Welcome to the 60th part in our series of troubleshooting articles dedicated to the Samsung Galaxy S4. This phone was the previous flagship model of the company and is still quite popular today. The expected arrival of the Android Lollipop update will even make it more popular and should make this device attractive to people looking for a solid phone that doesn’t cost as much as current flagship devices.
In this latest installment of the series we will tackle some of the latest emails sent to us by our reader regarding the issues they are facing with this particular model. We can’t feature all of the emails that we have received since we receive a lot of them for this model alone. If you don’t see your question featured here then try checking the previous parts as a solution may have already been provided.
If you own a Galaxy S4 or any other Android device for that matter then feel free to send us an email at mailbag@thedroidguy.com. We will be more than happy to assist you with any concern that you may have with your device. This is a free service we are offering with no strings attached. We however ask that when you do send us an email ty to be as detailed as possible so that an accurate assessment can be made and the correct solution can be given.
If you would like to browse the previous parts in this series then check out this link.
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S4 No SIM Card Error
Problem: Hi, I came across your website upon searching for solution to my problem – not sure if you can help but hey thought I would try seeing as Samsung can’t help anyway. My phone keeps displaying No SIM Card even with a working SIM in the phone. I have checked the SIM on another phone and it works fine. Do you know why this may be? It has been back to Samsung who sent it back with the same fault – I know they just wiped the handset clean back to factory and sent it back to me – However I did this myself before sending it to them, so not exactly sure what they did. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
Solution: If the factory reset failed to resolve the issue then there’s a big possibility that the issue is not software related. What you should do then is to check the SIM card slot of your phone and see if there are any dirt or lint on the contacts. If there are then clean it using a toothpick or a cotton bud dipped in alcohol. Make sure that the battery has been removed when doing this.
You should also check if there are any physical damages to the SIM contact such as misalignments.
S4 Does Not Turn On
Problem: Hello i am in need of assitance for my galaxy s4. It is not charging or turning on. There is no LED light coming up while charging and ive read all your procedures and still nothing. However a battery icon does come up at times but instead of showing that its charging, it shows a grey circle (the same circle that shows up on a YouTube video when its buffering) and then it goes away shortly after. Ive even took my charger and tried it on my brothers phone and it works perfectly fine so the problem is my phone. Yesterday it was working fine and i saw that the battery was low like at 5% so i went to charge it but it didnt work and eventually, the phone died. So its been dead since yesterday. I left it charging all last night thinking it needed alot of time since its been dead for a while but when i woke up today, it was still not working. If you could please respond with any help or advice on what else to do that would be great and i would very much appreciate it. Thank you.
Solution: You should first consider getting a new battery and check if your phone will turn on with it. In most cases when the battery is already faulty you won’t be able to turn on the phone.
I’m assuming that you have already tried taking out the microSD of your phone and also wiping its cache partition. If you have tried all of our recommended troubleshooting steps for this issue to no avail then your next step is to attempt to do a firmware recovery.
Connect your phone to a computer running on the latest Kies software and if it can be detected go ahead and do an emergency firmware recovery. Make sure to have a backup of your phone data.
If Kies does not detect your phone then your other option is to use a computer software called Odin and reflash the firmware. You will need a copy of your phone firmware to do this. More detailed instructions on this procedure can be found at several popular Android forums online.
If flashing the firmware does not resolve the issue then this may already be a hardware related problem. You will need to bring your phone to an authorized service center for checking.
S4 Camera Freezes When Focusing
Problem: Hi! I have a problem with my camera. The glass protector of my rear camera got broken somehow. At first, the camera worked perfectly as if nothing happened. After a few months, the camera freezes whenever I try to focus it on a subject. For example, I’d open my camera then tap on the object I’d like to focus on, then it would usually freeze, then the camera, video and mode icons would not respond. I’d have to exit the app to make the camera respond but the same thing happens when I try to focus it again. After a while, the camera suddenly worked again. It would focus normally and would be able to take photos like before. But after I cleaned my phone (deleted some files, etc. and not physically), it went back to the freezing when focusing. Please help. Thank you very much. 
Solution: You should try clearing the cache of the camera app and see if this resolves the freezing issue.
From the home screen, tap Apps.
Scroll to and tap Settings.
Tap More.
Tap Application manager.
Swipe left to view the All tab.
Scroll to and tap the Camera application.
Tap Clear cache.
If the problem still persists then wipe the cache partition of your phone. This clears out any temporary data in your phone that may be causing the issue. Your personal data (photos, videos, music, etc.) won’t be deleted.
Turn off the phone.
Hold the Volume Up, Volume Down and Power Key simultaneously.
Release the keys when the Android recovery screen appears.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight Wipe Cache Partition.
Press the Power key or Home key (this varies based on the software version of your phone) to select.
The phone will display Cache Wipe Complete after a few seconds.
Press the volume keys to highlight Reboot System Now.
Press the Power key to select.
S4 Not Receiving Text Messages
Problem: My Samsung Galaxy S4 jas stopped receiving messages. It will send my messages and the people i am texting will receive my texts but I cannot receive any of their texts. I have tried turning my phone off and then back on yet it still is not working. Could you possibly help me?
Solution: Does this problem occur in one particular area or does it occur in any area that you are in? If it occurs only in a particular area then this may be a network related issue. Try contacting your network provider and ask if there are any issues in the area.
One other thing that you should check first is if this is a SIM related issue. Try using another SIM in your phone and see if you can send/receive text messages.
Once you have eliminated any network or SIM related issues it’s time to check on the phone. Verify first if you have enabled the blocking of messages from certain numbers.
On the Homescreen tap and launch the Messages App
On the right side top of the screen you will find a three dotted symbol which should be tapped on to open a drop down box
Tap on Settings from the list of options to open it
Scroll down on the list of settings to find the Spam Filter option and Disable it if it is enabled.
It is also possible that a certain third party app you installed on your phone is causing the problem. To check if this is the case you should start your phone in Safe Mode. In this mode only the default apps are loaded while the third party apps downloaded from the Google Play Store are disabled.
With the device powered on, press and hold the Power button (located on the right edge) until the Phone options prompt appears then release.
Tap and hold Power off until the Restart in Safe Mode prompt appears then release.
Tap Turn On Safe Mode.
If you are able to send/receive text messages normally then you should find out what app is causing the problem and uninstall it.
S4 Not Receiving Email
Problem: My galaxy s4 has suddenly stopped receiving emails although i have not changed any settings. I can still send them. Please help.
Solution: Try restarting your phone and see if this resolves the issue.
If that does not work then try clearing the cache of your email app.
From the home screen, tap Apps.
Scroll to and tap Settings.
Tap More.
Tap Application manager.
Swipe left to view the All tab.
Scroll to and tap the Email application.
Tap Clear cache.
If you are still not receiving any emails then try accessing your email through a browser. Send yourself an email using your phone then check the webmail and see if it arrives in your inbox. If it doesn’t then this may be an issue with your email provider.
If the email arrives in the webmail inbox then the issue is definitely on the phone side. You should try deleting the email account from your phone then set it up again. Make sure to back up any important email messages and take note of your email settings firs before proceeding.
S4 Gallery/Contact Sync Issues
Problem: Hi Droidguy genius,I have a Samsung s4 mini which has developed a number of problems recently due to a faulty SD card I believe. I want to back up my contacts and photos before I change/fix anything but this where I get stuck with the following problems:
Gallery does not want to open and on the rare occasion that it has opened, I can only access some of the albums whilst others just hang. I tried to clear the Gallery cache but it remained in “computing” status. Up reading most of your S4 Problems and Solutions, I took the SD card and rebooted the phone. I was able to access the Gallery easily and clear the Gallery cache at this point. When I re-inserted the SD card, the same issues re-appeared. I have purchased a new SD card to replace the current one but would like your opinion upon this matter first.
Cannot sync my contacts to my gmail account. I have about 8 new, recent contacts saved to the S4. I have checked sync history via Tools> Accounts> Google and the Sync settings advise that successful syncs have occurred to all the folders, including Contacts today. When I log into my gmail account and check my contacts, the 8 new contacts are not present. I have also tried to sync via Toos>Accounts>Add Account>Google>Select Existing account and have manually entered by Gmail account only to encounter the message “There was a problem communicating with Google servers. Try again later. I have tried numerous times over a number of days without success. Could you please advise me how to overcome my sync problem and whether you think my SD should be replaced? I would be extremely grateful for any suggestions that you may have. I am slowly becoming mentally unhinged with these issues. Kind regards.
Solution: For your first concern it appears that the SD card may be the cause of the issue. This usually occurs when the card is already faulty making it difficult to access data stored in it. You should also try connecting the cars to your computer using an SD card adapter. If your computer can read the card then you can back up any important data stored in the SD card.
Ideally you should use the new SD card on your phone. If you would like to use the old SD card then try to reformat it first using your computer.
For you second concern regarding the Google sync issue you should try using another Internet connection. If you are using mobile data when syncing then try using a Wi-Fi connection and vice versa. This issue may just be caused by your Internet connection.
If the issue persists even on different connections then try wiping your phone cache partition first before syncing.
Turn off the phone.
Hold the Volume Up, Volume Down and Power Key simultaneously.
Release the keys when the Android recovery screen appears.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight Wipe Cache Partition.
Press the Power key or Home key (this varies based on the software version of your phone) to select.
The phone will display Cache Wipe Complete after a few seconds.
Press the volume keys to highlight Reboot System Now.
Press the Power key to select.
S4 Keys Don’t Work
Problem: I can’t exactly pinpoint the prob with my phone. The soft touch keys don’t work most of the time the home key works sometimes and the screen delays on almost everything. It worked perfectly when I bought it as a matter of fact I bought two of them one for myself and one for my boyfriend, his has no issues at all. To me it acts like there is some kind of virus or something any and all help would be greatly appreciated.
Solution: If you suspect that your phone has a virus then the best course of action to take is to do a factory reset. Take note that all your data will be deleted so make a backup copy first.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key.
When the phone vibrates, release 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 several times key to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset.’
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘delete all user data’ is highlighted.
Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.
If after performing the factory reset the issue still persists then this may already be a hardware related problem. I recommend bringing your phone to an authorized service center for checking.
S4 “Removed SD Card” Error
Problem: I have a s4 and repeatedly pops up “removed sd card” over and over again…no pauses. Just over and over. On my phone it states I have files still on the card. But there’s no way I can go in it. Is there a way to fix this problem. I don’t want to format it because I have a lot of my childrens pictures on it that I haven’t saved onto something else. It’s all on the sd card. I tried using my computer but it doesn’t read on there either. Please is there a way you can help?
Solution: If the SD card cannot be read even on a computer then it’s likely damaged. Try using another computer and see if the card can be read. If not then it is difficult to recover your photos. If you have enabled Google Photos in your phone then you can access your photos from your Google account.
S4 Mobile Data Issue
Problem: Hi! I have a Samsung Galaxy S4 with Verizon Wireless. I’ve been having the following issue: With mobile data on, the 4GLTE icon would randomly turn gray, restricting any access to the internet. At times, it would switch to 3G, then to 1X, then to no icon at all. All this even though 2-5 bars were illuminated. The only way to regain access is to switch airplane mode on then off. I spoke to Verizon and we tried several things. New Sim card. Hard reset. Repair ticket to check that it wasn’t an issue with the towers in my area. It wasn’t. I live in Brooklyn, NY, a well-covered area. These helped for a very short period of time. They decided to send me a “like-new” replacement. I received it yesterday. Now for my question. The issue has not happened for the last 48 hours. That’s right! Thursday was ridiculous. In and out of airplane mode multiple times an hour. Friday and today, nothing. No problem at all. Do I activate the replacement and send in the device I was having issues with, or send back the replacement as it seems to have resolved on its own? Any help would be extremely appreciated! Thanks!
Solution: This is definitely a tricky question. If you go with your original phone there is always the possibility that the issue may reappear since there is this uncertainty of how it got fixed on its own. The replacement phone on the other hand sounds like a better option as long as it has no issues. In my personal opinion I’d go with the replacement phone.
S4 Running App Question
Problem: I have a Verizon Samsung Galaxy S4, model SCH-1545 and the software version is 4.4.2. My phone is not rooted. I have the active app widget on my screen. I’ve noticed that every time I exit a program, the active app widget says the program is still running. If I exit a program that is not running correctly, and go back in, the app really is still running like the widget says. I have to go into the active app widget, manually stop the app or program from running, and then restart it to get a fresh start. This happens with email, Internet, games, viewing gallery. Everything. I’m glad the widget is available. If I don’t go in and force close the app or program in question, it continues to use my phones resources until I do, and runs down the battery. I’m wondering why this happens? Also, since I didn’t have the widget handy on my other phones to force close, if those programs continued to run? That would explain why the phones got slower and slower. I worked in IT for years, so I’m not “computer illiterate,” but have been out of the business since 2008. When you look at it, a phone is just a little computer. I had an HTC before the S4 and now use that phone as a portable computer, without using the Verizon network. I’ve noticed that the slow issues that I had with the HTC have gone away, now that it’s no longer on a phone network, but just using wifi. I also keep getting the message that the Google Suite is not responding. That’s a whole different issue. On the HTC phone, I always got, and still get the message that Facebook is not responding.
I appreciate the fact that you have this wonderful forum available for Droid users. It’s fantastic to have a place to turn for answers other than my carrier. I also call the manufacturer (Samsung) directly before I resort to calling Verizon. If my phone has an issue that needs repair work, I will NOT return it to Verizon to switch to another S4 while they work on my phone. I’d rather send it back to Samsung and have them return the same phone back to me. Verizon will basically give you a refurbished phone as a replacement. I won’t buy or trade for a used phone for the same reason I won’t buy a used car. You’re only getting someone else’s problems. Thank you!
Solution: In KitKat when you exit an app it doesn’t necessarily mean that the app has been closed. It may still be running in the background. While this may seem like it will drain your battery life it actually only has a minimal effect on battery life since KitKat is designed to properly handle cases like this. If you would really like to close the app and stop it from running then you can go to the Application manager from your phone settings then search for the particular app and click on force close. Using a third party app task manager app is also one way of closing an app.
The only time that an app running in the background will affect your phone battery life if it is constantly syncing itself online. If you have several apps doing this then expect a shorter battery life.
S4 Email Stopped Responding
Problem: Hi I have read some of your information on the s4. I’m having an email issue I can’t figure out. Most every time I try to read my email on my phone it becomes very slow to respond and after a few minutes it tells me that email has stopped working. This has been an ongoing problem for a while and very seldom I can read my emails. What would you suggest that the problem is?
Solution: The issue may be with the email app itself. It may be storing some form of corrupt data. Clearing the cache of your email app will help resolve this issue.
From the home screen, tap Apps.
Scroll to and tap Settings.
Tap More.
Tap Application manager.
Swipe left to view the All tab.
Scroll to and tap the Email application.
Tap Clear cache.
S4 No Display
Problem: Hi, my phones screen is black but I think it’s on because the blue notification light is blinking. The power button and home screen don’t work, and the touch screen is unresponsive. The option at the very bottom of my phone won’t even light up. I’m too afraid to take out the battery unless I know what’s going to happen. I went to bed with it plugged in and it was working fine, I wake up and it’s totally unresponsive. Thank you for your help!
Solution: You should try taking out the battery first in cases like this.
Turn off the phone
Take out the battery
Take out the microSD card (if you have one installed)
Press and hold the power button for at least 3 minutes
Re-insert the battery (leave microSD out)
Turn on the phone.
If your phone still does not turn on connect it to its wall charger and let it charge for 10 minutes before turning it on.
If the issue persists then you should try to wipe your phone cache partition.
Turn off the phone.
Hold the Volume Up, Volume Down and Power Key simultaneously.
Release the keys when the Android recovery screen appears.
Press the Volume Down key to highlight Wipe Cache Partition.
Press the Power key or Home key (this varies based on the software version of your phone) to select.
The phone will display Cache Wipe Complete after a few seconds.
Press the volume keys to highlight Reboot System Now.
Press the Power key to select.
S4 Randomly Restarts After Update
Problem: Hi, I’ve had my galaxy s4 for almost a year now. Everything was fine, up until the point where Samsung released a software update about 2 months ago. Since then the phone keeps restarting at random times, often when I’m doing something on it. Is there anything I can do about it? Thanks in advance.
Solution: Whenever issues arise after a software update it is always a good idea to do a factory reset. These issues may be caused by data from the old software version that is causing a conflict with the new software version. The only way to get rid of this old data is to do a factory reset. Just make sure to back up your personal data before proceeding.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the following three buttons at the same time: Volume Up key, Home key, Power key.
When the phone vibrates, release 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 several times key to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset.’
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘delete all user data’ is highlighted.
Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.
S4 Does Not Boot
Problem: Hi, I have a problem with my Samsung Galaxy S4 and I hope you would be able to find a solution of the problem. My battery was almost dead (it was about 1% or 2%) then it suddenly turned off. I assumed that the battery died and plugged the charger. But the phone didn’t react at all. I tried switching it on while the charger was plugged but again nothing happened. They I pulled the battery out and when I put it back on. When I did that the Galaxy S4 logo appeared for a moment and then disappears and nothing else .. the phone won’t turn on. I tried all the steps from your article but nothing helped. Now each time I remove the battery and place it back the Samsung Galaxy S4 logo appears and then the screen is off again and I can’t do anything more. Do you an idea whether it might be a software or a hardware issue?
Solution: Since you mentioned that the Galaxy S4 logo appears whenever you remove and reinsert the battery then this may indicate that the phone has a faulty battery. Try using a new battery on your phone and see if this resolves the issue.
S4 Overheating Error
Problem: Hi there, My phone suddenly showed a message that device is overheating and will turn off to cool down, it also provided an option do not turn off. I let it turn off automatically the first time. After some time I turned it back on and it gives the same message again along with device overheating, you can only use phone and contacts applications. I am not able to charge the battery too. As soon as I turn on I get this overheating message and it blocks me from using any apps or even access phone settings. Please help, I want to recover pictures and videos before doing factory reset.
Solution: Try connecting your phone to a computer running on the latest Kies software and if it can be detected you can proceed with backing up your phone data. Once you have a backup of your data you can proceed with the factory reset.
You should also consider formatting the phone SD card (if one is installed) since a corrupt SD card is also known to cause this overheating error message to appear.
S4 Slow Charging Error
Problem: Hey I’m not sure if you still look at this but I’m still using the galaxy s4. I am having the problem when the phone says “Slow Charging to charge faster use original charger” it’s the original charger it came with and it has no damage. This is my second s4 I had the problem before so I had to get this one. Is there anything I can do to make this stop?
Solution: If you are using the original Samsung wall charger and cable but still getting this message then this may just be a connection related problem. Turn off your phone and take out its battery. Carefully check your phone charging port as well as your wall charger charging port. If you spot any dirt or lint then clean it using a cotton dipped in alcohol. This dirt may cause some electrical resistance which affects the current going to your phone causing your phone to give the error.
If the issue persists then you should also try using another Samsung wall charger.
S4 Unauthorized Actions Have Been Detected
Problem: Hi I just purchased another S4 just on the 17th of this and I keep getting a Security notice that says An “unauthorized actions have been detected restart your phone it gives me to options cancel or restart” I’ve restarted it twice but it seems to pop up every 5 minutes.
Solution: This is a Knox related security message. To resolve this issue try to check if there are any new software updates available for your phone. If your phone is running on the latest update then you will have to perform a factory reset. Make sure to back up your phone data before performing the procedure.
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The post Samsung Galaxy S4 Problems, Errors, Glitches, Solutions and Troubleshooting [Part 60] appeared first on The Droid Guy.