What to do if your phone won't turn on

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

Do not rush to take your smartphone for repair. Perhaps these simple steps will help revive the device.

If problems arise due to water getting into the device, do not connect it to the mains and stop pressing the buttons. Dry your phone as soon as possible and only then follow the advice in this article. If you are sure that the inside of the smartphone is dry, feel free to continue.

1. Perform a forced restart of the device

Your phone may be turned on, but just frozen. In this case, the screen may be dark and unresponsive to any actions. So first try restarting your device using the hardware keys.

How to Force Restart iPhone

On iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, or later, hold down and immediately release the Volume Up key and then the Volume Down key. Then press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears.

On iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus, hold down the Side key along with the Volume Down button for 10 seconds or more until you see the Apple logo.

On iPhone SE, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, or older, hold down the Home key along with the Side button for 10 seconds or more until the Apple logo appears.

How to force restart an Android smartphone

Press and hold the power button and volume down key at the same time for 10-15 seconds. If successful, the device will restart automatically or display a menu on the screen in which you will need to select the restart command.

To reboot some Android smartphones, just hold down the power button for a few seconds. Sometimes there are gadgets that are restarted using other keys. If the smartphone does not respond to the listed actions, type in the search engine the query "how to force restart" and add the name of your model. Then follow the instructions found.

2. Take out the battery and put it back

If your phone has a removable battery, remove the cover and slide the battery out of the device. Wait at least 30 seconds and replace the battery. Then try turning on the phone in the usual way - using the power button.

3. Put your phone on charge

Connect your phone to a wall outlet using the original charger. If within an hour the charging indicator does not appear on the display and you cannot turn on the device, check the integrity and cleanliness of the connector, as well as the condition of the power cable and adapter. Try different outlets, if possible, replace cable and / or adapter.

4. Reset the machine to factory settings

If after trying to turn on the smartphone does not respond at all or the screen lights up, but the device does not boot, try restoring the factory settings using the hardware buttons.

Remember: during a system reset, you may lose personal data that has not been synced to the server. Do not do this if you are afraid to erase important information.

How to reset iPhone to original settings

First of all, connect your phone to your computer using the original cable. If you have a Mac with macOS Catalina, launch Finder. If you're using an older version of macOS or Windows, start iTunes. If it is not installed, download it from the Apple website.

Then force restart your iPhone (see step 1). When you see the Apple logo, continue to hold the buttons until the recovery mode appears on the smartphone screen.

Immediately after that, a window with further instructions should appear on the computer monitor. Click "Update" and follow the prompts of the system.

iTunes will download the correct software for your phone. If this process takes more than 15 minutes, the iPhone may exit recovery mode. In this case, hold down the forced restart buttons again and hold them until the device returns to this mode.

If the update works, the phone may turn on without resetting the system. If not, then in the iTunes window, click "Restore" to restore the factory settings.

How to restore the original settings on an Android smartphone

Make sure your smartphone is turned off and try the following reset combinations:

• volume up key + power button;
• volume down key + power button;
• volume down key + volume up key + power button;
• volume down key + power button + home key;
• volume up key + power button + home key.

You need to hold down the keys at the same time and hold them for about 10-15 seconds. After that, a special menu will appear on the screen, in which, using the volume control buttons, you should select the Recovery item, and then the Wipe data / factory reset command or with a similar name.

After these steps, the smartphone should return to its original settings within a few minutes. If none of the key combinations work or you cannot find the commands you need in the service menu, look for the reset instructions for your device model.

If none of the above recommendations will help you turn on the device, try returning it under warranty or take it to a service center.

This material was first published in October 2017. In July 2020, we updated the text.