Galaxy J3 Archives

How to fix Google Play Store error 8 on Samsung Galaxy J3

The Google Play Store error 8 that many Samsung Galaxy J3 owners have been complaining about occurs when you try to update or install an app. It could be account-related or it could be just a minor issue with the Play Store itself. The thing is that you may find this issue very annoying as you will have to go through all the steps you’ve taken in installing or updating the app only to be greeted by the same error.

Some owners reported that the problem got fixed on its own but some apparently had to do something to get it sorted out. In this post, I will guide you on how to troubleshoot your Galaxy J3 that’s bugged by the Play Store error 8. The actual error goes like this “App can’t be installed. Try again, and if the problem continues, get help troubleshooting. (Error code: -8)” and you have no other choice but to hit OK. Continue reading down below as this post may be able to help you.

Now, before anything else, if you have other issues with your phone, make sure you drop by our troubleshooting page for we have already provided solutions to hundreds of problems reported by our readers. Odds are that we may have already provided a solution to the problem you currently have so try to find issues that are similar with yours on that page and feel free to use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you need further assistance, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

Going back to our troubleshooting, here’s what you need to do on your Galaxy J3 if it keeps getting the Play Store error 8…

Restart your Galaxy J3 and try downloading the app again.
Run phone in safe mode and try downloading the app.
Clear cache and data of the Play Store.
Remove Google account and then add it back again.
Master Reset your Galaxy J3.

If this is the first time that you encountered this error message or any Play Store errors for that matter, then it could be just a very minor glitch with the firmware or the app. More often, such problems can be fixed by simply rebooting your phone and doing what you were doing when the problem occurred. However, if this doesn’t fix the problem, then try running the phone in safe mode to temporarily disable all third-party elements. From there, try to download the same application and see if the error still shows up.

The next thing you need to do if the problem continues is to clear the cache and data of the Play Store. This will reset it back to its default and configuration as well as replace possible corrupt cache and data files. Many owners reported that this method actually worked for them, so it could work for you, too.

Since this probably an account-related issue, it’s better to remove your Google account from your Galaxy J3 if clearing the cache and data of Play Store didn’t fix the problem. After you’ve removed your account, restart your phone and then add the same account. Once everything is set up, try downloading the app. Or, if you have another Google account, you better use that one to download the application you want.

Lastly, if all else fails, you need to reset your phone. A master reset should be able to fix this problem since the Play Store is a core application and thus, embedded in the firmware. Before the reset, make sure to create a backup of your important files and data as they will be deleted. Once everything is set, follow these steps to reset your Galaxy J3:

Back up all your personal data stored on the phone.
Tap Apps from the Home screen.
Tap Settings.
Tap Backup and reset.
Select Factory data reset.
If prompted, read and review the information. If you are using an SD card and that is inserted, select the option to Format SD card if you also want to delete the data on your microSD card. Note that once you format the microSD card, the data can no longer be recovered.
Tap Reset Phone.
Tap Delete All to delete all information and downloaded apps.
If prompted, enter your security lock or passcode to proceed.

I hope that we’ve been able to help you fix the problem with your device. We would appreciate it if you helped us spread the word so please share this post if you found it helpful. Thank you so much for reading!

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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.

Samsung Galaxy J3 gets stuck on boot screen after rebooting [Troubleshooting Guide]

Read and understand why your Samsung Galaxy J3 can sometimes get stuck on the boot screen and learn how to troubleshoot it when it happens.

Getting stuck on the boot screen could be a sign of a serious firmware issue, however, based on our experiences, there are cases wherein the phone cannot boot up successfully and end up getting stuck on the logo or black screen during the boot up process due to apps that crash. The point is, we really don’t know what’s happening with your phone if it won’t continue booting up to the home screen. This is the reason why we need to troubleshoot your phone.

So, in this post, I will tackle this problem with the Samsung Galaxy J3 being the subject of our troubleshooting. We will try to look into each possibility and rule out each of them until we can pinpoint what the problem with your phone is. That way, it would easier to fix it and make it start successfully again. So, if you own this amazing device and are currently bugged by a similar problem, continue reading below to know what to do.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Step-by-step guide to troubleshooting Galaxy J3 that’s stuck on the boot screen

Problem: Hello droid guys. I have a Galaxy J3 smartphone I bought online for a fair price. It’s been like 4 or 5 months since I got it ever since, I never encountered issues with it until recently when it decided to reboot on its own. I’m not really a tech guy so I don’t know what happened to it. It just rebooted on its own while I was using and when it finally started to boot up, it got stuck on a black screen after the Samsung logo. Sometimes it gets stuck on the logo but most of the time, it’s just black screen. I am hoping that you guys can help me out to bring the phone back to life. Thanks.

Troubleshooting: As I said earlier, this problem could be the doing of some of the apps you installed or it’s a sign of a more serious firmware problem. Let us try to rule out one possibility after another because while this problem seems complex, more often, it’s not and hopefully we can fix it with the steps below.

Step 1: Try to do the soft reset to find out if it can make a difference

There are times when apps and the firmware glitch and when it happens, a lot of things can happen and more often, they’re performance-related. It includes apps crashing, phone lagging and freezing, random and frequent reboots and this–getting stuck on boot screen.

These glitches can be fixed by a simple reboot procedure and we want you to do that, which I think, you already did. If the reboot doesn’t fix the problem, then you should do the soft reset. Don’t worry, it’s a very simple procedure to do. You just have to remove the back cover and then pull the battery out. While the battery is out, press and hold the Power key for a minute. This will drain all stored electricity in some of the components inside and refresh the phone’s memory.

After which, place the back in and then the back cover. Just make sure the battery is properly inserted with connectors touching each other. Lastly, try to turn the phone on and see if it can boot up successfully.

Step 2: Try to reboot your phone in Safe mode to see if third-party apps caused it

Now, we’re in the point wherein we need to rule out the possibility that one or some of the third-party apps is causing the problem. The rationale behind this procedure is this: if the problem is caused by a third-party app, then your J3 should be able to boot up in safe mode successfully considering the fact that third-party elements won’t be loaded during boot up. So, here’s how you start your Galaxy J3 in safe mode:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

Now, if the phone successfully started up in this mode, then our suspicion that at least a third-party causes the problem is confirmed. In that case, move on to the next step, otherwise, jump to step 4.

Step 3: Find the app that’s causing the problem and uninstall it

You only have to do this if your phone has successfully started up in Safe mode because it means that one or some of the third-party app you installed or downloaded from the Play Store is causing the problem. All you gotta do is find it and then uninstall it. I suggest you begin your search from apps you installed when the problem started. Once you already have a suspect, follow these steps to uninstall it:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap the desired application in the default list or tap Menu icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
Tap Uninstall.
Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

If this doesn’t work or if your phone cannot boot in safe mode, then move on to the next step.

Step 4: Try booting up your phone in Recovery mode and wipe cache partition

This procedure will delete all system caches but they will actually be replaced with new ones, so you’re not just deleting them. The point is, this procedure is very important because it makes sure the caches the firmware uses are not corrupt or obsolete.

I’m not sure if your Galaxy J3 received a firmware update because you said it just rebooted on its own after that, it could no longer continue to the home screen. Firmware updates have a tendency to corrupt caches and when it happens, performance issues may occur. So, you need to rule out the possibility that this problem is caused by some of the caches that got corrupted. Here’s how you do it:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

It may take a few more seconds than usual before the phone becomes active so if the phone cannot immediately boot up, just wait a little longer. But 3 minutes is long enough to know if the phone is still stuck on the boot screen or not. So, if it cannot reach the home screen in 3 minutes, it may still be stuck.

Step 5: Make a backup of your important files and data and reset your phone

After doing the previous steps and the phone still cannot continue booting up, then it’s time to just backup your files and data and bring the phone back to its factory default settings. I suggest you reset it through the Recovery mode as both the cache and data partitions will be reformatted so it’s more thorough than the reset via Settings menu. However, make sure you know your Google ID and password as you may be locked out of your phone after the reset if you don’t. Better yet, disable the Factory Reset Protection (FRP) but following these steps:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Accounts.
Tap Google.
Tap your Google ID email address. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
Tap Menu.
Tap Remove account.
Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

Now, to reset your phone via Android system recovery, follow these steps:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key 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 the problem gets fixed by one of these steps but if it won’t, then it’s time you brought the phone to a shop and have the tech take a look at it for you.

How to troubleshoot Galaxy J3 that keeps freezing, lagging and gets stuck on the logo

Problem: It’s been a year now that I bought this cheap phone when my Galaxy S5 was lost. It’s the J3; it was cheap and a really good replacement phone. Well anyways, I was planning to buy a new but this phone never gave up on me and it was working really great for a year. Then, it started to freeze, lag and just yesterday, it can no longer reach the home screen. I didn’t expect much from it and I thought it might be time to buy a new one but I just want it to work just in case I’m gonna need it again. So can you help me? Thank you.

Troubleshooting: It is clear enough that your phone’s performance was the one that suffered from this issue. First, it slowed down and then this–stuck on the boot screen. While the Galaxy J3 has received positive review for its specs despite being an entry-level device, we can already expect it to slow down after months of use and that’s what happened. So, here’s what I suggest you do about it:

Step 1: Find out immediately if third-party apps have something to do with it

We need to know how the phone behaves when all third-party apps are disabled that’s why it’s imperative you start your phone up in safe mode. Now, if the phone successfully boots up in this mode, it is almost certain third-party apps caused the problem especially if the freezes and the lags disappeared.

In this case, finding the app that’s causing the problem and uninstalling it would be your best bet but I know it sounds easier than said. So, try to find suspects starting from the apps you installed shortly prior to the freezing and lagging.

If backing up your data and files and doing the reset is a lot quicker and easier for you, then you should do it for as long as the phone has successfully booted up in safe mode. Reset your device via the Settings menu, here’s how…

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.
From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap 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 key twice to return to the Settings menu, then tap General Management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Factory data reset.
Tap Reset device.
If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
Tap Continue.
Tap Delete all.

However, if the phone cannot boot up in safe mode, then the next might help.

Step 2: Attempt to boot your phone in Recovery mode

We simply want to know if it’s still capable of booting up in this mode because it can, then we are almost sure the problem can be fixed. You just have to try wiping the cache partition and if that won’t then you must go with the reset. Of course, your files and data won’t be backed up so it’s up to you if you want to go with it bring the phone to the tech.

I hope this troubleshooting guide can help you.

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.

What to do if your Samsung Galaxy J3 is stuck on the logo and won’t boot up [Troubleshooting Guide]

Getting stuck on the logo while booting up is a sign of a firmware issue but whether or not it’s serious or minor, we have to dig deeper to know. We have received a lot of complaints from the owners of the Samsung Galaxy J3 that have experienced this kind of problem. According to many of them, the phone just won’t boot up or can’t get past the logo for some reason.

In this post, I will tackle this kind of problem with the Galaxy J3 being the subject or our troubleshooting. We will look into possibilities and causes and try to rule out each one of them so that we can come up with a conclusion that may point out what the real culprit is. If you own this nice phone and are currently bugged by a similar problem, then continue reading below as this post may be able to help you fix it.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 that gets stuck on the logo during boot up

The purpose of this troubleshooting guide is for us to know what the problem is so we can do something about it. This kind of problem hinders you from using your phone so it has to be fixed as soon as possible. Before we jump into our troubleshooting steps, here’s one of the messages we received that best explains this issue:

Problem: Hi guys. I hope y’all doing great. I have a problem with my phone and I think it’s a serious one. But before I tell you what it is, I just want you to know that I’m always taking good care of all my devices and this one hasn’t been dropped nor submerged in water so it’s neither physical nor liquid damage. My phone is a Galaxy J3, it’s cheaper compared to other Galaxy devices but it gets the job done. However, a few days back, it rebooted on its own and could no longer boot up or reach the home screen. It gets stuck on the logo when I reboot it and it stays there until the battery is drained out and yes, I’ve tried leaving it alone until the battery ran out. Since then I haven’t been able to use it so I need your help to fix this. What must I do?

Troubleshooting: Please go through the steps below to try and fix this kind of problem with your Galaxy J3.

Step 1: Reboot your phone in safe mode so third-party apps will be disabled

It’s always possible that one or some of the third-party apps on your phone is causing this problem. We’ve seen a lot of cases like this that were caused by third-party apps so we have to tackle this possibility first and rule it out. By booting your phone in safe mode, you’re temporarily disabling all third-party apps so if the problem is caused by one of them, your phone should be able to boot up successfully. Here’s how to start your J3 in safe mode:

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

If the phone successfully booted up in this mode, then it confirms our theory that at least a third-party app is preventing your phone from booting up successfully. So, the next thing you should do is find the app that’s causing the problem, clear its cache and data first, and if that won’t work, uninstall it.

How to clear app cache and data on Galaxy J3

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap the desired application in the default list or tap Menu icon > Show system apps to display preinstalled apps.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
Tap Clear cache.

How to uninstall app from your Galaxy J3

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap the desired application in the default list or tap Menu icon > Show system apps to display preinstalled apps.
Tap Uninstall.
Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

Every after you cleared the cache and data of an app, you have to try to boot your phone normally to see if the problem gets fixed, if not, then you have to boot in safe mode again, uninstall the app and try to normally start your phone. You may have to uninstall more than one app to know which of them is causing the problem.

Step 2: Reboot your phone in Recovery Mode and wipe cache partition

You only have to do this if your phone cannot boot if safe mode successfully because it might be a problem with the firmware. Phones that have issues with their firmware can sure boot in recovery mode as it is their fail-safe. However, instead of doing a reset, we have to try to wipe the cache partition first to delete all system caches so they’ll be replaced. It’s an effective method to fix this kind of problem but there’s no guarantee. The good thing when it works is that, you don’t have to go through the hassle of backing up all your files and data as none of them will be delete. Here’s how you do it on your Galaxy J3:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

It will take a little bit longer for the phone to reboot after wiping the cache partition as it will rebuild caches that were deleted. However, if the phone is still stuck on the logo after this, then you have no other option but to reset your phone.

Step 3: Reboot in Recovery Mode and Master Reset your device

Assuming the phone can successfully boot up in safe mode but still gets stuck on the logo if started in normal mode, then you can still backup your files and data and then disable the Factory Reset Protection prior to the reset. To backup your data, simply sync your phone with your Google account and then copy your files to your SD card or computer. The FRP, however, has to be disabled so you won’t be locked out of your device after the reset especially if you don’t know what your Google ID and password is. This is how you do it:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Accounts.
Tap Google.
Tap your Google ID email address. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
Tap Menu.
Tap Remove account.
Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

After this, I suggest you reset your phone through the Settings menu to prevent further complications…

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.
From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap 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 key twice to return to the Settings menu, then tap General Management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Factory data reset.
Tap Reset device.
If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
Tap Continue.
Tap Delete all.

However, if your phone cannot boot up in safe mode, then you have to reset your phone via the Recovery mode but sad to say all your files and data will be deleted and can no longer be restored.

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key 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 this troubleshooting guide can help you.

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.

How to fix your Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) that became very slow [Troubleshooting Guide]

Read to understand why a supposedly fast entry-level device like the #Samsung Galaxy #J3 (2016) becomes so slow after a few months of use and what you should do to make it run faster again.

Performance issues are among the things you may experience if you own a smartphone. In the case of the Samsung Galaxy J3, the problem might be due to some factors which may have something to do with its technical specifications and the apps the owner used when the issue occurred. It’s also possible that some of the apps crashed to the point that the operation of the firmware got affected or it could be an issue with the firmware itself.

In this post, I will tackle this issue as we’ve received quite a lot of complaints from Galaxy J3 owners who reportedly experienced having their device run very slow. There could be other performance issues you may encounter and we will have to tackle them in our future posts. Now, for owners who have the problem, continue reading as this post may be able to help you regain the original performance of your device.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 that’s running very slow

The purpose of this troubleshooting guide is for you to know what the problem is all about, why it occurs and how to get rid of the error message. There’s no guarantee of a fix especially if the problem is caused by a serious firmware or hardware issue, however, don’t let it stop you from doing what you can in bringing your phone back to its original performance. Now, before we go to our troubleshooting, here’s one of the messages we received from our readers…

Problem: Hi guys. My phone is the Galaxy J3 and recently I noticed that it doesn’t load apps as quick as it once was. For instance, before when I open view my text messages, it only takes a second or two to open the app but now it takes forever and when it finally launches, the phone seems to lag. It also happens to other apps like the Gallery and Camera and others. I’m not really sure what the problem really is but my phone annoyingly slow and I just want it to run like before. Can you help? Thanks.

Now that I’ve shown you how this problem happens, it’s time we jumped right into our troubleshooting and here are the steps:

Step 1: Reboot your Galaxy J3 in Safe mode to see if performance improves

Before we actually do some troubleshooting procedures that may have direct impact on your phone’s overall performance, it’s better that we try to see if the third-party apps installed on your phone have something to do with the problem because if they do, then we’re already halfway through solving the problem.

This is how you start your phone up in safe mode:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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 your device is in this mode, continue using it and compare its performance when it’s in normal mode. If there’s a noticeable difference, that is if it executes commands quicker, then the problem is caused by one or some of the third-party apps.

Find the culprit and then try to clear its cache and data to reset it and if that won’t work, you have no other option but to uninstall it.

This is how you reset an app on the J3:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap Application manager
Tap the suspected app.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
Tap Clear cache.

To uninstall an app, just follow the same procedure but hit uninstall.

I understand that it’s easier said than done, so if it’s difficult to pinpoint which app is causing the problem and if you think backing up your files and data would be quicker than finding the culprit, then I suggest you do the reset instead. But please note that you only do this if the phone’s performance in safe mode is better than when it’s in normal mode because it’s apparent that it’s a third-party app that’s causing the problem and the reset should fix it.

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.
From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Backup and reset.
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 Factory data reset.
Tap Reset device.
If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
Tap Continue.
Tap Delete all.

After the reset, don’t install anything yet and continue your observation to know if the phone works properly now. After which, restore your data and files but continue to observe the performance of your device.

However, if the performance of your phone still sucks while in safe mode, then it’s possible that it’s experiencing a firmware issue, so move on to the next step.

Step 2: Delete the system caches as they may have been corrupted

There are always times when system caches get corrupted and when the firmware continues to use them, there would be adverse effects on your phone’s performance. A system cache is a temporary file created by the system for each service or app that runs. It helps to make everything buttery smooth but when it gets corrupted, errors may occur or your phone may suffer from freezing, lagging, slowing down, rebooting or even shutting down without apparent reason.

It’s better that you have to delete the caches from time to time so that the system will replace them with new files but since you don’t have access to individual caches, you would have to delete the entire content of the cache partition and you can do that by booting your phone in Recovery mode:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

It may take a little longer for your phone to reboot after clearing the cache partition but just wait for it to become active and then continue your observation if there’s an improvement in the performance. If it’s still slow, then the last step should take care of the problem.

Step 3: Master reset your Galaxy J3

At this point, it’s better to resort to a more general troubleshooting procedure as you’ve already done the basic but to no avail. This procedure will reformat the cache and data partitions as well as delete all your files and data and bring the phone back to its default factory settings. So, make sure you make a backup of your important files, pictures, music, etc. as they will be deleted and can no longer be recovered after this:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up button and then press and hold the Home key. While holding both, press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo appears on the screen, release all three keys. It may take a minute before the Android recovery screen appears.
While on Android recovery screen, use the Volume Down key to highlight options, in this case, highlight the option ‘wipe data/factory reset.’
Press the Power key to choose the highlighted option.
Press the Volume Down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ option is highlighted.
Press the Power key to confirm the reset.
Once the reset is complete, press the Power key to choose ‘Reboot system now.’
The phone will restart a little longer than usual and the reset is finished.

I hope this guide can help you make your phone run faster again.

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.

How to troubleshoot Galaxy J3 that’s quickly losing battery charge

Hello everyone! Welcome to our latest #GalaxyJ3 troubleshooting post. If there’s one issue that won’t go away with today’s smartphones, it’s the one we are discussing in this post today — quick battery drain. In a lot of cases we’ve examined, battery drain issue has a higher chance of occurring once the device has reached a year. This is usually due to natural decay that happens inside the battery itself. In some cases, external factors such as bad apps, poor app- or operating system-coding may be behind the trouble. Below is a short list of troubleshooting steps that we feel are applicable for cases mentioned in this post. Be sure to do more research on how to eliminate or minimize battery drain issue in your device if you’ve already tried all that we include here.

If you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page.

When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Below are specific topics we’re bringing for you today:

Problem 1: Galaxy J3 drains battery quickly, won’t recharge when battery is below 5%

Hello. I own the Samsung J3, and have been disappointed in its performance for the past 6 months. Once it was a perfect phone, with an easy and long lasting battery life and quick operations. Now it takes 10 seconds to load ANYTHING even at 100% battery, and once the battery falls below 5%, I know to prepare for at least a half-day without my phone. This is the worst issue with a phone I have ever seen. IT SIMPLY WILL NOT CHARGE BACK FROM BELOW 5%. Nothing I do, besides completely arbitrary cable/wall plug combinations, will bring this phone back from the dead. I have been waiting at work for an hour and it still hasn’t raised from the “lightning bolt (please charge your phone” symbol. It’s not even at 1% charged. That is ridiculous. Please let me know what I am doing wrong. I am using the samsung wall charger and cable that came with the phone. The cable will sometimes charge from my car, so I know the tech is working, it’s the phone or phone battery that has a huge problem. Let me know. Thanks. — William

Solution: Hi William. Smartphones can become problematic for a lot of different reasons so unless an exhaustive diagnostics (both software and hardware) is performed, there’s a slim chance of ever finding the actual reason for your own issue. Though your problem appears commonplace, the exact cause may be device-specific, which means that there may be a unique factor in your J3 that directly or indirectly makes the symptoms show.

For example, the real reason why charging appears to be erratic may be coming from a fault in the hardware side, particularly the charging port. In some similar cases, a bad third party app may be to blame. Solutions for an issue like this don’t vary much though so the way to proceed is by trying relevant software troubleshooting steps. If they won’t work, you must then either replace the battery or send the phone in for repair. Below are the possible solutions that you must try.

Refresh the system cache

Some boot-related problems are fixed by wiping the cache partition, where the system cache is located. Updates and app installations can sometimes mess up the system cache, which in turn, leads to all sorts of problems. To see if a bad system cache is causing the trouble, make sure to wipe the cache partition first. Here’s how:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight wipe cache partition.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Observe the phone in safe mode

Some apps can cause problems too. Keep in mind that not all apps are created with the same skill and resources. Some may end up successful in terms of financial rewards for the developer while others may not. Others may work as intended but after some time, due to lack of time or resources, may no longer be optimized come a new Android update. As is often the case for outdated apps, they end up causing problems for the operating system. To see if your phone’s woes are being caused by a third party app, boot the phone to safe mode. Here’s how:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

Remember, safe mode is not a solution in itself. It’s your way to know if our suspicion that a third party app is to blame is true. Safe mode blocks third party apps and services so if your phone charges normally or works as expected, the problem must be caused by a bad app.

To identify the problematic app, you must uninstall apps until the issue is gone. The cycle should be: uninstall, observe, uninstall, observe.

Recalibrate the operating system

Since your problem seems to involve the battery, it’s also a good idea to calibrate Android so it detects the actual battery level of the battery properly. After some time, the operating system (Android) may get confused in tracking down battery consumption or charge so it’s good if you can help see to it that it does. It’s simple and can be done easily. Here’s how:

Drain the battery completely. This means using your device until it powers down by its own and the battery level reads 0%.
Charge the phone until it reaches 100%. Be sure to use original charging equipment for your iPhone and let it charge up completely. Do not unplug your device for at least two more hours and also don’t use it while charging.
After the elapsed time, unplug your device.
Perform a warm restart by holding the Power and Home buttons simultaneously until the Apple logo appears.
Use your J3 until it completely ran out of power again.
Repeat steps 1-5.

Wipe the phone via factory reset

Factory reset should be the last software troubleshooting step for this case. This procedure will bring all software settings back to their defaults so it’s a good way to get rid of glitches and bugs that may have developed over time. Factory state software is generally free of bugs that can cause the battery to malfunction. Be sure to check how charging works immediately after you factory reset the device.

If the phone works fine after a factory reset but not when you restore your apps, one of your apps must be problematic.

These are the steps on how to factory reset your J3:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Backup and restore.
If desired, tap Backup 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 key twice to return to the Settings menu, then tap General Management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Factory data reset.
Tap Reset device.
If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
Tap Continue.
Tap Delete all.

Replace the battery

The good thing with J3 is the fact that it features a removable battery pack. Thus, for this case, it’s a good idea to replace the battery if all the steps provided above won’t work at all. If you know someone that has a J3 with a working battery, try to use its battery and see how it works in your phone. Otherwise, just proceed by buying a new battery.

Send the phone in

If nothing works at all, you’re not in luck. There must be a hardware malfunction that causes the symptoms you’re experiencing right now. Contact Samsung and let them fix the issue. Otherwise, have it checked by a good third party repair center.

Problem 2: Galaxy J3 only charges until 91%, shuts down on its own

Hi. When I plug my phone in to charge, it will charge up to a certain point and then it must shut down because I will see it booting up on it’s own. Then after a while, I’ll go to use it and it won’t be on. I can’t get it to come on again unless I take it off the charger, pull the battery, replace the battery, then turn it on. It only charges if it appears to 91%. Any idea what might be causing this? It’s really weird. Sometimes it will shut down and restart several times on it’s own. I’m think when it gets to 91% it shuts down and doesn’t come back on by itself. It will charge up to 80 something percent before shutting itself off and then on I’m thinking. I’m at 90% right now and it’s still on. Anyway, kind of a weird problem I think. Thank you for any help you might be able to provide. — Peter

Solution: Hi Peter. The same set of solutions may work in your case. Sure, the circumstances may be different from William’s above but any of our suggestions for him must work in yours too. Just skip the troubleshooting step that you’ve done if you’ve already performed it before contacting us.

Also, make sure to install any Android or app updates once they become available. Remember, updates don’t only bring cosmetic changes but fixes to known bugs as well. Although developers would want to minimize battery consumption when designing their apps, some may also release patches to fix inefficient codes. Be sure not to skip any update if possible.

To add, you can also try to see if you can remember anything that you may have done differently. For example, if the problem coincided after installing a new third party app, it may save you some time if you jump straight to uninstalling that app and observing the phone.

Engage with us

If you are one of the users who encounters a problem with your device, let us know. We offer solutions for Android-related problems for free so if you have an issue with your Android device, simply fill in the short questionnaire in this link and we will try to publish our answers in the next posts. We cannot guarantee a quick response so if your issue is time sensitive, please find another way to resolve your problem.

If you find this post helpful, please help us by spreading the word to your friends. TheDroidGuy has social network presence as well so you may want to interact with our community in our Facebook and Google+ pages.

Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) keeps popping up “Unfortunately, Internet has stopped” error [Troubleshooting Guide]

The error message “Unfortunately, Internet has stopped” that your Samsung Galaxy J3 keeps showing basically notifies you that the built-in web browser has stopped and it doesn’t necessarily mean the internet connectivity got interrupted or something. Needless to say, it’s an issue with an app and not with one of the core functions or services.

App issues might be caused by other apps and while pre-installed apps like Internet always works well with other built-in applications, there are third-party elements that may trigger a conflict, thus, resulting to this error. There are also times that it’s just a problem with the app itself or an issue with the firmware due to some files that may have been corrupted, changed, deleted or became incompatible with the system. Read on to know more about this error message and how to get rid of it.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 with error “Unfortunately, Internet has stopped”

Problem: I got this relatively cheap phone called J3 and my first two months of use was good until a few days back when my internet stopped. Well, at least, that’s what the box that keeps showing says, “Unfortunately, Internet has stopped.” I cannot browse because every time I do, the error shows up. Don’t have any idea why this is happening in the first place let alone a clue on how to fix it. Can you help?

Troubleshooting: You may not be able to browse because the app you’re using to browse the web keeps crashing but it appears that you still have an active internet connection. But let’s set that aside for now so we can troubleshoot your device and get rid of the error…

Step 1: Clear the cache and data of the Internet app

This will reset the app back to its factory default settings but will also delete your bookmarks and browsing history. Nonetheless, it’s a necessary procedure you need to do before you proceed with your troubleshooting.

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap Application manager
Tap Internet.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
Tap Clear cache.

After this one, try to open the Internet app to see if it still crashes and if so, move on to the next step. However, based on reports from our readers, this might be the one procedure you have to undergo and the problem may be fixed.

Step 2: Restart your device in Safe mode to know if third-party apps are causing the error

This one will definitely isolate the problem; it will tell you whether or not your third-party apps (ones you downloaded from the Play Store or installed manually) have something to do with it. This is how you boot your J3 in safe mode:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

If the error gets fixed in this mode, then it’s confirmed that the cause of the problem is one or some of the third-party apps. Find the culprit and uninstall it, otherwise, move on to the next step.

Step 3: Delete the system caches so that they’ll be replaced

If the error message keeps showing up while the phone is in safe mode, then the problem is with the firmware or, at least, it’s time to look into this possibility and rule it out before doing a reset. The next procedure I want to show you is about how to delete the system caches and force the phone to create new ones that are completely compatible with the firmware.

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

If the problem continues, however, then you have no other option but to reset your device.

Step 4: You must reset your phone to bring it back to factory default settings

At this point, a reset is necessary. You’ve done the basics but they didn’t return a favorable result. A reset, however, will delete all your personal files and data so make sure to make a backup of things you don’t want to lose.

After backing up, disable the anti-theft security feature and then do the reset. This is how to disable it…

From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Accounts.
Tap Google.
Tap your Google ID email address. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
Tap More.
Tap Remove account.
Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

And this is how you reset your device…

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up button and then press and hold the Home key. While holding both, press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo appears on the screen, release all three keys. It may take a minute before the Android recovery screen appears.
While on Android recovery screen, use the Volume Down key to highlight options, in this case, highlight the option ‘wipe data/factory reset.’
Press the Power key to choose the highlighted option.
Press the Volume Down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ option is highlighted.
Press the Power key to confirm the reset.
Once the reset is complete, press the Power key to choose ‘Reboot system now.’
The phone will restart a little longer than usual and the reset is finished.

I hope we were able to help you with your problem.

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.

How to fix a Galaxy J3 that restarts on its own when playing games

While not designed to be a top device for gaming, the Galaxy J3 is still expected to perform decently for certain games. In today’s troubleshooting article, we’ll show you the steps that you can try if your J3 happens to restart during games.

Before we proceed, we want to remind you that if you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page. When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Problem: Galaxy J3 restarts on its own when playing games

Greetings, In short, my phone restarts when I play games. I should mention that this phone is abou 3-4 months old only. The games worked fine, I had no problems until a few days ago. Now, I cannot play any game at all and I mean any. There’s no error message or anything. The phone simply restarts. I have enough 5 GB of free space remaining in my internal memory and 8 on SD card, so I doubt memory is a problem. I have cleared out cache and updated all the apps just in case, but the problem is still there. I am a bit upset, considering the fact that the phone is relatively new and that I’m taking a good care of it.

Solution: There’s a list of possible reasons why your Galaxy J3 reboots on its own when your playing a game. To know where the problem lies, you need to narrow down the factors.

Undo any recent change

If the games worked fine before, something must have changed in the system that triggers it to restart while gaming. This can be anything and since only you knows the full history of your device, there’s nothing much that we can do to help. If, for example, you tried to install a new app or tampered with the official software, you should try to undo them to see if that will help. At times, rooting a device may also cause problems so, if you did root your J3 consider unrooting it. The idea is for you to reverse whatever you did differently before the problem started.

Uninstall app

If the problem coincided after installing a new app, that might be the reason for the problem. Erase it from the system and check if there’s any difference.

If you are having a problem playing with a pre-installed game, you can also try to see what happens when you play it on Safe Mode. If a third party app is causing the trouble, you should know.

To restart your J3 to safe mode:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

When your J3 is on safe mode, all downloaded apps will be suspended. If you are able to play a pre-installed game normally on safe mode but not on normal mode, you bet an app is causing it. To identify which of your apps is causing the trouble, you should boot the phone back to safe mode and follow these steps:

Boot to safe mode.
Check for the problem.
Once you’ve confirmed that a third party app is to blame, you can start uninstalling apps individually. We suggest that you begin with the most recent ones you added.
After you uninstall an app, restart the phone to normal mode and check for the problem.
If your Galaxy J3 continues to restart when gaming, repeat steps 1-4.

Check for overheating

Does your J3 become uncomfortably warm when gaming? It’s possible that the reason why it’s restarting is caused by overheating. To prevent from damaging the system, your device is designed to shut down when a certain heat level is detected inside. Overheating itself is just a mechanism that protects the system and can signal a deeper problem. For instance, the real reason why the device restarts or shuts off on its own can be due to performance limitation. Some games can be very demanding and your J3 may not be able to meet the requirements. This can force the system to overwork, causing the system to heat up due to high computing demand.

If your J3 regularly overheats, it can shorten the life of the battery and damage the hardware in the long run. Avoid playing games that’s too demanding for it.

Check app compatibility

While some games may install in a particular device, it does not necessarily mean it will run well. Sometimes, new features to apps or to Android can cause problems. Apps may not sync well with Android due to coding changes. If the games you have trouble with right now worked on this device before, it’s possible that the new OS, or the new app update has developed a bug. Unfortunately, when it comes to situations like this, an end user is helpless. You can either wait for a new update to fix the issue, or stop using the app.

Factory reset

This is a drastic troubleshooting step but can be an effective way to fix an issue that may be coming from a temporary OS bug. Since there’s no way for us to know exactly what the real problem is, you’ll have to do trial-and-error to see any difference. So, if you want to know if the cause is due to a temporary OS problem, you should wipe the phone with factory reset.

To factory reset your Galaxy J3:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Cloud and accounts.
Tap Backup and restore.
If desired, tap Backup 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 key twice to return to the Settings menu, then tap General Management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Factory data reset.
Tap Reset device.
If you have screen lock turned on, enter your PIN or password.
Tap Continue.
Tap Delete all.

NOTE: Be sure to backup your personal data before doing a factory reset.

Report bug

If you suspect that that the issue is app-related, or if nothing works after a factory reset, you must report the problem to the app developers. Then, all you can do is wait. Hopefully, the issue will be fixed soon.

Engage with us

If you are one of the users who encounters a problem with your device, let us know. We offer solutions for Android-related problems for free so if you have an issue with your Android device, simply fill in the short questionnaire in this link and we will try to publish our answers in the next posts. We cannot guarantee a quick response so if your issue is time sensitive, please find another way to resolve your problem.

If you find this post helpful, please help us by spreading the word to your friends. TheDroidGuy has social network presence as well so you may want to interact with our community in our Facebook and Google+ pages.

How to fix Samsung Galaxy J3 with black screen of death issue (easy steps)

The black screen of death (BSoD) manifests in different ways but the most common of them all is when the phone’s screen remains blank no matter what you do but the phone is actually showing signs that it’s powered on and still working. For instance, when messages or calls come in, you can hear the phone play the notification tone but the screen won’t turn on. The second most common sign of BSoD is when the phone seems completely dead.

Some of our readers with the Samsung Galaxy J3 have contacted us regarding this problem that’s why we have to address this once again even if we’ve already tackled similar issues in the past. This is for the benefit of our readers who reached out to us asking for help. So, if you’re one of the owners of this phone and are currently bugged by this problem, continue reading as this post may help you fix it.

For owners who are looking for a solution to a different problem, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common problems with this device. Browse through the page to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you need further assistance don’t hesitate to contact us by filling up our Android issues questionnaire.

Step by step guide to fixing black screen of death on Galaxy J3

More often than not, the black screen of death is a result of a system crash and while it may seem like a serious problem, it’s actually not. You can fix it using the method I will share with you in a little while. However, if this problem resulted from an attempt to modify the firmware, then it’s most likely that the process failed or you may have installed a ROM that’s corrupt or lacking files. You may need to reinstall the stock firmware to be able to use your phone again.

But if this issue started for no apparent reason, then here’s what you should do to fix it…

If you’re using the original or the 2016 variant of this device, all you gotta do is remove the battery from the phone and then press the Power key for a minute. This will refresh your phone’s memory and may boot it up the moment you re-insert the battery and press the Power key.
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However, if you have the 2017 variant which has a non-removable battery, you just have to press and hold the Volume Down button and the Power key simultaneously for 10 seconds. It’s called the Forced Restart and has similar effect as with the battery pull procedure. If the phone does not respond to this method, try to repeat the process but this press and hold the Volume Down button first and without letting go of it, press and hold the Power key. Keep both keys held for 10 seconds and see if the phone reboots.

Now, if your device doesn’t respond to this method, then you will have to try troubleshooting it. Don’t worry, I will walk you through every step of the way until we’ve exhausted everything.

RELEVANT POSTS:

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 with black screen of death

In this troubleshooting guide, we will try to determine what the problem is all about so that we can try to formulate a solution that might fix the problem and prevent it from happening again in the future. There are a few things you need to do to rule out every possibility. With all that being said, try to go through the procedures below…

Make sure it’s not due to liquid damage

As the owner, you should be the first one to know what happened to your phone and why it’s not responding at all. But there are times when issues like this just occur out of the blue so the first thing you need to check is the possibility that the problem is due to liquid damage:

Look into the USB / charger port to find traces of water.
Use a cotton swab to clean the area or insert a small piece of tissue to absorb the moist.
You may also blow into it to get rid of any foreign materials that might have interfered with circuits.
Check the Liquid Damage Indicator (LDI) to see if it’s tripped or not. Just remove the SIM card tray and look into the SIM slot to find a small sticker.
If the LDI is white, then there’s no liquid damage but if it turned red or purple, it’s obvious that the cause of the problem is liquid.

In case it’s liquid damage, bring the phone to the service center to have a technician check it for you.

Try charging your phone to know how it responds

After making sure this problem isn’t due to liquid damage, you should try charging your device to see if it responds to that. It’s possible that this problem is just due to a drained battery that’s why your device isn’t responding no matter you do.

So, plug the charger in to a working wall outlet and connect your phone to it using the original cable. Regardless whether the phone shows the charging symbol on the screen or not, allow it to charge for at least ten minutes provided it’s not heating up. After which, try to turn it on to see if it responds. If still not, then do the Forced Restart once again but this time while the device is connected to its charger.

After this and the phone is still not responding, move on to the next procedure.

Attempt to boot your phone up in Safe mode

The most important thing at this moment is to see your phone power up its display and reach the home screen because if that’s the case, you can already consider the problem fixed. So, try running the phone in safe mode where everything is loaded except for third-party apps:

Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

If the phone is still not responding to this procedure, then do the next one.

Try booting the phone up in Recovery mode

The Android system recovery is the fail-safe of phones running Android. The components will all be powered up but the user interface is not. Even if the phone has some serious firmware issues, it may still be able to boot up in this mode. It’s important that you do this procedure to know if the problem is with the hardware or not. If you can successfully boot your phone up in this mode, you can do a couple of things that have a significant impact and that’s to wipe the cache partition and Master Reset.

How to boot your phone in Recovery mode and wipe cache partition

Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

How to do the Master reset on your Galaxy J3

Assuming you’ve successfully booted the phone up in Recovery mode, then it’s clear that the hardware is fine. At this point, the issue is reduced to not booting up instead of not turning on. You can fix it by doing the master reset but take note all your files and data will be deleted if you did this…

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key 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.

However, the phone cannot boot up in this mode, then it’s time to bring it to the service center as it might be a hardware problem after all.

I hope that this troubleshooting guide can help you one way or another. If you still need our help, feel free to contact us anytime.

Posts you may also like to read:

How to fix a Samsung Galaxy J3 that won’t turn on, stuck on black screen (easy steps)

When your Samsung Galaxy J3 refuses to power on, it likely denotes a hardware issue otherwise, software malfunction. If the problem occurs after you dropped your phone or got it wet, then most likely it’s hardware damage and therefore needs repair or service. On the other hand, you may consider it a software issue if it suddenly occurs to your phone that couldn’t power on without any prior instances of dropping or liquid exposure on the phone. In this case, your phone has power but something is making it stuck on black screen. To fix the problem, you will need to identify the culprit and get rid of it.

For software-related issues like when your phone is stuck on black screen, there are some workarounds you can try to troubleshoot software errors on your Samsung Galaxy J3 that might have prevented it from booting up. This post will walk you through the entire process, so go ahead and attempt to save your phone before procuring a new one.

For owners who are looking for a solution to a different problem, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting guide for we have already addressed many of the problems reported by our readers. Find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you still need further assistance, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

Potential solutions to fix Galaxy J7 that won’t turn on or stuck on black screen

Highlighted below are potential solutions and recommended workarounds that can help fix your Samsung Galaxy J3 that won’t power on or has power but couldn’t complete the bootup process as it gets stuck on black screen.

Plug your phone into a wall outlet then let it charge for about 1 hour.

One possibility that you need to consider in this case is that your phone might have completely ran out of battery and therefore, all it needed is a recharge to be able to power up again. The battery indicator may take up to 10 minutes to show up on the phone’s screen especially if the battery was completely drained.

Make sure that all your charging equipment is working to rule charging issue out from the possible causes. If you have an extra charger that’s compatible with your Galaxy J3, try to use it and see if that makes a difference. Also verify that the USB cable is not damaged and the USB connection is firm with very little mobility. Check the USB connections for bent pins or corrosion.

Force your phone to restart while plugged into a charger.

A forced restart works the same as a soft reset that fixes minor software glitches that caused your device to not work as intended. It’s also a safe process since it will not affect your phone data. Here’s what you should do then.

While plugged into a wall outlet, press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons simultaneously for about 10 to 20 seconds or until the Samsung logo appears. This might help if your device is just frozen and stuck on black screen but still has power.

Remove and then replace the battery.

Removing and reinserting the battery might be the solution especially if the problem has something to do with a dislodged battery. Similar to a soft reset and forced restart, battery removal can likewise help fix minor software glitches affecting the phone’s power functions. Here’s how to do so:

Ensure your device is powered off.
Place your phone in face down position.
Use the notch found on the upper-left corner to gently lift and remove the battery cover.
Locate the other notch on the lower-right corner of the battery then lift the battery out.
When the battery is removed, carefully inspect for any sign of damage like swelling or discoloration. If there is none, reinsert the battery.
Be sure to alight the gold battery contacts with the contacts in the battery compartment then gently press it into place.
Align the battery cover then gently press to snap the cover into place.

Then attempt to power on by pressing the Power button for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. If it turns on, then you’re good. If it doesn’t, move on to the next workaround.

Remove external storage media like SD card from your device.

Broken file segments or corrupt contents on the SD card inserted in your phone can also be the root cause. It’s similar to what happens on some computers that couldn’t boot up with the external storage media or peripheral devices attached. To make sure this isn’t causing your trouble, try to remove any microSD card from your phone’s SD card slot and then reattempt to turn it on.

Unmounting the microSD card before removing it is recommended but since this couldn’t be done since your phone is dead in the first place, just go ahead and remove the SD card from the slot. Once the card is removed, press the Power button again until your phone powers on.

Connect your phone to a computer then attempt to restore firmware with Samsung Kies.

If you have an available computer with Samsung Kies software installed, try to use it in saving your device. Connect your Galaxy J3 to your computer using the supplied USB connector and if possible, restore the stock firmware on your device. The process permanently deletes all personal information from your device. Here’s how it’s actually done:

Open Kies on your computer then go to Tools-> Firmware Upgrade and Installation.
Enter your device Model name and then click OK.
Next enter the S/N number of your device and click OK.
Wait for Kies to verify that the feature is available for your device. If it is available, click OK to proceed.
You will see the firmware version along with a note that the information on your device will be permanently deleted during the process. Click OK to continue.
Follow the onscreen instructions to ready your device for emergency recovery.
Put a checkmark on the box next to I have read all of the above information.
Connect your device to Kies.
If prompted, click the Start upgrade button to reinstall the firmware on your device.
Kies will then download and prepare your system to update the firmware. The entire process can take some time to finish depending on your network and computer specs.
Respond to any security prompts and wait until the upgrade process is complete. When it’s finished, click OK.

You may then disconnect your device from your computer or allow it to fully charge before using.

Other Suggestions

Reset your phone system if possible. If you were able to bring your Galaxy J3 back to life after performing the above procedures, then go ahead and reset your Galaxy J3 in recovery mode. Why? Because, something has your phone system to crash and get stuck on black screen. It can be a system bug, corrupt file, or rogue app that’s preventing your device from powering up or finishing the bootup process. Performing a full system reset will eliminate whatever the culprit is and thereby prevents your device from getting stuck again when booting.
Replace the battery. If you suspect that the battery might have been damaged, then try to replace it with a new one and see if that yields a positive outcome.
Inspect the SIM tray slot for damage. Aside from the USB connections and charging equipment, also inspect the Liquid Damage Indicator in the SIM tray slot.

When to escalate the problem?

A defective hardware component on your Samsung Galaxy J3 is most likely to blame if your device still doesn’t power on after doing all prior workarounds. At this point, your next option is either to escalate the problem to Samsung or schedule for a service center visit.

You may contact your carrier or Samsung Support to escalate the issue and seek further recommendations but if calling is not your option or you couldn’t reach or get help from the support team, then just take your device to a service center instead and have it diagnosed by a technician.

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.

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How to fix Samsung Galaxy J3 with “Unfortunately, the process com.android.phone has stopped” error [Troubleshooting Guide]

Processes are actually small apps that are running in the background and assist apps. The error message “Unfortunately, the process com.android.phone has stopped” basically notifies the user that one of the core processes has crashed. More often, this kind of error is triggered by apps that use it. In this case, it’s the dialer or phone application that triggers the error.

In this post, I will tackle this error message with the Samsung Galaxy J3 as the subject of our troubleshooting. We will try to rule out each possibility that may have caused the problem. Please note that the error is often just a symptom or a sign that something isn’t working properly in the background. So, if you own this device and are currently being bugged by the same issue, continue reading below so you would know what to do.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Troubleshooting Galaxy J3 with error “Unfortunately, the process com.android.phone has stopped”

As the owner, you should take a little of your time to try and fix the problem but since we really cannot pinpoint what the cause is, we need to troubleshoot your phone to know why this problem occurs and what needs to be done to get rid of the error message as well as fix the real problem for good. But just be go to the steps, here’s one of the problems from our readers that best describes this error…

Problem: Everytime I dial a phone number there is a box that pops up saying “Unfortunately, the process com.android.phone has stopped.” It started showing up about a couple of days ago but prior to that, I noticed by phone to have slowed down a bit and then there were instances that it would freeze for a second or two. I don’t quite understand why it’s doing this and I understand it might be an app crashing but there’s no app with that name in my phone. Oh by the way, my phone is a Galaxy J3 and I bought it brand new in February. It’s frustrating because I cannot dial a number without being greeted by this error. Please help. Thanks.

Troubleshooting: It’s not the first time that we’ve encountered this problem. In fact, since we started providing support to our readers, we’ve already seen a lot of complaints that are similar to this one. It doesn’t only happen to the Galaxy J3, other Android owners, regardless of the brand and model of the phone, may still encounter this kind of error as it is more of a core android process that’s crashing. That said, here’s what you need to do to troubleshoot your phone plagued by this error:

Step 1: Reboot your Galaxy J3 in safe mode and try making a call

Let’s try to isolate the problem immediately to know if it’s caused by one or some of third-party apps installed on your phone or if it’s an issue with the firmware itself. Booting your phone in safe mode means you’re running it in its diagnostic mode, which disables all third-party app. This is how you start your J3 in safe mode…

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

If the problem still occurs while the phone is in this mode, then it might be an issue with app or the firmware itself. However, if it’s fixed, then there’s one or two third-party app that’s causing it. You have to find that app and uninstall it to fix the problem. I understand it’s easier said than done but begin your search from app installations that happen to be in the same timeline as the problem started to occur. You may uninstall more than one app but if that’s what it takes to fix this problem, then it’s worth it.

Step 2: Clear the cache and data of the process and app that’s using it

We need to reset both the process that’s crashing as well as the app that’s using it. So, in this case, we will be clearing the cache and data of both the process com.android.phone and the Phone app. But before you actually do that, make a backup of your contacts as well as your call logs if necessary, then follow these steps:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap Application manager
Tap the com.android.phone.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
Tap Clear cache.

Just follow the same steps in resetting the phone app but look for Phone instead of com.android.phone. After resetting them, restart your phone to normal mode to refresh its memory. If the problem still occurs, then do the next step.

Step 3: Delete the system cache so they’ll be replaced

We’ve seen a lot of times that system caches get corrupted for some reason and it often occurs when the firmware is updated to a new version. They can also be corrupted when the phone suffers other firmware issues that have impact on the performance of the phone. That’s why it’s better to delete them more often so the system will replace them.

Since you don’t have access to individual caches, you should boot your phone in recovery mode and wipe the cache partition from there. Don’t worry, none of your data will be deleted. Here’s how you do it:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

It may take a little longer for the phone to boot up after this but wait until the device becomes fully active and then try to make a call to see if the error still shows up and if so, then you have no other option but to do the next step.

Step 4: Backup your data and reset your phone

At this point, you really need to reset your phone as the problem might be caused by a firmware issue that just started. Backup all your personal files and data such as your contacts, pictures, videos, etc., then disable anti-theft by following these steps:

From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Accounts.
Tap Google.
Tap your Google ID email address. If you have multiple accounts setup, you will need to repeat these steps for each account.
Tap More.
Tap Remove account.
Tap REMOVE ACCOUNT.

Now, you’re ready to reset your device…

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up button and then press and hold the Home key. While holding both, press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo appears on the screen, release all three keys. It may take a minute before the Android recovery screen appears.
While on Android recovery screen, use the Volume Down key to highlight options, in this case, highlight the option ‘wipe data/factory reset.’
Press the Power key to choose the highlighted option.
Press the Volume Down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ option is highlighted.
Press the Power key to confirm the reset.
Once the reset is complete, press the Power key to choose ‘Reboot system now.’
The phone will restart a little longer than usual and the reset is finished.

The error message “Unfortunately, the process com.android.phone has stopped” might also be a sign of corrupt firmware. So, if the error still shows up after the reset, then the firmware has to be reinstalled. Bring the phone to the store or shop and let the tech take care of it for you.

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.

How to fix your Samsung Galaxy J3 (2017) that keeps showing “Unfortunately, Google App has stopped” error [Troubleshooting Guide]

We received quite a lot of messages from our readers who own the Samsung Galaxy J3 complaining about the error message “Unfortunately, Google App has stopped” which according to them, keeps on showing without apparent reason or cause. Obviously, the error message is notifying you about a certain Google App that stopped working but the funny thing is, “Google App” cover a group of apps and services that run in the background.

One of the most common effects of this error message is a non functioning keyboard. Others said their phones became really slow before and after the error showed up. Whatever the signs maybe, the error remains the same and we may be able to fix it and that’s the very purpose of this post. If you’re one of the owners of the J3 and are currently experiencing the same issue, then continue reading as this article may be able to help you.

For owners who are looking for a solution to a different problem, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting guide for we have already addressed many of the problems reported by our readers. Find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you still need further assistance, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

How to troubleshoot Galaxy J3 with “Google App has stopped” error

Problem: Hi guys. My Galaxy J3 seems to have a serious problem right now. It started showing the error message “Unfortunately, Google App has stopped” since around 3 days ago. I’m not really sure what happened then or what triggered it but my keyboard no longer functions now that this error keeps showing. I also noticed that the phone no longer opens apps as fast as before so there must be something wrong with it I just don’t know where and how to fix it. Can you guys help me?

Troubleshooting: There’s no denying that Google App is one of the core services necessary to make your phone work flawlessly. When it crashes, a lot of thing could be affected so it’s just fitting to do something about it. With that being said, here’s what I suggest you do to fix it:

Step 1: Force Restart your Galaxy J3

It’s possible that Google App stopped working due to a glitch. So, the first thing I want you to do is to refresh your phone’s memory by doing the Forced Restart procedure, which is equivalent to the battery pull procedure we often do to phones with removable batteries.

What it does is reboot your phone like it usually does but before that, the device’s memory is refreshed as it will simulate battery disconnect. To do this, press and hold the Volume Down and Power keys together for 10 seconds. Your phone will reboot normally so continue observing it for the same error. If it still shows after this procedure, move on to the next step.

Step 2: Use the phone in Safe mode

We will now try to isolate the problem to know if third-party apps have something to do with it. Reboot your phone in safe mode to temporarily disable all third-party apps. If the cause of the problem is one of the apps you downloaded, then the error shouldn’t show up while in this mode.

Here’s how you boot your J3 in Safe mode…

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

Assuming the error doesn’t show up in safe mode, find the app that’s causing the problem and then uninstall it.

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap the desired application in the default list or tap Menu icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
Tap Uninstall.
Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

If the error still shows up in this mode, however, then you have to move on to the next step.

Step 3: Clear cache and data of Google App

This procedure will delete all possible corrupt caches and data of Google App. When it comes to app-related concerns, clearing an app’s cache and data is the most effective procedure to fix them that’s why I want you to do this after you’ve done the first two steps.

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Swipe left a few times to display apps under All tab, then tap Google App.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear data and then tap OK.
Tap Clear cache.

You may have to reboot your phone after this and continue your observation to know if the error still shows up. If it does, then do the next steps.

Step 4: Wipe the cache partition

Wiping the cache partition will delete all system caches and eliminates the possibility that this problem is caused by some caches that have been corrupted or became obsolete. It’s a very effective procedure when it comes to dealing with firmware related problems but safe for your data and files as none of them will be deleted.

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Your phone will take a little more time booting up as it will rebuild the caches. Continue your observation to know if the error still pops up after this and if it does, then you have no other choice but to do the next step.

Step 5: Backup your files and reset your phone

This is your last resort and it should fix this problem. The reason why it comes at the end is because of the hassle you will have to go through backing up your files and data and restoring them after the reset. With that being said, make sure you make a backup of your important files and data, then follow these steps to reset your phone:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key 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 this 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.

What to do if Galaxy J3 keeps showing “Emergency calls only” bug, won’t send or receive SMS, or can’t make calls

Today’s troubleshooting article addresses a common issue among many #GalaxyJ3 owners. As described by one of our readers below, the issue has something to do with J3 device being intermittently getting “Emergency calls only” error. If you’re one of the unlucky owners of a J3 that keeps showing “Emergency calls only” bug, this post might help.

Before we proceed, we want to remind you that if you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page. When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Today’s problem: Galaxy J3 “Emergency calls only” bug, won’t send or receive SMS, can’t make calls

Hello. So this just happened out of the blue a few days ago. My phone had no issues outside of storage issues every once in a while (some apps couldn’t run because I had no room on my phone), but otherwise no problems. Now however, my phone will not send texts or make phone calls. Half the time it says emergency calls only (and this is in places I had service before), the other half of the time it looks fine but won’t send texts and will drop the call before it even rings (it won’t even tell me I don’t have service, it just never connects the call). Half the time, the call/text will drop but I’ll still be able to browse the internet, the other half of the time everything shuts down (no internet, no calling, wifi works but nothing relating to my service does). A restart fixes everything. Emergency calls only goes away, phone will send texts and calls, data comes back and I can browse back to full speed. While I am using my phone this is not a problem. Calls won’t drop, and if I’m actively texting, messages will go through. This usually happens when I’m not using my phone for say like an hour or so. If I only browse without text/call, I lose that. If I text/call but don’t browse, I lose my browsing. Restarting is the only way to fix this. It’s very annoying, and I don’t understand why I have this issue. It doesn’t appear to be a service issue since everything works while I am using it, and I don’t know if it’s a phone issue, since restarting my phone fixes everything. Any ideas? Anyone else have this issue? Also, I have Walmart Family plan with T-mobile. — Sam

Solution: Hi Sam. Being unable to send or receive SMS and having Emergency calls only message from time to time is usually an indicator of a network problem. In some cases though, it’s also due to a faulty radio or an unknown software bug. For this reason, we want to help you isolate the cause by discussing all the possibilities.

It’s good to hear that restarting your device “fixes” the Emergency calls only bug and the rest of the issues but since its effect does not really last that long, it’s obviously not a permanent solution. There must be other reasons why your J3 remains problematic. Below are the other possible solution options that you can try.

Clear the cache partition

Android uses a special set of temporary files called system cache in order to load apps efficiently. Sometimes, this cache gets corrupted after an update or app installation. Such a situation may potentially lead to bugs and annoyances when Android starts using a corrupted system cache. To check if your phone is having a cache-related issue at this time, try to clear the cache partition. Here’s how:

Power off your Galaxy J3. Press and hold the Power key, tap Power off and then touch POWER OFF to confirm.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

Ensure your device has good signal

In a lot of cases when “Emergency calls only” bug, the main reason is weak signal reception or no signal at all. In your case, try to check if there are certain areas where the bug usually shows up, as that can be the reason why you keep on getting it all the time, even for areas that were previously showing good signals for you. It’s possible that these areas may now have become dead spots due to signal interference.

Ideally, anything lower than 3 signal bars is not ideal. If your phone only shows 2 bars or a single signal bar in these areas, this must be the main reason for the problem. If you can, only send SMS and make calls in areas where you have excellent signal coverage.

Reseat the SIM card

Network problems like the one you’re having are sometimes due to faulty SIM card. At times, a quick SIM card removal can fix things up so be sure not to skip this simple troubleshooting step.

Before you remove the SIM card, be sure to turn the phone off first. Afterwards, carefully remove the SIM, wait for a few moments, then re-insert it.

Reseating the SIM not only addresses possible poor physical connection between the SIM and the phone but also resets your device’s network configuration anew. Some network bugs are fixed this way so hopefully, this one will take care of the problem.

Turn off fixed dialing feature (if you’re using it)

Some users were able to successfully fix “Emergency calls only” bug by shutting dialing feature down. If you’re using it at this time, try not to use it and observe your phone for a day without it. If “Emergency calls only” bug won’t show up, then it’s most probably an issue with fixed dialing. Talk to your carrier about it.

Check your balance, account

We don’t think you’re on prepaid subscription but if you are, make sure that you have enough balance and that your account is in good order. This is most likely not applicable to you but just to be on the safe side, you can also ask advice from your carrier whether or not they do cut lines when there’s outstanding balance for some time.

Toggle Airplane Mode

Toggling Airplane Mode on and off can sometimes fixed all types of network bugs. To turn Airplane Mode on and off:

On the Home screen or any screen, pull down the notification bar.
Look for the Airplane Mode button and tap it to activate.
Wait for 30 seconds before turning Airplane Mode back off.

Let your J3 try to connect to other networks

Another good way to refresh the network configuration on your J3 is to force it to search for available networks and to connect to the one that’s not your own. This will temporarily deregister your device from the network as it attempts to establish a link with a third party network. This handshake with another third party will of course fail and once it does, that’s the time that you register the device again to your own.

Here’s what you need to do exactly:

Open Settings app.
Tap Connections.
Tap Mobile networks.
Tap Network operators.
Tap Search networks.
Wait for your J3 to search for networks.
Once it’s done searching, select another network to connect to. For example, if you’re on T-Mobile, pick AT&T or any other network.
Your phone will be forced to return with an error because it won’t be able to register successfully.
Afterwards, select your own network again and see if your device will now be able to re-register.

Reset network settings

Another possible solution that you can try in this case is to reset the network settings on your J3. This will directly reset your all of your phone’s network configurations so there’s a fair chance that it will work. To do that, follow these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap General management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Reset Network Settings.
Tap RESET SETTINGS button.

The steps above will reset wifi, mobile data, and bluetooth settings. This means that you’ll have to enter wifi passwords, re-pair Bluetooth devices, or re-enter VPN credentials again.

Return all software settings to defaults

In case the event is software-related, you should wipe the phone so that all settings will be reset to their defaults. Factory reset will erase your personal data so be sure to create a backup before you do it.

To factory reset your J3:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
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).
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.

Contact your carrier support

Finally, if nothing changes after a factory reset, that means that the problem may be account- or network-related. Be sure to contact your carrier so they can troubleshoot the problem on their end.

Engage with us

If you are one of the users who encounters a problem with your device, let us know. We offer solutions for Android-related problems for free so if you have an issue with your Android device, simply fill in the short questionnaire in this link and we will try to publish our answers in the next posts. We cannot guarantee a quick response so if your issue is time sensitive, please find another way to resolve your problem.

If you find this post helpful, please help us by spreading the word to your friends. TheDroidGuy has social network presence as well so you may want to interact with our community in our Facebook and Google+ pages.

How to fix Samsung Galaxy J3 with a black screen of death and unresponsive [Troubleshooting Guide]

Performance related issues may occur to any smartphone after months of use. Entry level devices like your Samsung Galaxy J3 may encounter it sooner than premium phones as they often don’t have to muscles to cater to the needs of heavy apps. While this phone has decent specs for its category, you can still expect it to encounter hiccups from time to time and this might be it.

In this post, I will tackle the black screen of death that many Galaxy J3 owners may encounter sooner or later. But just because the screen is black and won’t respond doesn’t mean that the phone is experiencing a rather complex problem. There are times when the device simply crashed or something. That’s the reason why we need to troubleshoot so that we would know what exactly happened to your phone. So, read on to learn what you have to do when this happens to you.

Before we jump right into our troubleshooting, if you have other issues, drop by our Galaxy J3 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed many issues with this phone since we started supporting it. Try to find problems that are similar with yours and use the troubleshooting procedures or solutions we suggested. Should you need further assistance from us, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Don’t worry, it’s free.

Step-by-step guide to troubleshooting Galaxy J3 black screen of death

Problem: Hello guys. I have a problem with my Galaxy J3. For some reason, it kind of turned itself on and now it won’t do anything; it won’t turn on and won’t even charge. I am not quite sure what I’ve done that may have led to this problem but I’m just a typical owner who use the phone the way it should. I didn’t install games, didn’t root it even if my friends told me so, and I always took care of it. It was never dropped nor submerged in water. Do you have any idea what happened to my phone and is there something I can do to fix it? Thanks.

Troubleshooting: As mentioned in the introduction, this problem might be due to a system or firmware crash but then again, we won’t know unless we troubleshoot. So, for this problem, here’s what I suggest you do:

Step 1: Pull the battery out and press the power key for 1 minute

This will refresh your phone’s memory and it might just be the thing you need to do to fix this problem. Your J3 has a removable battery so we can perform the “battery pull” procedure. To make it easier for you, here’s how you do it:

Remove the back cover.
Pull the battery out.
Press and hold the Power key for a minute.
Place the battery back in and the back cover.
Turn the phone on.

If the phone still won’t turn on after this, then move on to the next step.

Step 2: Charge the phone to see if it responds this time

You’ve already done the soft reset to no avail but, at least, you’ve already done something. So, this time, your phone may charge if you plug it in so try that. If it displays the charging symbol and lights up the LED indicator at the top of the screen, then it’s charging properly. Let it charge for ten minutes and then attempt to turn the phone on. If it still won’t turn on, then move on to the next step.

However, if the phone doesn’t display the usual charging icon and that the LED indicator isn’t lit up, then the problem might be due to drained battery only but you will have to deal with the charging problem first. Try to read this post as it might help you: How to fix Samsung Galaxy J3 that won’t charge [Troubleshooting Guide].

If you failed to make the phone charge, then there’s no point in troubleshooting further. Bring the phone to the shop and let the technician handle the problem for you.

Step 3: Attempt to boot your phone in safe mode

We want to try to rule out the possibility that the problem is caused by one or some of the third-party apps that’s why we have to try to start your phone in safe mode. Doing so will temporarily disable all of them so if the problem is caused by one of them, then your phone could successfully boot up in this mode. Here’s how you boot your J3 in this mode:

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

Assuming the phone successfully booted up in this mode, then it’s confirmed that one or some of the apps you installed is causing the problem. The next thing you have to do is find that app and uninstall it especially ones you installed shortly before the problem started. Here’s how you uninstall an app from your Galaxy J3:

From any Home screen, tap the Apps icon.
Tap Settings.
Tap Applications.
Tap the desired application in the default list or tap Menu icon > Show system apps to display pre-installed apps.
Tap Uninstall.
Tap Uninstall again to confirm.

If the problem still happens after this or if booting in safe mode is not successful, then try the next step.

Step 4: Attempt to boot your J3 in Recovery Mode

We now need to try to start your phone up in recovery mode to see if it’s still capable of doing so. If successful, then there are a couple of things you can do which may fix the problem and first of those is to wipe the cache partition. So, here’s how you boot your J3 in recovery mode and wipe cache partition:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key.
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
Press the Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘yes’ and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

This procedure may fix issues that are caused by corrupt system caches. Don’t worry though, none of your files and data will be deleted. If, however, the wiping of the cache partition didn’t work, then you have to proceed with the factory reset. This will delete your files and data and since your phone couldn’t boot up successfully, you may lose them so it’s up to you if you want to proceed but here’s how you do it:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the device logo screen displays, release only the Power key
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).
Press the Volume down key several times key 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.

If all else fails, then you must bring the phone to the shop and have it checked.

Quick ways to troubleshooting Galaxy J3 with black, unresponsive screen

Problem: Hey droid guy. I have the J3 and honestly, I dropped it on the floor a week ago but it was working fine since then until yesterday. It won’t turn on now and I thought its battery was just drained so I tried charging it but it won’t even charge. Called a friend who advised me to reset it but how can I even do it when it won’t turn on, right? So, I’m contacting you guys as you may have known something that I could do to fix this problem. Thank you!

Troubleshooting: This problem is basically the same as the one we’ve already addressed above but with a few differences. This one, however, has a big possibility that it’s caused by physical damage since the owner said the phone has been dropped prior to the problem. So, we will just try to do the basic troubleshooting of the phone that won’t turn on or respond just to see if we can make it work normally again without any help from a technician. So, here’s what you have to do:

Step 1: Charge the phone to see if it works

Let’s rule out the possibility that the battery was drained that’s why the phone couldn’t turn on. We can also tell if there’s a problem with the hardware as the phone won’t charge if such is the case. When plugged in, the charging icon will be displayed on the screen and the LED indicator will be lit up. If none of these signs show, then try doing the next step. However, if the phone charges fine, then allow it to charge for 10 minutes and then turn the phone on.

Step 2: Try starting it up in safe mode to see if third-party apps caused it

When it comes to problems that have something to do with the firmware, it’s always recommended to try to find out if they’re caused by some third-party apps. Starting the phone up in safe mode will help you determine that so make sure you don’t skip this step before going further into your troubleshooting.

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the screen with the device name.
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’.

Assuming the phone boots up in this mode successfully, you just have to find the culprits and uninstall them one by one.

Step 3: Try starting the phone up in Recovery mode

We just need to find out if the phone is able to boot in this mode because there are a couple of things we can do if so. But you just have to do this if booting in safe mode didn’t yield any favorable results. In this mode, you can try wiping the cache partition and doing master reset. Those two procedures may be effective in fixing firmware or minor hardware issues. However, if the phone cannot also boot in this mode, then there’s no other option but to send the phone in for checkup and possible repair or you can bring it personally to the shop.

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.

How to fix a Galaxy J3 that turns off on its own and won’t charge while in use

Although not considered a flagship, the Samsung #GalaxyJ3 is actually a decent smartphone with millions being actively used at this time. Like its high-end cousins, the J3 can also have similar issues so today we cover two commonly encountered problems. We hope you’ll find this article helpful.

Before we proceed, we want to remind you that if you are looking for solutions to your own #Android issue, you can contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of this page. When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

Problem #1: Galaxy J3 opens folders and apps on its own (screen issue)

Hello. So, something very unexpected happened today as while I was just watching YouTube when all of a sudden the app just closed. So I tried to open it again and I only got past the logo with the rest of my tries! And then it just starts doing random things like opening folders and apps like someone else was controlling my phone at the same time! Nothing like this has happened before and I’ve had a app called Lucky Patcher for months and nothing like this has happened before. I’ve uninstalled Lucky Patcher, I got an anti-virus, I’ve uninstalled the hacked apps, I deleted my browser history and cookies, I took out and re-put in the battery forever and it’s no use. I haven’t gone to safe mode or a factory reset yet and I don’t really want to. Please help. — Jacob Martinez Jacob Martinez

Solution: Hi Jacob. While it’s possible that a malicious app may be cause the situation you describe here, there’s also a chance that the problem may have something to do with the screen. To see where the problem lies, these are the troubleshooting steps that you can try:

Force restart

Before you do other troubleshooting steps, the first basic one that you would like to do is to ensure that you refresh the system by restarting it. We don’t know if you can restart your phone normally or not but we highly recommend that you try the steps below to do it:

Press and hold the Power + Volume Down buttons for approximately 10 seconds or until the device power cycles. Allow several seconds for the Maintenance Boot Mode screen to appear.
From the Maintenance Boot Mode screen, select Normal Boot. You can use the volume buttons to cycle through the available options and the lower left button (below the volume buttons) to select. Wait for up to 90 seconds for the reset to complete.

If your phone won’t restart normally or if you find the steps above too much to do, simply remove the battery, wait for a few seconds, then put the battery back in.

Observe in safe mode

To check if the problem is being caused by a third party app, you can run your device to safe mode and see how the screen behaves. If the phone works normally and screen won’t go crazy, that means the cause of the problem is one of the apps.

To boot your J3 to safe mode:

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen appearing on the 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.
When Safe mode appears in the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume down key.
Allow your phone to run for a few minutes and check for the problem. If everything looks normal including the screen, it means you have a bad-app issue.

To identify which of your apps is causing the trouble, you should boot the phone back to safe mode and follow these steps:

Boot to safe mode.
Check for the problem.
Once you’ve confirmed that a third party app is to blame, you can start uninstalling apps individually. We suggest that you begin with the most recent ones you added.
After you uninstall an app, restart the phone to normal mode and check for the problem.
If your J3 is still problematic, repeat steps 1-4.

Access service menu

If your continues up to this point, the most likely reason for it may be hardware malfunction. Before we can say that with enough certainty though, you need to do at least 2 more troubleshooting steps. One is to check if you are able to access your device’s service menu and check if the digitizer is fully responsive. Here’s what you need to do:

Open your Phone app.
Pull up the dialing pad.
Dial “*#0*#” (without the quotes).
Tap Touch.
Draw lines in areas of the screen where you suspect may be damaged. If you can’t trace a line in a particular spot, the digitizer must be malfunctioning or damaged. If all areas are responsive and working, then the cause of the issue must be an unknown software bug.

Factory reset

The most that you can do in terms of software troubleshooting is factory reset. As you may have already known, this potential solution works by wiping all user data from a device and returning all software settings back to their defaults. It’s an effective way to deal with all sorts of software bugs so you want to make sure that you do it at this point. Here’s how to factory reset your J3:

Make a backup of your personal data.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home 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.

Contact Samsung support

Should the problem remain after doing all our suggestions above, you can assume that your J3 has a hardware problem. We’ve observed an exact likeness to your situation before for devices with broken digitizer. Unfortunately, a bad digitizer means that you need to replace it or the entire screen assembly to have it fixed. If still covered by a warranty, we recommend that you let Samsung do the repair for you.

Problem #2: How to fix a Galaxy J3 that turns off on its own and won’t charge while in use

Hi there. My J3, used for 6 months but it’s second hand, anyway, been behaving quite good a part from a few unexpected shut downs in my pocket. I could count maybe 5 in 6 months, then sometimes I would put it on charge in the night only to find it off in the morning, drained, not to worry I said, may be the charger, I guessed it was till a few days ago when while I was playing a game as I normally do and was on charge in the same time, it drained in my hands, I have the flash on the battery, saying it’s charging, but instead of going up, goes down, slowly but surely, then I do a normal restart and all goes back to normal,( charging while playing) but if I don’t, it won’t charge not even if I stop playing, will keep losing battery, didn’t get new apps or updates right before all this happened, so the issue I’m trying to solve is why it is not charging while in use anymore? Not without a kick off/on? — Mady

Solution: Hi Mady. It is hard to know for sure what may be causing your problem but one thing that we can possibly blame is software and battery calibration. When used for a long stretch, Android may lose track of the true battery levels causing random shutdowns, charging issues, or erratic phone behavior. In order to ensure that your phone’s operating system is constantly calibrated to detect your battery’s power level, you need to regularly calibrate it. Here’s how to do that:

1. Drain the battery completely. This means using your device until it powers down by its own and the battery level reads 0%.
2. Charge the phone until it reaches 100%. Be sure to use original charging equipment for your device and let it charge up completely. Do not unplug your device for at least two more hours and also don’t use it while charging.
3. After the elapsed time, unplug your device.
4. Perform a warm restart by holding the Power and Home buttons simultaneously until the startup logo appears.
5. Use your phone until it completely runs out of power again.
6. Repeat steps 1-5.

Should battery and Android recalibration won’t help, do a factory reset and see how your J3 charges afterwards. Refer to the explanation about factory reset above and how to do it.

If nothing changes after doing a factory reset, consider replacing the battery to fix the issue.

Engage with us

If you are one of the users who encounters a problem with your device, let us know. We offer solutions for Android-related problems for free so if you have an issue with your Android device, simply fill in the short questionnaire in this link and we will try to publish our answers in the next posts. We cannot guarantee a quick response so if your issue is time sensitive, please find another way to resolve your problem.

If you find this post helpful, please help us by spreading the word to your friends. TheDroidGuy has social network presence as well so you may want to interact with our community in our Facebook and Google+ pages.