Fix Android Problems with This Troubleshooting Flowchart

I enjoy helping people customize, improve, and fix up the little quirks and options of their Android phones and tablets. Heck, I wrote a book about Android that’s full of that. But sometimes there is something so wrong with an Android that it just barely works, or not at all. For those problems, I usually suggest a few step-by-step measures. I thought it might be helpful to those looking for help on rescuing, resetting, or troubleshooting their own problematic Android devices.
This flowchart starts you out at my most common two-part question: is it the phone itself, the whole system, that’s giving you grief? Or do you have an inkling that it’s one part of the phone that’s misbehaving? From there, you launch into the three-part process for diagnosing problematic apps, or straight into testing in Safe Mode, backing up your stuff, and getting into a Factory Reset for your phone.
The image of how I usually suggest this works is included here.

No flowchart could ever contain every Android phone and their every possible problem, but I’m open to suggestions for changes and additions. Leave a comment here if you’d like to join in.

7 common Android problems and how to fix them

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.

These are some quick fixes for some of the most common problems Android owners face.

1. Battery drain

Numerous users have reported problems with the battery life of their devices. One of the easiest ways to prolong your smartphone's battery is to change your locations and brightness settings.

Enter the settings menu, click on Location, and select battery saving mode. As for brightness, you should avoid using auto-brightness and instead turn your screen down somewhere below halfway, or to a level that is acceptable for your eyes.

Some phones, such as the Galaxy S5, even include extra battery saving modes. For more tips, check out thisarticle how to get better battery life .

2. Frozen and slow user interface

Phones typically begin to slow down as their internal storage fills up. Try deleting unused apps and photos, or moving them to the cloud or a microSD card. In addition, you should close open apps that you are no longer using, delete app cache, and limit the use of live wallpapers.

An app's cached data can be deleted be going to Settings, clicking on Apps, selecting a certain app, and choosing the "Clear cache" option. Programs such as App Cache Cleaner and Clean Master, both of which are available for free from the Google Play store, can also be used to automate the process of clearing cache.

For more information, visit thisarticle for speeding up your Android device.

3. Connectivity issues

If you have are having a problem connecting to Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or your cellular network, enable Airplane mode for 30 seconds, toggle it off, and try connecting again. Sometimes simply toggling the specific connection can also solve the problem.

Still having issues? Try repairing or setting up your Bluetooth device or Wi-Fi network again.

4. Stalled text messages

Ensure you are connected to the Internet either through Wi-Fi or cellular, click on the unsent message, and click the "resend" option.

If the problem continues, try restarting your device or even installing a third-party messaging app.

5. Syncing error

There are numerous steps you can take to address problems with syncing. First, ensure that you are connected to the Internet, and that the service you are trying to sync with, such as Google or Dropbox, isn't down. Double check that your password is correct and try syncing again.

Still having problems? Remove the account from your device and add it again.

6. App crashes

Apps can crash for all sorts of reasons. Is there an update available for either the app or your phone? If so, install it.

If not, force close the app by swiping it away in the multitask menu (pictured above) and then reopen it.

7. Unresponsive screen

You may want to throw your phone against the wall when it begins to malfunction, but there isn't a need to panic. Most problems are fixed with a simple restart. Although if you physically damaged your phone or dropped it in water, you may have bigger problems on your hands.

Press the power button and let the phone turn off, but wait a minute or two before powering it back on.

Tips and tricks for speeding up your Android device

You may have noticed over the past few months that your once-speedy Android device has slowed down considerably. Simple tasks such as switching between apps or returning home are proving more troublesome than before, and you are now experiencing lag in all the wrong places. Things don't have to be this way, however.

These simple tips and tricks can help speed up your device and make it perform like new:

1. Uninstall or disable unused apps

Your device has a limited amount of internal storage and the less free space it has the slower it will perform. If you have filled your device with photos, music, or apps, it is recommended to free up space by either uninstalling unused apps or moving files to cloud storage services like Dropbox or Google Drive.

Uninstalling apps can be done by going to Settings, opening the Apps menu, and selecting the app you wish to uninstall. Preloaded applications from carriers or manufacturers that cannot be uninstalled, known as bloatware, can at least be disabled and hidden from the app drawer using this method.

On smartphones and tablets that include expandable storage you can also move apps to the microSD card. To do this, enter Settings, go to the Apps menu, click the app you wish to move, and select the "Move to SD card" option.

2. Clear app caches
Cached data can build up over time in your applications and affect the performance of your device. Deleting individual caches can be done in the Apps menu, but a number of free programs are available through the Google Play store that can automate the process. Some of the most popular ones include App Cache Cleaner and Clean Master, both of which are available for free.

3. Limit widgets and live wallpapers
Many people would argue that widgets are one of the benefits of using an Android device. They can be helpful for finding information quickly without having to open an app, but at the same time they can eat away at battery life and slow your device.

Reducing the number of widgets, especially data-intensive ones like Facebook, will help your smartphone or tablet run more smoothly and last longer. You can remove widgets from the home screen by long-pressing the one you wish to delete and dragging it to the top of the screen.

Another cool Android feature is the option to use a live wallpaper as your background. Like widgets, however, live wallpapers can slow down your device and drain the battery. You can also change your wallpaper with a long press on the home screen.

4. Disable animations
A hidden settings option in Android will give you access to commands you may have never known existed. Go to Settings, About Phone, scroll down to Build number, and tap it seven times. You will now have access to developer options. These special settings allow you to do a variety of things, but they are meant for advanced users and shouldn't be changed unless you know what you are doing.

One tweak that could speed up your device is disabling animations within the operating system. To do this, open Settings, go to Developer options, and scroll down to the Drawing option. Next, turn off the Window animation scale, Transition animation scale, and Animator duration scale. This will disable animations that occur when you open, close, and switch between apps. Although the interface will look less polished, there should be less lag in performance.

5. Get software updates
Manufacturers and carriers are continually pushing out new software updates to their devices. It is imperative that you be on the latest firmware as these updates usually include security and bug fixes, among other things that will improve the overall stability of your device. To check to see if there is an update available, go to Settings, select About Phone, and choose the "System updates" option.

6. Rooting, ROMing, and more
Risk takers and advanced users can also root their device, which will open the door to new features and even greater performance boosts. Rooting gives you the ability to overclock the device's processor, install a custom ROM, and other things; however it also voids your warranty and could cause irreversible damage to the device.

Welcome to the Android 6.0 Marshmallow era

Here's what you need to know — and what you'll have to continue waiting for — now that the next version of Android is officially official and full of Marshmallowy goodness.

Android 6.0 Marshmallow today is official. Or, rather, it's the start of being official, as these things don't actually happen all at once. In fact, the M era started back at the Google I/O developer conference in late May. And we don't yet have it all.
So here's what you need to know about the next major version of our favorite operating system. This is Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

This is great! Where can I download Android 6.0 Marshmallow?!?!?

You can't! Sort of. While we have a name and a new version number and a new SDK, Google hasn't yet made the source code available. And technically that's what both manufacturers and the custom-ROM crowd need to make proper builds for our phones. That said, we'll definitely start to see ROMs cobbled together from SDK parts. That's par for the course.
More official is that we've got a third and final developer preview that can be flashed to the Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 9 and Nexus Player. It's not 100 percent of what you'll get when the finished version of Marshmallow is released, but it's closer than anything we've had before.

OK, fine. So when will I get Marshmallow? (And will my phone get it?)

Depends on which phone you have. Google's Nexus phones should be the first to be updated. In addition to the devices that have been a part of the developer preview, expect at least the Nexus 7 (2013) to see an update, and possibly the 2012 model as well. Throw the Nexus 10 tablet and Nexus 4 phone into the "maybe" list, too.
As for when we'll see source code drop and updates begin? We don't actually know. Remember that we're expecting at least one (and very likely two) new Nexus phone this year. And if we had to guess, we'd be willing to put a little money on it being a little sooner than last year. Before October wouldn't surprise us at all at this point, but that's still just a guess.
Have some other phone? It'll take longer. Exactly how long is a big of a mystery. Some manufacturers like to impose 90-day deadlines on themselves, which probably will mean something toward the end of the year, if not later. Updates are hard, and it's a slow process. And there's upwards of a billion Android devices out there. Put it this way — only 18 percent of all active devices are on Android 5.x Lollipop, which was released about 10 months ago.

Jeez. OK. So what is it, exactly, that I'll have to look forward to in Marshmallow?

That depends! (Welcome to the wonderful world of Android!) If you didn't get the gist by now, Android manufacturers still do whatever the hell they want (more or less — and Google's been reining them in a little bit) with their phones. And they also go above and beyond what's in the base Android code. But Google itself has also adopted a good number of features that have until now been custom jobs, so we'll see more features on more phones.
Here's the short version, though:

• Permissions are getting a huge revamp. The technical term is "runtime permissions," and it means that instead of just accepting every permission an app declares at the time you install it you'll now be able to pick and choose what things an application has access to. Don't want, say, Facebook to see your internal contacts? Just turn that permission off! That's oversimplified, of course. You can learn more about it here.
• Google Now on Tap will give Google — with your permission, of course — even more insight into your life. If you're, say, texting someone about dinner plans at some hot new restaurant, a quick press of the home button will bring up more information about that restaurant. No more having to hop out of one app and into another to look up information. This is going to be big.
• Android Pay will finally become a thing, bringing the same sort of contactless payments you know from Apple Pay and the newer Samsung Pay. This will be built into the system and will also make use of ...
• Native fingerprint authorization will now be built into the Android source code. That'll allow more manufacturers to make use of it — and hopefully will make it even better than it's already become. Samsung and Huawei are the longtime fingerprint users for Android, but HTC, OnePlus and, soon, LG have or will make use of it.
• Automatic app data backups will occur by default. That means no more losing your spot in a game if you switch devices. They'll happen once a day, when you're not using your phone and only when you're connected to Wifi.
• Smarter app links so you won't have to deal with that clunky "do you want to open this thing in this other app* dialog as much.
• Plus, more tweaks for better battery life, tons of stuff for developers, and a more consistent user experience. (Again, that last one is subject to being blown up by the manufacturers.)

How to Fix Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge “Unfortunately, Clock has stopped” error

The error “Unfortunately, Clock has stopped” has been plaguing #SamsungGalaxyS6Edge owners for quite some time now and while a minor issue and can easily be fixed, it’s very annoying when it pops up because you can’t do anything with your #smartphone.

There were also reports that the error message is sometimes accompanied by freezing or lagging. So, it appears as though what seems like an app issue has progressed into a firmware issue affecting the performance of the phone. This situation, however, may occur only after an update. We will look into this problem a little deeper.

Here’s one message I would like to include in this post so that other #GalaxyS6Edge owners will become aware of the problem…

“I have a problem with my new Galaxy S6 Edge which involves the Clock app. There’s an error that keeps popping up whenever I set the alarm. The error goes ‘Unfortunately, Clock has stopped’ and it’s not letting me do anything when it pops up except tap the OK button, which will lead to another pop up in terms of seconds. The problem is, there’s nothing I can do because the phone will freeze when it comes out. I have no clue as to why this is happening. It’s a new phone that I paid in cash and now it’s ruined. I badly need your help guys, please.”

Troubleshooting

There are a few variations to this problem and I would like to tackle each one of them, so I will start with a very minor one…

Error pops up without apparent reason

There were reports from other users suggesting the “Unfortunately, Clock has stopped” error may pop up without apparent reason or cause at all. According to them, it will randomly come out a few times in a day but goes away for several hours after tapping the OK button.

While the device needs to be observed closely to know if there’s a pattern or some kind of a trigger, you may troubleshooting the Clock app itself.

The first thing you need to do is get rid of other third-party clock apps if there’s any. You may uninstall or just disable them while you are troubleshooting. After that, try to boot your phone in safe mode to isolate the problem. There are times when other third-party apps create conflict in the system that may result to the crashing of some apps.

1. Turn off your Galaxy S6 Edge.
2. Press and hold the Power key.
3. When ‘Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge’ appears, immediately release the Power key and then press and hold the Volume Down button.
4. Continue holding the Volume Down button until the phone finishes the restart.
5. When you see Safe Mode on the lower left corner of the screen, release the button.

Your phone will still work even in safe mode so keep it that way for a few hours just to observe closely. If the error still pops up, then you’re looking at a possible Clock app issue or worse, a firmware problem. The next you need to do is clear the cache and data of the app.

Note:  All your alarms will be deleted once you clear the data of the Clock app.

1. From any Home screen, tap Apps.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Scroll to ‘APPLICATIONS,’ then tap Application manager.
4. Swipe right to the ALL screen.
5. Scroll to and tap Clock.
6. Tap Clear cache.
7. Tap Clear data, then OK.

These procedures may already get rid of the error and prevent it from popping up again.

Error pops up when setting up an alarm

Based on testimonies from other owners who encountered this problem, the error pops up when the time in your phone is set incorrectly. So, just make sure your phone is following the correct time before setting up an alarm to avoid the error.

In case the error still pops up, just follow the instructions above to clear the cache and data of the Clock app so it will be reset to factory default settings. Again, your alarms will all be deleted so you’ll have to build them up one-by-one.

Error pops up after an update

Since the release of the Galaxy S6 Edge, there were already several minor updates rolled out by Samsung or the service providers that carry the device. Some users complained to be getting this error immediately after the update, although it wasn’t just the only error they were getting.

Basically, once apps start to crash after an update, it’s a firmware-related concern and the first thing that needs to be done is to wipe the cache partition right away. The procedure will delete all caches created by the previous system but still used by the one. Conflicts will occur if the new system uses obsolete caches and/or data. Try this procedure first…

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, and Power key.
3. When the phone vibrates, release the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
4. When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
5. Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
6. Press the Power key to select.
7. When the wipe cache partition is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
8. Press the Power key to restart the device.

If the wiping of the cache partition failed, boot your phone in safe mode just to see if the error still pops up. If not, then you can back up all your important files and data before doing a master reset. However, if the error still pops up even in safe mode, you have no other option but to proceed with the reset even if you’ll lose all your data.

1. Turn off your Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up, Home and Power keys together.
3. When the device powers on and displays ‘Power on logo’, release all keys and the Android icon will appear on the screen.
4. Wait until the Android Recovery Screen appears after about 30 seconds.
5. Using the Volume Down key, highlight the option, ‘wipe data/factory reset’ and press the Power key to select it.
6. 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.
7. After the reset is complete, highlight ‘Reboot system now’ and hit the Power key to restart the phone.

Samsung Galaxy Note 5 vs Galaxy Note 4 – specs comparison

Now that things are crystal clear on the internal storage front as far as both the Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ are concerned, and we also know exactly where the former is headed, it’s time we matched up the new S Pen flagship to its forerunner.

Photo: Forbes

It’s not a matter of which is best, obviously, but by what sort of margin, and more importantly, it’s a matter of bang for buck factor. As in, do the Galaxy Note 5’s upgrades justify the price hike? Because the Note 4 sure as heck merits $540 or so factory unlocked, even as it’s about to turn the human equivalent of 40.

No midlife crisis there, begging the question: do we really needed a sequel? An arguably handsomer but restrictive, non-expandable, non-battery removable follow-up? Stay tuned for the complete side-by-side comparison:

Samsung Galaxy Note 5 vs Galaxy Note 4 – pricing and availability

Photo: Android Central

Fans of apocalyptic theories strongly believe the end of the wildly successful phablet family is near. They speculate that Sammy will gradually phase out GNotes, starting in Europe this year. Optimists expect Note 5’s limited global availability to be a temporary situation, caused by the Korean manufacturer’s wish to rapidly spread out the S6 Edge+ love.

Whatever the case, we’re glad to see the non-edgy 2015 top dog out and about stateside already, with shipments live or soon to be kicked off by all big four carriers. No-contract tariffs range from $696 at Verizon to $740 at AT&T in 32GB configurations, while Ma Bell and Sprint are prepared to sell you the 5.7 incher for as little as $250 with pacts.

Amazon doesn’t accept Note 5 orders yet, but is hands down the most generous retailer when it comes to the Note 4. A cool $150 or so separates the white, gold and black OG from its successor contract-free, which is really the only sensible purchase option.

Alternatively, you can be crazy and cough up $200 upfront for the Now Network-locked GNote 4, or $300 (!!!) with Verizon.

Design and build quality

Realizing the spec wars are costly and produce casualties in the form of lagging sales numbers, Samsung shed his image of stubborn, old-fashioned OEM at the beginning of the year. An age of aesthetic rather than hardware renovations was inaugurated, and the torch was passed from the S6 and S6 Edge onto the Note 5 and S6 Edge+.

Display and cameras

Photo: Android Central

On paper, Samsung Xeroxed the 2,560 x 1,440 pix res Super AMOLED screen of the Note 4 because, well, there was simply no room for improvements. Yet DisplayMate, the ultimate authority in panel quality evaluation, deems the Note 5’s Quad HD glass as “very impressive”, “the absolute best” in color accuracy and “the best performing smartphone display ever tested.”

Alas, the cams are probably identical to the ones fitted on the S6 and S6 Edge, barely beating the Note 4 in selfie prowess, courtesy of a 5 MP front-facing sensor. Around the back, you get 16 megapixels from both powerhouses, with optical image stabilization, autofocus and LED flash provided across the board.

Processor, RAM and battery life

 Source: Phone Arena

Qualcomm may have botched the heir to Snapdragon 805’s throne, but the 14 nm octa-core Exynos 7420 SoC manages to easily eclipse the E5433 and SD810 in raw speed and energy efficiency. Early benchmarks graded Note 5’s hardware at close to 70,000 points in AnTuTu and roughly 4,700 in Geekbench multi-core.

That’s 25,000+ and 1,500 points respectively north of Note 4’s marks, which the superior RAM count also contributes to. Call it overkill if you will, we’ll look at the 4 gigs of memory as a shrewd future proof tactic. You never know what kind of system requirements Marshmallow or subsequent versions of Android could introduce.

Now, it might feel like Samsung downgraded autonomy with a smaller 3,000 mAh battery, but thanks to the Exynos 7420’s frugality, it seems endurance will in fact increase, from under to over 9 hours in the most strenuous conditions.

And don’t forget, it takes you less time to fully juice up the GNote 5, including wirelessly. You wanted palpable, real-life performance enhancements, and your wishes are Samsung’s command.

Storage, software and others

Don’t complain too much of 128GB variant elimination. After all, the Note 4 is squarely available with 32 gigs of local hoarding space. You can of course lament the microSD support’s absence, but it’s good to keep in mind some of those cards do more harm than good when zippy UFS 2.0 technology is involved.

As far as software goes, the TouchWiz UI on top of Android 5.1 Lollipop is only lightly tweaked from what you’re getting from the Note 4 with 5.0. Enough to thankfully remove a bit of clutter and “bloat”, while at the same time squeezing even more productivity out of the revamped S Pen.

Speaking of, the new stylus is spring loaded, meaning you don’t have to manually take if off its slot anymore. That’s clearly a minor yet eye-catching improvement. The same goes for the fingerprint scanner, operated by touch now, not swipe, and if you’re patient, you’ll soon be able to make fast, secure, easy mobile payments through Samsung Pay. First on the Note 5, then eventually on the Note 4 too.

Any connectivity upgrades? Just a trivial move from Bluetooth 4.1 to 4.2, and LTE Cat.9 advancements… in markets where the network speeds are attainable. No reversible USB Type-C port, no iris recognition contraption, no water protection this time around either.

To recap, the Galaxy Note 5 is better-looking, sharper, speedier, longer-lasting and, possibly, more robust than the Note 4 all in all. That’s plenty to justify the $150 price gap, and make Europeans rue their bad luck.

Long story short, the Galaxy Note 5 looks nothing like the Note 4. For better or worse, it’s made of robust metal and fragile glass now, with no signs of plastic, faux leather or faux anything, for that matter.

It’s also noticeably thinner (7.6 vs 8.5 mm), ever so slightly shorter and narrower (153.2 x 76.1 mm vs 153.5 x 78.6 mm), as well as 5 grams lighter (171 vs 176). Is it more durable and less prone to bending? Too early to call. But it’s definitely prettier.