The much-anticipated Lollipop update promises to make Android even more
awesome - but for some Samsung owners it’s been a big disappointment.
Forums are packed with reports of Samsung Galaxy S5 Lollipop problems. Here’s what they are along with the top fixes and improvements.
First things first
Before you install any major Android update it’s a very good idea to
take a few sensible precautions. Dig out the login details for any
online accounts you use - the update may reset your apps and require you
put the details back in again - and give your Galaxy a good spring
cleaning to get rid of any stuff you don’t need. Uninstall unwanted
apps, update the ones you’re keeping, pare back your photo library and
of course, make absolutely sure that you have backup copies of anything
that matters to you. Most Android updates go perfectly smoothly but you
should always expect the worst. That way, when it doesn’t happen you’ll
be pleasantly surprised. Oh, and connect your Galaxy to the charger or
ensure it has a full battery before you install the update.
Achieve peak performance
The most common post-update issue for any OS is sluggish performance,
and you can fix that by removing app data and wiping the cache
partition. The cache partition is where the OS stores temporary system
stuff such as downloads, and if it get messy it can hit your phone’s
performance.
App data first. Go into Settings > Apps and choose the app whose
data you want to clear. Tap Clear Data and then Clear Cache to make it
all shiny, and repeat for other apps you suspect are hogging space.
Once you’ve done that, turn off your phone and then press and hold
the home, power and volume down buttons. Wait until the phone vibrates
and the Samsung logo appears before letting go, and then use the volume
down button to navigate to Wipe Cache Partition. Select that and go and
do something else for a while - the process can be time consuming.
Reboot your phone when it’s finished.
Still no joy? If the problem appears to affect specific apps only,
uninstalling, rebooting and reinstalling is dull but often works, and
there’s also the nuclear option of a full factory reset, which cleans
the parts other settings can’t reach. Once again, it’s really important
to ensure you have backups of any data you can’t afford to lose and that
you’ve got a note of any logins and other key information.
Beat battery bugs
If Lollipop is eating battery life, boot into Safe Mode by switching
the phone off and then pressing and holding the Power button and
volume-down button until the phone reboots. You can tell whether you’re
in safe mode because if you are, the screen displays the words “safe
mode”. Cunning. This disables third-party apps that might be draining
the battery in the background, enabling you to see whether the problem
is with Lollipop itself or more likely, an app that isn’t behaving
properly.
It’s possible that even after disabling apps, your battery will
continue to drain: we’re seeing unhappy Galaxy owners on Verizon and
Sprint forums talking about too-fast battery draining. That one may
require a Lollipop update from the network providers or from third
parties.
Bad Bluetooth and wonky Wi-Fi
At the risk of sounding like a bored IT tech, have you tried turning
it off and turning it back on again? A quick reboot often repairs
mysterious connectivity issues. If your Wi-Fi is still wonky, pop into
Settings and disable Battery Saver (if it’s on), and try forgetting the
network you’re trying to connect to - but make sure you’ve got the
password handy, because you’ll need it when you reconnect.
If all else fails…
As much as we love Lollipop, if it won’t play nice on your Galaxy
there’s no point in putting up with it. If you find yourself pining for
the golden days of Android KitKat, there is a way to downgrade your
phone again. Simply search for “Galaxy S5 downgrade from Lollipop to
KitKat” and you’ll find stacks of how-to guides, but make sure you’re
looking at the right one for your particular model and territory: there
may be differences between Galaxy models and between different
operators’ settings. It’s not particularly difficult or time-consuming
but you’ll need to get your hands on the Odin firmware tool from Samsung
and the correct firmware for your phone and territory, and you’ll need
to wipe the phone’s data when you’re done.
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