The most common smartphon problems and Solutions
Android phones and
tablets are easy to use and usually trouble-free. But occasionally things to go
wrong. Here we tackle 53 of the most common problems or questions you might
have with your Android phone.
Problems with
Android phones
Let's face it, our phones aren't
perfect. When they aren't running out of juice, they are slow, won't power on,
or have problems connecting to the Internet
Battery drain. ...
Frozen and slow user interface. ...
Connectivity issues. ...
Google Now problems. ...
Stalled text messages. ...
Overheating. ...
Syncing error.
The most common
smartphone problems
Widespread
bugs
If issues keep
appearing almost at random in all kinds of apps, you'll find it harder to pin
down one root cause. Perhaps a hardware component is failing, or the device is
overheating too often, or an upgrade didn't work correctly. But you don't need
to diagnose your phone to fix it.
Poor
battery life
Every smartphone
owner struggles to some extent with battery life. But when your charge drops by half
in just a couple of hours, you're in trouble. This can happen when a battery suffering from old age starts degrading
fast. In this case, if you have an older phone, you should look at getting
the battery professionally replaced. Or, if you're do for an upgrade,
consider buying a new phone model and recycling your old one.
Poor
reception
Don't blame your
phone if it's having networking issues that make it difficult to connect to
Wi-Fi or catch a cellular signal. The culprit could be external. Are you in a
notorious dead spot where no one can get any signal? If you're at home, are
other devices struggling to connect to the web? You might need to focus your
troubleshooting on something other than your handset.
Troubleshooting
other issues
If you're having
problems that aren't specifically mentioned here, you might be able to dig up
some solutions online. Just be sure to choose specific keywords that include
your type of phone and the exact problem that's plaguing it. Otherwise, you'll
encounter thousands of results of varying relevance.
A
couple faulty apps
Even when glitches
are only hitting one or two apps, they can slow down your entire phone. So
start by figuring out whether your issues are happening with a lot of different
apps or just a few. If it's the latter, you might be able to repair the
situation by deleting the data that the problem programs store on your phone.
Freeze
Android Phone and Slow Speed
Slow speed is one of
the major problems in android mobile. We are getting slow speed because we
install lots of unused android apps,
open many android apps at same time. The solution to the problem is very
simple.
Wifi not
Connecting
Several
times you connect your android phone to wifi and you might be facing a problem
in getting the signal or not connecting. Solutions to this problem are very
simple to Restart your android phone or enable
airplane mode in an android phone at least 1 minutes. Try again
with your android phone for wifi. You can also review our post on How To Protect Your
Wifi Network From Hackers .
Keyboard doesn’t work
The most common smartphon problems and Solutions
Android phones and
tablets are easy to use and usually trouble-free. But occasionally things to go
wrong. Here we tackle 53 of the most common problems or questions you might
have with your Android phone.
1/ How do I stop my Android phone using data
when abroad?
One option is a third party app called APNdroid,
from the Android Market, which lets you turn off all data connections via a
widget on the home screen. It makes changing these settings much quicker than
using the standard Android settings screen and is more likely to act as a
reminder for when you next travel abroad.
2/ My screen has cracked! Should I buy a new
phone?
Most of the popular phones have parts available from various online suppliers that you can install yourself. The process for replacing a screen is far from easy so do your research before you buy.
3/ Why can I not download every
Android app from the Android Market?
Some apps are designed for specific screen resolutions and thus are not available on all phones. The high-end Android phonestend to support more apps, but landscape screened phones sometimes have problems with particular games and apps. There e other reasons why some apps will not be available, such as compatibility only with specific manufacturer’s devices, but the vast majority of apps should be available for all phones so you need not worry too much.
4/ My smartphone Wi-Fi does not stay connected?
Go to Wireless & Networks / Wi-Fi Settings and
press the menu key. Choose ‘Advanced’ and change the sleep policy to ‘Never’.
This seems to solve the problem for most people who have issues keeping a Wi-Fi
connection alive.
v
5/ Why do I keep running out of memory?
There are many reasons for this problem, but the
cache can often get too full to allow the efficient running of apps. Apps like
Cache Cleaner, from the Android Market, let you clean the cache for specific
apps to free up memory. You will also need to either uninstall or move apps to
an expansion card to free up more physical memory.
6/ I am using too much data. How can I monitor
it?
My Data Manager is an excellent solution to monitor
exactly how much data you have been using. It offers alerts when you reach a
specified level and will help to ensure that you never go over your monthly
data allowance again.
7/ The keyboard is very difficult to use!
The default Android keyboard is not easy to use, but
there are countless alternatives available. SlideIt is just one example that
lets you type without ever removing your finger from the screen; simply slide
your finger between letters and watch the magic happen.
8/ My SD card is no longer recognised?
Expansion cards can get corrupted and the most
effective solution is to try to reformat them using a desktop or laptop PC.
Using the standard file explorer, you should be able to right-click and choose
the format option to bring it back to life. It tends to work more often than
trying to format it on the phone itself.
9/ How do I stop my Android phone using data
when abroad?
One option is a third party app called APNdroid,
from the Android Market, which lets you turn off all data connections via a
widget on the home screen. It makes changing these settings much quicker than
using the standard Android settings screen and is more likely to act as a
reminder for when you next travel abroad.
10/ Some games play very slowly on my phone?
Some of the budget phones include slower processors
and the graphics speed can be reduced because of this. The best solution is to
test a phone before you buy it because some budget phones are much better than
others, and it can be difficult to tell just from the specifications alone.
11/ How do I remove apps?
Go to Settings / Applications / Manage Applications
and then select the app you wish to uninstall. Now tap the Uninstall icon.
12/ My Android phone has frozen.
A soft reset will usually do the trick, but there
are different methods for different phones. Fast Reboot is an app that will do
the job for you by simulating the soft reset process and closing running
processes with one tap.
13/ Entering my password takes forever!
In Settings / Security / Set up screen lock, you can
choose to enter a pattern rather than a password which is not only quicker, but
much more secure.
14/ My location is not always accurate in maps?
Go to Settings / Location and make sure that the
‘Use GPS satellites’ option is ticked. This will ensure much greater accuracy
when navigating.
15/ The flashing LED is very annoying!
It is easy to stop the LED notification on most
Android phones. Simply go to Settings / Display / Notification flash and remove
all of the ticks.
16/ How do I wipe my Android smartphone
completely?
The best way is to use the Factory Data restore
option in Settings / SD & phone storage. To be completely sure that
everything has been removed, go through the process twice.
17/ Why can I not use the Android Market on my
tablet?
Some tablets come with their own cut-down app market
or even none at all. It may be that the Android version installed is too old or
the hardware is simply to slow to cope with many apps. Always do your research
before you buy.
18/ Some of my Kindle books look garbled on my
Android tablet?
This can happen if you are using a custom ROM on
your Android phone or tablet. The ROM provider may have a solution, but if not
you will need to revert back to the standard ROM to read your books properly.
19/ I dropped my phone in water!!!
This solution won’t help if it has already happened,
but if it does in the future take the battery out as quickly as possible and
dry as many parts of the phone as you can. Leave it for 72 hours in a dry room
and try it again. It may just work.
20/ Can I make the text on my Android
smartphone bigger?
Yes. In apps like the browser you can go to the
settings and use the ‘Set text size’ option to increase the size of the
displayed text. There are some excellent accessibility options available in the
Android Market as well which will help.
21/ Can I update my apps automatically?
In the Market app, go to ‘My Apps’ via the menu and
select an app. You will see an option half-way down the screen allowing it to
auto-update. Only use this for apps you trust.
22/ Where did my paid apps go?
If you change your phone and some apps do not appear
in your Android Market account check to make sure they are compatible. If they
are not showing after a system update, the Market may be seeing your phone as
not tied to your account. This would be the time to contact Market support.
23/ How do I set the minimum age for apps?
Go the the Market app and press the menu key. Choose
‘Settings’ and then ‘ Content filtering’. You can now choose which apps are
allowed on your phone.
24/ My touchscreen isn’t accurate anymore?
Very few Android phones allow you to calibrate the
screen which means that if you are having problems hitting the right spot on
your screen, you will need to try a soft reset, a hard reset and then a support
call (in that order) to fix it.
25/ I want to hide my search history.
Go to www.google.com/history in your Android browser
and login. You can now choose to remove your searches and not save future
searches from this page.
26/ How do I take screenshots?
Some Samsung phones let you press the back key
and the home button twice to take screenshots, but for all other Android phones
you will need to download and install the Android develop kit. It is a
complicated process just to grab screenshots.
27/ How do I download music directly to my
phone or tablet?
Amazon MP3, from the Android Market, is a very good
option and lets you purchase and install MP3 files directly to your phone
without the need of a PC.
28/ I cannot upgrade my Android phone to a new
release!
Sadly not all phone manufacturers allow updates to
the latest Android release on their phones, but custom ROMs often let users
update to the newest features. A search on the internet will show what’s
available, but you need to be confident of your knowledge when installing these
ROMs.
29/ My carrier won’t let me tether my phone.
This is true of most carriers, but there are
solutions that can help. If you do a simple search in the Android Market for ‘tether’ you will be
offered a variety of apps that allow tethering, and many also mask the fact you
are tethering so your carrier should never know. We don’t advise masked
tethering and cannot guarantee its success, but it may work for some.
30/ Some apps won’t install to my SD card?
You should still be able to move apps to an SD card
using the Manage Application feature in Settings / Applications. We have seen
apps fail to install on an expansion card despite the fact they can be moved
afterwards so a little manual intervention may be required to do this for
future installations.
31/ How can I change the language on my phone?
Go to Settings / Language & keyboard and choose
the language you require. Some apps are only set to work properly if US English
is selected, but they are fortunately few and far between.
32/ Can I remove apps that were pre-installed
on my phone?
You can, but the process requires rooting the device
and then downloading an app called Root Uninstaller. The amount of memory you
will save is probably not worth the effort though because you run the danger of
making your phone very unstable.
33/ Can I speed up my Android phone?
Apps like SetCPU will let you speed up your phone by
overclocking the processor. It will also let you slow down the processor to
save memory, but be careful when doing this. Most processors are designed to
run at a set maximum speed for a reason and you do run the risk of frying it if
you push it too hard.
34/ What’s the best way to backup my phone?
You can backup an Android phone using a multitude of
different solutions, but Titanium Backup PRO is considered to be one of the
best solutions available. Besides offering the ability to backup every part of
your phone, you can also export the backups by email or sync them to Dropbox.
35/ How can I stop viruses from attacking my
phone?
Mobile security is becoming a bigger issue as
smartphones become more popular and so installing an app to help keep you
protected is a very good idea. Kaspersky Mobile Security is just one example
that claims to offer real-time protection against a host of threats.
36/ The volume on my phone is too quiet.
Some Android phones suffer from low volume, but help
is at hand from AudioBoost which is available from the Android market. It can
increase the volume on your phone by up to 30% and is also activated by a handy
home screen widget.
37/ Can I change the look of my phone without
changing the ROM?
You can indeed. Apps like LauncherPro offer a
completely different look to the standard Android interface and also include many
features such as 3D effects and a scrollable shortcut dock. It is safer than
changing the ROM completely.
38/ The Live Wallpaper seems to use too much
battery life?
In tests the battery drain has been shown to be low
with Live Wallpapers, but it is still a problem for power users who run out of
battery power every day. The simple answer is to use a static wallpaper.
39/ My clock keeps losing time?
This can happen if your clock is set to
automatically update the time from your network. If the network clock is slow,
so will your phone be. Go to Settings / Date & time and untick the
‘Automatic’ box at the top. Your clock should now run perfectly on time with
only manual adjustments needed occasionally.
40/ Can I block unwanted callers?
Most network providers do not offer this facility,
but because Android can be tweaked in so many ways there are still options open
to you. Extreme Call Blocker Droid works on many Android phone models and
blocks incoming calls in almost every way imaginable. It is not the cheapest
Android app available, but works extremely well and can save you a lot of
headaches in the future.
41/ My phone is slow at times. Are there any
tools to help?
The first step would be to remove any unnecessary
apps and to ensure that your phone is not full of data you do not need. An app
like System Tuner Pro can also help by automatically tuning many parts of your
phone to ensure the best possible performance.
42/ Why can’t I use the SD card when my phone
is attached to the PC?
By default this is not possible, but if you have
rooted your phone you can use an app like Multi Mount SD-Card which lets you
access an expansion card from both a PC and phone at the same time. It works
very well and this is in spite of our natural concern about accessing a card
from two places at once which could in theory lead to corrupted files.
43/ My phone has been stolen. Can I track it?
If your phone has already been stolen you will struggle
to get it back. This is, however, a case of prevention rather than cure and we
would advise installing a third party app to help track your phone.
PhoneLocator Pro is a good example and includes the ability to remotely track a
phone using GPS as well as letting you wipe or lock the phone. Everyone should
use a solution like this.
44/ Why can’t I use iTunes with my Android
device?
You won’t be able to use DRM protected media on your
Android device, but you can still use iTunes thanks to doubleTwist
AirSync. It lets you synchronise your media between iTunes and an Android phone
or tablet and you can do so without a physical connection. It is as good, if
not better, than the Apple iOS syncing solution.
45/ How do I close an app that keeps freezing
my phone?
The solution is unfortunately more complex than it
should be. Go to Settings / Applications and choose ‘Manage applications’. Now
choose the app that is misbehaving from the list and tap ‘Force stop’. If the
app continues to misbehave you should try uninstalling and reinstalling it.
46/ Can I close running apps quickly?
The default task manager in Android is a good
solution, but it could be much quicker. Advanced Task Manager is the most
popular tool to deal with running apps and lets you manage all of your running
apps with a couple of taps. After a while the process become so natural that
you will forget you are even using it.
47/ My phone won’t connect to my PC using USB?
Most Android phones will connect without problem to
a PC, but on occasion they will run into trouble. The first place to look is
the manufacturer’s website to find the required drivers to connect it. They are
not always available and so you may need to send in a support request to get
them.
48/ Why does auto-correct not know all the
words I need to use?
There is no way that an auto-correct system can know
all of the words you need to use, but you can add new ones quickly and easily.
Type a word and look for the ‘+’ sign below the text field. Tap it and the word
will be added to your dictionary for future use. The more words you add, the
more accurate your typing will become.
49/ The slide unlock feature is really
annoying!
You can avoid the slide unlock by tapping the menu
button twice. Not all phones support this because some manufacturers add their
own skins, but the majority should allow this simple and quick workaround.
50/ Switching between keyboards takes forever!
If you have more than one keyboard installed it can
appear to be cumbersome to switch between them, but it need not be so. Simply
press and hold the ‘123’ button on the keyboard and you will be offered a selection
to switch to. It only takes a second.
51/ Why does my screen turn off when charging?
It doesn’t have to and the solution is very simple.
Go to Settings / Applications / Development and tick the ‘Stay awake’ option to
keep the screen on when charging.
52/ Can I reinstall a paid app?
You can. If an app is misbehaving, the last resort
is to uninstall it and then reinstall it which often resolves the problem. Go
to the Android Market and click on the ‘My Market Account’ link. You will see
an orders tab which should include a list of the apps you have previously
purchased. Choose an app and then tap ‘Install’ to complete the process. The
Market should not charge you for the reinstall.
53/ How do I know if I have the latest version
of Android on my phone?
Go to Settings / About phone and choose ‘System
software updates’. Here you will see a ‘Check now’ icon to see if there is a
newer version of Android available for your phone.
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