Friday, May 12, 2017

Fix Your Smartphone

I had to fix mine, maybe you do, too.

Fix #1: Delete Old Texts, Call Logs & Emails:
This should be done on a regular basis, not just if you're having problems..

Fix #2: Clear the Phone's App Cache
Remove excess non-essential information that may be slowing down your phone by clearing the phone's app cache. To do this, go to:

  • Settings
  • Applications
  • All
  • Select Apps
  • Clear Cache
Fix #3: Check Your Phone's Memory Card
Your phone may have too small of a memory card.  You may be able to replace it with a larger card, some phones can handle cards up to 32GB. Then, make sure all apps that can be saved to a memory card are saved to the card rather than to your phone.

Fix #4: Delete Old Apps You are No Longer Using
Many apps are using resources even when you're not using them.

Fix #5: Turn Off Your Phone Occasionally
Turn off your phone (and then turn it back on) at least once a week, once every other day would be better, every day isn't too often. Like computers, a smartphone operates better after it has been rebooted. This is especially true if you're entering/exiting your home coverage area.  Data services perform much better after a restart! From time to time it would make sense to pull the battery out, if you can.  This totally resets the system and memory without losing any data.

Fix #6: Don't Keep You Phone in the Fridge
Seriously, phones don't like temperature extremes. Don't leave your phone sitting in a hot or cold car for a long period of time. The change in temperature and humidity when bringing it back into a heated or air conditioned building can create condensation that can cause corrosion and other problems that may damage your phone's internal parts.

Fix #7: Get Better Versions of Your Most-Used Apps
Consider buying the paid version of these apps. The free versions can make your phone slower & battery drain faster due to ads that are constantly downloading and tracking software that may running continuously.

Fix #8: Up Your Apps
Make sure the apps in your phone were created by a reputable developer and have a good rating in the store for your device. Remove any that don't. You may have an app that could be hurting your phone's performance & compromising your security. Avoid using an app with less than a 3 star rating. Also, if you notice a sudden decrease in performance, delete the most recently-downloaded apps.  One of them may be causing an  issue.

Fix #9: Use a Task Killer
You can manually turn off apps, learn how to do it in your phone.  You can also use an Advanced Task Killer app.  Make sure it is properly downloaded and set up correctly. This will kill apps running in the background, improving performance.

Fix #10: Read the Manual
Yes, this may the most painful step to take, but your phone's manual could address issues you may be having and how to prevent other problems.  Manuals can be downloaded online.

Fix #11: If You Still Have Problems, Start Over
If you’ve tried these steps and your smartphone is still acting up, you can do a factory reset. This will clear the phone’s information and switch it back to the original factory settings.  Careful, this will wipe your phone clean of everything you added.  There are online resources to back up your phone directory and critical data before taking this drastic step.

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