Hello dear Samsung Galaxy S6 users! Welcome to the fourth installment of our Samsung Galaxy S6 troubleshooting series.
If you have other concerns regarding your Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, don’t hesitate to shoot us an email at mailbag@thedroidguy.com and we will do our best to get back to you as soon as we can. We will appreciate it very much if you can provide as many details as possible. If you are getting error messages on the screen, or have observed unusual phone behaviors, kindly include them in your email. The more information you can provide, the easier for us to assist you.
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Samsung Galaxy S6 getting low signal when on Sprint Spark network
Problem: Got my S6 on Wednesday. Phone is good but shows minimal bars, if any, in areas with great coverage even with the S3. Again, looks like it has no signal but calls are fine. Sprint rep said new Spark network does that and they are working on a software fix. Sounds strange. Worried that the antenna is bad on the new phone and want to ensure all is right before 2 week window passes. Any thoughts? On another note, battery is great so far.
I actually love the phone so far but when it is on the so called “Sprint Spark” network, it shows minimal or no bars. The calls go through fine even though no bars show. Sprint repair showed me their non S6 similar phones and they showed very little bars despite being near the tower that just got Spark. They said it was a software glitch. Bars, show on 4G. Sounds like a crock. Have you heard of this happening on Sprint? — Tom
Troubleshooting: Hi Tom. We really are not in the position to comment about Sprint Spark network as there are a few factors that can cause why a smartphone shows low signal strength. One of the most common reasons though is the carrier itself. Network problems are not usually made known unless a customer asks about them. If there’s an on-going problem on your service provider’s side, other mobile devices in the area may have the same problem as yours. Do you know anyone from your circle who may be having some low signal strength problems too?
Another reason for this problem can be hardware. Your device’s radio may not be working properly hence the low signal you are getting.
We recommend that you let Sprint know about this problem so they can better improve their service in your area. Regarding Sprint Spark network seemingly not working as advertised, a much better way for you to confirm it would be to interact with fellow users in Sprint’s own community site.
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Smart Manager missing from Sprint Samsung Galaxy S6/S6 Edge
Problem: Hello. I was wondering if anyone has reported issues with the Smart Manager app on the Galaxy S6/S6 Edge? It seems to be missing from my phone. It’s not shown in my Apps on the home screen, however it does show it in the Application Manager under “All”. No one at a Sprint Store could offer an explanation and contacting Samsung through social media was useless. Thanks! — Dan
Troubleshooting: Hi Dan. You are our first reader to have reported about a missing Smart Manager app in an S6 phone although a quick scan among other forums show that other Sprint users have a similar complaint. Because it is a first party app from Samsung, there’s a chance that Sprint may have removed or disabled it on purpose as other users from other carriers appears to have not reported the issue. Now, there can be a wide range of reasons why carriers would remove first party apps or pre-installed apps by Samsung. One of the most obvious reasons is to prevent the phone from loading too many bloatwares although it can be hard to think of Smart Manager as one. Another reason is to prevent redundancies to their own products and services. Some carriers offer their own package of services including diagnostic tools and having Samsung’s own may not pose an existential threat to their own.
As an alternative, you can still have Smart Manager in your phone though you need to have the device rooted. An available APK or installer for the app can be found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/show…postcount=2905.
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Samsung Galaxy S6 camera app constantly fails
Problem: I purchased the new Samsung S6 on 4/11. As soon as the next day i received the camera failed message yielding the camera unusable. I went through all the different methods I found online to correct the issue (including the last resort of factory reset), but to no avail. In my Internet searches I was amazed to see that this is a persistent problem ever since at least the S3. I have never experienced such a major issue with a phone so soon after acquiring it. Apparently the only way to resolve the problem is to get a replacement phone. Thanks for your attention. — Jonathan
Troubleshooting: Hi Jonathan. In some rare cases, a camera app problem arises when a similar app is installed causing it to fail. There is no specific camera app that we can point to as the problem appears to happen randomly as long as there’s a third party camera app installed. Interestingly, it also doesn’t happen to most devices with other camera apps.
We suggest that you observe your phone for a day or two while in Safe mode. If you will be unable to replicate the problem while in diagnostic mode, that’s a clear indication that you really should try to shed out some of your apps.
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Sprint Samsung Galaxy S6 unable to connect to mobile data
Problem: I just found your page and am wondering if you can help. I have the Galaxy S6 32GB on the Sprint network. It won’t connect to the mobile network. I can’t load social media, update emails, etc when I don’t have Wi-Fi? Any ideas why? I’m thinking of contacting sprint to see if it needs to be reset or something like that. Thanks. — Alyssa
Troubleshooting: Hi Alyssa. It’s always good practice to call your service provider right away if there’s an on-going data connectivity problems to save your time and effort. For future reference to other users though, we recommend that you try these solutions if you are unable to use data connection on an S6.
Double-check that mobile data is ON. It appear as no-brainer but in our haste in most days, mobile data is left OFF even after doing some other basic troubleshooting steps already. Kindly verify is mobile data is turned on by doing the following:
Go to Apps from your home screen.
Tap Settings.
Tap Data usage.
If set to OFF, make sure to tap the Mobile data slider to ON.
Make sure that your device is connected to Sprint network via Sprint Zone. Even after turning mobile data on, Sprint users must configure their devices to work with Sprint’s network first. To do this, please follow these steps:
Go to Apps from your home screen.
Tap Sprint Zone app to open it.
Open Device Diagnostics by swiping to the left. If Device Diagnostics section is missing, tap the Refresh icon.
Find Network. If Network is located in the Passed section, that means your device is connected to the Sprint network. However, if Network shows up in the Failed or Flagged section, you must update your Data Profile first.
Go Device Diagnostics.
Tap System Updates.
Tap Update Profile.
Tap Ok after updating your profile.
Perform a soft reset. After making sure that your mobile data is turned on and the device connected to Sprint network, doing a soft reset should allow your phone to reconnect. Just press and hold Power and Volume Down keys simultaneously. Release the buttons once the device restarts.
Call Sprint customer support. If none of these solutions work, please call your service provider.
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Samsung Galaxy S6 from Vodafone keeps on losing mobile data connectivity
Problem: Hi. I was wondering if you could help with my new Galaxy S6. I am having trouble with mobile data not working. I still have data left on my phone plan and if I reset my phone it will work again but am finding I have to do this every hour or so as it will stop working again. My phone is bought from Telstra but my plan is from Vodafone. My partner has an iPhone and is also with Vodafone and he has no trouble with mobile data connection. Thanks. — Cindy
Troubleshooting: Hi Cindy. Did you install an app before you started noticing this problem? If you did, try to boot your phone in Safe mode and observe it for several hours. If your mobile data won’t drop within that period, that’s a strong indication that a third party app may be messing up with your phone’s functions.
Are you getting specific error message when your phone stops connecting to Vodafone? If you are, please call Vodafone and inquire if your plan has a specific limitation that you not be aware of. Otherwise, please follow the steps provided to Alyssa above. As mentioned, you really need to talk to your service provider about this issue. If their network and your account are both working normally, the problem may be caused by a failing mobile data radio. You may consider having the phone replaced if that’s the case.
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How to re-enter Wi-Fi password in Samsung Galaxy S6
Problem: Hi. I just upgraded to this phone and wanted to add in my home wireless network. I believe I put in an incorrect password. It just continues to search for networks but will not access mine. I am wondering how to reset it so that I can reenter the password.
Thank you in advance. — Lynn
Troubleshooting: Hi Lynn. Please go to Settings>Wi-Fi. Once you are in the Wi-Fi section, look for the name of your home network and long press it. Select Forget option to allow you to enter your home network password again.
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Light Flow – LED&Notifications app not fully compatible with Samsung Galaxy S6
Problem: Hi there. I just got the Verizon Samsung Galaxy S6 model # SM-G920V in pearl white. One of the big things I HATE about it, and perhaps it’s the Lollipop, but…I don’t get any notification sound or vibrations when I get a text and the chat box is open.
To help with this annoyance, I downloaded Lightflow Lite.
With this, I now have notifications that I can hear when a text comes in with an open chat window.
One of the other things Lightflow does is change the color of your LED depending on what notification is coming in.
However, I get NO change in the LED color, AT ALL. So I went to look for the LED settings in the phone, and *gasp* could NOT find an LED setting. Does the new S6 NOT have an LED setting or am I not technologically developed enough to find it?
You can be honest with me, seriously, you won’t hurt my feelings! 
Any, eh hem, “light” (visualize Austin Powers’ Dr. Evil) you could shed on this matter would be greatly appreciated!!!
Thanks so much. — Amy
Follow-up email: I did find the LED indicator in the settings, it is ON, So, clearly I am a moron. Now that we have identified issue number 1, can you tell me why the colors won’t change when using Lightflow. Thanks again. — Amy
Troubleshooting: Hi Amy. Thank you for sharing your self-discovered solution. They surely can help other users in the future who may have a similar concern as yours.
As regards your second question (about LED colors not changing on your S6), the answer is an app limitation itself. It appears that Light Flow – LED&Notifications app is not yet fully compatible with your new device. Please go to the official website of Light Flow app for reference: http://www.reactle.com/p/phone-compatibility_25.html.
If you think contacting the developers might help, you can email them at support@reactle.com.
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Samsung Galaxy S6 getting hot after wirelessly charging it
Problem: Last night the screen froze up on the red Verizon screen. It had been sitting on the Samsung wireless charger on my counter unused at the time, so not sure how long it was like that. It was turned on and had been working well up to that point with no issues. The screen would brighten and dim slightly and the phone was hot. At first I thought Verizon was doing a software update but when I checked again 30 minutes later realized otherwise. I was unable to turn it off, so I left it to let the battery discharge on its own. When I came home several hours later, the phone was dead. Plugged in and charging, the phone rebooted with all of my settings intact and now seems in fine working order. I should mention the phone has not been dropped, immersed, or damaged in any way. Should I be concerned that it’s a lemon? Is there any way to do a soft reboot if it happens again? Could there be a problem with the wireless charger? (Last night wasn’t the first time I used it). Any advice or info is appreciated. — Stacey
Troubleshooting: Hi Stacey. We think it’s too early to conclude that the phone may not be working properly. It’s normal for a powerful smartphone like your device to get hot from time to time. It’s also normal for a phone to get hot after being left for a long time in a wireless charger. As long as it does not overheat, which is indicated by random reboots, you can still consider it normal. Your Samsung Galaxy S6 is equipped with an automatic switch to reboot itself when it reaches a certain heat level to prevent damage. We suggest that you review your list of apps though to look for anything suspicious. If you find a third party app you are not familiar with, try to remove it.
Sometimes a soft reset can bring everything back to normal, especially if the device has been up for a long time already. By doing a simple restart, a device usually regains all functions properly afterwards.
If you want to reboot your phone, you can always do a factory reset anytime to ensure that your device runs smoothly. If you have not tried it before, here’s how:
Go to Apps.
Go to Settings.
Go to Backup & reset.
Select Reset device.
Select Erase everything.
NOTE: Factory reset will delete your personal data so make sure you have created a back up before proceeding.
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Verizon Samsung Galaxy S6 cannot use mobile data during a call
Problem: Hi! My Galaxy S6 is not able to use mobile data while in a call…I had no issue with this on my Galaxy S5. Is this something I can fix or do I need to take it up with Verizon? Thanks! — Jennifer
Troubleshooting: Hi Jennifer. This is a network limitation and can only be addressed by Verizon. Please let them know about it so they can give you other options (like changing to another network type) or rectify it.
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No setting to change lockscreen timeout on Samsung Galaxy S6
Problem: Hello Droid Guy. I have an AT&T enabled Samsung S6. I love the phone with one exception. When waking the phone from either sleep or locked mode, the screen stays on for only 3 seconds. I do have Power Save Mode enabled, not Ultra. I had changed the screen timeout to 15 seconds, then tried 30 seconds as well. Basically, once the phone has been enabled (swiped or fingerprint scanned), the screen timeout works perfectly. The only time I have a problem is in the initial wake up / locked screen mode. The screen stays awake for only 3 seconds. I have search diligently on the web to find a resolution, but to no avail. Bug, or a setting that I have somehow missed? Thanks. — Jeff
Troubleshooting: Hi Jeff. This is a design limitation and on the current Android Lollipop, there’s no setting that we can change to give you a longer time to allow the lockscreen to remain on. The only thing that you can change is the display timeout after unlocking the screen.
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Sync function on stock email app on Samsung Galaxy S6 not working
Problem: Hello! I recently switched from iPhone 5 to Galaxy S6 hoping for a better phone. Overall, it’s been great, but the email app has really just been super annoying. I’ve Googled up if my problems are consistent with other users, and it happening to others but there seems to be no solution! My stock email app (the one with the @ symbol) wouldn’t allow me to refresh whenever I’d like and would always pop up saying I can only refresh every 15 minutes. Another annoying problem is that it does not provide me the “auto sync” option where I’d receive notifications whenever I receive emails.
Some users have suggested to remove the account and re-add, which I’ve tried and hasn’t helped. Someone else suggested to reinstall the email application but I haven’t found a way to do it. Apple made things so easy and everything worked. This is super frustrating. Help! Thanks in advance. — Crystal
Troubleshooting: Hi Crystal. This problem can be caused by a corrupt email cache or a bug buried in the Android Lollipop operating system.
You can try to wipe the phone’s cache partition by following these steps:
Turn off the phone.
Press the following buttons at the same time: Power, Volume Up, and Home.
Wait for the blue recovery menu screen and highlight Wipe Cache Partion using the Volume key. Press Power key to confirm the selection.
Wait for a few seconds for the phone to delete the cache.
Hit Reboot System Now.
If the problem remains, kindly do a factory reset (steps are provided above).
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Email app stops receiving emails after a few days in Samsung Galaxy S6
Problem: I hope you can help me.
I just picked up my new Samsung Galaxy S6 last week. I set up my e-mail account, but it only works for a couple of days, and then just stops receiving e-mail. I checked all the settings, but finally ended up deleting the account and setting it up again. It then works fine for a couple of days, but then stops receiving e-mail again. I just spent a half hour on the phone with AT&T and they don’t have an answer. Is anyone else having a problem like this?
I am using a private IMAP e-mail account, not a Gmail or yahoo account. Thanks. — Ron
Troubleshooting: Hi Ron. There’s only so much that we can do (and that includes re-configuring the email account) when it comes to email problems. Please wipe the phone’s cache partition and do a factory reset if nothing works.
If you are using a third party email app instead of the stock email application from Samsung, please contact the developer to let them know about the problem. Because S6 is a relatively new phone, there’s always a chance that not all developers have made their products fully compatible with it, or may yet to discover bugs on this particular device.
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