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Galaxy S6 can’t connect to the internet when using home wi-fi, other issues

Welcome to another post that will try to fix issues reported by some #GalaxyS6 users this past week. There are 6 issues that we pick for you so we hope that you will find this material helpful.

s6

Below are the topics that we answer:

  1. Solution to “Unfortunately IMS Service has stopped” error on AT&T Galaxy S6
  2. Galaxy S6 won’t turn on
  3. How to create backup of files from Galaxy S6 if it keeps on rebooting
  4. Galaxy S6 drains battery while charging | Galaxy S6 only charges using a car charger
  5. AT&T Galaxy S6 Edge group messages is sent to both the original sender and members of the group
  6. Galaxy S6 can’t connect to the internet when using home wi-fi

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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: Solution to “Unfortunately IMS Service has stopped” error on AT&T Galaxy S6

“Unfortunately IMS Service has stopped”. Solved it differently from your way via S6 Settings > Applications > Messages > AT&T Messages Backup & Sync > Stop Backup (link).

This issue happened after an update to Marshmallow 6.0.1 and a prompt asking if I wanted to backup my messages to the cloud. I said yes. From that point onward, I had a spinning icon in my bar showing it was actively trying to backup and sync. Then a popup message every 15 seconds “Unfortunately IMS Service has stopped”. Click OK and 15 seconds later reappears. Read forums everywhere, including yours and NO ONE had this solution. All were way over my head techy. Please add it to your solutions. It addresses the actual problem. — Amy

Solution: Hi Amy. Yeah, we covered this issue in this post before. Errors due to carrier-specific app and/or service like IMS service can sometimes be tricky for us to resolve because we are not familiar with thousands of such apps around the world. The best that we can do is to offer general directions in troubleshooting such as booting the phone in safe mode, in the hope of isolating if the issue is due a third party app or not. And of course, for an issue that appears to be app-specific, wiping the app’s cache and data is also a must.

The thing with safe mode is that it only filters third party apps. Since IMS Service is an AT&T app (which we failed to identify initially), it won’t be snagged by safe mode, thus it would continue to run.

We thank you for your effort in letting us know of a solution for this particular issue. We think it will be very helpful for other members of Android community. If we are not mistaken, this issue also occurs in other devices  from AT&T as well so publishing your solution will be very valuable. Thank you.

Problem #2: Galaxy S6 won’t turn on

Hi! So I’ve had my phone, the Galaxy S6 for a year and a half now. Never had any major problems that weren’t resolved by a normal restart. I’ve always kept a good, sturdy case on it and it has never been cracked. But today, all of a sudden, the screen went black and showed to start up screen (all black with white letters “Samsung Galaxy S6, powered by Android”). It stayed like this no matter what I did. I tried restarting, holding down the power, volume, and home keys in various formations, but nothing. I left it alone for 2 hours and then the screen went all black and still wouldn’t turn on. I plugged it in the charger and it showed the charging symbol but has not made any progress in 40 minutes. Please help. – Steph

Solution: Hi Steph. The only potential solutions that you can try at your level are attempts to boot the phone in different modes. If your S6 remains unresponsive when you try to boot in either safe mode, recovery mode, or Odin mode, then the issue has now become beyond an average user’s ability to resolve. You must tap the expertise of Samsung or other qualified repair shops to help you fix whatever hardware issue the phone is having.

Problem #3: How to create backup of files from Galaxy S6 if it keeps on rebooting

My husband’s Galaxy s6 turns off every few seconds and won’t turn on at all without being connected to the charger but even then continues to turn off and reboot. He has been advised by US cellular to just send it in to Samsung because they don’t fix these issues but we desperately want recently taken photos from the phone before we do that and Samsung wipes the phone. The photos are recent and didn’t get backed up in time before issues arose and they are extremely sentimental as they are the only photos from the OR the day our son was born. Is there anything we can do? The technicians at US cellular were not very helpful and just kept telling us that they don’t work with these problems and to send it in. — Whittmcg

Solution: Hi Whittmcg. Like Steph above, the issue is most probably beyond resolving at your level right now. If the device keeps rebooting even when connected to a charger, the cause of the issue may be a bad battery, or another failing component. In order to access your phone’s files, we need to make sure first that the device’s power remains uninterrupted for at least a few minutes (depending on how fast you can move the files to a PC via USB cable). If you can’t achieve an uninterrupted mode on your S6, there’s just no way to move files. Needless to say, it may be too late now to try to save those photos as there’s no trick that can make your S6 remains stable for some time.

Problem #4: Galaxy S6 drains battery while charging | Galaxy S6 only charges using a car charger

My Galaxy S6 will only charge when it is on the car charger (which is a lightning charger). When it is plugged into the wall unit (any wall unit – I’ve tried various ones) it won’t charge at all if it is dead. If it has a bit of a charge, it charges insanely slow. I plugged it in at 15% at 9pm, and at 7am it was only at 54%. Seriously?! I’ve never had this problem. It will charge slowly in my computer as well. I recently downloaded some spy app stuff on my daughters phone and not sure if some of it is on my phone too so maybe a 3rd party is doing this?? I tried putting it in safe mode to charge, but it didn’t charge any faster that way. It seems to only charge quickly when it is on the car charger. I really don’t want to do a factory reset. Is there any way I can remedy this without extreme measures?– Stacy

Solution: Hi Stacy. The first thing that you want to do in this situation is to make sure that you are using the right charging cable, with correct amperage, and charger (with correct amperage as well). We don’t want to go into technical details how to go about that but the simplest way to achieve that is by using the Samsung supplied USB cable and charger FOR this phone. That means using the cable and charger that came with the box. If you are no longer using that, get the correct charging kit for this phone model from any Samsung store or order one from their website.

Once you’ve established that the charging cable and charger are not the cause, you can further narrow down the possible causes to either the phone’s software or hardware.

Since booting in safe mode did not make a difference, the next logical step is to perform a factory reset. We know it’s a hassle but it’s the only way to help you check if the reason of the problem is software related. As an average user (and assuming you don’t do rooting or flashing custom software), there’s only so much that you can do to fix an issue like this. Factory reset is actually the last and final software “tweak” that you can do. If the phone remains the same and the battery continues to drain even when charging after you performed a factory reset (and without third party apps), you can assume that you have a hardware problem at hand.

And since hardware issue is almost always unfixable by average users, we don’t cover them in this blog. If you think you have the right knowledge and tools to perform hardware repairs, please look for guides somewhere.

For reference, below are the steps on how to perform a master or factory reset on the S6:

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up, Home and Power keys together.
  • When the device powers on and displays ‘Power on logo’, release all keys and the Android icon will appear on the screen.
  • Wait until the Android Recovery Screen appears after about 30 seconds.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option, ‘wipe data/factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • Press the Volume Down button again until the option ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted and then press the Power key to select it.
  • After the reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key to restart the phone.

Problem #5: AT&T Galaxy S6 Edge group messages is sent to both the original sender and members of the group

So I just bought a Galaxy S6 Edge (I know, a little late to the party) and whenever people send group messages to me, I’m included as one of the recipients to the messages. In other words, my phone number is listed as one of the contacts to send the message to. Because of this, every time I reply to a group message, I receive the message myself in addition to everybody else in the group. So there will be a yellow sent message, as well as a blue received message that is from me. Is there any way I can turn that off? I’ve checked with my carrier (AT&T), and everything is good on their end, and I have reset my phone multiple times. Any suggestions? — David

Solution: Hi David. Messaging apps vary by carrier so we are not quite sure if this issue is unique to  AT&T’s messaging app on the S6 Edge. We don’t have access to an AT&T S6 in our laboratory so we can’t independently check the exact settings. The only suggestion that we can give is to check what happens if you play around with the messaging app’s Group MMS option under settings. Your carrier should be able to help you with this issue as it concerns their product but if they really can’t try to look for solution from AT&T’s forum site or other third party forums that talk about AT&T devices.

Problem #6: Galaxy S6 can’t connect to the internet when using home wi-fi

We have the phones in my house and all work on WiFi except the Galaxy S6. By work on WiFi I mean, they function on wifi the same as if they were using 4G. The Galaxy S6 works on 4G in the house but not on WiFi. It does however, work on my work’s wifi. My home connection is not slow. I know this because all other devices and computers use it just fine. I have tried everything except a factory reset because I don’t think that will do anything. I’m not sure why only the Galaxy S6 has problems. The problems started when we switched to a better router. The old router worked out with the S6 just fine but that router is very old and the new is a big upgrade. I have messed with all the settings I can think of to get the computer S6 to work but nothing works. — Jarom

Solution: Hi Jarom. First of all, we assume that when you say your S6 doesn’t work on Wi-Fi, you are referring to the phone’s inability to connect to the internet via your home wi-fi.

The second thing we want to point out is the fact that if your S6 works with other Wi-Fi networks, that’s a clear indicator that the issue may only be on how your home wi-fi network allows devices to connect, or that your phone’s network memory needs to be cleared (especially if the SSID or network name remains after switching to a new router).

Check router settings

In order to check if the issue is being caused by router-level restriction, you must ensure that your S6 is not blocked from connecting to the internet by the router itself. If you are the administrator of your home wi-fi, log in to your router’s graphic user interface (usually done by pulling up a browser in a computer and typing the router’s log-in page like 192.168.254.254). Every router has its own way of allowing access to its GUI so make sure that you consult the manual or contact the manufacturer for support. If this router was provided by your internet service provider, call your ISP accordingly.

Once you’ve logged in to your router’s GUI, check if you’ve accidentally blocked your phone’s MAC address or IP address. Doing so can result to your S6 being unable to connect to the internet. If the phone is not blocked, there’s also a possibility that it may be restricted or throttled down to only connect to the internet with a very limited bandwidth. Again, routers vary on how their GUIs look so make sure that you ask for assistance if you don’t know what we’re talking about here. Put simply, you want to ensure that your S6 is not blocked from connecting to the internet, or if it’s not, only allowed to connect but with very slow connection speed.

If there’s another family member acting as the administrator of your home wi-fi, make sure that you let him or her know whether or not the above scenarios are happening.

Do a factory reset

If everything is clear on the router level, don’t hesitate to do a factory reset. While “forgetting” then reconnecting to a wi-fi network is sometimes enough to fix this issue, yours may be different. Making sure that you set all software settings back to their default state may be the only effective solution for the problem. Before you commit to a factory reset though, you can also try to wipe the cache partition to see if that will work. Here’s how it’s done:

  • Turn off the device.
  • Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power key.
  • When the phone vibrates, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
  • When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
  • Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
  • 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.

 

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.

Galaxy S6 lags with games like Pokemon Go and Clash or Clans, other issues

We seldom receive requests for assistance regarding a #GalaxyS6 with issues playing games so we’re pleased to publish about it here today. Other issues are included below as well.

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Here are the specific topics mentioned in this material:

  1. Galaxy S6 constant reboot issue
  2. Galaxy S6 won’t boot normally after a failed ROM flashing
  3. Galaxy S6 screen flickers when Power button is pressed
  4. Galaxy S6 won’t connect to the internet when in a specific Wi-Fi network
  5. Galaxy S6 lags with games like Pokemon Go and Clash or Clans

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S6 constant reboot issue

I have been having the S6 reboot issue that you wrote about in March. I’ve followed your instructions in your article (first checking apps, then clearing cache, then factory reset). I did the factory reset three days ago, although I wasn’t looking at your article at the time so I just did the factory reset by navigating through the settings menu instead of doing it in recovery mode like you suggested. Now, three days later, I have started having the issue again and it has progressed to the barely usable level more quickly than the first time. Is there a difference between the factory reset I did and the one you recommended? Should I try the recovery mode version?

It may be a coincidence, but after three days of problem-free use after the reset, today I used the samsung smart switch app to transfer my contacts from my old S4. A few hours later I noticed the first auto-restart. The first time I had the restart issue, I had also used the smart switch app for the contacts, but that time it took a week before the issue got really bad. May just be a coincidence on timing but interested to hear your thoughts. Thanks! — Drew

Solution: Hi Drew. Factory reset done via Settings is essentially the same with factory reset through Recovery mode. The only differences when you do the are a) the Google account on the device will be deleted, and b) any root procedure you’ve done before will be undone. If the factory reset via settings did not change anything, do another round of factory reset through recovery and observe the phone for at least 24 hours. To also check if a third party app is causing the trouble, make sure that you don’t install anything during the observation period. If the problem remains after doing this, consider getting a phone replacement.

Problem #2: Galaxy S6 won’t boot normally after a failed ROM flashing

Hello. I was trying to download a custom ROM and did not follow all the directions by not clearing the data/cache when booting it up using an instantflash program. My phone is stuck in the Samsung Galaxy S6 screen and will not shutdown or boot up. I can hold down, Power, and Home to reset the Samsung screen and get into Odin Mode where I am able to restart my phone back to the Samsung screen or download, which I had sitting on the download screen for over an hour and nothing happened. I can reset it again and hold Up, Power and Home and it goes to the Android Guy icon but it has an error sign in his chest and no other options to reset or clear cache.  After a minute in that it just resets and goes back to the Samsung Galaxy  s6 screen.  It does seem to be looping as it just stays on the screen.  Any help would be appreciated.  Link is the Rom I tried to install. — Kody

Solution: Hi Kody. There’s really nothing much that we can do to help fix your issue, especially that it’s a product of unofficial software modification. Kindly do the usual software troubleshooting we suggest like attempting to boot the device in safe mode, or doing a soft reset (by holding Power and Volume Down buttons for at least 10 seconds).

To boot in safe mode, follow these steps:

  • Press and hold the Volume Down and Power keys for 20 to 30 seconds.
  • Once you see the Samsung logo, release the Power key immediately but continue pressing the Volume Down key.
  • Your phone should continue booting up and you will be prompted to unlock your phone as usual.
  • You will know if the phone successfully booted in safe mode if the text “Safe mode” is displayed at the lower-left corner of the screen.

If the device remains stuck, that’s an indication that you’ve messed up the bootloader badly. Unfortunately, there’s no effective fix for this issue. You must find a way to have your phone replaced for resolution.

Problem #3: Galaxy S6 screen flickers when Power button is pressed

I’ve been having issues with the screen. Pressing the power button on the side to light up the screen reveals a white or very brightly lit display that flickers and fades. There’s nothing I’ve found that will ensure the screen lights up normally the way it used to. Occasionally it does, but it’s up to the phone or maybe sheer luck, but it doesn’t last. I’ve gone as far as to factory reset my phone and honestly it seemed to help for about 3 disappointing minutes. I’ve contacted my carrier and this is apparently a widespread issue they’re having with an ample amount of customers. They’re claiming to be “investigating” the issues, and have offered to replace my phone with a slightly cheaper version of the same phone that will run on different towers than my current, which means it most likely won’t work in the rural area I reside in. If you have any ideas on how to handle this handheld catastrophe, please let me know. I’m out of patience, and I currently I can’t afford to just go buy an entire new phone. I hope I’ve provided enough information about the phone/issue. If you need more information or have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me. Thanks. — Ty

Solution: Hi Ty. As much as we would like to help you, the only resolution to your issue is a phone replacement. That factory reset did not fix it suggests the issue is beyond your ability to fix. There’s nothing that we will tell you that can fix it. This is obviously a hardware problem and since we doubt you can handle parts replacement (and may not even have the right tools), the only way out is getting the device replaced. If your carrier is aware of your problem then your phone is probably part of a bad batch. Kindly work with your carrier to get proper resolution.

Problem #4: Galaxy S6 won’t connect to the internet when in a specific Wi-Fi network

Hey guys, so recently, my device has been having a very specific issue. Any time I try to connect to a Wi-fi network that requires “authentication” or agreeing to terms, it’ll say connected, but when it pulls up the Web page for me to “agree” or “sign in” it says that “Google cannot be opened, the page may be temporarily down or has permanently moved locations.” Even with mobile data on, it won’t load. I can pull up Google no problem on mobile data (but I’m trying so conserve it, hence why I’m using wifi over data.) This seems to only happen with these types of guest/public wi-fi that require a sign in. My home wi-fi has no issue. Not sure if it’s an issue with an app (I don’t really have any 3rd party apps to my knowledge, and haven’t downloaded anything recently either. This has started happening maybe 2 weeks ago.) It also makes me question if this is potentially a virus on my phone. Whatever advice you have, please let me know! Sincerely. — Nick

Solution: Hi Nick. We really don’t understand what you mean by this: “Even with mobile data on, it won’t load. I can pull up Google no problem on mobile data…” If you have an issue connecting to the internet when you are in a specific Wi-Fi network ONLY, then that’s a clear indication that there’s no issue with your phone or apps. Wi-Fi networks can have problems too!

There’s no way for us to know what the exact problem might be so you should talk to the administrator of the problematic network if you want a resolution for this. They may have set some type of filters that doesn’t permit your device from connecting. It’s also possible that they have set a limit on the number of users that can connect to their network to provide ample bandwidth. Again, you must ask support from the Wi-Fi administrator if you want to fix this issue.

Problem #5: Galaxy S6 lags with games like Pokemon Go and Clash or Clans

I’ve been using my phone for about 4 months now. I’m not much of a gamer but there are some problems with my phone that I’m only noticing now. My phone is quite powerful in terms of the performance. 3GB of RAM is more than enough to suffice for my gaming needs. In spite of its impressive specs on paper specifications, there are a few anomalies I just couldn’t ignore.

I installed Clash of Clan and it used to run on my previous phone just fine. Smooth running, but ever since I switched phones, I’m not quite happy. My current phone has a poor game rendition. There’s so much lag, it ruins the experience and frankly it’s a deal breaker. I tried a few high end games like GTA and they run just fine. But then I try playing games like Pokemon Go and I encounter the same problem. It’s extra laggy and not at all what one would call smooth running. I don’t quite know how to explain it but I’ll try to articulate it for you the best I can. For instance when I try scrolling through my Pokemons in the game it’s super laggy and the game is slow over all. Help me come up with a fix because I tried a ton of things. Any help is appreciated. Thanks a bunch. — Madhav

Solution: Hi Madhav. Keep in mind that it takes more than just RAM to run games smoothly. Your case is interesting though as the games you’ve mentioned work in our own Galaxy S6 phones just fine. That means that hardware-wise, the Samsung Galaxy S6 is more than capable to play these games. There must be other factors causing your games to run slowly. One thing you want to ensure first is to wipe the cache partition. The phone needs an updated system cache in order to load and run apps properly. Make sure that it’s fresh before attempting to play the games. To wipe the cache partition, follow these steps:

  • Turn off the device.
  • Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power key.
  • When the phone vibrates, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
  • When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
  • Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
  • 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 nothing will change after wiping the cache partition, consider re-installing the games. If you’ve done it already, the next logical step is to ensure that said apps are installed in your phone’s internal memory and not in the SD card. If they’re in internal memory already, try to check if you have enough storage memory. Try deleting some apps or files to provide more space.

Should said games remain laggy or problematic, do a factory reset. Once you’ve wiped the phone clean, install these games and observe how the phone behaves. Make sure that you only install the said games during the observation period so you’ll notice any difference. If the problem remains, you can assume that your S6 is defective. Consider having it replaced.

 

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.

Fix Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge that can’t connect via mobile data & other internet connectivity issues

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge (#Samsung #GalaxyS6Edge) has two primary ways to connect to the internet; via mobile data or through a Wi-Fi network. The speed of the connection totally depends on how good the services offered by your internet service provider or carrier.

S6-Edge-Internet-Problems

In this post, I tackled some of the most common connectivity issues reported by S6 Edge owners. Continue reading to know how to fix or troubleshoot them. Here’s the list of the issues…

  1. Galaxy S6 Edge can’t connect to the internet using mobile data
  2. S6 Edge not getting good service at a certain location
  3. Galaxy S6 Edge can’t be detected by computer
  4. Galaxy S6 Edge has issues filling out forms online
  5. Galaxy S6 Edge has issues while using the Viber app

In case you need help with other problems, don’t hesitate to contact us by filling up this form. Just make sure you include all necessary details about the problem so that it will be easier for us to help you. You may also browse through our troubleshooting page to find out if your concern has already been addressed before. If so, then use the solutions we provided.

Galaxy S6 Edge can’t connect to the internet using mobile data

Problem: “I bought the S6 Edge in the US to bring home to the UK. I told the sales person (a Best Buy employee) that I didn’t require a carrier because I would be using my UK CIM card (EE). The sales person said the device is a Verizon phone but that it is unlocked so it can be used everywhere in the world. He also said that I’d need to change the APN on the phone. As soon as I inserted my UK SIM card in the phone, I got the message “SIM card not from Verizon Wireless” and the only way to make that notification disappear is to force close it but every time the phone restarts/reboots the message comes up again and I cannot uncheck the “Show notification” box. I tried to change the APN on the phone as I was advised but when I click on Access Point Names, there is only “LTE-Verizon Internet” but it’s in grey and I can’t click on it. I don’t know what to do here. Should I call my carrier (EE)?

Also under the “Network Mode” there are 3 options (Global, LTE/CDMA and LTE/GSM/UMTS) and the Global is ticked. The “Network Operators” is grey and I cannot search for my carrier (EE).

I can make and receive phone calls but I’m not sure regarding text messages. I sent one to my other phone and I’m still waiting to receive it. I switched off my Wi-Fi and my mobile data isn’t working. I can see a very faded H on the top corner of the phone (where the clock, battery and signal bars are).

Also, downloads from the Play Store take longer. Does that have anything to do with the phone or with my Wi-Fi provider?

I don’t know what to do at this point. I was very excited about the phone but if I can’t get it to work, it’s quite a lot of money down the drain. I specifically told the sales person that the phone needed to be unlocked and unblocked and he guaranteed me that it was. Now I can’t get it to work. I would appreciate tremendously if you could help me.”

Recommendations: Changing the APN settings may not be the only thing you need to get your device all set in this case. I understand that you’ve already tried to change the APN but unable to do so because the list is greyed out. Just to make sure we’re not missing anything, kindly restart your phone and then go back to Settings -> Mobile Networks -> Access Point Names, and see if there are any changes. If the options remain disabled or greyed, then you may try the following workarounds.

  1. Remove SIM card from your Galaxy S6 Edge with the following steps:
  • Power off your device completely.
  • Locate the SIM card tray.
  • Use the eject tool or a paper clip to gently push the small button on the SIM card tray.
  • When the tray ejects, remove the SIM card carefully.
  • Wait for a few seconds, and then place the SIM card back into the SIM card tray.
  • Insert the tray into the SIM Card slot until it snaps in place. Ensure it’s secured.
  • Now, turn on your phone.
  1. Re-configure the Access Point Name (APN) and enable data settings with these steps:
  • Tap the Apps icon from the Home screen.
  • Tap Settings.
  • Scroll to Connections tab.
  • Tap Mobile Networks.
  • Tap Access Point Names.
  • Scroll to and tap to select your carrier. If it’s not available, tap the MORE icon, and then tap New APN.

Note: To reset your APN settings, tap the MORE icon and then select Reset to default.

  • Verify and update your Data APN settings. Please contact your carrier (EE) for the correct information to use for the Data APN.
  • Tap Save to save the changes you’ve made.
  • Tap to select the APN profile you prefer to use and the bullet point fills with green right next to the APN profile.

If you still cannot change the APN settings, then I concur to your first thought of contacting your carrier (EE) for further assistance and recommendations. Since it’s a Verizon device, most likely, it’s still bounded by the so-called carrier restrictions. This means your phone is currently network locked. In order to get rid of these restrictions, you need to factory unlock your Galaxy S6 Edge first. This is when you would be needing a SIM network unlock code. Once it’s unlocked, you can already use any SIM card and/or device from any GSM carrier worldwide. While there are a lot of networks unlock solutions for Galaxy S6 Edge available online, I strongly recommend contacting your carrier first, to ensure you’re doing the right thing.

As for your network operator selection, you can manually select wireless network for your device to connect after it is network unlocked. Just head on to Apps > Settings > Connections > Mobile networks > Network operators > Search Now.

S6 Edge not getting good service at a certain location

Problem: I live in the San Marcos, TX area, where my internet service works good… I come home to the RGV (Rio Grande Valley) and the service is really BAD…I NEED ANSWERS PLEASE on how to fix this Issue.

Troubleshooting: Perhaps, you’re not getting a good wireless signal in your home at Rio Grande Valley that’s why your Internet connection is also not good. You can try the following workarounds to help speed up your Internet connection:

  1. Power cycle your wireless router or modem. To do this, turn off the router/modem, unplug it from the power outlet, and plug it back in after 30 seconds then turn it back on.
    2. Also ensure your router or modem runs the latest software version. You may need to verify it with your Internet service provider (ISP).
  2. Perform a soft reset on your phone or simply turn it off for a few seconds and then turn it back on. After that, connect to the Internet and see if there are any changes or improvements.

If there’s none, then you may proceed with the following workarounds:

  • On your phone, forget the network and set it up again. Also try to toggle Wi-Fi off and on.
  • Switch to different network modes available. Go to Settings-> Mobile networks-> Network mode. Try switching to CDMA only.

If nothing else works, then please contact your Internet service provider or network carrier to escalate your Internet or connectivity issue.

Galaxy S6 Edge can’t be detected by computer

Problem: I am having the same issue as below in your June 12 2015 article titled Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge can’t be detected by Windows PC & Mac. I am at work and they block us from downloading apps. Also, my layout to get to the debugger is not like you described below. Help! Thanks.

Troubleshooting: First of all, try to check the USB cable you used to connect your phone to the computer and ensure it’s functional. Since, not all USB cables are not designed for file transfer, you may try to use a different USB cable to connect your phone to the computer. Doing so will help you determine if the problem is on the USB cable or not.

Also make sure the physical connections are secured, from your phone to the computer and vice versa. In some cases, the computer may not be able to recognize your phone because either ports/sockets is damaged.

Considering everything is all good with the physical connections (both the USB cable and ports are okay) the next thing to do is configure your phone settings enable USB file transfer and USB debugging.

To enable USB file transfer on your phone, head on to Settings-> Storage-> USB computer connection -> check Media device (MTP). Enabling USB debugging will allow the computer to read your phone as an external disk/drive. To enable this feature, go to Settings-> Developer Options -> USB debugging. If prompted, tap OK to allow USB debugging on your device.

The settings layout/menu options may vary by Android OS version your phone is running on. For devices running the stock Android Marshmallow 6.0, here’s how to access the menu option to enable USB debugging:

  • Disconnect the USB cable from your phone.
  • Turn on Developer Mode by navigating to Settings-> About Phone -> and then tap on Build Number several times until a screen pops up.
  • Head on to your phone Settings-> Developer Options.
  • Tap to enable USB debugging.
  • Turn your phone screen off.
  • Connect your phone to the computer via USB cable.
  • Unlock your phone screen.
  • Swipe down the screen to view notifications and then tap on “USB for charging.”
  • Tap to select File transfers from the pop-up screen.
  • Lock your phone screen and unlock it again.

Also ensure Samsung Kies file transfer software is not installed on your device as it could often cause conflict with the stock Android file transfer.

Galaxy S6 Edge has issues filling out forms online

Problem: I am unable to use any of my email addresses to fill out forms online. I tried clearing my cache but that didn’t fix the problem. I’m not ready to do a factory reset just yet.

Recommendations: I’m not sure what types of forms you’re referring to here, but usually, issues like this can be rectified by clearing cache and/or data on the browser or application you are using. I understand that you already have tried clearing cache but to no avail. Since you haven’t specified which application you’ve cleared cache from, I want you to do it again and this time with the browser app you’re using on your device.

  • If you’re using the stock Internet browser on your phone while attempting to fill out online forms, open the browser, tap More-> Settings-> Privacy-> Delete personal data -> then delete browsing information you want such as history, cache, cookies and site data, and others.
  • If you are using other browser app, go to Settings-> App Manager-> then tap the Clear Cache or Clear Data Alternatively, you can just enable Incognito Mode on your browser.
  • After clearing the browser history, perform a soft reset or simply reboot your phone.
  • If you suspect a third-party app is triggering the problem, try to boot your device into safe mode and see if you still can’t fill out online forms with any of your email addresses.

If you can, then it implies a third-party app is the culprit and that’s what you need to take care of first.

Galaxy S6 Edge has issues while using the Viber app

Problem: Hi, my problem is with the Viber App. I can call and text using the App, but when the phone is inactive for 15 minutes / (Standby) my Viber account goes into last seen 2 minutes ago and so on,

  1. I have not left the room were my Wi-Fi router is.
  2. I had no problem with this when i used my S4 on Viber.
  3. The reason i know it goes into last seen mode is i check it with a second phone i have.

Can you help please? Thanks.

Recommendations: Over-the-top (OTT) apps like Facebook Messenger and Viber are normally designed to work this way. Your account appears “Online” when the Viber app is running in the foreground and background (in short, active) and that your phone is connected to the Internet. When the phone is on standby or becomes idle for a few minutes or hours, your Viber status switches to “Last seen…” It will also switch to the same mode, if your phone has no internet connection, or when you manually exit from the application.

However, as long as you are connected to the Wi-Fi or mobile data and the Viber app is running in the background, you should still be able to receive push notifications and through that incoming call alerts in this mode. The app will launch again (even if it’s closed) once you accept a call through the notification, and then connect your incoming call. In your case, the only suggestions I can offer are as follow:

  • Close or exit the Viber app.
  • Reboot (soft reset) your device.
  • Turn Wi-Fi off and then back on.
  • Open/launch the Viber app.
  • Check your Viber account status after a few minutes.

If the issue remains, then you may configure your Viber settings to control when Viber app is connected to Wi-Fi using the Wi-Fi Sleep policy setting. To ensure Viber will keep Wi-Fi on at all times, select the “Always connected” option. Otherwise, select the option to “Use device’s settings” to comply with the settings defined in your phone.

If that won’t do any good and you’re certain that there’s no problem with your phone’s Internet/Wi-Fi/mobile data connectivity, my final suggestion is to contact Viber Support for further assistance and recommendations.

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.

Sprint Galaxy S6 messaging app can’t send and receive group message, other issues

Hello guys! Welcome to our new #GalaxyS6 article. As usual, we’re bringing you more S6 issues and their respective solutions. We are continually receiving huge numbers of appeals for help from other readers so we will continue to publish as many articles about this device as long as possible.

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 S6 edge can’t open a link in Facebook app

Hi. I have a Samsung S6 Edge smart phone. recently when I want to open, say a link on Facebook it will not load/open, but did not have this problem before. I have looked at some of the items that may help, but when I follow the instructions I get stuck as the next part is not on the phone. But when I go on Google most times I do not have a problem opening a site. I followed how to clear the cache, and history but could not clear this because the next step of instructions I could not do.

Also when sending a message on Facebook as Messenger the icons of smiley faces or GIFF is not there, again this has just happened. Hope you can help. Thanks. — Anna

Solution: Hi Anna. There may be a bug in your Facebook app causing these problems so you want to make sure that you clear the app’s cache and data. Here’s how:

  1. Open the Settings menu either through your notification shade (drop-down) or through the Settings app in your app drawer.
  2. Navigate down to “Apps”. This may be renamed to something like Applications or Application Manager in OEM skinned versions of Android 6 or 7.
  3. Once in there, click on an application.
  4. You’ll now see a list of stuff that gives you information about the app, including Storage, Permissions, Memory Use, and more. These are all clickable items. You’ll want to click on Storage.
  5. You should now clearly see the Clear Data and Clear Cache buttons for the application. You want to tap Clear Cache button first and see how Facebook works when you open a link. If the problem continues, that’s the time that you tap on Clear Data.

Keep in mind that installing the most recent app updates can sometimes fix bugs and reported troubles. Make sure to update Facebook app all the time.

Problem 2: Galaxy S6 wifi not working, can’t connect

Since yesterday I am unable to connect to wifi. It is always on and in proximity of a known wifi network. When i open Settings > wifi, the screen freezes for a couple of seconds, then a screen appears: “settings has stopped.” If i hold the wifi button from the drag-down menu to enter wifi settings, it just shows a white screen until i push the home button. I have rebooted, rebooted in safe mode (still no solution), wiped cache partition but the problem remains. Thanks for your time and support. — Hannes

Solution: Hi Hannes. If cache partition wipe did not fix the problem, it may be because it doesn’t lie in the system cache. Try to check if refreshing wifi firmware version will help. Here’s how to do that:

  1. Open dialer app (Phone app).
  2. Dial “*#2663#” (without the quotes).
  3. Tap on the box that says Refresh WiFi Version.
  4. Wait for the system to finish updating the firmware.

If a wifi firmware refresh won’t work, do a factory reset:

  1. Create a backup of your important files such as photos, videos, contacts etc. You can use Smart Switch for this task.
  2. Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.
  3. Press and hold the Volume Up, Home and Power keys together.
  4. When the device powers on and displays ‘Power on logo’, release all keys and the Android icon will appear on the screen.
  5. Wait until the Android Recovery Screen appears after about 30 seconds.
  6. Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option, ‘wipe data/factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
  7. Press the Vol Down button again until the option ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted and then press the Power key to select it.
  8. After the reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key to restart the phone.

Problem 3: Galaxy S6 screen stays on during calls when Whatsapp is installed

My phone screen stays on during phone conversation (while phone is flat laid on the desk in speaker or non speaker mode) and when talking over Bluetooth in the car even after pressing power off button. It seems to come right back on. This only started happening after Nougat update. Also, happens on both my S6 Edge and my wife’s S6 phone consistently. Just want to be clear the phone screen turns off when I pull it next to my ear, so that’s not a problem.

I have painstakingly trouble shooted this issue with several factory reset and resetting the cache and installing app one at a time. The problem turns out to be the WhatsApp app. when this is installed this problems immediately starts and there seems to be no way out of it other than factory reset again. As long as this app is not installed the problem does not seem to be an issue. I also noticed another issue related to this is that when Google Calendar recurring event notification lights up the entire screen and the screen will not turn off as well. So there are three issues caused by this WhatsApp, keeping the screen on and a very annoying issue.

For now I do not have that app installed and everything seems to be working fine. However I almost cannot live without this app. Is anyone facing this issue at all? How is it possible that both mine and my wife’s phone having the same issue. — Spatemp

Solution: Hi Spatemp. Good job in identifying the root cause. Finding a solution though may not be that easy. We can’t confirm if there’s a certain firmware version that’s not compatible with Whatsapp (although 2 cases should be convincing enough for us) out there but for now, we suggest that you treat the problem as app-specific. This means that if you want to fix the problem for good, you must work with the developers of the app itself. You must contact the developer and provide all relevant information like the changes you introduced to your phone prior to noticing the problem. For example, it may be helpful for them if you mention that the problem started after installing Android Nougat you received from your carrier (we assume this is an OTA update). Try to provide as much information to them as you can to minimize back-and-forths of questions and answers. If a lot of Whatsapp users are reporting the problem at this time, the developer may be prodded to work double time to fix it.

Problem 4: Galaxy S6 edge drains battery fast, won’t turn on

Hi. I own a Samsung Galaxy S6 edge. Earlier in the evening all of a sudden my battery started to drain really fast. I’m a Uber driver so after I dropped off my last passenger I noticed I had 0 battery life left. I went home to charge my phone, but my phone would not charge. So I Googled the possible problem. I tried all the trouble shooting fixes, none of them worked. I tried a hard reset I couldn’t even do that. I tried holding down the volume down button with the power key, I tried all three the volume up, volume down, home key, power button. Finally the phone completely shut off. It won’t charge at all. I tried plugging into my computer it still would not charge. No lights come on at all. I have the original charger and cords. I didn’t spill any liquid on it. A couple a days ago there was an update. I read on the internet where many are complaining about the update and having all kinds of problems with their phones. I guess the only thing I can do now is take in in and have it looked at. Thanks for your help in advance. — Julie

Solution: Hi Julie. Sadly, there’s really nothing much that you can do about this issue, especially if the phone remains unresponsive when doing different hardware button combinations. If using another charger won’t charge the phone at all, you can assume that the problem is beyond your ability to fix. This is most likely a hardware problem so yes, you want to send it in so it can be checked.

As far as updates go, there will always be reported problems about them. We can tell you though that there are tens of millions of Android users that don’t have any power-related problems after an update that results a serious issue such as yours. Most of post-update problems are caused by bugs that are addressed by doing some software troubleshooting. Yours may be different or even isolated but then again, we can’t say for sure what its exact cause might be.

We recommend that you let Samsung check the device so you can be assured that a trained technician checks the hardware. If that’s not possible, just bring the device to an independent service center.

Problem 5: Galaxy S6 keyboard not working fine after an update

My phone did an update and now my keyboard is ridiculously slow. It takes too long to type out words, it’s like I suddenly type too fast for it when before it worked just fine. If I’m punching in letters sometimes it’s as if I didn’t even press it, like the screen didn’t feel my fingers. I didn’t want this update, but for whatever reason Android thinks it’s smart to throw pop ups at you, so I accidentally pressed whatever button allows it to update. I cleared the cache and data on messaging app. I don’t have long threads of messages or any conversations, yet it still does this. — Brittany

Solution: Hi Brittany. If clearing cache and data of your messaging app did not work, do the same thing for the keyboard app. Any messaging app you designate as the default will utilize the default keyboard app when typing so make sure that you also clear its cache and data. Make sure that you select the right keyboard you’re using. The default keyboard is usually the Samsung keyboard app but there’s also a built-in Google app in there.

If wiping the keyboard app’s cache and data won’t work either, do a factory reset.

Problem 6: Galaxy S6 clipboard keeps popping up when scrolling through Facebook

Every time I am scrolling through a post on Facebook, as soon as I lift my finger, whether it’s quick or slow, the copy, paste, cut pop up appears. In one post, this pop up appears more than 10-15 times. I have tried moving quicker with my scrolling, but that doesn’t work. I’m going insane! Please help. — Sherry

Solution: Hi Sherry. Is the problem only happening on Facebook app or in any other app? If it does on other apps, do a factory reset and see what happens from there. If this is caused by a software bug, a factory reset should fix. However, if the problem remains, there may be a digitizer malfunction. The screen assembly is composed of three major components — the digitizer, LCD, and flex cable. The digitizer is a thin layer over the LCD that converts your touches into digital signals. The LCD is the monitor that displays everything that you see, while the flex cable is the wire that transmits signals from the digitizer to the motherboard. If your problem occurs when using any app, the digitizer may have stopped working properly. To fix the problem, you need to have the phone repaired or replaced.

On the other hand, if the problem only happens when you’re on Facebook, it may be caused by a simple bug. Wipe the app’s cache and data (refer to the steps above) and do a factory reset if that won’t work.

Problem 7: Galaxy S6 has blue LED but screen remains black

My S6 edge display suddenly turned black with a flickering blue light alone on top. Tried all reset shortcuts like Power+ volume down or home+power+volume (both)..no luck.. Is this a hardware issue? I am guessing my phone display is blacked out but the board is OK. . Please suggest..any other work around to fix this issue? — Ms.laksh

Solution: Hi Ms.laksh. To fix an issue like this, a technician must physically check the hardware to determine whether the board is still okay, or if there’s a problem with the screen. The most likely reason for it though may be screen malfunction. Send the phone to Samsung or any electronics service center in your area for a fix.

Problem 8: Galaxy S6 edge won’t play music on in-vehicle Bluetooth speaker

I’m not sure you can help but my Edge has always connected easily to my sync Bluetooth on my Ford Fusion. Well it still connects and says its playing but no music plays through speakers. I don’t know if this is an issue with my car or my phone. Please help. Thanks. — Angie

Solution: Hi Angie. A lot of Bluetooth problems are caused by incompatibility after installing an update in a phone. If you recently updated Android, your phone’s Bluetooth system must have become “more advanced” than your in-vehicle Bluetooth. Sometimes, deleting the old pairing in both devices work although many cases remain unresolved simply because of incompatibility.

If you have a new in-vehicle Bluetooth system, updating it may fix the problem. Contact your car manufacturer or the maker of the Bluetooth device in your car and see if they can update it. If they say it’s already running the most recent update, we’re afraid your phone has just become incompatible with it. Sadly, there’s nothing much that you can do about it. Smartphones receives more updates than in-vehicle Bluetooth devices and sometimes, incompatibility arises after installing an update. You can either leave it at that, or you can find another way to replace your vehicle’s Bluetooth system.

Problem 9: Galaxy S6 sound notifications stopped working installing Android update

Hi. I recently updated my S6 with an official Android 7 update. After the update I noticed that with some applications, I no longer get audio/notifications, i.e., Polar Beat no longer seems to work. Other audio/notifications from the Android system or music apps like Spotify seem to work. I rebooted and swiped the cache, I removed / reinstalled the app, no difference. — Dimitri

Solution: Hi Dimitri. This may be an app-specific problem so if you’ve already tried the cache partition wipe and app reinstallation, we suggest that you do a factory reset as well. If nothing will change after a factory reset, contact the app developer to report this problem.

Problem 10: Galaxy S6 won’t charge, battery stuck at 65%

Hi! My phone randomly shut off earlier today and I was able to open it again after a while. But now it’s shut off again and only opens when it is in the charger (After a couple of tries). It’s been stuck at 65% charge even though it says it’s fast charging and turns off every time I take it out of the charger. It works totally fine while in the charger. — Menna

Solution: Hi Menna. The first thing that you want to try is battery calibration. If you’re lucky and the issue is caused by a software bug related to power management, this procedure may help you. Here’s how it’s done:

  1. Use the phone by playing games or doing tasks to hasten power discharge, until the phone turns itself off.
  2. Turn the phone on again and let it turn itself off.
  3. Charge the phone without turning it back on.
  4. Wait until the battery says it fully charged to 100%
  5. Unplug the charger and turn the phone on.
  6. If the phone says it’s not 100% anymore, turn it off, plug the charger back in and wait until 100% charge is reached.
  7. Unplug the charger the turn the phone on again.
  8. Use the phone until you drain the battery down to 0.
  9. Repeat the cycle once.

If battery calibration won’t fix the problem, you must then try a factory reset to completely check if software is to blame for the trouble. Should the issue stay afterwards, you can assume that bad hardware is causing it. It can be a battery malfunction or something in the motherboard.

Problem 11: Sprint Galaxy S6 messaging app can’t send and receive group message

An Android security patch was done on March 1, 2017 and ever since my group messaging doesn’t work. I use the default Messages app that came with phone. BEFORE, to begin a group text message, I would pick the recipients, type the message and send it. The message would automatically convert to MMS and all recipient’s would receive it accordingly. And anyone replying back to message would be received showing everyone on the group message. If I received a group text message and didn’t want to reply back to text as a group message, there was an on screen option not to send back as a group message. NOW, when I pick the recipients’ names to be sent as a group text message, they are sent and being received individually. Meaning the group members only see my name and no one else in the group message.

Also, group text messages sent to me are coming in as stand alone. For example, my Mom sent my sister and myself a group text message and I received the message as if it was only meant for me. My Mom and sister both received their messages correctly (meaning all names were seen by recipient). When my sister replied (to group message), it didn’t make sense to me because I didn’t see my Mom’s response. I would have go back to my Mom’s thread of text messages. In the Messages app, there is function to pick from menu “Start group chat,” but everything is grayed out. I’d rather not have to download a different Messages app.

Is there something I’m missing in the default app or something in my settings? Please help.

P.S. My Mom and sister use iPhone’s and we all use Sprint. We are all on the same account. — Kelly

Solution: Hi Kelly. If the only change you’ve done before noticing the problem was to install a firmware update, it’s very likely that the said update changed some network settings in your phone or in the messaging app configuration. Try wiping the app’s cache and data first to see if that will make a difference. Otherwise, contact your carrier to report the problem. If the phone runs a Sprint firmware, it’s possible that the most recent update was poorly coded. Unfortunately, there’s really nothing much an end-user can do about it. If it’s true that the problem lies at the code level, only the firmware developer can fix it.

 

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How to fix Galaxy S5 with weak or no signal, other issues

One of the issues in this post today is about a Galaxy S5 with weak or no signal, as reported by one of our readers. Network or connection problems of this type are usually hardware-related so there’s not much that an average user can do. Nevertheless, we still encourage you to continue reading so you’ll also see potential solutions that may work in your case.

s5

These are the specific topics discussed in this post today:

  1. Galaxy S5 battery not working
  2. Galaxy S5 cannot boot past the Samsung logo screen
  3. Galaxy S5 with weak or no signal
  4. Galaxy S5 screen won’t turn back on
  5. How to recover files from Galaxy S5 SD card

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S5 battery not working

My phone has all of the sudden decided not to charge. i have the speed charger that it’s supposed to have and it worked great i noticed that it drained very quickly that day and was acting odd. it went from 12% to 6% to 2% in a matter of minutes, but it was fine all day. Then when i plugged it in, the charging light didn’t come on. it wouldn’t charge. eventually it died. it stayed on 2% for 2 hours and then the charging symbol will pop up on the screen, stay for about 5 seconds, vibrate, then disappear. it will do this continually all night. then by mornings its charged to about 50%. the battery is draining a little faster than normal, but otherwise its fine. wasn’t dropped, no water damage it sat on the counter all day. it just started doing this out of the blue. I’ve tried other chargers and rebooting it. cleared the cache and i have no idea what to do next. It’s almost 2 years old. — Alexis

Solution: Hi Alexis. If you’re still the original battery at this time, it’s probably high time for you to replace it. A Lithium-based battery like the one on your S5 loses capacity after every charging cycle (the process of emptying and charging the battery). Technically, all types of batteries start to degrade the day they were manufactured. Loss of capacity is the function of charge cycle as well as age. The best Lithium-ion batteries can start showing significant capacity loss after a few hundred charging cycles. In most cases, a smartphone battery loses 80% of its capacity after 300-500 charging cycles. Assuming you empty and charge the battery everyday, the current capacity right now must be very degraded. The things you mention here like the erratic battery level, random reboot, and right now, inability of the phone to turn on, are some of the common symptoms of battery malfunction. Replacing the battery at this time should fix the issue easily.

Problem #2: Galaxy S5 cannot boot past the Samsung logo screen

Hi everybody! I had an unlocked Galaxy S5 of Sprint for over a year. Recently, it often auto reboot when using or screen off after waiting time.  It will reboot and  i encounter with 2 cases:

  1. Stuck in boot screen “Samsung Galaxy S5 powered by Android” then turn off with a vibrate and turn on with a vibrate. And it keep repeating.

[IMG=””bootloop””]https://image.prntscr.com/image/459266ab838049c9a6cf24b1678b50d5.jpg[/IMG]

In this case i will remove battery and keep it alone over 2 minutes. then it boot successfully. The device sometimes becomes hot, sometimes cool but it still happen (no depend themal).

  1. It also reboot but no screen on: i heard boot sound. when boot done, the touch screen still work (sound when i touch in lock screen). And i have true black phone.

I tried to boot in safe mode, reset factory, odin with android 5.0, 6.0 but nothing changed. I hope everybody help me. Thank a lot.

My device: S5 900P with stock lollipop 5.0 (OK4- newest lollipop). Knox 0x1″ — Minh

Solution: Hi Minh. You should know that our blog only provides software troubleshooting for Android devices. These software solutions often include factory reset as well as occasional recommendation to flash a different ROM via Odin for cases wherein the phone becomes totally unresponsive. You’ve apparently done them before contacting us so you can assume now that the problem is not software in nature. Either the screen assembly is not working properly, or there’s another hardware component that is failing. Whatever it is, your best option now is to have the phone repaired or replaced. Call Samsung or your carrier for resolution.

Problem #3: Galaxy S5 with weak or no signal

I have an AT&T sim card from Straight Talk. I had a Galaxy S4 and recently bought a refurbished S5 from Amazon.com. The phone seems to be working great expect that I will sometimes have no reception. I used the APN setting I used for my S4 (I had quite a time getting those to work originally with Straight Talk). 

I was very happy with Straight Talk on my S4. I had at least 2 or 3 bars if not full service everywhere I went. Now I cannot get calls or texts most of the day, even in places my S4 had perfectly good reception. Today for example my phone was sitting on my desk, where the S4 would have been fine, and I couldn’t send texts. Then about an hour later it vibrates like crazy because it suddenly had 2 bars of service and was able to send my messages as well as get an hours worth of incoming texts. Then a few minutes later it was back to no service and I couldn’t sent a text. — David

Solution: Hi David. If you’ve installed a lot of third party apps, we recommend that you check if one of them is causing this problem. You can do that by booting your S5 in safe mode. Safe mode is one of the most useful troubleshooting trick for an Android phones. This is a different software environment wherein you can securely uninstall apps and observe how your phone behaves for some time. Safe Mode is usually recommended when an S5 encounters problems like freezing, random reboots, connection difficulties, of if one suspects that one of the apps is problematic. Third party apps installed on the phone will not load, thus, it is very helpful in narrowing down the source of the problem. If the phone behaves normally while in safe mode, or if texting works fine during the observation period, that’s a confirmation that one of the apps is responsible. Be sure to leave the phone in safe mode for at least 24 hours so you’ll know the difference. To enable Safe Mode, just follow the steps below:

  • Turn the device off.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • When ‘Samsung Galaxy S5′ 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 nothing changes after observing the phone in safe mode, do a factory reset to ensure that there’s operating system-level glitch causing it.

Resetting an S5 to its factory settings is the fastest way to delete everything on the phone as well as a great troubleshooting step if you encounter an issue that may appear hard to resolve. It’s also a great way to get rid of annoying, rogue, or troublesome apps fast.

As a precaution, please ensure that the battery has been fully charged and you have created a back-up copy of your data before you proceed.

  • Power down the Galaxy S5.
  • Press and hold the Volume up button, the Home button, and the Power button together until you see the Android on screen.
  • Use Volume down to highlight the wipe data/factory reset option and press the Power button to select it.
  • Use Volume down again to highlight Yes – delete all user data and press Power to select it.
  • Use the Power button to select Reboot system now.
  • When the S5 restarts it should be completely wiped and ready to set up again.
  • Once the phone has been reset, observe it for another 24 hours. Be sure not to install any app during this period.

If you have the same situation after a factory reset, the problem must be hardware-related. If possible, have the phone replaced.

Problem #4: Galaxy S5 screen won’t turn back on

The night before this problem occurred, I was watching Netflix on my phone for at least two hours. after that I put  my phone on the charger and went to sleep. The next day, my phone was dying and I kept having to take it off the charger without it being fully charged. Once I was able to settle down, I let my phone charge to 100%. After it was done charging I was texting on Snapchat. Then after that, probably 30 minutes later, I put my phone down to  play with my little cousins . About an hour later I picked up my phone to text someone back  and I pressed the home button to turn it on  but it didn’t. So I hit the power key and it still didn’t turn on. It’s been almost 2 days and my phone still won’t turn on.

I’ve tried all the procedures and it just won’t turn on. When people call me they say  it rings but it doesn’t come through my phone of course  because it won’t turn on. the LED lights are not on, nothing is on! I don’t know what to do . — Raeen

Solution: Hi Raeen. If others can call your number and hear your ringtone fine, that’s an indication that phone is on but the screen remains black. We can’t fix a bad screen by doing software troubleshooting so make sure that you have the phone checked or repaired. Better still, simply ask for a replacement if that’s still an option at this time.

Problem #5: How to recover files from Galaxy S5 SD card

Recently, I saved all my photos to my micro SD card. Today, when I was in my Gallery app, the Gallery app kept freezing and the app would shut down. I restarted my phone, and when it turned back on. I got a message saying “Blank SD card: SD card is blank or has unsupported files.”

Now when I go to settings–>storage, there’s an option to mount my SD card, but when I click it, it only tells me the same “Blank SD card” message.

I wasn’t using all of the memory on the SD card and I have about 1GB of internal storage space left as well. I’m not sure what the issue would be and I really want my files back.

Am I able to recover files from my SD card somehow? — Tina

Solution: Hi Tina. The “Blank SD card” message seems to be a generic error that suggests the device may be corrupted or not working. The best thing that you can do in this case is to unmount the SD card and insert it to another device like another smartphone or SD card reader. If the second device won’t read the SD card either, you can bet the card is gone.

File recovery in this situation depends on the cause of the malfunction. You may or may not be able to recover your files depending on the condition of the memory. We don’t support file recovery as it requires advanced software so try your luck by contacting firms advertising their services in Google.

 

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.

Galaxy Note 4 not downloading all emails from the server, other issues

Note 4 email

Welcome to another #GalaxyNote4 post! Below are 5 different problems submitted by some members of our community. If you want to look for more Note 4 troubleshooting, kindly visit this page.

  1. Galaxy Note 4 freezes and reboots randomly
  2. Galaxy Note 4 no longer turns on after an update
  3. Galaxy Note 4 does not light up the screen when SMS or notifications arrive
  4. Galaxy Note 4 not downloading all emails from the server
  5. Galaxy Note 4 screen flashes | Note 4 loses signal and keeps freezing

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 Note 4 freezes and reboots randomly

Hello. I am Ti’Ara Carter. I recently switch my Note 4 from T-Mobile to AT&T. Before switching to AT&T, I had problems with my battery life, however my main issue is I cannot get my phone to operate correctly with the AT&T service. I did get the Note 4 unlocked and the AT&T service works fine with the phone. However the phone continuously freezes and reboots several times throughout the day. I’ve been forced to purchase another phone, to ensure I have a phone that is working, but I’d like to use my note 4. I’ve moved from 32GB phone to a 4 GB phone and I am about to lose it!

Also might I add, I’ve taken my phone to Samsung directly and they informed me that there is nothing they can do with the phone because the binary has been tampered with. Their explanation was that AT&T uses a completely different model for Note 4 and it appears that an update through AT&T on this phone is trying to process but can’t because the phone isn’t compatible… Sounds like bologna to me but I’d love to get my note 4 up and running again. Also, even after removing the AT&T SIM card from the phone, I still have battery issues and phone will not stay booted an entire day.

Can you help? — Ti’Ara

Solution: Hi Ti’Ara. Knowing what the real cause of freezing and random reboot problem is difficult because we don’t know the complete history of your phone. However, you can do the general rule in phone troubleshooting by isolating the potential cause via trial-and-error. You basically just need to do software troubleshooting first like observing how your device behaves when it’s in safe mode and/or after you wipe the cache partition and perform a factory reset. Should software troubleshooting fails, you can assume that a hardware issue is to blame.

Boot in safe mode

If you install plenty of third party apps, try to restart the phone in safe mode. While this mode is enabled, all third party apps and services associated with them will be prevented from running so if one of them is the culprit, the issue will not occur. Here are the steps how to boot your Note 4 in safe mode:

  • Turn off the phone completely.
  • Press and hold the Power key and the Volume Down key.
  • When the phone starts to boot, release the Power key but continue holding the Volume Down key until the phone finished restarting.
  • Safe mode will be display at the lower left corner; you may release the Volume Down key now.

Wipe the cache partition

The cache partition is a directory where Android save files used for apps to run smoother and faster. If you’ve noticed, apps usually load slower during the first time you run it since installation. But the next time you open it, it would be faster and even smoother. Of course, not everybody can notice that.

Wiping the cache partition is one way to get the phone out of Safe Mode or from being stuck on the logo during boot up. This procedure will all files stored in the cache partition, and how it’s done on the Note 4:

  • Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
  • When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Vol Up key.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option ‘wipe cache partition’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • When the wiping of the cache partition is finished, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the power key.

If these procedures won’t make any difference at all, don’t hesitate to completely wipe the phone clean via factory reset. Nobody wants to do a master reset but sometimes, it’s the only effective way to fix a software problem. Please refer to the steps below on how to do it on your device.

Now, if all these software troubleshooting won’t fix the issues, it’s safe to say that there’s a hardware error on your device. It can be the battery or any other component in the logic board. If Samsung can’t pinpoint the exact source of the problem, that’s probably because they don’t want to check deeper. Some hardware problems are better resolved by simply replacing the unit instead of going through a tedious diagnostic process.

Problem #2: Galaxy Note 4 no longer turns on after an update

Hello! I came across some troubleshooting advice of yours and decided to reach out regarding my current situation. I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Edge that has been inoperable since attempting a software update. I have since taken it in to a Samsung technician to have the firmware flashed. They did a factory reset and deleted whatever software on the phone. After that, they were unable to get the screen to come on to do the flash. Upon arriving home, with a bit of hope in my heart, I plugged my phone into a wall charger and attempted to turn it on. By luck, the indicator light came on and I was able to get the phone to power up. It immediately indicated a drained battery and to charge the device, turning back on. I have since been unable to turn it back on nor is the red indicator light lighting up.

I am currently downloading the Odin to my computer and realize I should not be continuing to mess with the device but I am trying to take advantage of whatever changes I experience. Please advise me on what you think might be beneficial for me to try.

Thank you. — Audrene`t

Solution: Hi Audrene`t. If Samsung technicians can’t turn the phone back on themselves, we doubt if there’s anything that you can do on your end to fix the issue. You either have to consider testing a new battery (as the current one may have depleted its power completely and has lost the ability to hold a charge), or getting the unit replaced.

The most that you can do on your end is to see if you can force the phone to boot in other modes (safe mode, recovery mode, download/Odin mode).

Problem #3: Galaxy Note 4 does not light up the screen when SMS or notifications arrive

Good morning DroidGuy! I’m hoping you may be able to help me with a problem I am having with my smartphone.

I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 4. This is the second one I’ve had and I love it! I didn’t have this problem with my first one. I am having problems with my notifications. If I have it set for the LED lights up it works. However, on my first phone the screen would light up and let me know when I had a text or other notifications. This one will not light up for notifications. I have went through every setting I can possibly imagine! Nothing works! I’ve read so much trying to fix it and I’ve read a lot of people saying different apps need downloaded, such as, SMS Wake-up and Lock Screen Notifications. I didn’t have to have an app on my first Note 4.

What am I doing wrong? Or what am I not doing that I need to be doing? Please help me fix this?! I’m ready to pull my hair out trying to fix this! I really don’t want to install an app. Especially knowing it worked fine on my first S3! However, if there is no other solution I suppose I will have no choice if I want this feature. And if that is my only option, which free app, that is very simple to use would be your highest recommendation? 

PLEASE help me! Thank you in advance. Have a wonderful day and God Bless you!

Desperate for your help. — Tammy

Solution: Hi Tammy. Are you positive that both Note 4s are running the same version of Android? Keep in mind that each Android version has a slightly different approach towards notifications. For example, Lollipop provides more options to customize notifications for every app compared to the previous versions. Because you did not indicate the version of Android on your device, we can’t give you a specific instruction. In general though, notification settings should be under Settings.

Keep in mind that some carriers may also release their own updates to slightly modify notification settings or remove certain features for a particular device. If you’ve checked all settings related to notifications, then most probably your device does not have the ability to give you what you want.

Problem #4: Galaxy Note 4 not downloading all emails from the server

Hello. I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 4, and I (seemingly successfully) added 6 email accounts for work (each for a different client that we manage).

The issue that I am having is that I am seeing a message on the screen in the Email view that says “You may have emails that have not yet been retrieved from the server”. This is indeed true, as I am receiving emails on my laptop to these accounts that are just not coming to the phone.

The funny thing is that when I send emails from the addresses on the phone, they send, and are received on my laptop and phone (for example when I send a test email to my Gmail account). However, when I respond from Gmail on the laptop, the email only comes to the work addresses on the laptop, and not to the phone. But, when I respond to the same test email from Gmail on the phone, it indeed goes to the phone’s work emails, and to the laptop.

So the send/receive settings seem OK… but the phone just won’t retrieve from the server. So I am missing out on emails when I am away from the laptop.

Can you advise what the issue may be and how to resolve? Any assistance you can offer is appreciated.  Thank you.

PS> I am located in Jamaica, WI. — Dionne

Solution: Hi Dionne. If you want to view emails on more than one device, make sure that use IMAP server type when setting them up as opposed to POP3. Basically, selecting IMAP tells the server to forward a copy of your emails to your devices like the Note 4 and laptop. POP3, on the other hand, is convenient if you only want to check and download emails on one device.

Make sure that all devices trying to access your emails are set to use IMAP during the configuration for the system to work. For example, if you use POP3 on your laptop while IMAP on your Note 4, the email server may get confused and may not be able to forward a copy of emails to both of them. If you access your emails on your laptop first, there’s a chance that the server will push all emails to it and may no longer do the same for the Note 4.

Problem #5: Galaxy Note 4 screen flashes | Note 4 loses signal and keeps freezing

Hi there. I have had my Note 4 for a couple of years and i won’t trade it for the world but lately it’s giving me severe headaches and suddenly i am a really an angry girl. Here’s why: my phone suddenly flashes you know like when you are trying to take a picture with your phone of something on a TV…that stripes it makes and flashing. Then my signal bar is gone, replaced with a circle with a stripe through, you know,  so it doesn’t have any signal.

But that’s not the worst that happens. After it loses signal, it freezes… like completely!! The first few times i did a soft reboot and the problem is fixed but now nothing wants to work. I did check for updates but there is nothing. There are no apps that i have recently downloaded and i run virus scans every evening at 10. The only way i fix it now is if I leave my phone off for a few hours then switch it back on…

Please help me…i am afraid if this keeps on happening I’m going to jail for throwing someone with a Note 4… Lol. Please and thank you. — Ann

Solution: Hi Ann. Issues like these may be caused by a bad app or a firmware glitch. Try to boot the phone in safe mode (steps provided above) and observe the device for at least 24 hours. If your phone behaves normally and the issues won’t occur, start uninstalling third party apps until the issue is eliminated.

If nothing changes though, consider wiping the phone clean by doing a factory reset. Here’s how:

  • Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
  • When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Volume Up key.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • Now highlight ‘Yes — delete all user data’ using the Volume Down key and press the Power key to begin the reset.
  • When the master reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key.
  • The Note 4 will restart but it will be longer than usual. When it reaches the Home screen, then begin your setup.

 

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 lag and slow performance issues on a Galaxy S5, other unrelated problems

s5

Hello everyone! Here are other #GalaxyS5 problems submitted by some users during the last few days. Don’t forget to also visit this page for more S5 troubleshooting tips and solutions.

  1. Galaxy S5 screen has yellow-green tint and unresponsive
  2. Galaxy S5 keeps saying it is on roaming mode
  3. How to fix lag and slow performance issues on a Galaxy S5
  4. Galaxy S5 won’t connect to home Wi-Fi
  5. Galaxy S5 won’t power on after charging
  6. Galaxy S5 camera won’t focus properly

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S5 screen has yellow-green tint and unresponsive

I woke up the other day and my phone was working fine.

I plugged it in to charge (factory charger), then quickly grabbed my phone to head out the door. Only to realize it didn’t charge? As the phone was still black.

Later on I could hear my notifications, yet the screen was still black.

Removed the battery, and I had screen visibility again. HOWEVER my screen had a slight yellow-green tint to it and it was dimmer than usual, AND my screen is COMPLETELY unresponsive.

The screen dimmed and yellowed even more, to the point it is barely visible.

The power button does not turn off the phone, only removal of the battery.

I tried a soft reset as described on the site (removal of battery, hold the power button down for one minute, then replacing battery), and the brightness returned a little, yet the screen was still unresponsive and had an odd tint to it.

I tried to start the Android System Recovery mode to wipe Cache Partition and Reboot yet the screen was almost black and very hard to see, however after removing the battery and replacing several times I finally got some brightness again, followed the steps to wipe cache and reboot and still have response when I touch the screen.

And was greeted by the same text, Whatsapp and Gmail notifications as Ive seen for the past 2 days. Along with an “Unable to Download” error message (although I wonder if that is because I removed both SIM card and SD card for the above?)

I can use my S Voice and soft keys, volume buttons and that is it.

Im completely at a loss!

Help! — Aleashia

Solution: Hi Aleashia. Was your phone dropped or got wet before the screen problem occurred? If any of these two happened, there’s high likelihood that the screen assembly got damaged. There is no software issue that we’re aware of that can cause the problem you described here that’s why the troubleshooting that you’ve tried did not change anything. Sometimes, exposure to direct sunlight for an extended period of time or any heat source can also cause damage to hardware components. To resolve the problem, you need to call Samsung for repair or have the device diagnosed and repaired by a qualified technician.

If your S5 is still covered by a manufacturer warranty, we highly recommend that you call Samsung first. Otherwise, any third party technician can take a look at it and possibly repair whatever the trouble is.

Problem #2: Galaxy S5 keeps saying it is on roaming mode

My mobile data suddenly stopped working. My S5 was working all the time then I bought a new phone, S5 Neo, and tested the SIM to S5 Neo. Mobile data was working on the new phone. I set up the new phone and chose Australia settings although I’m in UK because I will be sending the phone to Australia.

When I put back the SIMto my old S5, my mobile data won’t work anymore and it’s giving me error “Data Roaming. You have lost connectivity…”

It seems my phone S5 is now thinking that I’m on roaming and not in UK when I’m in fact in UK.  I only get this error when I’m outside UK where my network is based and it requires me to tick the roaming field.

I checked everything, APN etc, and they are all correct. I called customer service and their advice is to reset the phone to factory default. I don’t want to do that so if you can assist that will be greatly appreciated.

You can reply on my facebook page. I already liked your page also:)

Thanks. — Bing

Solution: Hi Bing. If you inserted your SIM card (in the new phone) while setting it up, the situation may have sent a request to your wireless carrier that you are not in the UK because the phone’s system is saying Australia. The first thing that you need to do is to ensure that such request is cancelled. Call your carrier again and check if their system shows that your account is not on roaming status. Doing so will prevent potential overcharges as well as fix the problem easily. This will also prevent you from doing a factory reset.

Problem #3: How to fix lag and slow performance issues on a Galaxy S5

No new apps, and I run a pretty clean phone- no games, minimal media, never multiple things running at once. Recently, my phone has been running super slowly — the keyboard is lagging when I type anything (especially in text messages), there are delays between screens, and everything is just sluggish.

I’ve wiped the cache partition, deleted non-essential apps, and cleared out photos and downloads. I don’t keep music or videos on my phone, everything is in the cloud. I was using Swiftkey, but got rid of it- I thought that might be the problem, but the native keyboard is just as slow. I’m not sure what else I can do, save a hard reset, which I’m reluctant to do because of some voicemails I don’t want to lose. I’m open to any advice you can give.  Thank you so much. — Jenn

Solution: Hi Jenn. Slow/unstable performance can be an indication of a software or hardware problem. To know which of these two is the problem, you must first try doing software troubleshooting. If the issue remains after doing all you can do in terms of software troubleshooting, you can assume that a hardware malfunction is to blame.

It’s good to know that you’ve tried wiping the cache partition but another troubleshooting step that you can try is to restart the phone in safe mode. If a third party app is creating a conflict with other apps or the operating system, booting your S5 in safe mode is a good option.

Also known as diagnostic mode, safe mode prevents third party apps and services from running. If the issue fails to occur while safe mode is enabled, that’s a clue that one of your apps is the culprit. If you haven’t tried doing it in the past, simply follow these steps:

  • Turn the device off.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • When ‘Samsung Galaxy S5′ 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 you continue to suffer lag while texting even when Safe mode is on, the next logical troubleshooting step is doing a master reset. Here’s how:

  • Power down the Galaxy S5.
  • Press and hold the Volume up button, the Home button, and the Power button together until you see the Android on screen.
  • Use Volume down to highlight the wipe data/factory reset option and press the Power button to select it.
  • Use Volume down again to highlight Yes – delete all user data and press Power to select it.
  • Use the Power button to select Reboot system now.
  • When the S5 restarts it should be completely wiped and ready to set up again.

Once you’ve fully reset the phone, try to replicate the problem again. Make sure you don’t install any app before testing how texting works. If the phone continues to show lag and/or slow performance issues, you can assume that a hardware error is causing them. A repair may or may not fix the issue depending on what component is not working properly.

Problem #4: Galaxy S5 won’t connect to home Wi-Fi

Hello. I have been having wi-fi connection issues with my S4 since the beginning of time, but not until recently after upgrading my internet modem has it been unbearable. 

So my modem has a secured wi-fi (otherwise my HOME) and an open xfinity hotspot. The connection strength is equal on both, but for some reason my phone prefers the open xfinity to the Home wifi. Problem is that the open xfinity doesn’t seem to work correctly on my phone — web pages wont load and connection timeouts. I’ve tried to “forget” this open wi-fi but it keeps connecting. How can I set my phone to be locked on my HOME wi-fi? Thanks for the help. — Kirby

Solution: Hi Kirby. First of all, make sure that you delete the phone’s system cache. Temporary information and logs needed by the system to load apps are stored in the cache partition. Making sure that the cache partition is up-to-date may fix the issue easily. Here’ how:

  • Turn the phone off.
  • Press and hold the following buttons together: Power, Volume Up and Home.
  • Release the buttons once the Android system recovery menu appears.
  • Use the Volume buttons to navigate to Wipe Cache Partition option.
  • Press the Power button to confirm selection.
  • Select Reboot System Now option after deleting the cache. Wait for the phone to reboot.

After wiping the cache, try to observe how your phone behaves when trying to connect to Wi-Fi again. If the same thing happens, consider doing a factory reset.

Problem #5: Galaxy S5 won’t power on after charging

Hi. My phone died from drained power. So I put my phone on charge until it was 100% and when I turned my phone back on, a funny screen popped up saying something like “Android software update 11/12” and then my screen just went black.

I literally tried everything from reading other people’s Issues and your solutions, even a factory reset that did not even want to work. So I have a screen of death and a phone of death.

The phone did not get any water damage or fell or any of that sort, it just stopped working.

Please help as soon as possible. I need my phone for work related issues and I can not afford to be offline. And since it is Sunday there won’t be an open place who can help me.

Kind regards. — Anél

Solution: Hi Anél. As much as we would like to help you, our support for this type of problem is very limited, especially that your phone won’t even power on. The most that you can do is to try booting it in other modes (like safe mode, recovery mode, download mode) so you’ll know if it’s still responsive. Otherwise, you have to have the battery or hardware checked.

Problem #6: Galaxy S5 camera won’t focus properly

My camera alternates between not being able to focus on things that are far away and not being able to focus on things that are close. Its one or the other. Only sometimes, for a short period will it focus on things from both distances. I have already tried clearing the camera data and cachr and that didn’t work. And I’ve put it in safe mode to see if it was from an app, but the problem still persisted. The only thing I haven’t done is reset the whole phone, which I haven’t done because I was hoping there is another option or way to fix it, as resetting it annoying. This problem had been on and off ever since I had this phone, for two months, and it’s very inconvenient. — Lizzy

Solution: Hi Lizzy. The Galaxy S5’s camera focusing mechanism is implemented by a combination of both hardware and software processes. Because there’s no pinpoint way to know exactly what may be wrong, the general rule of thumb is to do software troubleshooting first. If the issue won’t be fixed by basic software troubleshooting, then you can assume that the camera’s hardware is problematic. Be sure to wipe the cache partition, boot the phone in safe mode, and do a factory reset.

If you think the problem is hardware-related, contact Samsung or your carrier for a replacement.

Samsung did admit before that a very limited number of early S5s had camera problems although they had already addressed the issue. It’s still worth calling them though to see if there’s something that they can do about your unit in particular.

 

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.

Can’t add contacts in a group in Galaxy S7 Edge, other issues

This is our last #GalaxyS7 post for the week. In this one, we bring you 5 more issues that were submitted by some members of our community this week. We’ll resume publishing more S7-related issues next week so keep watching for them.

s7

Below are the topics we tackle here today:

  1. Can’t add contacts in a group in Galaxy S7 Edge
  2. Unable to add “Live” email account to Galaxy S7 email app
  3. Galaxy S7 can’t detect home and work wifi networks
  4. Galaxy S7 camera autofocus not working properly
  5. AT&T Galaxy S7 won’t install updates when connected to T-Mobile network

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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: Can’t add contacts in a group in Galaxy S7 Edge

I went through 2 Notes and am now on the S7 Edge due to the recall twice of the Note. When my new Edge was put into service, my contacts in my phone AND in my Gmail account got ALL screwed up. I actually lost a majority of my email contacts and I am not sure why. Contacts I have had for years, even when I am working off my computer, are gone. I use Gmail for email.

Additionally, there is something funky with my contacts in my phone. I can look up “Mac” and see his phone number under contacts but when I go to “Groups” and try to add him to “Elite 2016” group, he is nowhere to be found. So, going back to him as a “contact,” in his name, I select “edit” and hit “groups” and find the “Elite 2016” group and check it then click “save.” I can hit “save” all day long and it gives me no confirmation it has saved. When I hit the “back” button it asks me if I want to “save or discard” and I hit “save” but again nothing.

I have shut it off and restarted. I have cleared the partition cache. I cannot add this contact to the group because he does not show up as a contact and I cannot edit him to be in the group because “save” won’t save. I have a second person (that I know of) who I am having the same group issue with. And again, I seemed to have lost most of my email addresses. Can you help? — Dolly

Solution: Hi Dolly. An average Android user can have multiple different accounts (for social network, email, SMS/MMS messaging) and integrating all of them in one device can sometimes be confusing. In a Galaxy S7, the best way to have all your contacts is by 1.) ensuring that you add all accounts to the device, then, 2.) making sure that you select “All contacts” option under Contacts>More>Settings>Contacts to display. If you lost some contacts after you got the S7, that’s probably because they were not associated to any of the accounts you now have in your current phone. You may had saved them locally in your previous phones, that is, those contacts were kept in the device and not to the SIM card or to any of your email/social network accounts. As a reminder, you can save a contact by:

  • opening the Contacts app,
  • tapping on the circle with plus sign on the lower right side,
  • entering more details
  • selecting where to save the contact (SIM, device, other accounts)
  • Tapping on Save.

If you saved a contact to your device but did not link it to an account or did not bother to manually copy it a SIM card (if you are in a GSM network), then that contact is now gone. That said, the list of contacts that you can see right now is what you got. If you lost something, we’re sorry but there’s no way we can help you get them back.

To fix the second issue regarding the phone’s inability to add contacts in a group, try wiping the cache and data of the Contacts app first. Keep in mind to create a backup of your contacts first, especially those saved locally. Once that’s done, do the steps below:

  • Open the Settings menu either through your notification shade (drop-down) or through the Settings app in your app drawer.
  • Navigate down to “Apps”. This may be renamed to something like Applications or Application Manager in OEM skinned versions of Android 6.0.
  • Once in there, find the Contacts app and tap it.
  • You’ll now see a list of stuff that gives you information about the app, including Storage, Permissions, Memory Use, and more. These are all clickable items. You’ll want to click on Storage.
  • You should now clearly see the Clear Data and Clear Cache buttons for the application.

Problem #2: Unable to add “Live” email account to Galaxy S7 email app

I randomly stopped receiving emails on the email app for my main email address. I logged in on my computer and found it had a ton of emails but my phone wasn’t receiving them. I logged out of my email account in the app and when I try to log back in it pops up a loading icon and says “loading incoming server settings.” I’ve let it “load” for at least ten minutes on multiple occasions and it just won’t do it. I really need my email to work on the app. I have two emails accounts signed in on the app and they work perfectly fine. They are emails through the community college and university I attend. The email I’m having trouble with is an account through “Live.” How do I get my email signed in through the email app? Thank you! — Paige

Solution: Hi Paige. You won’t be able to configure a Microsoft email (like Hotmail, Outlook, Live) in another device such as your Galaxy S7 if you enabled some sort of security layers such as two-step verification or app passwords. Make sure that you turn all these additional security protection off first before attempting to add your account to your S7 email app. Log in to your Microsoft account in a computer and go under account settings so you view the current Security and Privacy settings. If the same issue happens after you’ve disabled account security protection, contact Microsoft for more assistance.

Remember to turn back on all security settings after troubleshooting.

Problem #3: Galaxy S7 can’t detect home and work wifi networks

My phone will not connect to my wifi anymore. Not at home nor at work. My computer connects fine, and others can connect their phone. I have reset my phone to factory default and still nothing. Nothing extra is downloaded. I even formatted my SD card when it reset the phone. When I go to settings and check for available wifi, it doesn’t even show my wifi name. I have a regular router networked for my office and another, and a hotspot also. I am only 8 feet from all the equipment, so it’s not an “out of range” issue. The only thing that shows up on available networks, is my neighbor and my wireless printer. Any ideas? — Mary

Solution: Hi Mary. Just to be clear, we’re assuming that your Galaxy S7 is not detecting your home and work wifi, in contrast to not being able to connect to the local network. In other words, the S7 can’t discover your wifi network, that’s why you have no option at all to connect to it. We want to distinguish the two from each other because each of them can have very different causes.

That said, if the phone can’t detect wifi networks immediately after a factory reset (before you re-installed apps), that’s an indicator that the phone may have a hardware issue. However, if the phone detects other wifi networks (but not the home or work wifi), the issue may lie on the wifi network themselves. To check, you must ensure that there is no filtering or blocking system put in place on said wifi networks. If you are the administrator of your home wifi, try to restore all router settings to default. If you don’t know how to do that, ask your internet service provider for instructions. Once all router settings are back to default and there’s no active filtering system enabled, try another network scan to see if your phone will not be able to discover your wifi. If the same problem occurs, contact Samsung or any relevant party for a phone replacement.

Problem #4: Galaxy S7 camera autofocus not working properly

First problem: using Galaxy S7, I have the “in and out” focusing problem described by everyone. I’ve tried all the solutions suggested and they all work at first, then back to out of focus. I even try seeking up on it by starting way out. I’ve also tried using ISO 800 hoping faster speed would catch it. In “info” shows white balance but you can’t edit it, so why? Ok so now I’m complaining…sorry!

Second problem: 2 Samsung cables just fell apart resulting in the warning about charging faster with the right one. I took the phone to the Samsung tech at Bestbuy who said there was an unrepairable broken pin. I dug around my stuff and plugged in with a sturdy cable from an old HTC and now rapidly charging without earnings…messages there.

3rd: Using camera, gives size of resulting picture in pixels but not the size of the pixels themselves. I would like to calculate the print size and adjust within the Studio app. The controls are limited. Is there a ppi number? Since last system update, many Google apps stop and have to be restarted. I’ve installed no new apps and everything is up to date. — Virginia

Solution: Hi Virginia. Focusing or autofocusing problems have been around ever since this camera feature was first introduced. Even high-end standalone DSLR cameras can have them from time. Focusing problems are caused by a number of things but in the context of a Galaxy S7 phone, these causes can only be categorized under software or hardware. If your S7 camera can’t seem to stick to an object to focus on, the first thing that you should do is to ensure that the camera’s settings are all tuned in properly. You can do that by resetting the camera settings.

Another good thing to do is to force close the camera app (we’re assuming that you’re using the stock Samsung camera app and not any other third party app), then wipe the camera app’s cache and data (refer to the steps above).

Finally, if nothing works, consider wiping the phone clean via factory reset so you can compare how camera works when the operating system is fresh and there’s no other third party apps installed. If everything looks normal when using AF (autofocus), then a glitch or a bug may had been causing the camera app to act erratically. Remember, the camera function on your S7 is brought about by a complex processes of drivers and codes working together. If a bug was introduced that disrupted the harmonious workings of the codes involved, restoring the settings of the operating system via factory reset may do the trick for you. On the other hand, if the issue won’t fix itself after a factory reset and the camera continues to show the issue even without apps, there may be an issue with the hardware. In this case, there’s nothing that you can do about it. You must have the phone replaced.

For the second issue, we’re sorry but we don’t understand what you mean when you said this: “I dug around my stuff and plugged in with a sturdy cable from an old HTC and now rapidly charging without earnings…messages there.”

Finally, no. The Galaxy S7 does not provide pixel density after you take a picture. We’re also not aware of any third party app that can give you an accurate ppi count of every image.

Problem #5: AT&T Galaxy S7 won’t install updates when connected to T-Mobile network

I have a Samsung S7 Active. It was purchased from AT&T and legally unlocked and is now used on T-Mobile’s network. I have been unable to take software updates since I moved networks. OTA and Kies doesn’t recognize and update is needed. I put an active AT&T SIM in the phone and it did recognize and download the update, but it never installed. I’ve called and talked to Samsung support at Best Buy but they said they are unable to update it. Is there anyway I can get the software updated? I saw some sites the suggest you can download and manually install the updates, but can’t find the actual files. Thank you in advance. — Laura

Solution: Hi Laura. Phones that are originally built for one carrier (like your AT&T S7) will no longer be able to install OTA updates once you use in another network. Your only hope updating is by manually flashing or installing a firmware via Odin. We don’t make guides on how to do flashing even for stock firmware so try to use Google to find instructions. Try searching for the firmware on Sammobile website if you can. Just make sure that you select the correct firmware for your phone model to avoid complications. Try to read as many literature about the procedure as possible so you know learn some tidbits of information here and there.

Keep in mind that flashing may lead to serious issues when not done properly. If you’re okay with the risks involved, it’s your call.

 

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.

Galaxy S5 keeps going to “Emergency Only” state, other issues

Hello dear Readers! Let’s continue our discussion of some issues about the #GalaxyS5 series. In this post, we give you 6 more issues that were reported by some users during the past few days.

s5

These are the specific topics in this article:

  1. Galaxy S5 intermittent charging problem
  2. Galaxy S5 does not have LTE/WCDMA/GSM option under Network settings
  3. Galaxy S5 screen won’t turn back on
  4. Galaxy S5 keeps going to “Emergency Only” state
  5. Galaxy S5 Bluetooth keeps on turning on and off
  6. Unlocked AT&T Galaxy S5 Active won’t accept MetroPCS APN settings

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S5 intermittent charging problem

Hello. I am having a charging problem. Both my husband and I have the Galaxy S5. Mine is about a year and a half old and his is about a year old. We both started having this problem randomly about a month ago. Our phones will be charging fine and then all of a sudden a message saying that this charger is incompatible with the phone and to use the original charger. Well, we are using the original charger. We’ve purchased 4 OEM Samsung chargers for the S5 and they will work for a while and then we will get this message. We’ve also purchased 3 off brand chargers. We get the same result. It will charge for a few days and then pop up with that message. I am not sure what to do.

If a charger gives me the message I’ll pass it to hubby. He will use it for a day or two and then he’ll get the same message. I haven’t taken it in because as I said above all chargers work for a few days before getting this message. We have both made sure we are fully updated, I’ve done a factory reset, I’ve started it in safe mode, I’ve tried in ultra power saving mode, turning it off while charging, wiggling the cord to see if in a certain position if it’ll charge and everything doesn’t work. I do have a crack in my screen up by the camera. But that happened 6 months ago and the problem with both our phones started within the last month. Hubbies phone is perfectly fine condition wise. So it doesn’t make any sense. Please help I’m running out of chargers lol. — Stephanie

Solution: Hi Stephanie. The next logical step for you is to have the hardware checked, particularly the condition of the charging port. That the issue happens after doing a factory reset (assuming that you observe the phone for a few days without installing any app) is a clear indicator that you’re not dealing with a software issue.

Problem #2: Galaxy S5 does not have LTE/WCDMA/GSM option under Network settings

Hello. First of all thank you that you did possible to contact you guys when we have problems.

1.) I have a Samsung S5 G900F. The problem with this device is that I can’t connect with 4G network, and it doesn’t show the last option LTE/WCDMA/GSM like in the photo: (https://i.ytimg.com/vi/aixYwt4XLBc/maxresdefault.jpg) The strange thing is that when I insert other SIM card carrier like T-Mobile, up in the top near to the battery and clock, it shows 4G. But still I don’t have the LTE/WCDMA/GSM like in the photo. So I don’t understand what’s going on.

2.) In the box when I bought the phone it was said that it does have 4G and in the back of the phone does too. I have the 4.4.2 KitKat version of Android. Do I have to update it? That’s what some people told me to do. (That’s another topic, that my phone didn’t pop up the Lollipop update or Marshmallows. If it’s possible to help me with this too. ^.^ )

I haven’t tried with unofficial update, cause I was afraid that I will have problems with my phone. If you guys can give me some tips, I will be very thankful. 🙂 Thanks, best regards. — Arbi

Solution: Hi Arbi. First of all, let us emphasize the point that carriers modify vanilla versions of Android to add or remove features that may or may not help in personalizing their products. Thus, it is expected that T-Mobile Galaxy S5s look different than a Verizon S5 in terms of software options and features. Since your phone’s model is G900F (which is an international version) it may not have the same exact set of options with any other Galaxy S5 models out there. The software appearance of devices are determined by carriers so if you can’t find LTE/WCDMA/GSM option, stop looking for it since there’s nothing that you can do about it. If it bothers you that said option is missing, there’s nothing that we can do to help. You must simply take it or leave it. The important thing is that your phone is capable of connecting to LTE or 4G LTE. If the current SIM card you’re using does not allow you to do that, make sure to contact your carrier and ask them what their 4G LTE frequency band is. Once you have that information, check your phone manual and see the phone’s own 4G LTE frequency band. You have to make sure that your carrier’s frequency is compatible with your phone’s operating frequency for LTE. As far as we know, Samsung Galaxy S5 SM-G900F operates 4G in the following frequencies:

LTE 800 / 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 / 2100 / 2600. Again, please refer to the documentation of your phone to get accurate information about this topic.

Also, keep in mind that frequency band of a phone is determined by a certain chip designed to handle specific bands only. This means that you won’t be able make your phone connect to a carrier’s network operating only on 1700 or any other frequency band not supported by your phone.

For your second issue, the answer is most likely in the negative. Carriers only release Android updates to phones running their own version of Android. Because you have an international version, it’s operating system is most likely not fully compatible with your carrier’s Android version. In other words, if you’re not receiving any notification of a pending system update when you insert a SIM card, then there’s no way you can install an over-the-air (OTA) update. Your only option would be manual flashing of a stock firmware for this particular model. If you want to know how to do that, use Google to look for a good guide.

Problem #3: Galaxy S5 screen won’t turn back on

When I use my camera to take pictures, view pictures, share pictures, delete pictures, all is well… same for videos. Then I set my phone down afterwards and the screen shuts down from inactivity (as it should), it’s still ‘seems’ normal. BUT when I hit my home button or power button to wake my phone up it does NOTHING! It’s as if I powered it off. I hold my power button to turn it on and still nothing. The only thing I’ve found that works to turn it back on is to remove my battery and put it right back in (1/2 a second is long enough but I have even left it out a full minute before with no difference) and power it on. Once it boots, all is well like nothing ever happened!

Just the other day I had taken a screen shot, then texted it to my mom and set my phone down to work on my laptop and my phone started ringing. I could not see the display, I tried hitting every button on the phone and it just kept ringing. I eventually got my protective cover off and removed the battery and it stopped ringing. I had a feeling it may have been my husband so I called him and he said he did call. He said it rang 4 times and went to my voice mail. But on my end it rang forever!!

I have memory issues (mine, not my phone) so I don’t recall when this started in relation to my last update… but I’m pretty sure it was not right after or I would hope I would have made that connection. — Donna

Solution: Hi Donna. There’s only one thing that we can say about the issue — it’s either a software glitch or hardware malfunction that we haven’t heard of. To check, do a factory reset and observe the phone without installing any apps. Do the observation as long as you can so you’ll know if there’s a difference once you’ve restored the software setup to default. If nothing changes during the observation period, find a way to have the phone replaced.

For reference, below are the steps on how to factory reset your phone:

  • Create a backup of your important files.
  • Power down the Galaxy S5.
  • Press and hold the Volume up button, the Home button, and the Power button together until you see the Android on screen.
  • Use Volume down to highlight the wipe data/factory reset option and press the Power button to select it.
  • Use Volume down again to highlight Yes – delete all user data and press Power to select it.
  • Use the Power button to select Reboot system now.
  • When the S5 restarts it should be completely wiped and ready to set up again.

Problem #4: Galaxy S5 keeps going to “Emergency Only” state

Hello. My wife and I are have been having the same issues on our Galaxy S5s. Throughout the day they will randomly go into “Searching” or “Emergency Only” with no warning. We only discover this when we go to use our phones and have no service. To fix this, we either have to restart the phone or put it in and out of airplane mode. It seems to happen most often when we leave an area where we are connected to the Wi-Fi. Rather than re-establishing a 4G connection, the phone just switches to “Searching” or “Emergency Only”. It does this regardless of whether or not Smart Network Switch is checked in the Wi-Fi settings. This has been a nonstop issue since around January 2016 and I have been unable to find any information online specific to this problem. It isn’t specific to our phones either, as I have replaced my wife’s phone due to a cracked screen and the refurbished replacement has the same issue. This has been a serious frustration as it renders our phones essentially useless to contact us unless we constantly check to make sure they haven’t lost service. Any help from the experts here would be amazing. — Josh

Solution: Hi Josh. There are a number of factors (or even a combination of factors, which is very rare) that can cause your problem. Among the common factors though are the following (they are relatively easy to isolate):

  • Software/app glitch
  • bad hardware (like a malfunctioning radio chip)
  • network issue
  • wireless account issue

If the problem is due to a bad app or even an operating system glitch that may have developed after some time, you may be able to fix it by doing software troubleshooting. In fact, our blog can only provide you these software solutions and nothing else. You and Samsung (or your carrier) must do the heavy lifting if these software solutions won’t isolate or fix the issue.

The first software troubleshooting that you want to do booting the phones in safe mode for as long as you can allow. There’s a chance that both devices may have a common app installed causing network function interference. Booting a phone in safe mode will prevent third party apps from running so if the issue won’t occur while in this mode, you can bet one of your apps is the culprit. To boot in safe mode, follow these steps:

  • Turn the device off.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • When ‘Samsung Galaxy S5′ 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 you can’t isolate the issue to an app/s, the next logical step is to do a factory reset and observe the phone (for several days if possible). Refer to our suggestion to Donna above. If the issue remains after a factory reset procedure, you should extend the troubleshooting beyond the phone. “Emergency only” situation usually shows after a phone loses a connection to a cellular network. Make sure to let your carrier know about this problem so they can check if other users in the area are experiencing the same problem. You also want to check with them if there’s no account-specific issues that may be causing this situation. If they’ll say that everything is clear on their end, then you should consider having the phone replaced (although we doubt this is hardware-related issue).

Problem #5: Galaxy S5 Bluetooth keeps on turning on and off

First off I have tried all of the online troubleshooting and solutions but none seem to try to fix my Bluetooth issue on my Samsung S5. Here it is. So I

upgraded to Marshmallow a few months back. I’ve noticed a lot of changes with my phone. Some I have grown to look over but my main issue is my Bluetooth keeping switching on and off and it won’t allow me to turn it off or on. And to top it off, I went to application manager to see if I can do it there but my Bluetooth isn’t in application manager. It’s not there which is strange. needless to say my bluetooth isn’t working. I can’t connect because it won’t say on or off so now I keep having the bluetooth sign flashing on and off and I can’t seems to fix it.

Also, I keep getting the message flash on the bottom of my screen unable to download at this time. I try all of the cached clearing and stuff and it’s still there. please please help me thanks. — Sherifa

Solution: Hi Sherifa. If you’ve already tried factory reset but Bluetooth function remained greyed out, that’s an indication of hardware malfunction. Bluetooth function is handled by a separate hardware chip in order to work in a device. The same is true with other networking functions like Wi-Fi, mobile data, and even the normal FM app (in some older phone models). That said, you either have to simply contend that you don’t have Bluetooth functionality on this phone, or you can seek for a replacement phone.

For your second issue, kindly send us a more detailed information about it. We don’t have extraordinary powers to look into your phone history and take a look at your system remotely. Needless to say, we don’t know what you’re saying. Is this happening when using a particular app or when you’re doing anything? The more information you can give us about the issue, the closer we become to identifying the cause. There’s really nothing much that we can tell on what to do about it other than doing a factory reset.

Problem #6: Unlocked AT&T Galaxy S5 Active won’t accept MetroPCS APN settings

I recently bought a locked Galaxy S5 Active into ATT off eBay. Once I received the phone, I gave the IMEI # to ATT and got the unlock code. I entered it into the phone, and it worked great. I immediately began using the new phone with my SIM card from MetroPCS, and was getting text messages and had LTE data. After a while, around 20 minutes, I started getting the error message. I now can no longer send or receive texts, make calls, or connect to data (though Wi-Fi still works). I have watched tutorials on changing the APN and have read several forum posts which indicate what to change the APN to and when I do it either doesn’t save the MetroPCS APN or it just does nothing. I have also attempted to manually change the mobile network and Metro was not an option so I changed it back to automatic. I’m kind of at a loss here. Help. I have used both the Metro and T-Mobile MMSC website and several MCC and MNC 310/260. — Ashley

Solution: Hi Ashley. If you can’t save the APN of MetroPCS, then the issue may be firmware-related. Try to do a factory reset to see if that will clear the glitch. Once you’ve done that, re-enter the APN settings. Make sure that you enter the correct information by getting the APN settings from MetroPCS. These are the only things that you can do on your end. If the issue (of being unable to enter the APN settings) persists, try to manually flash a stock firmware on the device or look for third party apps (which require root) that can help you edit the network settings of your device. We are not familiar with AT&T software so may have to dig a little deeper for specific instructions.

 

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.

Apps on Galaxy S6 keeps saying no connection, other issues

Here’s another post that addresses some issues about #GalaxyS6 series. If you sent us a report about your own issue but are yet to see it published in our blog, please continue to watch out for more posts in the coming days. We always do our best to answer your queries so please check every article that comes out in this blog everyday.

s6-edge-plus

In the meantime, these are the specific topics discussed in this material:

  1. Galaxy S6 Edge keeps showing the charging screen
  2. Galaxy S6 Edge keeps showing OK Google popups when headset is inserted
  3. Apps on Galaxy S6 keeps saying no connection
  4. Sprint Galaxy S6 bootloop issue
  5. Galaxy S6 resets all settings back to default after installing Android Marshmallow
  6. MMS on Verizon Galaxy S6 not working when on MetroPCS network

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S6 Edge keeps showing the charging screen

I have a Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. I bought it last year, and I haven’t had a single issue with it – until recently. I was sitting on the couch, browsing a forum I have browsed often, when suddenly my phone went completely black. I didn’t drop it. It didn’t get wet. I was literally just sitting there and it stopped working. My husband was able to restart it, but after that it was glitching so badly it was barely usable. I was constantly having to restart it and it seemed to get really hot really quickly. Finally I got fed up and did a full factory reset. At first it didn’t seem to work, but after a day or so it was noticeably much better – I may need to restart once or twice a day but better. Then today my phone died at work. It’s died since these issues started and charged just fine, but today when I plugged it in the charging icon started just flashing on and off rhythmically. I could get it to go to download mode, but when it gave me the option to continue or restart, hitting restart only brought me back to the flashing icon. I tried different chargers, even our car charger, with no success. Now it’s indicating that it’s fully charged even though it hasn’t been nearly enough time. I just tried to turn it on and got the power on screen, but then it goes back to the flashing charge icon and then the fully charged one a second later. What the hell is going on? Is there anything I can do? — Nakita

Solution: Hi Nakita. In case you don’t know, most of the solutions available for an Android user are software in nature. This means that if you’ve already tried doing all the basic software solutions (like the ones you mention above) and there’s no positive result, the problem might be caused by bad hardware. Try having the phone checked for hardware issues or simply replace it.

Problem #2: Galaxy S6 Edge keeps showing OK Google popups when headset is inserted

Hello. I used the Samsung headphones on my S6 Edge device without a problem for about a week. Once it started with a problem of the OK Google going on any time I inserted the headset, and I was simply unable to use Youtube, or answer my calls. In the meantime the volume control stopped working, the pause button is not working either. In the meantime I switched off OK Google (although it went on without me switching it on at all), and it solved one part of the problem. Volume control, pause still don’t work. I read many forums, many are facing the same problems, but no solutions offered. Kindly advise. Thank you. — Kinga

Solution: Hi Kinga. An issue like this is caused by a bad audio port. Try checking the port itself for possible visible obstruction or dirt and clean it. If that won’t change anything, do the basic software troubleshooting like booting in safe mode or factory reset. Any of these two software procedures will not fix a bad audio port but will help in isolating if the cause of the problem is software or hardware in nature.

For reference on how to do the procedures, check the details below.

Boot the S6 to safe mode. This procedure is not a solution per se as its main purpose is to check if the issue is being caused by a third party app or not. While in this mode, no third party app will be allowed to run. If one of your apps is the cause, the issue should not occur. To boot your phone in safe mode, follow these steps:

  • Press and hold the Volume Down and Power keys for 20 to 30 seconds.
  • Once you see the Samsung logo, release the Power key immediately but continue pressing the Volume Down key.
  • Your phone should continue booting up and you will be prompted to unlock your phone as usual.
  • You will know if the phone successfully booted in safe mode if the text “Safe mode” is displayed at the lower-left corner of the screen.

Boot the S6 to factory reset. For serious firmware-related issues, the factory reset is often the ultimate fix. It’s because it will bring the phone back to its factory defaults deleting all files, data, settings, apps, personal information, accounts, etc. In short, if there are things you don’t want to lose during the process, you must back them up prior to performing the Factory reset.

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up, Home and Power keys together.
  • When the device powers on and displays ‘Power on logo’, release all keys and the Android icon will appear on the screen.
  • Wait until the Android Recovery Screen appears after about 30 seconds.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option, ‘wipe data/factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • Press the Volume Down button again until the option ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted and then press the Power key to select it.
  • After the reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key to restart the phone.

If nothing will change after doing these two software procedures, you can bet a hardware malfunction is to blame. Contact Samsung so you can have the phone repaired or replaced.

Problem #3: Apps on Galaxy S6 keeps saying no connection

Over the past few months my phones connection has been acting up, when either on Wi-Fi or 4G. Internet-based apps like Youtube, Facebook, Tumblr etc lose connection regularly. For example while on YouTube after watching a video for a few minutes i go to click on another but it says “no connection” at the bottom. Facebook says the same. I go to watch a video or refresh and it says “no connection”. My Spotify will play a few songs in the queue and then will not play the next one but when i open the app back up it starts playing the song. Any help? — Sam

Solution: Hi Sam. Wiping the cache partition may fix your issue.

For minor firmware-related issues brought by apps and firmware updates, wiping the cache partition often does the trick. It’s because this procedure will literally delete all cached files in the cache partition, which will force the system to create new ones during the next boot up.

This procedure is also very helpful in fixing issues like random reboots, boot loop, stuck during boot up and random freezes after updates. Here’s how you wipe the cache partition on your S6 Edge:

  • Turn off the device.
  • Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power key.
  • When the phone vibrates, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
  • When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
  • Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
  • 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 wiping the system cache won’t help, make sure that you delete the cache and data of each app in question. Here’s how to do it:

  • Open the Settings menu either through your notification shade (drop-down) or through the Settings app in your app drawer.
  • Navigate down to “Apps”. This may be renamed to something like Applications or Application Manager in OEM skinned versions of Android 6.0.
  • Once in there, click on an application.
  • You’ll now see a list of stuff that gives you information about the app, including Storage, Permissions, Memory Use, and more. These are all clickable items. You’ll want to click on Storage.
  • You should now clearly see the Clear Data and Clear Cache buttons for the application.

Finally, don’t hesitate to factory reset the device if the issue persists.

Problem #4: Sprint Galaxy S6 bootloop issue

Hi Droid Guy! I have a Samsung Galaxy S6 (32GB on Sprint). I just upgraded to Android 6.1 and not long after the phone has started to boot loop. never have rooted the phone and it is fully stock and just getting the OTA updates. I did a lot of research and these are the options I have tried to fix it:

  1. Empty Cache
  2. Master Reboot
  3. Re-flashed manually using ODIN3

After I re-flashed it continued to boot loop. I re-did the empty cache/master reboot and was able to get it to the first screen, log in to wi-fi, then to the screen where it says “preparing phone for use” and that’s where it is rebooting at now. Any ideas on what is causing this and how to fix it? Thank You. — Casey

Solution: Hi Casey. There’s only so much that you can do about this problem. That the basic software troubleshooting (which includes manual flashing) did not help is a clear indicator that the issue can not be fixed on your end. Find a way to have the phone replaced.

Problem #5: Galaxy S6 resets all settings back to default after installing Android Marshmallow

Yes. after I did the system update on accident, to the Android 6.0 Marshmallow, my phone has been restarting by itself. It will restart the whole phone to where it takes off my camera icon for lock screen. I have military time and it takes that off to the normal time zone, it resets my notification panel, it takes off my lock screen picture and it takes off the battery percentage indicator off. It’s becoming annoying and I need it to stop. I don’t have time and patience to keep re-doing everything on my phone just because it has to restart itself for no reason. Can someone please help me? I don’t know why it keeps doing this. I uninstalled apps I don’t use, apps that just came with the phone like all the music apps I uninstalled. Does anyone know how to fix the problem and to have my phone stop restarting its self all the time? — Cagirl0104

Solution: Hi Cagirl0104. If this problem started happening ONLY after installing an Android update, then you may be able to fix the problem by wiping the cache partition and performing a factory reset. Refer to the steps above on how to do them. Also, make sure that you only install compatible apps. Remember, outdated or incompatible apps can create conflicts with the operating system, which can manifest in erratic phone behaviors.

Also, make sure that you are installing the correct firmware for your device. You should only install OTA (over-the-air) updates from your carrier. If you manually flash a non-carrier firmware, there’s a chance that you may have installed a buggy version or even an incompatible one.

Problem #6: MMS on Verizon Galaxy S6 not working when on MetroPCS network

Hi. I recently switched from Verizon to MetroPCS. I have a Samsung Galaxy S6 that I purchased from Verizon so it has all the Verizon software on it. I now use the MetroPCS SIM card they gave me. I make calls, and use data without issue. I am able to send and receive messages via the Messages app the phone came with from Samsung. However I am unable to send or receive MMS messages. I have followed your steps to resolve the problem to no avail. This is the list of steps you posted: Name: MetroPCS APN: fast.metropcs.com Proxy: Not Required Port: Not Required Username: Not Required Password: Not Required Server: Not Required MMSC: https:// metropcs.mmsmvno.com/mms/wapenc MMS proxy: leave it blank MMS port: leave it blank MCC: 310 MNC: 16 Authentication type: Just leave the default settings there The MNC 16 does not allow the change to be saved. It was set to MNC 260 and that is the only number that allows the save of the MMSC address. I even contacted MetroPCS and other sites that also recommended using the MMSC address of https://mms.msg.eng.t-mobile.com/mms/wapenc and again this also does not work. Can you help? — Tony

Solution: Hi Tony. This is the usual issue many users encounter when using Verizon phones with other networks. If you already called MetroPCS  and they’ve verified that all the APN settings are correct, then the problem might be something deeper in the operating system. That means that you won’t be able to use MMS on this phone unless it’s using Verizon network.

 

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.

Galaxy Note 4 loses battery power fast, other issues

The #GalaxyNote4 was officially released on October 2014 and yet we know that millions are still using it at this time. This is a testament of the device’s reliability and popularity. However, just like any smartphone, it’s also prone to problems. This post brings you some of the reported problems about this device.

Note 4

Below are the specific topics we cover in this material:

  1. Galaxy Note 4 loses battery power fast
  2. Galaxy Note 4 power IC not working
  3. Galaxy Note 4 keeps showing pop ups from apps
  4. Galaxy Note 4 showing “Please select recovery mode in Kies and try again” error
  5. Gmail and Messaging app stops working properly after updating Galaxy Note 4
  6. Galaxy Note 4 won’t connect to any network in India

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 Note 4 loses battery power fast

My Note 4 is only 8 months old. It’s under warranty. Phone shuts down at 20%battery remaining, 36% remaining. There were few lags when i bought it — I thought it was temporary. Post marshmallow update the battery life is very poor — barely lasts 6 hours. I use very little. No such app or anything which is majorly consuming battery. Done factory reset, problem persists. I have been to the service centre, they updated my marshmallow with the binary version I think. They did not give me any paper saying they have tested my phone-however they said they did. I did not see any hardware tests running. I also feel they are trying to avoid testing as they have to replace parts for free under warranty. Is this a power IC fail? How can I ascertain and make Samsung give me some proof of their test? I really need your help. I spent a huge saving to get this phone for its camera & battery (for my family). Now it’s giving me no ROI. Kindly help. — Priyaani

Solution: Hi Priyaani. Based in our experience with our own Note 4, battery power can last almost a day provided that you do some basic power-saving tips like:

  • lowering battery screen brightness
  • turning off all sync settings of email apps, social networking apps, and even game apps
  • limiting streaming services like online music services to a few hours
  • keeping the number of installed apps as low as possible

The last one, that is, installing as few apps as possible is important since the more apps you have, the higher the possibility that the some of them may help drain the battery by actively running in the background.

We don’t think the power IC is defective since malfunction of this critical chip almost always results to power failure but not battery drain. We can’t tell with 100% certainty though if that’s the case. We don’t work for Samsung so we don’t know how they create a feedback after a repair. Repair centers, at least in the US, are not obligated to provide detailed information on the repair done on a device. We can’t be sure if there’s a way to pressure Samsung to give you proof of the tests done. If you’ve already done all the battery power saving tips you can find online but the issue stays the same, consider asking Samsung for a replacement phone instead.

Keep in mind though that a Lithium-based battery like the one on your Note 4 loses capacity as the time goes by and after each charging cycle. The more you use and charge the device, the faster it loses capacity. Thus, you will notice that after some time, the need to top it off becomes more often. A Lithium-ion battery on a typical smartphone will start to show capacity loss symptoms after between 300-500 charging cycles. If you charge the phone once everyday on average since you got it, you should really expect that usage time before the next charge will be shorter. Factor in other things that can help hasten battery drain and you have the “problem” you’re experiencing right now.

We suggest that you also buy another brand new Samsung battery so you’ll know the difference. Again, battery drain issue in today’s smartphones is not necessarily due to a software or hardware problem. If you want to extend the battery life of your phone everyday, use some smarts instead. Do some online research and you’ll discover tricks and tips that can help you remedy the situation.

Problem #2: Galaxy Note 4 power IC not working

Hi. I read your blog and found out the issue. I am facing same strange issue. I am from India. I have Samsung Galaxy Note Edge (SM N915G). The phone was working flawlessly for almost a year but after that it developed a bug where it started restarting randomly or it will get some strange error of “Boot file not available” Only solution available was to restart the phone after removing battery. After few attempts I was able to start the phone and I ignored the error. After a month of error now my phone is dead and I could not start it. I have given it to local Samsung Store and found out it has power IC problem but Samsung store doesn’t offer repair and offered me replacement which is as costly as a new mobile. Can you help in this regard? — Jigar1141

Solution: Hi Jigar1141. There’s nothing that we can do about this. If Samsung says the power IC has failed, you either have to submit the phone for repair or simply find a way to have the device replaced.

Problem #3: Galaxy Note 4 keeps showing pop ups from apps

HELP! My god, I decided to uninstall a cleaning / security app following an issue with texts not being received by one person I send to. It was suggested that perhaps it was the problem, so uninstall and reload a fresh and new one!! ARGHHHH… I was suddenly introduced to the merry-go-round of Screen Overlay Detected… and various apps including photos have become buggered on the round of instructions that resolved nothing yet bring me back to where I started…

I try and open say Image gallery, it tells me to open settings. there I cannot change anything until I select APPS That Can be on Top… These I turned off as one instruction suggested and started the process again, this time turning ON the selected app. NOTHING…I end up at the same screen Overlay Detected message, from which no matter what I do, I end up back to stage 1.. I have reset to original settings for all apps, still nothing, as each time I want to set access permissions, I start the process again. This did not exist before.. 2 weeks ago there was a system update to I don’t know which version, but it is the latest. If anyone could PLEASE suggest a solution, I would be most, MOST grateful. Thank you in advance. — Thomas

Solution: Hi Thomas. You may have installed a bad app that now resulted to a firmware glitch. We don’t know exactly what you’re trying to describe here but if your device no longer works normally due to pop-ups, make sure that you do a factory reset. Since factory reset will erase everything, ensure that you create a backup of all your personal data before proceeding. Here are the steps on how to do a factory reset:

  • Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
  • When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Volume Up key.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • Now highlight ‘Yes — delete all user data’ using the Volume Down key and press the Power key to begin the reset.
  • When the master reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key.
  • The Note 4 will restart but it will be longer than usual. When it reaches the Home screen, then begin your setup.

Remember, factory reset will not fix future problems, especially if they are due to apps that you will install later on. Make sure that you only install trusted apps after a factory reset. This is an important point that you must not overlook. You don’t even need any security app if you are a careful user as malware in todays smartphones are spread by apps.

Problem #4: Galaxy Note 4 showing “Please select recovery mode in Kies and try again” error

I am stuck in Firmware upgrade issue “Please select recovery mode in Kies and try again.” I am on a Sprint Lease and I am not telling them about this. I am recently unemployed and cannot afford their and Samsung’s expensive answers. I just signed up for Total Protection Coverage with Sprint but it’s not in effect until Sept. 4th. Will they charge me to fix this? I did nothing.

According to my research on this issue, it’s an upgrade issue from Samsung and is happening to a lot of people. I am NOT paying to have this looked at. It’s their glitch… I am temporarily using another Samsung phone that’s on a month unlimited card through Verizon. I either want out of this lease with Sprint or a free fix until my lease is up! I did nothing to cause this.

I went to Best buy to the Samsung desk and he almost got the update up and then it shut down again with the “Kies’ message. I tried to do this on my own and through Odin with a Samsung update which just “spun’ for two hours. I am at my wits end. I’m a paralegal, not a IT person! this is ludracris as I cannot afford to pay deductibles when it’s their program install problems! Help, please.

I have only 15 days left on my temp card and have a Sprint bill for 99.00 and paid 58 for this card for other phone! I will not pay Sprint for a non-working phone at no fault of my own. I have a reasonable expectation to usage of my device and expectation to have fixed in a timely manner with no fee due to no fault of my own. Any ideas are welcome! Time sensitive issue! Thanks, Droid Guys! — Kristin

Solution: Hi Kristin. We don’t answer requests for assistance on time so we hope this post can still help you right now. First of all, we want to make clear that we don’t work for Sprint so we are hardly qualified to give accurate information about their products and warranty. As far as their Total Equipment Protection is concerned, you can get first-hand information from their website. We think the Sprint Lease FAQs are self explanatory. If you are confused with the wordings though, we strongly suggest that you call Sprint directly.

On your question regarding a fee for repair, we think the answer is no. As long as you bring the device to any Sprint store once the Total Equipment Protection becomes active, we don’t think you’ll have to pay for any necessary repair. Damaged Device Fee is reserved for phones without the Total Equipment Protection so can rest assured that they will check and fix the issue for free.

Problem #5:  Gmail and Messaging app stops working properly after updating Galaxy Note 4

I have a Note 4. I did the latest upgrade, I assume it was marshmallow as that is what is the latest and it says I have the latest software. Since the upgrade, my text app that came with the phone, and my Gmail are not working right. I CAN use them, but they are both wonky with the same issues and VERY difficult to use. It’s hard to explain, but the apps’ form fields when entering the info, ie contacts, subject, message areas aren’t working. You can’t see the whole window, it only shows one line at a time. If you go to the subject line in an email, you lose the rest of the window and can only see the line you are typing into. In a text, when you enter a contact, it’s all wonky sorry I can’t explain! It looks different in both email and text than its supposed to. The fields jump around. Then when you go to another field, you can’t see anything else but that one field. When you minimize the keyboard, the app jumps around and changes fields. I can’t do a soft reset, only a restart, or turn off and on, which I tried. Any ideas? Thank you! — Elle

Solution: Hi Elle. The first thing that you want to do is wipe the cache partition of your phone. Sometimes, updates can corrupt the system cache so forcing the phone to create a new cache is necessary. Here’s what you need to do:

  • Turn off the Galaxy Note 4 completely.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home keys together, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Note 4 vibrates, release both the Home and Power keys but continue holding the Volume Up key.
  • When the Android System Recovery shows on the screen, release the Volume Up key.
  • Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option ‘wipe cache partition’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • When the wiping of the cache partition is finished, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the power key.

Once you’ve updated the system cache, the next logical step is to ensure ALL apps are updated to make them compatible with the new operating system. If you have an app that’s not compatible with Marshmallow or whatever operating system you’ve installed, it may result to a glitch that can affect other apps and features. If you can’t find an update for that app, make sure you uninstall it.

Finally, if both procedures won’t work, make sure that you do a factory reset. Refer to the steps above.

Problem #6: Galaxy Note 4 won’t connect to any network in India

Hi Team. I am facing mobile network issues in my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (SM-N910C). My brother bought the second hand mobile in Dubai and send to India. I have used around 4 network SIMs in India, however the network grassing is very less where as same network SIM gives good net speed in same area in other phones including basic Android phone. I am not even able to make/receive calls along with internet problem. I have used the 2G and 3G networks and changed the network settings accordingly, but no luck of getting the network. Sometimes network range shows 3 to 5 points, but when i make calls gives an error “Not registered on network.” Can you please assist to trouble shoot this problem. Thank you very much for your assistance. Regards. — Dinesh

Solution: Hi Dinesh. “Not registered on network”  error is usually the generic message a Note 4 shows if it attempts to connect to a network that it has no permission to do so. In other words, the Note 4 you are trying to use may not be unlocked yet. Make sure that it’s unlocked first before attempting to connect to any network in your country again. Try to do some basic research online on how to unlock your specific phone model, or simply bring it to a shop that can do the job.

 

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.

Galaxy S5 apps won’t load with mobile data after Marshmallow update, other issues

We bring you another list of #GalaxyS5 problems sent to us by some readers of our blog. If you don’t see your issue published yet, make sure to keep watching for more of the same posts in the near future.

s5

The following are the topics we cover in this material today:

  1. Galaxy S5 unable to connect to mobile data
  2. Galaxy S5 won’t charge
  3. Galaxy S5 won’t turn on after an update
  4. Galaxy S5 backup app not working
  5. Galaxy S5 apps won’t load with mobile data after Marshmallow update

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S5 unable to connect to mobile data

Hi guys. Odd problem here. I recently encrypted my Samsung Galaxy S5, and am now unable to connect to mobile data (4G, 3G, EDGE, anything). A few detailed points: This only started happening after encrypting my device. I did upgrade to Android Marshmallow 6.0.1 a few days prior, but my mobile data was working normally after the upgrade. I doubt the problem has to do with reception as I am in the same areas it has always worked in, and it’s not that I don’t have bars when I AM connected, but that it won’t connect at all.

I have cleared the cache partition as per the articles I have found on your site, with no change. I am sometimes able to connect briefly by going into airplane mode and then coming back out, at which point it connects and works normally for a few minutes before disconnecting again, but this does not always work.

I checked the LTE connection, but I don’t have the LTE/WCDMA/GSM connections you talk about. Instead I have it set to automatically roam across 4G/3G/2G. I’m assuming this is because I am in Australia working off different wireless standards.

I have taken the SIM card out to test signal connection with no issues. I have booted into safe mode and the issue is still occurring. Simply turning off and on the mobile data will sometimes work, but not always.

GPS works as the offline Google Maps I have downloaded will still accurately track my position without the mobile data. Connected Wi-fi is similarly unaffected. When I go into ‘About device’ and select ‘Status’, while it does give me my correct carrier and a signal strength (~1-5dBm 35asu) and the service state is ‘In Service’, the ‘Mobile network status’ is ‘Not connected’ (despite being on in my phone settings) and the ‘Network type’ is ‘Unknown’. But then it also says ‘My phone number’ is ‘Unknown’, but I am able to make/receive calls just fine. I have also restarted many, many times whist troubleshooting. Phone details are as follows:

Model number: SM-G9001

Android version: 6.0.1

Android security patch: level 1 July 2016

Baseband version: G900IDVU1CPC1.

Thank you guys so much for your assistance. I’ve tried solving this myself but can’t get it working. Anything you could do would be greatly appreciated. — Christopher

Solution: Hi Christopher. If you’ve been following some of our articles that answers mobile connection issues, you’ll should notice that you are yet to do two important things. One is to do a factory reset and the other is to contact your wireless carrier.

Factory reset is the next logical step after doing all other software troubleshooting steps. The problem may be caused by an operating system glitch so it’s important that you reset everything back to factory default first. To do a factory reset on your S5, kindly do these steps:

  • Power down the Galaxy S5.
  • Press and hold the Volume up button, the Home button, and the Power button together until you see the Android on screen.
  • Use Volume down to highlight the wipe data/factory reset option and press the Power button to select it.
  • Use Volume down again to highlight Yes – delete all user data and press Power to select it.
  • Use the Power button to select Reboot system now.
  • When the S5 restarts it should be completely wiped and ready to set up again.

Factory reset will wipe everything that’s stored in your phone’s primary storage device (SD card will not be affected) so it’s important that you create a backup of important personal data before proceeding. In the event that your phone continues to behave abnormally and the issue remains, do not hesitate to let your wireless carrier know about it. There may be some account- or network-related issues causing it that only they can fix.

Problem #2: Galaxy S5 won’t charge

Hi. So my phone suddenly stopped charging the night before last. I put it on the charger before bed and everything was fine as usual. The little lightning bolt appeared and there wasn’t any issue with the phone.

Then yesterday morning, I noticed my phone was at 6% battery life, which means that probably sometime shortly after I put it on the charger, something happened and it stopped charging.

I thought maybe it was the charging cord, so I tried using my car charger, which did not work.

Then I tried my computer USB and I tried my portable charger, none of which worked.

What keeps happening is that I’ll plug the charger in, and the battery sign with the lightning bolt will appear, only to disappear seconds later. Usually the battery with the bolt stays up and it fills with the green light to show you it’s charging, but it just comes up empty and then disappears…and then returns again empty and disappears. This is when the phone is off.

When it’s turned on it doesn’t show the lightning bolt or register a charge at all. I thought perhaps it was a battery issue, though the phone is barely over a year old, so I bought a new battery, which made it so I could turn my phone on, but it still won’t take a charge.

The people at T-Mobile said they don’t see anything wrong with my port at all. They tried several chargers there and couldn’t get it to charge either. They had no idea why it wouldn’t charge.

I tried cleaning the port with a dry toothbrush and air, I tried jiggling the charger in the port, I tried doing a soft re-start where you hold the power button down for a minute while the battery is out of the phone, and I tried starting the phone in safe mode to make sure that power sharing app wasn’t somehow the problem. I’ve done everything but a full factory reset on my phone. Do you have any other suggestions besides the factory reset or buying a wireless/battery wall charger?

I really can’t afford a new phone, and I don’t understand how a phone can just stop accepting a charge literally overnight for no apparent reason at all. — Heather

Solution: Hi Heather. Doing a visual check on the charging port cannot know the true status of said equipment. It may look good on the outside but it may actually be suffering from corrosion or some contacts may have come loose inside. The only way to know if it’s working is by having the phone checked in a repair center. Before you do that though, we highly recommend that you do a factory reset first. This is the only procedure that you can do on your end. Its aim is to check if the root of the problem is only at firmware level. If the true cause is hardware in nature, which means nothing will change after a factory reset, that’s where repair or replacement comes in.

Problem #3: Galaxy S5 won’t turn on after an update

Hi Droidguy.

Device: Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime (SM-G906K). After updating my S5’s software to the latest Lollipop version, the phone wouldn’t boot after restarting. I have tried taking the battery off for 10+ minutes and pressed the power button for a minute while the battery was taken out. I have also attempted going to recovery mode but it wouldn’t even let me go to it in the first place!

Sometimes I get blue light on the top left corner and I get notifications but obviously can’t see anything on the screen. After hours and hours of work I have finally got it to download mode and installed stock ROM for Marshmallow and it finally worked. But after a day while I was listening to music on the phone it just died on me, while the battery wasn’t even low. Strangely, it started working again after a day! This repeated for about 3 times where if i try to restart my phone or when it randomly dies on me it wouldn’t boot for over a day.

Now I have already purchased a new phone (Note 7) but it won’t be available for me to use for a week, so could you please provide a solution or a quick fix to transfer all my data inside my phone as it died again last night. — MC

Solution: Hi MC. Well, there’s obviously nothing that you can do if your phone refuses to boot up normally during select days. You can only move your files when it’s up and running.

As far as solution is concerned for this problem, the only suggestion that we can give is repair or replacement. We have no way of knowing what the problem is. The issue may be isolated to the screen assembly, or to another unknown component.

Hopefully the device will work again in the coming days. Once it boots back up, try to boot it immediately to safe mode and connect it to a computer so you can transfer your files. To restart in safe mode, follow these steps:

  • Turn the device off.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • When ‘Samsung Galaxy S5′ 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.

We’ve encountered a few cases in the past wherein the cause of a similar issue is a bad Power button. Make sure to press the Power button hard when trying to use it.

Problem #4: Galaxy S5 backup app not working

I have AT&T Pro Tech. I’m told to use Wi-Fi to back-up data. Since I have no access to Wi-Fi at home, I go to the local library and use their free Wi-Fi which works fine for all my other Wi-Fi needs. It starts out working okay with the backup but then quits. For the last 6 weeks, it’s showed I have 1.2GB (of 50 available) backed up, no matter how long I’m there. It says it’s backing up data and then quits; twice has said all contacts are backed up but then will say I need to back up contacts.

I never willingly added this app to my phone; it just appeared one day. If it won’t work, then how do I get rid of it. Know you’ll have more questions so email me. I need help. Maybe I’m missing something here. I have done all of your suggested fixes already but don’t think that’s the problem. Thanks. — Barbara

Solution: Hi Barbara. You should have mentioned the name of the app you’re having trouble in your problem description to help us identify the issue. Since we can’t use the information (or lack thereof) you provided, we suggest that you do a little research about it and see if you can contact its developer. If the app happens to come from your carrier, call them and let them help you figure the issue out.

Problem #5: Galaxy S5 apps won’t load with mobile data after Marshmallow update

Hi. Since updating my Samsung Galaxy S5 to Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, certain apps on my phone won’t load or run properly when just using mobile data. I have no problems with the apps when using Wi-Fi.

I have tried the following and also contacted my provider (Optus) who have insisted i should do a factory reset Marshmallow data problems If you suffer from data connectivity issues after an update, the solutions are equally low-brow: turn your phone off and on again, toggle mobile data on and off, remove and replace your SIM card and toggle Airplane Mode on and off. If these don’t help, hit your carrier support pages to see if others are having the same problem and contact your carrier to see if there are any known connectivity issues on the new Android version. — Jessica

Solution: Hi Jessica. First of all, make sure that the affected apps properly updated to make them compatible with the new operating system version. They may have worked great with Lollipop or the previous iteration of Marshmallow but that may not be the case with the most recent update you have installed. Keep in mind that updating the operating system does not automatically update apps as well. Some app developers are keen to release updates to their own products once new Android updates are released but there are also some that may take a long time to do so. Others may no longer care to make their products compatible at all! If there’s no update available for the said apps, consider contacting their developers for direct assistance.

If the apps in question are already updated, the next thing that you want to do is wipe the cache partition. Here’s how:

  • Turn off the device.
  • Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power key.
  • When the phone vibrates, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
  • When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
  • Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
  • 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 wiping the cache partition won’t help, the final but drastic solution is factory reset. Refer to the steps above.

 

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.

Galaxy Note 5 won’t charge by wire or wireless, other issues

Hello everyone! Welcome to another article that provides solutions to some #GalaxyNote5 issues. In this post, we discuss 5 other problems submitted by some members of Android community over the past few days.

Note 5

Below are the topics we cover here today:

  1. Water-damaged Galaxy Note 5 is completely unresponsive
  2. Galaxy Note 5 won’t charge by wire or wireless
  3. Galaxy Note 5 not receiving SMS from Grubhub and unregistered contacts
  4. Galaxy Note 5 overheating and slow performance problems | Supported video formats of Google Drive
  5. Sprint Galaxy Note 5 LTE not working in China

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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: Water-damaged Galaxy Note 5 is completely unresponsive

Hello! So I have a problem with my brother’s phone. He has a Samsung Note 5 (It’s not the original I think, it’s just a copy). A week ago, the phone fell in the water (not a lot of water, just a little) and my brother used hair dry, but he stopped when my sister told him, it’s not good to use it. He used it for just some seconds. And I tried to turn off the phone. Then in the screen the logo of the Android showed (the robot, that green thing) And it was like its stomach was open, and then we saw some Chinese stuff and the phone didn’t want to turn off. We putted in a bag full of rice for a night, then in the morning I tried to turn it on, but it didn’t respond, I tried even to charge it. But no response. I want to turn it on for my brother, I really wanna do this as a gift for him. Please answer me! I need your help. — Wissal

Solution: Hi Wissal. The worst thing that you can do with a wet or water-damaged smartphone is to turn it back on. Not only can it potentially lead to more hardware issues but doing so can surely fry the wet components as well. Electronics and water, obviously, don’t mix well. There’s no software trick that you can do to resolve problems due to water damage. Thus, the software tips that we provide in this blog will definitely not work in your case. We don’t know what your expectations are but this type of issue may only be resolved via repair. Frankly, even a good repair may not even save the phone anyway if water has affected critical or hard to replace parts.

We notice that you tried to put the phone in a bag of rice before turning it on again. The effort is good but it’s really not effective if you have a non-removable battery pack like the Note 5. First of all, you want to immediately remove the power source from the device (battery) to prevent it from shorting other components. The longer the battery stays inside a wet phone, the higher the chance of it causing more damage. We know that removing the battery of a Note 5 means tampering with the phone itself, which also means voiding the warranty, so it’s usually out of the question for most users. Not removing the battery immediately and leaving it connected until should have messed the phone to a certain degree so there’s really nothing that you can do much. Still, it doesn’t lessen the need to do it right away in any case. This is an important first step when dealing with a wet electronic gadget.

Another thing that you should note is the fact that leaving your phone in a bag of rice will only work if done so in an extended period. Overnight won’t do anything. Again, you have to  remove the battery first and dismantle the parts that can possibly be separated from each other. Once you’ve done that, you must wash the parts in alcohol before drying them up. Afterwards, to ensure that no moisture is left, you must leave the disassembled components in a bag of rice for up to a WEEK at a minimum. This will ensure that the rice will absorb all moisture and that the parts are thoroughly dried. To be sure, leaving the parts in a bag of rice for up to 2 weeks is not unheard of.

Since you’ve not done the above procedures before turning on the phone again, you can assume that you are now dealing with a hardware problem. You can’t expect Samsung to fix the issue yourself so you must bring the phone to a good repair shop so they can check if there’s something that they can about the device at this time.

Problem #2: Galaxy Note 5 won’t charge by wire or wireless

I have a Note 5 on Verizon. Software is completely up to date. About a month ago phone stopped charging on charger. Tried 4 different chargers including a new one. None of them worked. Examined port. No damage or corrosion. Purchased wireless charger. This worked. About a week later the wired charging worked fine. Now the phone stopped charging via wireless and will sometimes charge wirelessly. When placed on wireless charging it states that it’s charging for about 2-5 seconds and then says wireless charging paused. If I remove and replace I can eventually get it to charge. Seems to work better with phone turned off. I have soft reset multiple times and have wiped the cache partition as well. — Taylor

Solution: Hi Taylor. Like you, there’s no way for us to know for certain what the real deal here is so you must try all available troubleshooting for you. This will not only help you identify the problem, or give you an idea where the problem lies, but may also help you resolve the issue once and for all. When speaking of troubleshooting, we mean doing software solutions on your end like observing the phone in safe mode and after a factory reset, updating apps, updating the current Android version (if there’s an available update), or even by manually flashing a stock ROM. As a general rule, if you’ve exhausted all software troubleshooting, you can assume that hardware malfunction is to blame. You can then send the phone to a service center, preferably that of Samsung, or better still, simply find a way to have it replaced.

Boot the Note 5 in Safe mode

For reference, here are the steps on how to boot your Note 5 in safe mode:

  • Turn off the phone completely.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • Once ‘Samsung Galaxy Note5’ shows, release the Power key and immediately press and hold the Volume Down button.
  • The phone will restart but keep the Volume Down button pressed.
  • Once the phone has finished restarting, ‘Safe mode’ will be display in the lower-left corner of the screen.
  • You may now release the Volume Down button.

Safe mode, also known as diagnostic mode, is a slightly different Android environment where you uninstall apps in case you suspect one of your third party applications is problematic. You can engage safe mode if you want to see a difference on how the phone behaves when not in normal mode. If the charging problem won’t go away even while your phone is in safe mode, you can rule out third party apps as the cause. On the other hand, if your Note 5 charges fine in both wired and wireless modes, then the next logical step to do is to uninstall third party apps until the issue is eliminated. Safe mode will not identify which app is the culprit so you have to remove apps until you notice that charging process is back to normal.

Wipe the phone clean thru Factory reset

Since you’ve already indicated that you’ve already wiped the cache partition, another good thing to try is factory reset. This is a more drastic form of troubleshooting since it involves deleting everything in the phone’s primary storage device. Make sure that you create a backup of your personal data before  you factory reset the device.

Now, factory reset is only effective if the root of the issue lies on the firmware. If the charging issue is due to a third party application or hardware error, doing it will not have any effect on the issue whatsoever. It is worth doing in your case though, since we are yet in the process of isolating the problem. Ensure that you observe the phone for at least 24 hours after a factory reset so you will notice any difference. You don’t want to install anything or download anything during the observation period so refrain from re-installing your apps right away. To factory reset your Note 5, follow

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy Note 5 completely.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up and the Home buttons first, and then press and hold the Power key.
  • Keep the three buttons pressed and when ‘Samsung Galaxy Note5’ shows, release the Power key but continue holding the other two.
  • Once the Android logo shows, release both the Volume Up and Home buttons.
  • The notice ‘Installing system update’ will show on the screen for 30 to 60 seconds before the Android system recovery screen is shown with its options.
  • Use the Volume Down key to highlight the option ‘Yes — delete all user data’ and press the Power key to select it.
  • When the process is complete, use the Volume Down key to highlight the option ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key to restart the phone.
  • The reboot may take a little longer to complete but don’t worry and wait for the device to become active.

Flash a stock firmware via Odin mode

Another worthwhile software procedure that you can do in your case is by replacing the current firmware (operating system version), especially if the issue happened after an Android update. We must emphasize though that manually flashing a firmware has its risks. For example, using a faulty USB cable may result to errors as not all data will be transmitted between the computer and the smartphone. Using an incorrect firmware version can also lead to problems like bootloop and random reboot. Manual firmware flashing is not usually recommended for average users by Samsung so you must look for a reputable guide online. You can use Google to do the job.

Submit the phone for repair or seek for replacement

As mentioned above, if the software troubleshooting procedures have been exhausted and the issue remains, you can assume that the issue is beyond your ability to fix. Call Samsung or find a shop that can do a full hardware check on your Note 5. If the phone is still under a replacement warranty, you might want to replace the phone instead.

Problem #3: Galaxy Note 5 not receiving SMS from Grubhub and unregistered contacts

Since I purchased the Galaxy Note 5, I stopped receiving texts from Grubhub when i order from them and from random people i work with that are not in my contacts but have shown me on their phone that they texted me and have the correct phone number. I do not know why when i do receive texts from others businesses and doctors that are not in my contacts, so i did not set an exclusive filter to my recollection. I would like to know that the restaurant received my order when i use Grubhub. I have fingers crossed now that my dinner is on its way. I have not had any issues sending messages. — Laura

Solution: Hi Laura. The first step that you want to do here is to ensure that your Messaging app is working and its settings reset to default. This can be done by clearing its cache and data. Here’s how:

  • Open the Settings menu.
  • Tap Apps (some versions may show Applications or Application Manager).
  • Tap the Messaging app.
  • Tap Storage.
  • Tap Clear Cache, then Clear Data (in this order).

Tapping the Clear Data button will delete existing conversations of the app. Make sure that you create a backup of your SMS if you don’t want to lose them. You can do that by using Smart Switch or Kies.

Once you’ve cleared the cache and data of the messaging, observe the phone for some time to see the difference. The problem remains, try using another messaging app from Google Play Store.

You also want to let your wireless carrier know about the problem as there may be some network problems affecting your area or account.

The Grubhub issue may also be isolated to the app itself so we also recommend that you contact its developer so you can ask for direct assistance from them.

Problem #4: Galaxy Note 5 overheating and slow performance problems | Supported video formats of Google Drive

  1. Deleted nec apps off Note 5 believing them to be third party nonsense. They were necessary. Looked in Play Store, app, all. Did not see the apps.
  2. Uploaded videos (business) to Google Drive. The videos won’t play.
  1. Phone overheats way too much. I’m placing it in the fridge to cool.
  2. I removed 50% pictures, videos, files by placing it on a SanDisk dual drive, so, it has over 10GB memory. It should be faster than it is. Instead, it hesitates and lags. Doesn’t open web pages quickly either. I DO work it to tears, but I thought I could. It’s a Phablet, no? That was the whole point in getting it. I’ve removed the three or four cache cleaners, battery tender (drainers) I had on there. Thank you in advance for any and all assistance. — Janet

Solution: Hi Janet. First of all, if you’ve deleted critical or important files, apps, or services by mistake, the best thing that you can do to restore them is via factory reset. Doing so will ensure that your phone has all the basic apps and services. Refer to the steps above on how to do this.

For the second issue, make sure that the uploaded video files are not corrupted and the file format are supported by Google Drive. The following are the formats that Google Drive can play:

  • .WebM files (Vp8 video codec; Vorbis Audio codec)
  • .MPEG4, 3GPP and MOV files – (h264 and mpeg4 video codecs; AAC audio codec)
  • .AVI (MJPEG video codec; PCM audio)
  • .MPEGPS (MPEG2 video codec; MP2 audio)
  • .WMV
  • .FLV (Adobe – FLV1 video codec, MP3 audio)
  • .MTS

Try playing the videos in a computer first to see if they work. If they won’t then those files are corrupted.

Your third and fourth points may be related and may be indications of on-going hardware problem. Make sure that you do a factory reset and observe the phone for at least a full day, without apps. This way, you can compare how the phone behaves when it runs a clean firmware version (after a factory reset) and current status. If lag and overheating are observable even after a factory reset and without your apps, that’s a clear sign that you need to find a way to have the phone replaced.

Problem #5: Sprint Galaxy Note 5 LTE not working in China

Hello there!! I recently got my phone unlocked by Sprint. I travel to China a lot and figured I’d get it unlocked and use a China Telcom SIM card. Before I got here I had a friend get me a SIM card. He got an 18GB data card. I didn’t need to make phone calls with it so i figured that would be fine. Turned off the phone, changed out the SIM card and powered the phone back on. Nothing happened. We double checked a couple things and it turned out that my Note 5 was missing a needed spectrum range. I know that wasn’t very detailed, but if you could check into it. oh! it was also something about my model number not being the right one for international/China Model number is: SM-N920P — Josh

Solution: Hi Josh. The SM-N920P model uses the following frequency or bands:

  • 4G FDD LTE: B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B12(700), B25(1900), B26(800);
  • 4G TDD LTE: B41(2500)

The Chinese carrier you’re on must be using any of these bands in order for mobile data (LTE) to work on your Note 5. Make sure that you call them to so you’ll know if your Note 5 is compatible with their network. If they don’t support any of the mentioned bands above, there’s no way you can use that Note 5 for mobile data. The availability of usable band in a smartphone is provided by a special chip so there’s obviously nothing that you can do about it. There’s no special software trick that can give your phone the capability to work in additional frequency.

Alternatively, you can try doing some detective work to see if there’s a carrier in your area that supports any of the supported bands. If there’s one, then you can simply buy their SIM card to continue using LTE.

 

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.

Gmail in Galaxy S7 email app won’t send to group, other issues

Considered as the best in its class today, the Samsung #GalaxyS7 is undeniably reliable, taking into account the millions of fans using it. But like any electronic gadget, some users also encounter quirks sporadically. Some of these users have contacted us and we publish 5 of them here today.

s7

Below are the specific problems that we cover in this post:

 

  1. Galaxy S7 “Touchwiz not responding” error
  2. Galaxy S7 touch screen issue due to water damage
  3. Some Galaxy S7 apps won’t connect to the internet
  4. Gmail in Galaxy S7 email app won’t send to group
  5. Galaxy S7 won’t turn back on

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, or you can install our free app from Google Play Store.

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 S7 “Touchwiz not responding” error

I have Galaxy S7 for several weeks now, running Marshmallow 6.0.1. Battery is not removable. Problem occurs in the middle of running an app. it just reboots on its own and then I get the “process not responding” and “touchwiz not responding” messages.

I have done several “wipe cache” actions, and the problem does not go away. If I select “Wait”, it eventually restores Touchwiz and all the icons. I have also tried Good Lock, which is supposedly a good launcher, from Google but the problem continues, telling me that “Touchwiz isn’t responding” even though the default is Good Lock.

I have removed many apps that I wasn’t using, always “close all” after I open a few apps.  And I removed CleanMaster, which I thought was taking a lot of battery power. Battery holds up fine, the only problem is this rebooting on its own, and process and “Touchwiz not responding”. It’s not ready for Nougat, yet. Can I revert to version 6.0? — Alice

Solution: Hi Alice. With so many free apps available for download in Google Play Store, it’s not uncommon to find many average users install whatever catches their fancy without considering the risk of creating complications. The general rule when it comes to dealing with Android issues is to keep wary of apps. The less apps you have installed, the lesser the chance of encountering problems. The thing is, there is no way for anyone to know what the offending app may be once problems start to show. The only thing that you can do is to either use A) method of elimination to identify the app, or B) by doing a factory reset and observing how the phone behaves after you install an individual app.

We recommend that you do B (factory reset) so you can effectively isolate the problematic app. Doing so takes time as you need to observe your device after every app installation but it’s the better method if you are really intent on identifying the reason for your problem. Make sure that you don’t install everything at once after a factory reset to ensure that your effort pays off.

For reference, here are the steps on how to do a factory reset on your S7:

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S7.
  • Press and then hold the Home and Volume UP keys, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Samsung Galaxy S7 shows on the screen, release the Power key but continue holding the Home and Volume Up keys.
  • When the Android logo shows, you may release both keys and leave the phone be for about 30 to 60 seconds.
  • Using the Volume Down key, navigate through the options and highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset.’
  • Once highlighted, you may press the Power key to select it.
  • Now highlight the option ‘Yes — delete all user data’ using the Volume Down key and press the Power button to select it.
  • Wait until your phone is finished doing the Master Reset. Once completed, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and press the Power key.
  • The phone will now reboot longer than usual.

Remember: Factory reset will erase your photos, videos, contacts, and other personal data. Make sure that you create a backup of them before you proceed.

It’s not ready for Nougat, yet. Can I revert to version 6.0? There’s no official way to revert to the previous Android version so you must do it manually via Odin mode. We don’t provide step-by-step guide on how to do it in this blog so find a reputable guide online via Google. Keep in mind that manually flashing a firmware can lead to problems. Do it at your own risk.

Problem #2: Galaxy S7 touch screen issue due to water damage

Hey! I bought a Galaxy S7 in June and within a week the phone blacked out and stopped working. But as I was travelling, I was not able to show it in the service centre but thankfully it started working on its on after 10 days. It was working normally when suddenly the phone started acting up like the screen would go black and show lines and the ear phone jack stopped working and finally the touch screen stopped responding. So I took it to the service centre in July and they said that the phone has been water damaged and won’t come under warranty and refused to replace or fix it for me.

Please advise as to what can be done to get the touch screen to respond again? The screen is coming on properly, If I tap the home button twice the camera opens up and I can click pictures with the volume keys. So basically everything else is okay except the touch screen which is unresponsive. Thanks. — Shreshth

Solution: Hi Shreshth. If you’ve read this post and other similar posts for water-damage issue, you will notice that there’s nothing much that can be done about it. You ultimately need to either have the phone repaired or replaced. Since you’ve already tried the Samsung service route, your only way out now is to hope that a third party repair shop can still save your device. If you’re lucky and, for some reason, the failing hardware is isolated to the screen only, replacing the bad screen assembly may resolve the problem. Keep in mind though that moisture can also damage other components in the long term, especially if water damage is extensive. Screen replacement may allow you to use the phone normally for some time before other damage parts can manifest in other issues.

We don’t know what your expectations are but if you’re hoping that there’s something that you can do on your end to fix a hardware issue, you are mistaken. Unless you have the right tools and experience to disassemble Galaxy S7 components, the best way to fix your problem is by seeking help from a professional. Even repair by a good technician may not also guarantee a fix because water damage can lead to other issues. It will not hurt though if you can invest in a repair at this time so you can boot the phone normally and save your personal data.

Problem #3: Some Galaxy S7 apps won’t connect to the internet

My problems began with my S6 Edge after a system update. 3 apps suddenly wouldn’t connect to the internet and they would say that I was in offline mode. I would also get notifications that said “check network connection and try again” almost constantly. Facebook (a pre-installed app) would say “cant connect right now” and lead me to my settings. I contacted Samsung customer support but they couldn’t fix my problem. I was due for a new phone anyways so I got the S7. I had all of my apps, contacts, photos and such transferred over. The next day I started to have all the same problems all over again. I tried the clear the cache thing that was suggested on here but it didn’t help at all. The whole thing is very irritating so I am really hopeful you guy could help me. — Jessica

Solution: Hi Jessica. Because the issue happens on two devices, the problem must either be due to a firmware (operating system) glitch or something that’s caused by a third party app. If all the affected apps are pre-installed, consider booting the phone in safe mode first. This will allow you to tell if one of your third party application is the culprit. Follow these steps to boot your S7 in safe mode:

  • Turn your Galaxy S7 off.
  • Press and hold the Power button.
  • Once the ‘Samsung Galaxy S7’ logo appears, release the Power key and immediately press and hold the Volume Down button.
  • Continue holding the button until the phone finishes rebooting.
  • Once you see the text “Safe mode” at the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume Down button.

In the event that other affected apps are third party apps themselves, consider doing a factory reset. Once the reset is done, observe the Facebook app for at least a full day without installing any third party app. Make sure that your Facebook app is updated during the observation period. If Facebook works fine, install the next previously affected app and observe again. Do the same thing on the last app and check if there’s any difference. If all of them works normally, you can bet one of your other third party applications is the cause.

If, on the other hand, the problematic apps behave the same even without installing the rest of your apps, contact their individual developer for assistance.

Problem #4: Gmail in Galaxy S7 email app won’t send to group

I am the captain of a tennis team who needs to email 13 people on my team. I have been unable to send any emails, because while it says “sending”, they do not send. I discovered, the hard way, that no one got my emails, and I finally found them in an outbox with “Failed”. No reason, just unable to send. I use the Samsung email app, but I have a Gmail account. I have tried to send it within email, and also in the Contacts app for groups (“Send email”). No matter how I’ve tried it, it ends up in the Outbox. I use my phone most of the time, and have to contact these people at least 3 times per week. I deleted the group and recreated it, with no difference. How do I fix this? — Joni

Solution: Hi Joni. First off, you need to make sure that your Gmail account has no issue with sending emails. You can check this by sending the same email you tried to previously send to the same set of contacts. Use a computer to do this so you’ll see the difference. Once you’ve established that your Gmail account work as expected, remove the Gmail account from the Samsung email app. After that, configure your Gmail account in the email app again and resend the same message to the group. If it continues to fail to send, send the same message to your own Gmail account. If the same thing happens, consider using another email app or Google’s own Gmail app.

If you don’t want to switch to another email app for the moment, try to check the settings of the current email app and make sure that you change everything back to default. Of particular interest is the Delay email sending option, which can sometimes cause sending errors. If you’re fond of changing things without doing enough thinking for possible consequences, simply delete your email app’s cache and data. This will ensure that you set everything back to default. To do that, follow these steps:

  • Open the Settings menu.
  • Tap Apps (some versions may show Applications or Application Manager).
  • Tap the email app.
  • Tap Storage.
  • Tap Clear Data button.

Sometimes, an email app may find a particular email format difficult to manage and send normally, resulting to errors. If you’ve been trying to send an email with an attachment, try to send without one for troubleshooting purposes.

Problem #5: Galaxy S7 won’t turn back on

Hi. I saw your post regarding how to troubleshoot an S7 that won’t charge or turn on. I tried doing the steps that was in your website, but there’s no improvement on my phone. So I decided to email you, just in case you might give me an answer regarding my problem before I go to a technician.

So, I woke up today with my phone already dead. I was confused as to why it was off, when it was at 70% the night before. At first, it was okay — it turned on, and it was in Safe Mode. I decided to turn off the safe mode so I can use the other apps on my phone. After it came back to its normal state, I was able to use it for a few minutes. But then all of a sudden, it turned off, like it just shut down.

I decided to charge it thinking that it since it turned on, there will be no problem with me charging it. The icon appeared, telling me that it was charging, so I decided to leave it and take a bath. After I came back, my phone was so hot (not just the battery but the whole phone), I disconnected it from its charger. I let it cool off, but now it won’t turn on no matter what I do. Please help me. I thought I might ask your help first before consulting a technician. Thank you in advance. I hope you can answer my email as soon as you can. Best regards. — Elle

Solution: Hi Elle. If nothing happens when you attempt to normally boot your phone at this time, the only other thing that you can try is to see if you can turn it on to Recovery mode or Odin mode. If neither of these modes won’t work, that’s a sign that there may be a hardware issue causing the problem. That means that you must have the phone checked physically so a full diagnostics can be done.

In Recovery mode, you will have the options to clear the cache partition and/or do a factory reset, while in Download or Odin mode, you’ll be able to manually install a firmware. To boot in Recovery mode, here are the steps:

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S7.
  • Press and then hold the Home and Volume UP keys, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Samsung Galaxy S7 shows on the screen, release the Power key but continue holding the Home and Volume Up keys.
  • When the Android logo shows, you may release both keys and leave the phone be for about 30 to 60 seconds.

To boot in Odin mode, here are the steps:

  • Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S7.
  • Press and then hold the Home and Volume Down keys, then press and hold the Power key.
  • When the Samsung Galaxy S7 shows on the screen, release the Power key but continue holding the Home and Volume Down keys.
  • When the Android logo shows, you may release both keys and leave the phone be for about 30 to 60 seconds.

 

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