Help G5 constantly rebooting even after hard reset

[halfbeing]

This afternoon the battery ran flat on my G5. When I plugged it into the charger, it started a cycle of constant reboots, usually before I had even got to the home screen, which has continued even after a hard reset. I have not yet restored any data since doing the hard reset since the phone reboots to soon to enable me to get that far.

Before the hard reset, I removed the SD card, to make sure that that wasn't the problem. I have also tried using the phone both on charger and on battery, and I have also tried using a different battery (an old one that is past its best, but still works). But the same thing happens. If I power up the phone, but don't try to do anything after that, sometimes it finds some stability, but if I start interacting with it, it will reboot very soon after.

Can I assume that the phone is toast? Or is there something I haven't thought of that might work?

 

[puppykickr]

Sounds like the battery is beat.
You say you have another battery, but how are you testing it to know that it is still good?

They die over time, regardless of use.
If it was getting weak and you replaced it and let it sit, it too could have gone belly up.

Also, phones will not run without a battery, even when plugged in to a charger.
This genuinely sucks, as I can tell you.

Your device is years old, and any battery that you get now will very likely have been sitting around in a warehouse since it was produced years ago.
That means that unless a manufacturer is STILL producing batteries for a 2016 model phone, you will be getting a 'new' battery that is still just as old as the last one.

 

[halfbeing]

Sounds like the battery is beat.
You say you have another battery, but how are you testing it to know that it is still good?

They die over time, regardless of use.
If it was getting weak and you replaced it and let it sit, it too could have gone belly up.

Also, phones will not run without a battery, even when plugged in to a charger.
This genuinely sucks, as I can tell you.

Your device is years old, and any battery that you get now will very likely have been sitting around in a warehouse since it was produced years ago.
That means that unless a manufacturer is STILL producing batteries for a 2016 model phone, you will be getting a 'new' battery that is still just as old as the last one.

Thanks for replying.

I have accepted now that, one way or another, the phone has reached the end of its useful life, but I'm a bit puzzled by you blaming the battery. When I checked it a few days ago in whatever the app is that measures battery health that I can't remember the name of right now, it said it still had 80% of its nominal capacity. The other battery was probably nudging a bit over 70% when I replaced it. And the battery of the phone I am using right now, a Sony Ericsson dumbphone, is 15 years old and still works fine.

 

[halfbeing]

I take it back. It looks like you were right. I tried a third battery, one that I had bought in 2017 and retired in 2019, and it seems to be working OK. I know that I could really do with updating my phone, but my budget and the specs I need for a phone that will do what I need it to do don't match right now, so if I can keep the old phone going even a few more months, it will probably be worth it. I've discovered a non-LG branded battery from a reasonably reputable spare parts supplier (this one), so I think I'll take a chance on it.

 

[mikedt]

Thanks for replying.

I have accepted now that, one way or another, the phone has reached the end of its useful life, but I'm a bit puzzled by you blaming the battery. When I checked it a few days ago in whatever the app is that measures battery health that I can't remember the name of right now, it said it still had 80% of its nominal capacity. The other battery was probably nudging a bit over 70% when I replaced it. And the battery of the phone I am using right now, a Sony Ericsson dumbphone, is 15 years old and still works fine.

FYI there might be some whatever app telling you about your battery capacity. But I suspect the problem is the old battery can't sustain its voltage under heavy loads, and if the voltage drops too low it wont be able to power the device, hence the rebooting.

 

[puppykickr]

Battery apps are all junk.
They can't give reliable information on the health of a battery.

For instance, the battery settings in an old phone of mine, along with various apps, told me that the battery health was good- even though this was obviously not the case, as the battery had ballooned up like a marshmallow so bad that the back would not stay on the device.

Sometimes a miracle battery is found, that lastsfor years and years.

My mother's old Galaxy Prevail from 2012 still works great, and never has had a battery replaced.
Of course, the device is no longer in service, but she was using it right up untill about 5 years ago.