Hello guys, welcome to the 5th part of our Verizon Galaxy S3 Problems series. While we’ve already published more than 30 support posts for the phone, we find it necessary to address carrier-specific issues. The problems below are also sent to us by email by our readers who happened to be Verizon customers. So, if you have the same phone under the same network and are experiencing issues with it, we are always open and we are willing to help.
You may also visit the first 4 parts of this series to find out if we’ve already addressed your problem. In case, we haven’t, feel free to email us at mailbag@thedroidguy.com and provide as much details as possible. When sending an email, please make sure you include the model of your phone, version of Android running on it, and your service provider.
You may contact us through our Facebook and Google+ pages. But I strongly urge you visit our Samsung Galaxy S3 Troubleshooting page because we listed every helpful topic we previously posted in this site.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Can’t Send Emails But Can Receive
Problem: Hi, I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 and my provider is Verizon. I have setup my company email on my phone and it was working for a long time until 3 days ago, it stopped sending my emails, although I can receive those that are sent to me. I haven’t changed anything in my email and phone so I’m really surprised to be having this issue. It’s been 3 days already since I sent my last email. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. — April
Solution: It is obviously a server setting issue. You should ask your company’s IT support if they’ve changed the SMTP server setting because based on your description, that’s the only problem I can see here. If they changed it, you need to update the settings in your phone as well so it can connect to the server like it did before. I’m sure your company’s IT support has all the answers you need.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Microphone Problem
Problem: Hello droid guys, I’ve spent a couple of days already reading all your posts about the Galaxy S3 problems and it seems like my problem hasn’t been addressed yet. I called Verizon already but the rep told me to Factory Reset the phone. I had to tell him I still need to backup my data but in truth, I was actually hesitant to do so. So, I need to consult you with it.
My problem is, when I call someone or someone calls me, the person on the other end cannot hear me and it happens to almost all calls. There are times, however, that they can hear me but they can’t understand what I’m saying. I used my husbands phone and called my number and I confirmed it the audio that’s coming from my phone cannot be understood. What is problem with my phone? Do you know how to fix it? — Gina
Solution: Gina, this is apparently a hardware issue and to be specific, the problem is with the mouthpiece microphone–the one located at the bottom of the phone. Galaxy S3 has two microphones; the one located in the upper area is used for voice recording as well as video recording, while the one at the bottom is in charge of phone calls. But in order to confirm this, try using a headset and see if the person on the other end can understand or hear you well. If yes, then it’s really a mic issue.
You need to have it replaced or repaired. So you need to bring it a technician for repair but until then, when you make or receive calls, just use a headset.
In case your voice is still garbled if you used a headset, then the problem is more serious than I thought. I’m pretty sure that even voice recordings have issues. But still, you need to have it checked.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Screen Flickers
Problem: Hi. My name is Jade and I own a Samsung Galaxy S3 on Verizon. My problem is that the screen of my phone flickers and sometimes turns off and back on. Everything is in random and it’s very annoying. When the screen turns off, the phone is still on because I have already experienced the problem while playing a game. I can still hear the audio of the game through the headphones but the screen is completely off. And one more thing, before this problem actually started, I accidentally dropped my phone on my table but it was just about a foot drop.
Solution: Based on your description, it seems that the impact of the drop may have loosen the connection between the screen and the motherboard. If that was the only thing that happened before this problem started, then there’s a possibility that it’s just a minor connection issue inside.
If the phone is still under warranty, you need to bring it to your service provider and have its tech check on it. But if you’re confident enough to open it up regardless of the warranty, then the first thing you should check once you’ve successfully opened it up is the flex cable that connects the screen to the motherboard–just secure its connection and then try to see if that makes a difference.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Unmounts SD Card
Problem: I noticed that all the pictures and videos I saved in my SD card were gone; I cannot find them in the Gallery. When this happened, I was also getting an error that says something like the SD card was removed, that it wasn’t formatted or file unknown. I have hundreds of pictures in there and I don’t know what to do since I’m not really good with technology. Can you help me please? — Karen
Solution: Karen, I hate to break it to you but your microSD card is almost or already damaged or corrupted. That’s the reason why the phone cannot read from it. I understand you have a lot of pictures and videos in there but to try to salvage them, follow these steps:
Remove the back cover of the phone.
Pull the battery out.
Physically un-mount the microSD card and using a reader, insert it to a laptop to see if the computer can still read from it. If yes, then take that opportunity to copy all your files.
Once you’ve backed up your data, reformat the microSD card using FAT32 format.
Mount it back to your phone and try to see if the problem was fixed.
In case the computer also can’t read from the SD card, it means it’s already damaged. All your data are lost and you need to buy a new one for your phone.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Rebooted, Stuck On Logo
Problem: Hi Droid Guy, I have a problem and it’s kinda serious because I need my phone for my job. As a background, yesterday, my phone just rebooted itself but it was stuck in the Samsung logo. I tried to turn it off and then back on but it was still stuck. I really don’t have any idea what triggered it but prior to this, I received a notification that some apps need to be updated so I did but the phone worked fine after that. A day after, the problem happened and even today, the phone is still stuck on the logo if I tried to boot it up. I really need your help. I tried calling Verizon tech support but I waited 15 minutes I haven’t gotten hold of a representative. — Jendell
Solution: The update may have triggered it or at least one of the apps is crashing causing inconsistencies in the system. The first thing I want you to do is to boot the phone in safe mode. There is a big chance the problem is caused by a third-party app. If the phone booted to safe mode successfully, then you can fix this problem without compromising your data; you just have to find the app that’s causing the problem, uninstall it and problem solved.
However, if the phone failed to boot in safe mode or if the phone still reboots when in that state, you need to boot it in recovery and try wiping the cache partition first. If that would fix the problem, proceed with factory reset. Here’s how you wipe cache partition:
Turn the phone off.
Press and hold VOLUME UP and Home(center) button
Press Power until the phone vibrate
Wait until you see the Android logo then release all the buttons.
Select Wipe data/Factory reset with VOLUME DOWN, press Power (right hand-side)
Select YES — delete all user data with VOLUME DOWN and then press Power
After format, press Power again to reboot phone. (select reboot system now)
Verizon Galaxy S3 Became Extremely Slow
Problem: Hello guys, thanks for providing this free support for us Android users. My phone is a Galaxy S3 and I’m with Verizon. I haven’t done anything with it but it became really, really slow that it would take more than 10 seconds to load any app even those that are inherently light. I attempted to do factory reset in Settings menu but the phone hangs every time I do that. I don’t get any error message, just the lags and freezes. I would greatly appreciate your effort if you could provide a solution to this effort. Thanks a lot. — Mitch
Solution: Mitch, since you already attempted to perform factory reset, I assume it’s okay with you if you lost you data saved in your phone. So, I will not ask you to backup your data but to do factory reset via the recovery mode.
Turn the phone off.
Press and hold VOLUME UP and Home(center) button
Press Power until the phone vibrate
Wait until you see the Android logo then release all the buttons.
Select Wipe data/Factory reset with VOLUME DOWN, press Power (right hand-side)
Press power button to reboot device.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Touchscreen Won’t Work
Problem: My Galaxy S3 was dropped from the jeans pocket but the floor was carpeted so the impact may have been minimal. There was no physical damage, not even a scratch and the display works, however, the touchscreen is not. The phone will not respond to touch commands but it does with buttons. For example, the screen turns off when I press the Power button; the volume goes up and down when I press the Vol Up and Down buttons. I haven’t set up a lock screen so I can unlock it with the Power button.
All three keys at the bottom of the screen works; the Menu, Home and Back keys. But since the phone was designed to work with touch commands, my phone is now unusable without the touchscreen. So, how can I fix this?
Solution: The problem is with the digitizer, either it’s connection was cut off by the impact or there is a break from the inside. Since it is apparent that it’s a hardware issue, I suggest you bring the phone to a technician and have it checked.
If the issue was just the connection, then the phone will be working in no time after the connection between the digitizer and the motherboard is established. However, if there was a break, then you will have to but a new digitizer and have it installed. The digitizer is the component responsible in making touchscreen possible.
Galaxy S3 On Verizon Can’t Send / Receive MMS
Problem: First of all, thanks a lot for being so helpful. You guys are doing a great job in answering people’s questions. By the way, my problem is related to my Samsung Galaxy S3, which I use under Verizon Wireless network. Ever since the recent update, I couldn’t send or receive picture messages or MMS. I already called tech support but all they want me to do is factory reset, which I’ve done a few times already. I don’t know what was turned off or messed up but all I did was update the phone. By the way, the phone is a BYOD.
Solution: If all the rep wanted was to do factory reset (and nothing else) and the phone is a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) then he/she is barking at the wrong tree. Based on your description, all I can see that is the problem here is the APN. Of course, I assume that you enabled mobile data when attempting to send or receive MMS messages, otherwise, that’s what you’re doing wrong.
BYOD units aren’t programmed in every way to work with Verizon’s network, although during activation or provisioning these phones would be registered to the system so as to receive service.
You said that the problem started after an update and that you already performed factory reset a few times, I have valid reason to believe that the APN settings were messed during any of those processes. I suggest you call tech support again and instead of telling him/her that you cannot send or receive MMS, ask for the correct APN.
Emails Appear On PC But Not On Verizon Galaxy S3
Problem: Hi guys, I have a problem that has been going on for weeks now. The first time it occurred I tried to neglect it thinking it was just a minor glitch in the system or the phone but it hasn’t been fixed. The issue is that all my work emails appear on my PC but not on my phone when both have the same server settings and credentials. There was an instance when a few emails appear on my phone but suddenly disappeared, I don’t know what happened or how I made them appear in my inbox.
I’m not really sure if the problem was with the phone or with my PC since the problem started when our IT reconfigured all our PCs in the office. By the way, we’re using Microsoft Outlook in the office if that matters. My phone is a Galaxy S3, I’m with Verizon. Thanks in advance. — Mark
Solution: Your IT may have set the email client on your PC to download all emails and delete them from the server to lighten up the load of the servers. The thing is, when your computer has finished downloading all those emails, your phone has nothing to download as messages are already deleted from the server. To rectify this, follow these steps:
From the Menu bar of the Microsoft Outlook, click File.
Click Account Settings.
A new window pops up, click your account or email address and then click Change.
Another window pops up named Change Account, click More Settings button on the lower right area of the window.
Click the Advanced tab.
There is an option there that says “Leave a copy of messages on the server.” Make sure that option is checked.
Click OK and restart Microsoft Outlook.
At this point, your phone should be able to receive email messages.
Verizon Galaxy S3 Randomly Reboots Several Times A Day
Problem: I have a Galaxy S3 that I bought from Verizon. The phone has been with me for almost a couple of years now and it was working perfectly until this past few days. The thing is it keeps rebooting several times a day. When I said several I mean more than 8 times so there’s really a problem with it but I don’t know what. I just don’t know where to look so I could fix it that’s why I decided to email you thinking you might know how to fix it. Thanks a lot! — Paula
Solution: There two possibilities here, either it’s a firmware issue or a battery problem. The first thing you have to do is to rule out the first possibility by wiping the cache partition. Here’s how…
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key and Power key
When the phone vibrates, let go of the Power key but continue to press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key.
When the Android System Recovery screen appears, release the Volume Up and Home keys.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight ‘wipe cache partition.’
Press the Power key to select and wipe the cache.
With ‘reboot system now’ highlighted, press the Power key to restart the device.
If wiping the cache partition didn’t fix the problem, it’s time you backed up all your data because the next procedure will delete them all–Factory reset.
Press and hold the Volume Up, Home, and Power buttons.
When the phone vibrates, release the Power button but continue holding the other two until Android System Recovery screen appears.
Use the Volume Down button to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’ and press the Power button to select it.
When finished, use the Volume Down button to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’ and press the Power button to select it.
Still use the Volume Down button to highlight ‘delete all user data’ and press the Power button to select the option.
Once the master reset is finished, highlight ‘reboot system now’ and hit the Power button one more time.
After the factory reset and the still randomly reboots, then it’s the battery. It’s time to buy a new one.
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