My Samsung Acclaim keeps shutting off on me, I have to then pull the battery to turn it back on! ANNOYING! US Cellular wants me to bring it in for a new one- however apps won't transfer over to the new phone- This is gonna drive me nuts!
It has shut off for about the last 3 out of 5 days. Battery life is fine, fully charged. Unsure as to why it keeps shutting off. And I can't just turn it back on I have to pull the battery.
I have had this problem as well, though not as frequently. Twice since I got it two weeks back.
I like the phone, but that's really annoying. Both times happened as I was trying to make a quick call. Turned out to be not so quick!
I am on my second acclaim for this problem. First one i got the weekend of release. 2nd one 30 days later. Same story - and its gonna kill me while i try to take my cover then back plate off on the highway making work calls. It needs a recall.
I was having this problem for a few days. I'd throw it in my pocket for a while, pull it out to check on something and it would be off. None off the buttons would be responsive, which like the original poster, I had to remove the back and take the battery out, replace the battery then turn the unit on.
Its not like this thing boots up fast either ;(. I ended up resetting my phone, and that seemed to work, but since then I've rooted it and, and I am now running a custom Rom. I haven't had the problem in 3+ days.
Same problem with my Android. I got a call from US Cellular last night, they said I could pick up my phone this morning. They didn't end up sending it out for repair. I have a feeling they just reset like previous poster did. I'll let you know how I make out. I was in serious withdrawal without my phone for a few days. And not happy they said it might be 4-6 weeks for the repair. I only had the phone 20 days, I think they should have given me a new one....
My phone also shuts off. I have had it for 7 day now and am on my second phone. The second I i just got does the same thing. ....WTF...... I will be taking it back. again for a new one. You would think someone would know why this is happening...
Yep got my phone back from US Cellular after they rebooted the software. Still shutting off!! Had to reset up the whole phone, download everything again. Still problems. I am going into US Cellular tomorrow and shoving my phone up their A!@*! Wish me luck, I hope to walk out of there with a new phone.
I'm on my 2nd Acclaim with the same problem as other posters. I love this phone, so what a bummer. It had been just eating the battery up when it was in my pocket or on the table. I'd come back and the phone would be very hot and the battery totally dead. The last time, it was unresponsive and I was able to get back in service by removing the battery and putting it back; the charge was saved. That's much better than having to re-charge it right after I just finished charging it, without having used the phone at all. Great phone, but this is a BIG problem that US Cellular and Samsung need to correct. I agree, this is a recall situation.
You would think they would get off there ass and fix this issue. I have to admitt though my local off has takin care of me and givin me a new phone. But it has been in the 30 warrenty. What happens when that passes I send it out for repairs ever frigin month?????
Same issue here. I'm on my second Acclaim and both have had this issue. I've been browsing forums and it doesn't seem to be just Acclaims that this is affecting. I've seen a few complaints about this with the Hero as well. It seems to happen with mine shortly after ending a phone call. It's like it goes into "sleep" mode and nothing wakes it up.
Maybe it is an app causing the problem. My phone has done this once but that was after I was using Astro file viewer. Maybe its a software protection on the phone causing the phone to reboot. A lot of the software on the market access different parts of the phone software so that might be an issue. Im new to this android phone that is i used to have a htc ppc6800 unlocked and running different version of windows because of uscc inability to push an update. This new phone has been wonders a whole different world so maybe its a market app or just everyone is so excited that uscc has android phones and we are all enjoying the unlimited internet and the 70,000+ apps market and thats the cause of the reboot is bad software.
I've had the acclaim since USCell released it and have had this issue and many more such as...
1. Phone will not allow you to answer an incoming call bc the screen won't come alive.
2. Green screen on camera/barcode reader forcing a reboot to fix.
3. Sluggish performance overall, lots of forced close issues.
Finally I got fed up enough to take it to USC and they had me take it to the techs. After an hour the answer I got was that this phone is a low end android phone with very little memory available for apps. He said that 20MB free memory was not enough and was causing all of the problems. I asked about the HTC Desire, saying that I would pay the extra to upgrade since I've had the Acclaim for less than two months, but he said the Desire has the same memory issues, but a slightly faster processor. The final recommendation was to root it or find a way to remove the bloatware that USC installs.
After removing some apps and trying to keep at least 30-40MB free, the phone does seem to run faster but I will have to wait and see if the reboot/green screen issues return. Those seem more like hardware issues to me.
Totally frustrating- I finally went in and they gave me a new one. But if it does this again I'm going to get real frustrated! I love the phone- wished it worked the way I wanted it to. My friend took his back due to the same problems, they gave him the Desire, I'm interested to see how this works for him.
Wait, what, the Acclaim's been rooted? I must look into this!
Ali79, rooting means getting root. Root is to a Linux system (which Android is) what Administrator is to a Windows system. In Android you run as a limited user, which is a Good Thing for your phone.
When you have root, you can uninstall crap like CityID, MySpace, Twidroid, and all the useless crap that comes with the phone. You can also get custom builds of Android, you can get an ad blocker, you can get FroYo (Android 2.2 -- the Acclaim comes with Eclair/2.1) early... and you open your phone up to a world of security vulnerabilities that can exploit root. Don't do it! unless you know what you're doing.
Wait, what, the Acclaim's been rooted? I must look into this!
Ali79, rooting means getting root. Root is to a Linux system (which Android is) what Administrator is to a Windows system. In Android you run as a limited user, which is a Good Thing for your phone.
When you have root, you can uninstall crap like CityID, MySpace, Twidroid, and all the useless crap that comes with the phone. You can also get custom builds of Android, you can get an ad blocker, you can get FroYo (Android 2.2 -- the Acclaim comes with Eclair/2.1) early... and you open your phone up to a world of security vulnerabilities that can exploit root. Don't do it! unless you know what you're doing.
Thanks DR- I am not that advanced! But I would love to get rid of the STUPID apps like CityID, Myspace, etc. I was able to a least hid them with the LP you told me about- That was awesome! Thanks
when i was at us cellular getting my Desire the sales guy was telling me about how the acclaim was nothing but trouble and they keep coming back.... maybe look into switching to a desire if you havent had it for a month you can return it and get a better phone
when i was at us cellular getting my Desire the sales guy was telling me about how the acclaim was nothing but trouble and they keep coming back.... maybe look into switching to a desire if you havent had it for a month you can return it and get a better phone
There lies the problem, I've had it for like 43 days, and have switch to a NEW Acclaim last Friday(they gave it to me since I was only at like 38 days). I'm sure they won't give me a new one!
I would ask. the guy I bought my desire from said they were extending people since they were so bad. I bet if you threaten to break contract they'll swap it for you
Last edited by PastorOfMuppetzQ; September 1st, 2010 at 06:14 PM.
I had this happen once on my phone. At the time, it was loaded with applications, and very little free space. I believe that what Crober reported may be quite right.
In the computer world, operating systems like Windows or Linux have swap file space. I have to wonder what phones do in this area, and if they aren't making some use of the open application software space. Like Crober, I noted a marked increase in performance when I don't load the phone down with tons of apps. The phone performs like it should, and it doesn't shut down on me.
Just a thought. For folks who are having this problem, you might try performing a Factory Data Reset (go to Settings > Privacy > Factory data reset) and then run with just minimal 3rd party applications for a week or two to see if the issue clears up.
Another thought is this. Developer Joe creates application "X". He tests it extensively using the simulator in the Android SDK. It works great. Meanwhile, developer Mike does likewise with app "Y", and his application works fantastic as well. They both set their apps up in the Marketplace. Along comes Tom with his shiny new Android phone, likes what he sees, and downloads both "X" and "Y". His phone starts acting up, performance is lousy, and he's at his wit's end. Unfortunately, Joe and Mike's applications, although they each separately work just fine, when combined together on the same phone, butt heads.
I've experienced this first hand working as a Systems Administrator for over a decade, and it would not surprise me to find it an issue with Android.
__________________ ..::Rob Smith::..
Samsung r880 Acclaim/i500 Mesmerize
US Cellular
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Got my second acclaim on Wednesday and it shut down three times over the weekend. Missed a text from my son because of it and he had to wait outside for me for 1/2 hour. Called US cellular tech support this morning. THey claim I am the only one that has this problem, they are not getting calls regarding this problem! My luck to have two bad phones I guess. Basically tech support told me to get rid of all my downloaded applications from Android and try that. So they give you $20.00 to use at the Android market, but suggest you don't use it. I should have just got a blackberry I guess. We'll see what happens.................
One big issue seems to be using a different launcher other than the stock one. Even with a ton of free memory, the phone was incredibly slow and buggy while running LauncherPro. I did not have as many issues with Zeam, but I've since gone back to the stock launcher and everything is behaving much better.
After taking off all apps just checked my phone and sure enough it had shut down. I'm really irked that tech is claiming that I am the only call the have received about this problem. I find that really hard to believe. First phone got factory reset and that still had the problem. So I just happened to get two bad phones what are the odds. I guess I will be calling again tomorrow. They said they could put be in another Android for a "deal"! I am frustrated to no end.
i had problems with launcher pro too. i uninstalled it and tried adw i think its called. but then i went back to launcher pro. i found that in the launcher settings that you can manage some of the memory and cache settings on the launcher to be lighter and i checked the box for the droid hack under general settings. these changes made significant improvement to the point that i dont notice a different in behavior in launcher vs the stock. not sure which of those settings was the one that did it or if it was a mix of all of them but this may help anyone else who wants to use launcherpro but was having problems.
I am having this issue as well. I will use my phone, then set it down to go do something. Then later come back to do something on it and it will be off. And i can only get it back on by removing the battery. I like the phone. I would just like some of th extra features the Desire has such as the cpu, and camera. But i dont have the extra money now. Also, i called USCC about this issue, and they said that i would have to bring it to them and they want to send it into Samsung to fix. Which might take 6-8 weeks. Which that is waaaay to long, the reason why i havent done anything about it yet.... im sorta stuck right now....
I've had this issue with 2 Accalims now. After talking to tech support, I reset the phone to the factory default (Under Setttings/Privacy), then one by one installed apps and so far it's not gone unresponsive yet. I also noticed in the manual that it says you can do a reset for an un-responsive phone by pushing the Up Ringer Volume, camera and power buttons. Has anyone tried this to see if this at least eliminates the need for pulling the battery?
As I mentioned above, there are generally two reasons why a computer (and your phone is a computer in small form factor) becomes unresponsive or shuts itself down. One is lack of space. Too many applications loaded, or too much running can cause this. The other is an application that has gone rogue, or is not acting as designed.
As ankmcderm noted, performing a Factory Data Reset (found under Settings > Privacy) will usually correct this issue. Just remember to not then go back and reload all the stuff you had on the phone previously.
Note that most Android applications are developed on a PC, using an Android emulator that is part of the Android SDK (Software Development Kit). This means two things. First, Application 'X' may not work well with your phone's hardware. Also, Application 'X' may work well, but may conflict with Application 'Y'. This holds true for both computers and phones, and I have seen it a number of times in my 15+ year IT career.
So, my advice is twofold. Don't load your phone to its limits with applications. Give it some breathing room. Also, load an application and give it some time to see if it causes problems before loading something else. Usually, the last app you loaded before the problem began is the culprit.
Keep in mind the Acclaim was designed as an entry level Android phone, and as such, doesn't have the capabilities of say, the Nexus One or Samsung Galaxy S.
My phone has no dowloads on it, deleted them all. I don't run the GPS, per advice of US Cellular Customer Service. It has been master reset twice. This is the second Acclaim and it still shuts off randomly.... Shutting off the GPS seemed to help a little. The suggestion by customer service was that the phone was working too hard to get location and therfore was shutting the phone off. So I have an android that can't download any apps and the gps doesn't work!! But according to US Cellular I am the only one with this problem............
Mainejuls, have you performed a Factory Data Reset (Settings > Privacy . Factory Data Reset) since deleting all the installed apps? Just curious. I've seen this issue, but mostly on phones with a number of apps on them. I have only experienced this once on my personal Acclaim, and only then when loaded with apps.
My boyfriend and I both got the acclaim on Sept. 30 (thursday is the day, date may be off)...
In the last month, he has several (albeit spread out) instances of phone → off → power button doesn't work → battery removed/replaced → phone turns on with power button...
In that time, mine had shut off two or three times, but I was able to turn it back on with the power button.
However, in the last 24 hours, it has shut off 4 times (once over night, thankfully, I thought ahead to this issue and had my old phone alarms on so I didn't miss classes) where I need to remove the battery to turn it back on.
Before deleting apps (I had installed a bunch the night before the eventful day of power-offs), I had just over 30 mb free on the phone. I deleted all apps but a few (parking memory app...since it was free, temporarily, and i didn't want to have to pay to reinstall)...left on 2 or 3 new games. Had around 70 mb free on the phone after that. Still powered down another time after that.
Last night's over-night power down was weird...I had over 90% batt power before going to bad (I have watched this before, and use about 20% over night if not touching it and not plugged in) and somehow my battery drained to 0%...when I woke up to old-phone-alarm, I found my acclaim was off, so I removed the battery to find it hot, put it back in, plugged it in, and turned it on...the difference here is that all 3 times it powered down during the day, the battery levels were fine.
I love this phone, and especially the physical keyboard, but depending on how a visit with uscc goes in the next few days, I may have to reach into my already nearly-empty-college-bank-account and dish out another 150 for the galaxy s...
Same problem here!! Im getting so annoyed I have gone through 3 in the last 35 days!! This am I woke up to another dead android!!! Looks like Im going to have to get another type! Stinks I really like the phone. My husband has one and has never had an issue??
I don't think that deleting the apps alone will resolve the problem. You are probably going to have to perform a Factory Data Reset. Something seems to remain when apps are deleted with Android, at least that has been my experience.
A computer (and make no mistake, this phone is a computer) shuts down on its own for only a couple reasons. It runs out of memory, or its CPU (processor) becomes overloaded. In the case of these phones, I believe that it may be the latter. A rogue application begins eating processor cycles and finally the phone can't take anymore, throws up its hands, and shuts down.
A Factory Data Reset is really not all that hard to perform. You'll want to make certain that all of your contacts are backed up, either through GMAIL or My Contacts Backup. You will need your GMAIL account info (email address and password), plus account info for any other email addresses you have on the phone. You may want to list out the applications you've installed. I did this using the text editor on my computer.
Your data (media files and documents) is not stored on the phone itself. It is stored on the memory card, which is not touched during a factory reset.
Once this is accomplished, you will go to Settings > Privacy and tap on Factory Data Reset. You will be queued twice on "do you really want to do this" and then the phone will be wiped and reset to default settings. The phone's basic programming will not be messed with.
Once the phone comes back up, log into your GMAIL account, using the GMAIL application (white envelope, big red "M"). Next, recover your contacts, either through logging into your GMAIL account or through running My Contacts Backup. If you forgot your MCB password, there is a link at http://mycontactsbackup.uscellular.com to send it to your phone in a text message. After logging into GMAIL and getting your contacts back, I generally direct folks to a few settings that will help your GPS to function better. The can be found under Location & Security, Accounts & Sync, and Privacy, under Settings. Under the first two, make sure the top two boxes are checked, and under Privacy, make sure Use My Location is also checked. Next, go to your browser, navigate to Google, and there tap on Settings. Scroll to the bottom of the resulting page and tap on the "Yes" radio button for "Allow use of device location?" Select Save and you will be returned to the Google page. Tap on your Home key to get back to your main screen.
Next, set up any other mail accounts. If you are setting up a Yahoo account (this includes AT&T Yahoo variants) I strongly recommend using the Yahoo Mail application found in the Android Market instead of the phone's Email applet. I also recommend using the Hot Email app for Hotmail accounts.
I am having the same issue. I am on my second phone in 3 months. I have taken it back 3 times. Here is what they did. First visit, the tech guy said that one of the apps I downloaded was affecting the phone. So I took off ALL the apps. (there went my $20 in free apps). That did not work. Second visit, the tech guy messed with some settings. I didn't even make it home from the store and the phone had shut off. Didn't work. Third visit, the tech said the battery was bad? really? it held a charge just fine and I argued that his determination was silly. So, in went another battery. The phone shut off 2 hours later. Didn't work. So now, I guess I have to go back and demand ANOTHER phone. AND, I am going to have them throw in a new hard case. I broke the last 2 becasue I had to keep taking them off to remove the battery cover and battery to turn the stupid phone back on.
I use this phone the majority of the time for work. It is VERY frustrating to have to try to take the case, rear cover and battery out, while driving, and then waiting for the phone to boot up everytime you want to make a stupid call.
Like a couple people mentioned, I noticed this problem after installing LauncherPro. I love the launcher, so I'm going to try and mess around with the memory usage settings before I trash it. It was set to High (I think by default) and I just changed it to Light. I'll monitor it for a few days and see if things improve.
BTW, for those of you who restore and need to reinstall all of your apps, download AppBrain before you restore and it will sync all of your apps. When you log back into AppBran after the restore, it will automatically bring back all of the apps you had installed.
I've been running Launcher Pro on my phone for the past couple of months without issue, so I don't think it is the core problem.
That said, I just installed Froyo from the link below, and my phone's performance has seemed to improve. It took a while for Samsung to get this out, so hopefully, it will correct some of the issues we've seen.
Acclaim keeps shutting off!
