What to do if your smartphone won't charge

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

So, at one not the happiest moment, you put your smartphone on charge, but something went wrong. Instead of gratefully winking at you with the indicator and starting to absorb energy, your pet does not show any signs of life. What happened? In this article we will try to figure it out.

According to feedback from service center employees, charging problems are one of the most common reasons for contacting them. Sometimes this is due to really serious problems, for example, the failure of the power controller, which requires replacement of components. But more often than not, problems with charging the device can be solved by yourself. Here is a list of steps, in order of increasing difficulty, that you can do yourself before contacting a repair shop.

1. Remove debris, dust and grains of sand

If you do not part with your smartphone even for a minute, carry it in your jeans pocket and drag it to the sea, then sooner or later so much garbage will accumulate in the charging socket of the gadget that it will completely refuse to charge. Therefore, the first step is to visually inspect the USB port. Then blow it out with a can of compressed air and brush gently with the bristles of a hard toothbrush.

2. Clean the contacts of the USB port from oxidation

Sometimes the device does not charge due to oxidation of the contacts. This happens especially often if the smartphone has not been used for a long time or is operated in unfavorable climatic conditions. In this case, cleaning the contacts with a toothbrush soaked in alcohol, or even a fine needle, can help you out. Do not forget to first turn off the smartphone and remove the battery from it, and perform the operation itself as carefully as possible.

3. Replace the cable

The next weak link to check is the USB cable. Their lives are often full of trials and hardships, so it is not surprising that some of them may die without any warning. The easiest way to check for this malfunction is to take a known working cable from another device and connect it to your gadget. If the problem persists, then go to the next item.

4. Test the power adapter

The charger is also a frequent source of problems. We are talking about that very small box that plugs into an outlet. First, touch it to check the temperature. An adapter that is too hot or too cold can be an indirect sign of a breakdown. Make sure the cable connection socket is intact and clean it if necessary. Try to find another power adapter that matches your specifications.

5. Buy a new battery

Modern technology has made batteries much more durable than before, but still not forever. Each battery has its own lifespan, expressed in the maximum number of charge and discharge cycles. If you use your gadget heavily and it has been for several years, then it is likely that the battery life is running out. To test this, just take it out and make sure it has no thickenings, smudges, or other signs of aging. However, it is most reliable to check the voltage outputted by the battery with a multimeter. If it is too low, then you should look for a replacement in a service center or online stores.

6. Do a factory reset

If you went through all the points and none of them helped you to find out the cause of the problem, then perhaps the whole point is a software failure. The Android operating system collects device usage statistics in order to prevent the battery from draining completely. In some devices, a full discharge will cause the built-in power controller to malfunction, which in turn prevents the device from taking charge as usual. In this case, a factory reset can help (remember to back up important data first). Of course, this is a last resort and should only be resorted to if you've tried everything else.

In this article, I tried to describe the most common problems with charging gadgets and ways to solve them. Of course, in real life there may be many more. Write about the cases that you encountered in the comments.