

Aside from sending us an email you may also reach us at our Facebook and Google+ social media accounts.

Note 3 Browser Does Not Connect To The Internet

Problem: Hi so….I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 3, and for some reason I know that I have internet access when I open Facebook, instagram, etc. But when I try to use the Internet browser I keep getting a pop up that says ” internet has stopped”, but as I said I can go right to Facebook or Instagram or Pinterest and I’m able to access these apps with no problem so I installed Google Chrome and I have no problems with access to the Internet using the Google Chrome. It’s just on some of the searches I try and do using Google Chrome or Yahoo or whatever else it directly write to the Google Internet saying the same thing no connection or google has stopped. When I went into settings to try and turn on d internet browser it doesn’t have an option for me to turn it on it’s all shut down through my settings. I’m wondering if there’s anything that you could do to help me rectify this problem. Thanks.

Solution: It appears that this issue is only isolated when you try to use the stock browser of your phone. To resolve this issue you should try to clear the cache and data of the stock browser.

• From any Home screen, tap the Menu key.
• Tap Settings.
• Tap the General tab.
• Tap Application manager.
• Tap the All tab.
• Tap the Internet application
• Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
• Tap Clear cache.

Note 3 Notification Not Working

Problem: Hi! I’m glad you’re available. I have a Galaxy Note 3 and it is not giving me my notification sound when i get a text message. At first it stopped altogether and then it was random, so i called my carrier and was put thru a battery of tests i my settings and my notifications started again. Now they are random again. It is at its worse when i first get a text and i text back and as they are texting me back i get no notification if they’re texting back. This is especially annoying when you’re texting with someone and you don’t know if they are answering you back if the screen goes black.

Solution: Since this issue occurs randomly there’s a possibility that a certain third party app is causing the problem. You should start your phone in Safe mode to check if this is the case.

• With the device powered off, press and hold the Power button (located on the right edge) until the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 logo appears then release.
• With the logo on the screen, press and hold the Volume down button until Safe mode appears in the lower left of the screen then release. This may take up to 45 seconds.

Try to check if your phone notifications works normally this time. If it does then the issue may be caused by a certain app that you installed. Find out what that app is and uninstall it.

If the issue persists then try wiping the cache partition of your phone. This issue may be caused by corrupt temporary data which can be eliminated by performing the procedure below.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

Note 3 Mobile Data Not Working

Problem: Hi droidguy, I have been reading problems about galaxy note 3 on your page but I can’t seem to find my specific problem. My galaxy note 3 problem is whenever I turn on the mobile data nothing seems to be happening, no E sign or H+ sign on the signal. The mobile data would work fine after I restart the phone but after a while it wouldn’t turn back on again. I really would appreciate your help because mobile data is important for my business. Thanks in advanced!

Solution: The first thing that you should check is your network. Does this problem occur in only one particular area or does it occur anywhere? If you only experience this issue in a particular area then it’s most likely a network related issue. The most probable cause is that the signal may be weak. You should try calling your network first regarding this.

The next thing to consider is your SIM card and account. If you have access to another SIM then try inserting it in your phone and see if the issue is still the same. You should also check your account and see if you have an active mobile data subscription.

On the phone side, the first thing to do is to check if the APN settings are correct. To access you phone APN settings follow the steps listed below.

• From any Home screen, tap the Menu key.
• Tap Settings.
• Tap the Connections tab.
• Tap More networks.
• Tap Mobile networks.
• Tap Access Point Names.

You should verify the settings with the one your network is using (you can check on your network website for the correct settings) and edit them if necessary.

If the settings match and the issue still remains then try wiping the cache partition of your phone.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

Note 3 Shuts Down When Taking Photos

Problem: Hi, My 6 month old Samsung note 3 powers off/ shuts down every time I try to take photos while my battery is under 85%. Please help.

Solution: Try downloading a third party camera app from the Google Play Store. Use the camera you downloaded in taking a picture and check if the issue remains the same.

If the issue does not occur then the problem may be with your stock camera app. You should clear the cache and data of this app.

• From any Home screen, tap the Menu key.
• Tap Settings.
• Tap the General tab.
• Tap Application manager.
• Tap the All tab.
• Tap the Camera application
• Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
• Tap Clear cache.

If however the issue still occurs when using the third party camera app then this is most likely a system related problem. Try to check first if your phone is running on the latest software update.

If your phone is running on the latest update then the next step to do is to perform factory reset. Make sure to back up your data before proceeding.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key.
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

If the issue persists after the factory reset then this may already be a hardware related problem. Bring your phone to an authorized service center for further checking.

Note 3 Can’t Playback Video

Problem: hi,  i hope that you can help me…i have a note 3 with a 64 gig sd card….up until a little while ago, i was able to the phone to take videos and then watch them on the phone…now , i can still take videos but i cant play them back….i get a message saying “this video cannot be played”…and on the video itself ,it shows a grey square with a lighting bolt at the top right….i have tried installing different video players but the result is the same…i can still watch the older videos… i recently video taped  an event and would like to see it ..  any suggestions on how i can watch my videos again.  thank you

Solution: It looks like the video file got corrupted. Try taking out the SD card and have it read by your computer. If your computer can’t open the file then it is corrupt. This usually happens when you try to save a file on a faulty SD card. I suggest you get another SD card to avoid this issue.

If however your compute can read the said video file then the issue may be with your phone. Try wiping its cache partition to resolve this.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

Note 3 Won’t Download Picture Message

Problem: Hi. I have a problem with my note 3 it just started to day received a text with a picture and it wouldn’t download and kept sending it over and over a couple dozen times and will not stop I don’t know what’s wrong please help. Thanks.

Solution: Make sure to download the picture message using your mobile data. You should also check if your mobile data subscription is active. Check your phone APN settings and verify that it is the one used by your network. You can check the website of your carrier for the correct settings.

To check your phone APN settings

• From any Home screen, tap the Menu key.
• Tap Settings.
• Tap the Connections tab.
• Tap More networks.
• Tap Mobile networks.
• Tap Access Point Names.

Note 3 Can’t Complete Software Update

Problem: Hello..i have a problem that maybe you can help me with…i got the at&t version of the galaxy note 3 and I heard that it’s suppose to get lollipop 5.0 so this morning all of a sudden my phone said it’s due for a software update.. I’m assuming it’s telling me it’s lollipop because the size is 459 mega bytes but once it’s starts downloading it reaches up to 25% and then it stops and says update failed and got interrupted so I did a factory reset and it still did the same thing…Please tell me why this happened or if it’s because my phone is locked or its cuz it has a bootloader on it maybe..just let me know if it doesn’t matter or if it will say it’s gonna download lollipop on the phone or not..Please help me out if you can..thanks

Solution: There are many reasons why the update will stop downloading. The first thing you should verify is if your phone is connected to a stable Wi-Fi connection. In most cases when the Wi-Fi signal is not good the download will usually fail.

One other option that you should try is to get the update using Kies. Download the latest Kies software to your computer and run the program. Connect your phone to our computer using a USB cord. If an update is available then you will be prompted. Just follow the on-screen instructions to update your phone.

Note 3 Can’t Update Since Device Has Been Modified

Problem: Hi when I go to update my phone it says can’t update because device has been modified what does this mean and how can I get around this?

Solution: When your phone displays a message that says it can’t update since the device has been modified it means that you phone may be rooted. If however you are sure that your phone is not rooted but are still getting this error message then double check on this by going to Settings > about device > status > device status. If your phone has not been modified it should read official otherwise you will see the word modified.

In most cases this message will appear despite the fact that your phone has not been modified. To resolve this issue follow the steps listed below.

• Un-mounted the inserted SD card.
• Restart the device without the SD card.
• Get the software update
• Once the update has successfully installed you can reinsert the SD card.

If after restarting the phone without the SD card you are still getting the error message then before checking for the software update you should wipe the cache partition of your phone.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

Note 3 No Sound On Videos

Problem: Hello!!! I got a problem with the sound on the videos I take. I took several videos today, but just noticed I can’t hear a sound. Did I press something wrong? I tried to take a video again to check the sound and it was ok now. Even if I covered the mic, I could still hear smth, but the first ones had nothing at all like a mute button was pressed. Please help!! I have a Galaxy note 3. Might the problem had been because the battery was 10%?

Solution: The issue may have been caused by a software glitch. Even at 10 percent battery level you should still be able to hear the sound on your recorded videos. If this issue happens again then try wiping the cache partition of your phone. This eliminates any corrupt temporary data stored in your phone that may be causing the problem.

Note 3 Music/Video Pauses Randomly

Problem: Hi there,  For about 6 months now, I’ve been having problems with music and playing video on my note 3. My music will pause without me touching the device and videos including youtube also pause spontaneously. It’s quite annoying and would like to know what’s causing it, and how I can fix this frustrating problem. Thanks in advance.

Solution: Since this issue occurs on multiple apps then it may be system related. Try to check if your phone is running on the latest software update first. If it is then you should do a factory reset. Just make sure to back up your data before performing the procedure.

• Turn off the device.
• Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key.
• 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 key.
• When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
• 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.

Note 3 Intelligence Services Has Stopped/ Contacts Has Stopped Error Messages

Problem: Hello, I consistently get the two error messages on my Note 3 with AT&T version 4.4.4. Intelligence services has stopped error occurs when phone  is restarted and/or powered off/on. Contacts has stopped error occurs when I go into my contacts > groups and try to scroll.  I use contacts/groups synced to my gmail not on phone contacts.

Solution: For the first concern regarding intelligence service you should first boot your phone in Safe Mode.

• With the device powered off, press and hold the Power button (located on the right edge) until the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 logo appears then release.
• With the logo on the screen, press and hold the Volume down button until Safe mode appears in the lower left of the screen then release. This may take up to 45 seconds.

If the error message does not appear then it may be caused by an app. Try to find out what apps you recently installed then clear out the cache and data of these apps from the application manager.

For the second concern you need to clear the cache and data of your contacts app.

• Go to Settings
• Proceed to Application Manager
• Select the All tab
• Choose Contacts
• Tap Clear Cache and Clear Data

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