Help Phone is very Slow

xguy · Jun 13, 2013

I have cleared the cache and rebooted it and it like a 1G slow!! If I cleared the data would that help? It's just like a slow computer, when the browser finally appears it take forever to pull something up. It will just spin in a little circle like a pc. Is there something like clean disk of defrag?? Btw I'm getting like 2 bars as usual so the service is the same

Thanks for any help

bhero · Jun 13, 2013

Like on a computer that would seem to indicate you are low on ram. Watch what is using what. If you don't get anywhere you may end up doing a factory reset

xguy · Jun 13, 2013

bhero said:
Like on a computer that would seem to indicate you are low on ram. Watch what is using what. If you don't get anywhere you may end up doing a factory reset

The phone is fairly new and I only add like 5 apps and I did a factory reset when I got the JB about 2 wks ago. How would I find if I'm low on ram? I'm not only computer challenged but phone too!! lol

Thanks

Rhumbline · Jul 3, 2013

My Bionic has been getting relentlessly slower too, to the point that it's really getting aggravating. My wife's iPhone seems as speedy as the day she got it, FWIW.

I did a full reset after the Jelly Bean update and it seemed to be reasonably snappy after that. Now its just seems mired in digital sludge when trying to do anything. I regularly kill open apps (ZD App Killer, though most, zombie like, quickly reload), and that gives some mild benefit.

Is this just some inexorable thing we need to get used to, so many apps, services and whatnot getting jammed on our phones that even with speedy new processors, they soon get overwhelmed and bogged down? Is there some way to more effectively manage what services, accesses and whatnot are going on (beyond basic settings and, say, ZD App Killer)? Or am I missing something basic I need to be aware of/doing (school me here then)?

biker128pedal · Jul 4, 2013

My phone speed varies day to day. Sometimes it is fast and then typing will have a half second delay between keys. I have not done an FDR and I don't think it will help. Some of the Google app updates were the cause. Removal fixed some of it. I don't think JB is for a phone but a tablet. Wish I could go back too.

SirEagle · Jul 5, 2013

When this happens on a phone it's usually do to an app, similar to a pc with a program. Do a factory reset and don't reload your apps. Run it for a day or so, then add one app back and run for another day. Then another, soon enough you'll find the trouble maker.

SirEagle · Jul 5, 2013

Also, app killers are more trouble than they are worth. They can be the cause of your issue by killing an app, then it restarts and needs to sync up with something, then gets killed and starts the whole process over again.

SirEagle · Jul 5, 2013

When you install a new app go into it's settings and set it so it doesn't always run if possible. Don't have pics/music/weather/email/FB/etc syncing all the time, just sync manually when you open the app.

Thom · Jul 6, 2013

... three excellent suggestions.

I would also go to System settings | Developer options and make sure it is Off.

Was it On when you went there?

... Thom

Rhumbline · Jul 9, 2013

Geez, is Android REALLY this kludgy after all this time? I swear, each passing day, iOS looks ever more appealing as a truly mature, reliable and grown up platform.

Yeah, its great that you can go into Android and tweak and customize it to the Nth degree. The bad thing apparently is that you HAVE TO constantly tweak, customize, fiddle, adjust, fix, refix and baby over the thing just to try to get it to work well at all. Reminds me of the bad old days of DOS based windows that was a constant headache to actually use.

Sorry to belly ache, but damn, sometimes, most of the time, I just want the thing to simply work without executing PhD-level machinations on it.

Thom · Jul 10, 2013

I assume you did not root your Bionic. Is that correct?

If "total reset" in your first message means "Factory Data Reset" are you sure ... how did you do it?

If you did a Factory Data Reset ... what did you install after you did it?

Is "Developer options" off? If yes ... turn it off.

Did you install a Task Killer after you did the Factory Data Reset? If yes ... install it.

I use a Bionic. It is on 24 hours a day. I charge it when I turn in for the night. I do NOT constantly tweak it. It is so reliable it is the only phone number I have (business and personal).

... Thom

jerrycarson · Jul 10, 2013

Thom,

Why do you recommend turning off developer options? What additions resources does it consume?

Jerry

Thom · Jul 10, 2013

I never thought about battery before Jelly Bean. I would just charge it every night when I turned in and never thought about it.

After Jelly Bean it was dying after 10-12 hours. I thought it was a worn out battery. I bought an OEM replacement on Amazon.

By accident I noticed that the option had been turned on. This was not by me. I wondered if it was part of the Jelly Bean update.

I turned it off. It stayed off through power off/power on cycles.

Battery (the original one) is now back the way ti was before Jelly Bean.

My assumption (as in not proven) is that the Jelly Bean update turned it on and something was running in the background eating the battery.

... Thom

Rhumbline · Jul 10, 2013

No root, stock Bionic. I did do a full FDR after the JB update bricked the thing.

Developer option turned off.

Running ZDBox ToolBox (?) task killer. Well, doesn't really kill them, just stuns them for a little bit until they rise, zombie like, from the dead to feast on brains, system resources and the battery again. Is there any easy way to permanently kill an app so that it would take some positive action on my part to open (short of rooting)?

What about custom modifying in some way (short of rooting) just what accesses each app actually does have rather than the default for most apps which seems to be to access most everything?

Thom · Jul 11, 2013

What does "after the JB update bricked the thing" mean? What happened and what did you do to correct it? What did you add after the Factory Data Reset?

I do not use a task killer. The way task killers "nail" a device is they terminate a task running and it that task then restarts. The task killer terminates it again and it restarts. All of this goes on forever and greatly increases the load on the device and everything slows down as a result. Do this for a lot of tasks on a device and REALLY slow it down.

If you want something that is taken care of that you don't need to be involved with .... get an iPhone.

For Android ... start with a Factory Data Reset and it will leave some apps that you don't want that were pre-installed. Leave them alone.

When you add new apps consider what you are doing each time. Task killers can have devastating impacts on your performance. Run it for a week with no new apps added so you can see how it performs. If you want to add apps after that ... go slow ... add something of interest and see if it causes problems for you.

... Thom

xguy · Jul 11, 2013

Thom Little said:
I never thought about battery before Jelly Bean. I would just charge it every night when I turned in and never thought about it.

After Jelly Bean it was dying after 10-12 hours. I thought it was a worn out battery. I bought an OEM replacement on Amazon.

By accident I noticed that the option had been turned on. This was not by me. I wondered if it was part of the Jelly Bean update.

I turned it off. It stayed off through power off/power on cycles.

Battery (the original one) is now back the way ti was before Jelly Bean.

My assumption (as in not proven) is that the Jelly Bean update turned it on and something was running in the background eating the battery.

... Thom

Thanks for the tip, my battery life has improved tremendously!!

Even though IDK what I cut off

Thom · Jul 11, 2013

I have no idea why it was on.

You seem to confirm an identical condition.

... Thom

DDave · Jul 30, 2013

This phone has been junk ever since the JB update. I'll look at the Droid Maxx, but its almost put me off on Motorola.

doogald · Jul 30, 2013

DDave said:
This phone has been junk ever since the JB update. I'll look at the Droid Maxx, but its almost put me off on Motorola.

The Droid Maxx should be a different experience. Motorola is a Google company now, and was not at the time of the Bionic. I'm not guaranteeing that it will be like owning a nexus, but the new Ultra/Maxx look to be very different phones from the Bionic/Razr.

Thom · Jul 31, 2013

DDave said:
This phone has been junk ever since the JB update. I'll look at the Droid Maxx, but its almost put me off on Motorola.

I am running Jelly Bean on a Bionic and my Bionic is not junk.

Jelly Bean introduced some new problems in the Bionic.

Did you do a Factory Data Reset after the update?
Have you cleared the cache?
Is Developer options off?

People have asked what Jelly Bean brought to the table and I was lost for an answer until I investigated Safe mode. This finally gives us the ability to zero in on performance issues caused by apps that we install.

So ... want to fix it?

... Thom

DDave · Jul 31, 2013

Sure, fire away.. I'll give it a try.

Yes, I did a FDR after JB was updated (im totally stock)

Dev. option was on, (cause i read someplace that you can limit the number of background processes to speed up the phone).

Not sure about the cache.. where is that option.

Thom · Jul 31, 2013

See ... Clear Bionic Cache ... for method. It can become fragmented over time and cause a lot of extra processing just to deal with stored data.

See ... Jelly Bean Battery Drain ... to make sure it is off.

You can ... Boot to Safe Mode ... and run with no added apps without uninstalling them. This can help you zero in on a misbehaving app that is causing you a problem.

... Thom

DDave · Jul 31, 2013

Nevermind... Got it.

I'm getting a Dead looking Andriod with a ! coming out of his chest when attempting this

To clear the cache on the Bionic ...

Power Off.
Hold Power/Volume Up/Volume Down at same time.
Menu appears.
Use Volume Down to highlight “Recovery”.
Press Volume Up to select.
Screen with Motorola logo appears then screen with icon appears.
Press Volume Up/Volume Down at same time.
Menu appears.
Use Volume Up and Volume Down to highlight “wipe cache partition”.
Press Power to select.
After it completes use Volume Up and Volume Down to select “reboot system now”.
Press Power to select.

Thom · Jul 31, 2013

The interface is rather klunky until you get used to it. I tweaked the words a little in the description.

... Thom

Rhumbline · Aug 1, 2013

Thom Little said:
What does "after the JB update bricked the thing" mean? What happened and what did you do to correct it? What did you add after the Factory Data Reset?

Basically locked up solid. I forget the precise order of things to fix (calls to Motorola, Verizon, etc.), but basically pulled battery and did FDR. I've added various apps since then, if not the bomb-squad-careful method of one app per few days to see if it blows up process you seem to suggest.

Thom Little said:
I do not use a task killer. The way task killers "nail" a device is they terminate a task running and it that task then restarts. The task killer terminates it again and it restarts. All of this goes on forever and greatly increases the load on the device and everything slows down as a result. Do this for a lot of tasks on a device and REALLY slow it down.

I've cut back resorting to using the task killer when it starts running sluggishly (I'd be hitting that every 37 seconds in that case).

Thom Little said:
If you want something that is taken care of that you don't need to be involved with .... get an iPhone.

That is becoming an increasingly tantalizing prospect for someone who wants a phone that actually works, well, without constant coddling, caressing and cajoling.

Thom Little said:
For Android ... start with a Factory Data Reset and it will leave some apps that you don't want that were pre-installed. Leave them alone.

Thom Little said:
When you add new apps consider what you are doing each time. Task killers can have devastating impacts on your performance. Run it for a week with no new apps added so you can see how it performs. If you want to add apps after that ... go slow ... add something of interest and see if it causes problems for you.

... Thom

While this approach may work, technically and in the abstract sense, but in a broader sense, if I have to spoon-feed apps one at a time per week, monitoring like a potential bomb, just to have some reasonable assurance that my phone will operate properly, then isn't there some inherent problem here? Shouldn't a decently mature OS NOT require such tedious hand holding?

Sorry to whine again, but honestly, shouldn't a smart phone simply work as a smart phone, apps and all, without recourse to such tedious technical work arounds and crutches?

Help Phone is very Slow

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