Samsung Galaxy S9 Troubleshooting

The device either doesn't charge or runs out of battery very quickly.

Sometimes minor systems in the software use a large percentage of your battery. Restarting your device will reset the software inside the phone and may fix many of those minor problems.

Every app you use will drain your battery to a degree, but some apps can abnormally drain your battery. Go to your settings and tap "Device Maintenance." Once there, tap "Battery" and then "Battery Usage." From there you can see if there are applications running in the background while the device isn’t necessarily on, causing even more drainage. You can then disable the apps that you don’t need running in the background.

The Always-On Display is the clock, date, notifications, and battery meter that is always on the screen, even if the device isn’t in use. Samsung claims this feature won’t use more than 4-5% of the total battery life in a normal 8 hour day, but it can help to reduce your battery usage if disabled. Head to your settings and tap "Lockscreen & security." Scroll down and disable "Always-On Display."

The device has trouble connecting to WiFi networks.

If the network itself is having problems, you might want to try re-connecting to it. Go into your settings and tap "Connections." From there, tap "WiFi" and then find the network you are having problems connecting to. Tap that network and then hit "Forget" to stop your device from automatically connecting to it. Once you're done that, you can connect to that network again. You will have to enter your password again if the network is secured.

If you are still having issues connecting to your WiFi network, then there may be some other files on your device interfering with your connection.

Your connectivity problems may be due to Bluetooth device cache files stored on your phone. To see if this is the case, go to your settings and open the “Apps” tab. Once there, tap “Show System Apps.” Go to "Bluetooth" and then tap "Clear Cache" to erase the data that might be causing the problem.

If you try both solutions above and still have problems connecting to WiFi, then you most likely have a damaged NFC antenna and charging coil. These parts may need to be replaced. Check out this guide for information on how to replace your NFC antenna and charging coil.

The screen is unresponsive when you try to tap, swipe, or use the display.

Sometimes the device can overload its hardware and cause it to freeze up. A simple restart of the device may fix the problem.

If the screen is still unresponsive after restarting the phone it may be because of a faulty application. Restart your device in Safe Mode to disable all third party applications temporarily. If the screen becomes responsive after restarting in safe mode then you have found the problem and now must find and delete that application. Here are the steps on how to restart your device in Safe Mode:

1. Turn the device off.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen appearing on the screen.
3. Release the Power key when "SAMSUNG" appears on the screen.
4. Press and hold the Volume Down key immediately after releasing the power key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume Down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Release the Volume Down key when "Safe Mode" appears in the bottom left corner of the screen.

If the screen is still unresponsive while running in Safe Mode, then the device may need a master reset. Here are the steps to reset your device:

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. Release all keys when the green Android logo displays. ("Installing system update" will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).'''
4. Press the Volume Down key several times to highlight "wipe data / factory reset."
5. Press Power button to select.
6. Press the Volume down key until “Yes — delete all user data” is highlighted.
7. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
8. Press the Power button to restart your device once "Reboot system now" is highlighted.

If the screen is still unresponsive after the master reset of your device then you may need to replace the screen display on the device. Check out this display replacement guide for more information.

No sound comes out of the device's speakers, even when the screen suggests that you are playing audio.

Random software glitches can mess up the sound functions on your phone. To fix this, you can either reboot the device or perform a soft reset. To restart your device: First, press and hold the Power Button. Next, tap the option to Power Off. Tap Power Off again to confirm. After about 30 seconds, press and hold the Power button again until your phone boots up. To do a soft reset: Press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons simultaneously for up to 45 seconds. Release both buttons when the Samsung logo appears.

If your device is paired to another Bluetooth accessory, it is likely affecting the phone’s speakers. Check if there is a pairing under Settings. Remove the paired device if it is connected to solve the problem.

If you changed any of the default settings on your device, you could have accidentally changed sound settings. To fix this, you have to reset your settings. Swipe up on an empty spot from the Home screen to open the Apps tray. Then tap “Settings.” Go to "General Management" and tap "Reset." Next, select "Reset Settings." If prompted, enter your device credentials like PIN or password. Then tap Reset settings again to confirm reset.

If none of the above solutions solve your problem, your speakers may be faulty. Check out this speaker replacement guide for more information.

The rear camera fails to focus on far away objects and takes blurry pictures.

Corrupt cache data within the app itself can cause problems in the performance of the camera. To fix this, go to settings and then open “Apps.” Select “All Apps.” Locate then select the Camera app. Tap “Storage.” Tap “Clear Cache.” Go back to your settings, go to "Device Maintenance" and then tap "Storage." Once there, hit "Clear Now."

Sometimes a downloaded app can interrupt the functioning of the phone’s original software, such as the camera. To check if that’s the problem, put the phone into Safe Mode and see if the blurriness persists. Safe Mode allows only the pre-installed apps to run, making it easy to check if the problem occurs within the camera app or from some other downloaded app. To check this, first turn the phone off. Next, press and hold the Power key past the model name screen appearing on the screen. When SAMSUNG appears on the screen, release the Power key. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting. When Safe mode appears in the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume down key.

When none of the solutions you try are working, it’s often a good idea to perform a factory reset as a last resort. A factory reset will return the phone back to its original state, as it would be if you just took it out of the box. To do a factory reset, start by backing up your data and making sure you have everything you need saved. Next, turn off the phone. Then, follow these steps:

1. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
2. Release all keys '''when the green Android logo displays. ("Installing system update" will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options.)
3. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight "wipe data / factory reset."
4. Press the Power button to select and start the master reset.
5. Power the device on when "Reboot system now" is highlighted.

If none of the solutions above seem to work, you may need to replace your camera. Check out this rear-facing camera replacement guide.

The fingerprint sensor will either vibrate, indicating that the device did not recognize your fingerprint, or it does not do anything when pressed.

To see if your fingerprint sensor hardware works, open your phone in Safe Mode. To start, turn your phone off. Press and hold the power key. Release when you see “Samsung” on the screen. Immediately after releasing the power key, press and hold the volume key until the device finishes turning on and you see “Safe Mode” on the screen. Then try to use your fingerprint scanner. If it works, see the subheading below. If it doesn’t, you may need to replace your fingerprint sensor. Check out this fingerprint sensor replacement guide.

If your fingerprint scanner works during Safe Mode but not during Normal Mode, it is likely the effect of a bad third party app. There isn’t a surefire way to know which app is causing the problem, so delete one app, starting with your most recently downloaded one. Then, restart your phone in normal mode to see if your fingerprint scanner works. If it still doesn’t recognize your fingerprint, then start the process again and keep deleting apps until it works, keeping track of the ones that seem to have no effect.