This is the seventh installment of our Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Problems and Solutions series and I’ve answered ten questions in this post. Take time to browse the article to see if your problem has already been addressed or you could browse through the first six parts of the series.
Samsung Galaxy Note 3: Problems, Questions, Solutions, Answers [Part 1][Part 2][Part 3][Part 4][Part 5][Part 6]
If you have problems with you Galaxy Note 3, email us at mailbag@thedroidguy.com. I can’t guarantee that I could respond to all emails we receive but rest assured that I will read each one of them. We also have our Facebook page in case you want to use it as a medium to ask us for support. Our Google+ page may also be a perfect place to get support from as we often post links to our articles in there.
#1. Multiple Note 3 problems after update
Problem
Hi, your blog is so helpful. Thank you for it. My Note 3 used to be perfect until I upgraded it to 4.4. It hangs during calls, slows down too much, and I found out that proximity sensor doesn’t work for quick glance and phone calls after upgrade. And the device heats up to its peak during phone calls in such a way that I won’t be able to keep in near my ear. I tried formatting the phone etc. Please help me with this.
Solution
I hope you have successfully updated your phone, which means that there weren’t any errors while you were downloading and installing the update. If it were my phone, I would immediately perform Factory Reset to know if it’s just a matter of conflicting apps or a firmware issue. But I would want you to try clearing the cache partition first. Follow these steps:
Turn the phone off.
Press and hold the Volume Up, Home, and Power buttons together.
Release the Power button when the “Galaxy Note 3″ screen appears.
Release both the Volume Up and Home buttons when the Android System Recovery screen appears.
Using the Volume Down key, highlight “wipe cache partition” option and press the Power key to select it.
Once the wiping of caches is finished, highlight “reboot system now” and press the Power button to reboot normally.
In case the problem persists after doing this, Factory Reset via the Recovery Mode is necessary.
Turn the phone off.
Press and hold the Volume Up, Home, and Power buttons together.
Release the Power button when the “Galaxy Note 3″ screen appears.
Release both the Volume Up and Home buttons when the Android System Recovery screen appears.
Using the Volume Down key, highlight “wipe date / factory reset” option and press the Power key to select it.
Highlight “delete all user data” and press the Power button.
Once the Master Reset is done, highlight “Reboot system now” and press the Power button the reboot the phone.
I hope this procedure solves this problem, if not, there’s no other option but to flash the previous firmware manually and update the phone again.
#2. Multi User in Galaxy Note 3
Questions
Hi, this might be a very basic question but how do I sign in as another user on both my Note 3 and note 10.1? Additionally I am hesitant to set up a new launcher, I just don’t have all the technical expertise, and I want to further understand how to customize my phone with a different launcher and icon pack. How do I install the icon pack? Is it an automated thing when I download them.
Answers
There are only two devices I know that has Multi User Mode: the Samsung Galaxy Pro Tab and Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition. These are both tablets because, as what I’ve read last year, Nokia has patented multi-user feature on smartphones (not necessarily tablets) and that Android developers hasn’t resolved (yet) the issue that calls and texts will arrive regardless of who’s logged in. We might be able to enjoy this feature on our smartphones in the future but not sooner.
Setting up a third-party launcher doesn’t need advanced technical expertise. It’s actually just a “download and install” process. When it comes to launcher, I personally use Nova Launcher; it works well with any Android device. Since you asked about icon packs, I an app you could download from the Play Store that might just provide you with what you’re looking for–Desktop VisualizeR.
Please note that TheDroidGuy.com is never associated with the developers of both Nova Launcher and Desktop VisualizeR. They appear in this post simply because I personally used them before.
#3. Note 3 gets Prevention Information error
Problem
Hello, first, I just got the Note 3 1 week ago and I have been getting an prevention information error. Every time I click it, it is linked to Knox. Is this a known issue and how do I solve it? Second, I just started having charging issues. It will start charging and when you grab it it stops. Same thing happens when I plug it into my laptop (windows 8). Help please. Thanks. — Teka
Solution
This was a known issue way back in November last year but it still happens today. Basically, the Prevention Information error message pops up when a certain third-party app is trying to access Security Enhanced Android files, in your case it’s Knox. Here’s what you need to do to get rid of it:
Enable KNOX if you’ve disabled it.
Go to Settings > General tab > Security > under “Security update services,” uncheck “Auto update security” and “Via Wifi only.”
Now, turn your Wifi on and off (repeat for several times) until KNOX security message pops up.
Tap on the message and choose Update instead of choosing OK or Cancel.
After this, you will an updated policy and the problem was resolved.
#4. Emails won’t delete after the update
Problem 1
Since I got the 4.4.2 update on my Note 3. My emails won’t delete. I put the check in the box for delete and about 20 minutes. Later I get a notification for new emails along with the ones I deleted. I signed out my email account and signed back in to the same problems. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Problem 2
Hello, I recently updated my Note 3 via AT&T. Since the update, when I delete my email it goes away for about 10 minutes and then returns to my inbox. Regardless of how many times I delete it, same results. Any ideas? Thank you in advance.
Problem 3
I repeatedly receive emails in my inbox that i have already read and deleted. Have tried clearing cache but it didn’t work. Any ideas?
Solution
Some apps may not be fully optimized after the update but even if they will, there is always the possibility that some data may become corrupt pushing the app not to function well. So, you need to clear those data. For this issue, since we’re dealing with emails, let’s try the broad spectrum troubleshooting but a safer one–wiping the cache partition.
Turn the phone off.
Press and hold the Volume Up, Home, and Power buttons together.
Release the Power button when the “Galaxy Note 3″ screen appears.
Release both the Volume Up and Home buttons when the Android System Recovery screen appears.
Using the Volume Down key, highlight “wipe cache partition” option and press the Power key to select it.
Once the wiping of caches is finished, highlight “reboot system now” and press the Power button to reboot normally.
After doing the procedure, reboot your phone normally and try to delete some emails if you can. If the problem still persists, there’s no other option but to clear the app’s cache and data.
From the Home screen, tap the Menu key.
Tap Settings, and then tap the General tab.
Tap Application Manager.
Swipe to left or right to display contents of the All tab.
Scroll to and tap your email app.
Tap Clear Cache. (The next step will delete all your downloaded emails.)
Tap Clear Data, then OK.
You need to setup your account one more time and download your emails. Try to delete some to see if you can this time.
#5. S Voice not working after the update
Problem
Hi, I have two concerns regarding Note 3 ATT.
1. After updating the note 3 to kitkat the s voice feature is not starting when I say hi galaxy while the phone is locked.
2. I had another note 3 att but its being used in India for which I bought the unlock cide online, is there a way that I can update it to kitkat without rooting.
Thanks and Regards. — Siddartha
Solution
As to your S Voice problem, try clearing the app’s cache and data because it could be just a minor software glitch. After all, you just updated your phone to the new Android version so some data may have been corrupt during the installation of the new OS.
About your other question, well, if the phone still runs the stock firmware from AT&T, I believe you can just update it through KIES. At least, it’s worth a try.
#6. Note 3 screen freezes
Problem
Hi, I’m using note 3 now. Just 1 problem, sometimes after ended call the screen will freeze (cannot swipe). The button functions and the screen is on but cannot swipe. After I pull out the battery, then the phone is ok. This problem continue a few time, quite annoying have to pull out the battery every time. Wonder why, please advise the solution. Thank you. — Salina
Solution
Just last month, a friend of mine had a problem similar to this: the phone responds to button press but there is specific period of time that the screen won’t respond. We ended up replacing the digitizer. It is a piece of glass on top of the display panel that conducts touch commands. Digitizers come with their respective circuits that when messed up, some, if not all, screen functions won’t work. But it seems that your problem is not the digitizer, so try booting to Safe Mode and observe the phone’s performance while in there.
If the screen still freezes randomly, some of the core functions may be causing the problem and there’s no other option but to perform factory reset but first, back up all your data.
#7. Note 3 automatically mutes
Problem
Hi, I just recently purchased my Note 3. Now, am having trouble keeping the media volume up. The sound will disappear totally and I will have to go into settings volume to drag it back up. For no apparent reason it will disappear again. Does this all the time now! Any solutions for me would be greatly appreciated. I have version 4.3. Thank you for your time. — Brett
Solution
This problem often happens due to some third-party apps that have permission to mute or lower the phone’s volume level but in order to confirm that, try booting to Safe Mode and play any media file you have. If the volume stays up during the playback while in Safe Mode, then you need to find and uninstall the third-party application that’s causing this. Start with “religious” apps if you’ve installed one.
In case the problem persists in Safe Mode, boot to recovery mode and wipe cache partition because may be there are some issues with the service that handles media volume. If that doesn’t solve the problem, backup your data and perform Factory Reset.
#8. Touchwiz, Email stopped working
Problem
“Unfortunately, Touchwiz home has stopped,” “Unfortunately, email has stopped” I have only had my Samsung Note 3 for a couple months now, and I am experiencing constant messages saying a variety of issues. I have attached one of the messages I get most frequently. I am ready to pull my hair out. Please help. — Eric
Solution
One of the causes of this problem is the conflicting settings between apps. Needless to say, the solution would be to reset app preferences. Before anything else, try these steps:
From the Home screen, tap the Menu key.
Tap Settings, and then tap the General tab.
Tap Application Manager.
Swipe to left or right to display contents of the All tab.
Tap the Menu key.
Choose Reset app preferences.
Tap Reset apps.
Reboot your phone.
Of course, if the problem persists, perform Factory Reset because there could be some problems with system settings.
#9. Note 3 goes blank and reboots after update
Problem
After upgrading my Note 3 to KitKat on AT&T, my phone started to go blank and then reboot after about 30 seconds, once or twice a day. Has this been reported, and if so, is there a fix.
Solution
Yes, there have been a lot of reports related to this problem but the cause was actually undetermined. But since it started to manifest after the update, people can quickly blame it on the new firmware, which is of course understandable considering it didn’t happen prior to the update. There is always a possibility that one of the apps may be causing this problem or perhaps one of the core services has gone rogue. If it were my phone, I would wipe the cache partition, observe it to see if the screen goes blank and reboots. The last resort would be Factory Reset, or flashing the stock firmware manually.
#10. Note 3 has loose Home button
Problem
Hi, I have notice my 4 week old Samsung Note 3 has a wonky/loose home button. It sits crooked the majority of the time. It’s not enough to make me send my phone away but it might eventually come off. I wonder if anyone else has this problems and if you can fix it yourself.
Solution
The phone pretty new and if this problem happened to me, I wouldn’t stop bothering my service provider to have it replaced. I mean, no one would want to use a brand new phone that has physical defects out of the box, right? I’m not sure if it can be fixed but there is a chance you void the warranty if you attempt to open the device. So, have it replaced as early as now.
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