What To Do If Your Android Phone Won't Turn On: A Check List

IF YOU’VE ever asked yourself, ''why won't my phone turn on?'' you're not alone. Even when you're a professional Android tinkerer, things occasionally go beyond your skill level and you find yourself wondering what to do with a phone that won't turn on. So today we'll take a look at a few reasons why your phone won't turn on and how to get it going again.

Is it plugged in? Just kidding - but seriously, when was the last time you charged it? Sometimes time flies when you're having fun watching cat videos and the next time you pick your phone up it won't turn on because you've Youtubed it to death. Grab a power supply and make sure you actually have some juice on your phone before we proceed. Remember, sometimes you need to charge for a few minutes before your phone can power itself on. Is it on but the screen isn't

on? This is the next possibility, the phone is actually on but the display isn't working. The easiest way to check this is to long press the power button to force it to shut off and then turn it back on. You should hear a boot sound or feel a vibration. This means your phone is working but you have a display driver or screen problem. This is one for the repair store. Did you drop it or get it

wet?

This is one of the most common reasons a phone won't turn on. If you've recently dropped your phone or it has gotten wet, you might have some issues. Trying to turn a wet phone on too soon can short circuit your phone and fry it, so if it gets wet, follow our guide on what to do with a waterdamaged phone. If you dropped your phone and it won't turn on, you're going to need to take it in for repair as you most likely have a hardware problem or damaged display. Did it gradually get buggy

and then die? If you started to notice some weirdness, like crashes, restarts or other things that shouldn't happen in the lead-up to your phone no longer turning on, you might just have a software issue that can be fixed by replacing the firmware. First you're going to want to get as much data off as you can and then flash new firmware. We have guides for the popular devices on Androidpit to help you out, and you can also try a factory reset to clear up any other problems. If this sounds too complicated, take it in to your carrier store for assistance. Is your battery bloated or

leaking? Another rather obvious reason your phone might not turn on is because the battery has simply given up the ghost permanently. This usually happens gradually over time, but it can occasionally happen suddenly, especially if your battery is bloated or leaking. If your battery cover is removable, take it out and inspect it for damage, bulges or leaks. If you find any, get a new battery pronto and dispose of the old one safely. Is your charger or cable

kaput? Sometimes a phone won't turn on and it isn't actually the problem at all. Sometimes your charger cable, adapter or even wall socket is the culprit, so make sure you try a different USB cable, different power adapter (if you have one) and another power outlet in your home before you know you can definitely blame your phone. Are you just seeing the

logo screen? If your phone will actually turn on but won't go past the boot screen, this is what we call a bootloop. It generally means your phone will start as normal but just get stuck forever on the logo screen. If you've recently updated to a new version of Android or flashed a custom ROM it might be as simple a solution as entering Recovery and wiping the cache partition or doing a data wipe/ factory reset (we have plenty of tutorials for popular devices), or, in the worst possible case, you might have bricked your phone.

Photos of the dilapidated Sulu schools taken by Gian Carlo Luage, AFID. (Manny Piñol)