After several years of good and faithful service, your Android smartphone’s performance may start to degrade. Decreased autonomy, applications that take a long time to open, slowness in performing different tasks… Why do you want to get rid of it to buy a new device?
Before proceeding with the payment process, remember that it is there. Some tips to give your Android smartphone a second life and to improve performance. We explain everything in this complete tutorial.
Delete unnecessary apps
These days, it’s not uncommon to have dozens of apps installed on our smartphones. Various utilities, antivirus, audio and video streaming services like Netflix or Spotify, GPS apps like Waze or Google Maps, banking apps, video games… The list is long.
But it turns out some apps keep running in the backgroundseizes valuable system resources. To improve performance, feel free to clean and delete/disable apps that haven’t been used for a few months.
Inside settings from your device > Applications, you can view the list of all the applications installed on your device. Note that some manufacturers like Google or Samsung offer a feature that lists all unused apps on your smartphone. Also, when an app is not used for several months, this tool takes care of:
- remove access permissions
- disable notifications to save battery
- delete temporary files to free up space
Likewise, we recommend it to you. Get rid of anti-virus apps. If you only download your apps from the Play Store, Play Protect provides more than enough protection for your smartphone. On the other hand, if you are used to downloading APKs or apps outside of Play Store, it will be better. keep that extra layer of security.
Determine battery usage
Another interesting option accessible on most smartphones set battery usage for each app. In general, there are three configurations you can use:
- without restriction
- optimized
- Annoyed
For example, if you want to protect an app while limiting its impact on your smartphone’s resources, select the Limited profile. Like this, battery usage will be kept to a minimum while the app is running in the background.
Prefer lite versions
Always know about the management of your apps, available on the Google Play Store “Light” versions of apps The most popular. These variants, developed primarily for users with a weak internet connection and low-power smartphones, lighter and less resource intensive.
There are Lite versions of the biggest Tech players like Facebook Lite, Messenger Lite, YouTube Go, Google Maps Go, Spotify Lite, Google Go and even Opera Mini, Gmail Go or Tinder Lite. A simple and effective way to save space in your storage.
Also note that some search browsers offer Simple mode in their settings. This applies, for example, to Google Chrome. Simple mode has the advantage compress and load pages fasterat the expense of image quality.
Free up storage space
It goes without saying, but if your smartphone’s internal memory is so full that it explodes, you will inevitably feel a drop in performance. Go directly to the tab in settings to store.
Most manufacturers offer a tool that makes it easy to manage your storage. on google this Files app. By clicking on it, you will be able to see at a quick glance the amount of memory used in your total capacity. You also have several options to save space:
- delete old screenshots
- delete large files
- delete WhatsApp media like videos or pictures
- delete downloaded files
Disable screen animations
There are many animations in the interface designed for Android. improve the overall aesthetic of the operating system. If you still run into performance issues, disable or slow down these animations to respond. To do this, you must first enable Developer mode on your smartphone. The steps to follow are:
- find in Settings > About Phone
- Then search for the tab Build number Or version number
- Click 7 times in a row to see the “Congratulations, Developer mode enabled” notification appear.
Now, you will have to go to the System tab to discover a new tab. Developer Options. Here you will find many advanced options to customize the way your device works. Scroll down until you see three headings:
- Window animation scale
- Transition animation scale
- Animation Time Scale
Here you can choose completely disable different scales, slow down or speed up.
Download the latest Android updates
To ensure the security of your smartphone, add new features or fix bugs, manufacturers regularly release software updates. Whether it’s OS or security updates, downloading patches is mandatory. keep your device in top condition.
But be careful, depending on the age of your smartphone, your manufacturer may no longer provide software monitoring for your device. To be sure, go to the official website of the brand.
If it’s been a long time since you installed the updates on your phone, go to: Settings > System > System Update To check for available updates.
However, if your device has a few more years, downgrading to the latest version of an operating system can slow it down, especially in case of low storage capacity. If your smartphone is still running Android 4 or 5, it is best to leave the system as it is.
Note that the reverse is true for apps. Keep your favorite apps up to date guarantees the best possible experience: additional features, bug fixes, improved performance, etc.
Use a lighter third-party app launcher
Android has the great advantage of offering great flexibility to users. So if you don’t like the interface or skin of your smartphone like OneUI on Samsung or MIUI on Xiaomi, it’s quite possible. to choose an alternative app launcher.
Some ramps have the advantage of being less energy intensive as well as offering another design. At Moyens I/O you can find our selection of the best Android launchers available in 2023. Some names that might interest you:
- Nova Launcher : a highly customizable launcher with the possibility to install external modules such as themes and icon packs
- niagara launcher : a minimalist launcher designed to facilitate one-handed navigation
- Launcher iOS 16 : a launcher that takes the exact look of the latest version of the Apple operating system.
- Microsoft Launcher : a launcher that focuses above all on the productivity and organization of your events. Light and fluid, this launcher offers enhanced connectivity with Microsoft apps
Reset to factory settings
This is the most drastic measure. If you want to start over on a solid foundation, it’s best anyway reset your device to factory settings. For starters, this includes deleting all data from your smartphone’s internal storage memory, including:
- your google account
- system and application data and settings
- downloaded apps
- music
- photos
- other user data
In short, you will feel like you just bought your smartphone. Therefore, suitable pre-save the recorded data In your device’s internal memory via microSD card or cloud storage solutions like Google Drive.
Install a custom ROM
RUM (Read Only Memory) is one of the most important parts of your Android smartphone. This is the hard memory where the operating system of the device is stored.
As a rule, your smartphone comes with an official ROM developed by the manufacturer. However, since Android is an open system, a knowledgeable user can install an alternative ROM or personalized. These unofficial operating systems have several advantages:
- They allow access to newer versions of Android on older smartphones such as root operating system For example
- they can be used to remove bloatware, which are apps installed locally by manufacturers
- By being lighter and consuming less energy, they significantly increase the performance and speed of your mobile phone.
An important fact to know is that manipulation is complex and causing irreversible damage to your device In case of error. Additionally, installing a custom ROM will immediately bypass the smartphone manufacturer’s warranty. If your phone is still under warranty, we strongly advise you to abstain.
Few tips before changing ROMs
If you are still there, you are determined to install a custom ROM on your Android smartphone. Follow these tips to keep the process running smoothly:
- As with a factory reset, a full backup of saved content on your smartphone (messages, contacts, photos, videos, apps, etc.). You can transfer your files to your PC, cloud or Droid Kit or Dr. Stream via dedicated apps like Fone
- Now choose a compatible custom ROM with the model and age of your smartphone. We especially recommend LineageOS, which allows you to get an unofficial version of Android 13 on smartphones that are considered obsolete.
- Now you will have to Allow USB debugging, a feature required to allow your computer to access certain phone files and commands. After Developer Mode is enabled, go to Developer Options. Enable usb debugging
- It’s over you can “root” your smartphoneor access the rooted system. This way, the user can authorize third party apps to download system files and install your custom ROM.
That’s it, with all these tips you should be able to give your old Android smartphone a second life. However, if the situation does not improve after trying these different manipulations, you may need to consider changing phones. To help you with your selection, find our list of the best smartphones under €400 here.
