What to do with your Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus that’s running so slow and sluggish in opening apps [Troubleshooting Guide]

Even a smartphone as powerful as the Samsung Galaxy S8+ may encounter hiccups every now and then. Performance-related issues are among the most commonly reported problems by our readers and we can’t just sit back while many users out there are having some issues with their phones.

When the phone with impressive specs like the Galaxy S8+ starts to run very slow and sluggish in performing functions it used to perform without any issues before, then something might have triggered it. It maybe due to an app or two that keeps crashing or a firmware problem that needs immediate attention. When an issue like this also occurs after you dropped your phone on a hard surface or in water, then you also have to look into the possibility that it could be a sign of a physical or liquid damage.

In this post, I will guide in trying to make your S8+ run faster like before again. We will look into each possibility and rule them out one by one until we arrive at a point wherein we can easily tell what the problem with your phone really is. This way, we can try to formulate a solution that might fix it for good. So, read on.

Now, before we go to troubleshooting, if you are currently experiencing a different problem, try to visit our troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common issues owners encountered with their device. Find issues that are similar to yours and feel free to use our solutions or troubleshooting guides. If they don’t work, however, and if you need further assistance, contact us by completing our Android issues questionnaire. All we need is information so we can help you. Don’t worry, it’s free.

How to troubleshoot your Galaxy S8+ that’s slow and sluggish

While a slow and sluggish phone is really annoying, it’s not really a sign of serious problem. It just wants you to clean up your phone from time to time to make space for services as well as get rid of corrupt files that might still be used by the system. A powerful phone that started to run slow is a sign that you need to do some maintenance and it’s not really a big problem as you can always do something about it. That said, here’s what you should do about your Galaxy S8+ that’s running slow and sluggish…

Step 1: Compare its performance when in Safe mode

Sometimes there are third-party apps that have some issues with the firmware especially when you just installed a new update. Compatibility issues often result to crashes which will greatly affect the performance of your phone regardless if it’s an entry-level or a high-end device. That’s the reason why we need to know if the phone is still slow or sluggish when in safe mode so that we can isolate the problem immediately. So, follow the steps below to run your phone in this environment…

1. Turn the device off.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
3. When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
7. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

Assuming the performance improves when in this mode, then move on to the next step, otherwise, skip to step 3.

Step 2: Find the apps that cause the problem

If the phone works properly when in safe mode, it’s clear enough that the cause of the problem is a third-party app. If you don’t have a clue which of your apps is causing it, then you should first try to see if there are apps that need to be updated and update them all.

1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
2. Tap Play Store.
3. Tap the Menu key and then tap My Apps. To keep your apps automatically updated, tap the Menu > Settings then tap Auto-update apps to select the check box.
4. Choose one of the following options:
   • Tap Update [xx] to update all applications with updates available.
   • Tap an individual application and then tap Update to update a single application.

If, however, you already have a suspect in mind, try to clear its cache and data first and if that won’t work, uninstall it and then reboot your phone to run in normal mode to see if the phone is still slow or sluggish.

How to clear app cache and data on Galaxy S8 Plus

1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
2. Tap Settings > Apps.
3. Tap the desired application in the default list or tap 3 dots icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
4. Tap Storage.
5. Tap Clear cache.
6. Tap Clear data and then tap OK.

How to uninstall applications from Galaxy S8 Plus

1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
2. Tap Settings > Apps.
3. Tap the desired application in the default list or tap 3 dots icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
4. Tap the desired application.
5. Tap Uninstall.
6. Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

Step 3: Reboot your phone in Recovery Mode and wipe cache partition

You do this if your phone is still slow while in safe mode or if the procedures above didn’t work. We are now going after the firmware and the first thing we have to do about it is delete all system caches so that they will be replaced with new ones. It’s possible some of them got corrupted or became obsolete already and resulted to this problem. Based on experience, this might be the solution you need to make your phone work normally again. You just have to boot your phone up in Recovery mode and then wipe the cache partition:

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe cache partition.”
5. Press the Power key to select.
6. Press the Volume down key to highlight “yes” and press the Power key to select.
7. When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
8. Press the Power key to restart the device.

The reboot might take a little while after wiping the cache partition as it rebuilds the caches. If the phone still runs slow after this, then move on to the next step.

Step 4: Backup all your important data and then reset your Galaxy S8+

If all troubleshooting procedures above failed to fix the problem, then you have no other choice but to reset your phone. This problem is actually a minor one and it will be fixed by a reset however, you need to make a backup of your important files and data as they will be deleted during the process.

Now, just before you actually reset your phone, make sure you take note of your google ID and password or disable the Factory Reset Protection so that you won’t be locked out of your device.

How to disable FRP on your Galaxy S8 Plus

1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
2. Tap Settings > Cloud and accounts.
3. Tap Accounts.
4. Tap Google.
5. Tap on your Google ID email address if multiple accounts are setup. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
6. Tap 3 dot icon.
7. Tap Remove account.
8. Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

How to Master Reset your Galaxy S8 Plus

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. 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).
4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
5. Press Power button to select.
6. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
7. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
8. When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

I hope this troubleshooting guide helps.

Connect with us

We are always open to your problems, questions and suggestions, so feel free to contact us by filling up this form. This is a free service we offer and we won’t charge you a penny for it. But please note that we receive hundreds of emails every day and it’s impossible for us to respond to every single one of them. But rest assured we read every message we receive. For those whom we’ve helped, please spread the word by sharing our posts to your friends or by simply liking our Facebook and Google+ page or follow us on Twitter.