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Galaxy S4 battery drain/overheating since VERIZON

OK Verizon - I have been checking into switching to T-Mobile since they will buy out this contract. Phones are not even a year old and since your glorious NG-6 update I don't even use it and within an hour it'll loose 10 - 20% of it's charge!! FACTORY RESET - REALLY - I think NOT!!! You created this mess pay your systems engineers and programmers triple overtime to release a patch to fix this. When checking battery apparently the Android OS is using 65% now which is absolutely crazy. Turn off Wi-FI to preserve battery, great, but since your update the Wi-Fi simply turns itself back on - I am ready to throw this phone and my relationship with right out the window and drive over it with a Semi Truck. I have stuck with you from GTE Mobilenet to Alltel and now Verizon but am ready to jump ship, and apparently T-Mobile will make it less costly to do just that.

Comments

joonhyuk

Everyone needs to go into their Settings Menu and select Software Update, there has been a fix released by Verizon that you will need to download. This doesn't take too long and it is especially for those who have had power cycling issues and VPN connection issues.

One step closer to Lollipop!

VRUFNK1 is the update. You can also download it via Samsung Kies if you plug it into your computer.

Scarymar1

I would like to say that this helped, however it has made little impact if

any.

Marianne

Scottyb112

Since the last 2 updates my Galaxy S4 has been draining so quickly its unbelievable. I fully charged my phone late last night. Set my phones alarm for 6hrs later, went to sleep. Woke up in a frenzy a couple hours late wondering why my alarm didn't go off. The battery died in that short span of not being used. Yesterday I was at 77%. Went to dinner, and this thing sfter wards. Used my camera some. It died within 3hrs. I also just put a brand new factory battery in about a month an a half ago. So there is some major issue going on here. Its dropping drastically as I type this.. Also getting very hot sometimes

Verizon_Support

Hi Scottyb112!

I certainly don't want you missing your alarm due to your device losing power while you sleep! Let's look into this! You said you had 2 updates; Does that include the one mentioned by joonhyuk? Please check settings/about phone/software update to make sure you don't have an update available.

One option is to turn off mobile data before you go to sleep. This way, no applications will be running in the background during this time. This could be what's causing it to drain.

If your device is overheating while in standby mode, I would suggest, just to be on the safe side, you take it to the closest corporate location for a hands-on evaluation. Check here for locations: http://vz.to/1fbwemQ

Thanks,

ChristinaB_VZW

Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport

Scarymar1

Both myself and my son downloaded the update mentioned by joonhyuk and same

- no resolution. Battery becomes very hot - drains quickly sometimes in

just a few hours. Am ready to go back to Apple and try another provider at

this point.

Marianne

scafmars

My S4 stopped playing music through Bluetooth in my car, so I called Verizon and they told me to do the latest update. I did, and it fixed that problem, but now my phone overheats and the battery went from 90% to 12% in two hours.

This is not caused by settings or mobile data. I never had this problem before the update. Looks like I now have to do a factory reset. Thanks Verizon!

Verizon_Support

Hi Scarymar!

I sure don't want you to leave VZW! Let's work together on a resolution instead, OK? Since the device is getting very warm, please visit one of our corporate locations ( http://vz.to/1fbwemQ ) for a hands-on evaluation.

ChristinaB_VZW

Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport

scafmars

FYI - For those who did the update and your phone overheated and started a battery drain, I fixed mine by removing some songs off the phone.

Apparently, when you have 15% or less of space left, the S4 does some pretty weird stuff. I am guessing that the update put me over that limit somehow, so when I removed about 200 MB of space it went back to normal.

I hope that helps.

Rich

kwips

Scarymar, I totally agree with your statements.

As countless people have mentioned, the NG6 update that was pushed in October has been a failure. The so called "NK1" patch that was sent out in late November has also proved pointless for me as I never had the random reboot issue. The one constant that has remained since the initial NG6 & NK1 update has been "EXCESSIVE BATTERY DRAIN."

Verizon, when will you listen to the comments on these forums. For the majority of S4 users, the device performed as expected before the dreaded NG6 update. Battery life was fair to outstanding, depending on your usage habits. There was no overheating of devices as they sit idle for hours at a time. There was no severe battery drain that would wipe out 20-30% of your battery in 20 minutes.

I have been a customer for over 17 years and I am ready to throw this phone and Verizon out the window. All the "so called" fixes such as FDR & disabling various apps have not worked for me.

It is time that Verizon/Samsung admits that the October NG6 update was flawed to say the least. Serious attention needs to be made in rectifying this matter for a device that has become a complete headache instead of a benefit.

The issues that many are addressing need to be fixed. NOW!! ASAP!! COMPLETELY!!

Scarymar1

Very well said kwips!! Since other cellular providers are promoting some

enticing deals making it worthwhile to switch I am seriously considering it

- which I don't really want to as I started with GTE Mobilenet and survived

through Alltel and now Verizon Wireless - this is too many years to mention

here. I also, survived the big "cutoff" in Unlimited Data over which I was

very very UNHAPPY. Add this to formula - I will bail on this contract and

move on if some resolution OTHER THAN FACTORY RESET, or me wasting hours in

a Verizon store to have them tell me factory reset is provided.

Marianne

jrh4054

joonhyuk,

The NK1 update doesn't fix the battery problem. VZW and Samsung have really screwed up with these last two S4 updates

jrh4054

Why not just charge the phone when sleeping?

Scarymar1

I am guessing you did not read the entire thread. Yes I charge my phone while sleeping however the PROBLEM is that I do not sleep 20 hours per day. I can get 4 hours now IF I am lucky, which is not acceptable.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE smartphone

plumppanda

My phone drained so fast a couple of weeks ago that it shut off while it was on the charger. Today from 6:30 to 9:30 I lost about 50% of my battery and the phone was warm. It doesn't happen all the time with the super fast drain, but most nights the phone is crying to be plugged in by 8PM, and that is with light to moderate use. This started after the NG6 update.

Morpheus282

I'm coming to this party a little late, but the story I have to tell is worth hearing.

When my beloved S4 got the VRUFNK1 (Android 4.4.2) update everything seemed to be good at first, but the battery life did seem to be shorter than before. Then I noticed that my S4 would not connect to any WiFi networks unless I power cycled the device. I called Verizon support and they sent a replacement device. I got the replacement (S4 #2) and deferred the updates as long as possible but eventually I was back to VRUFNK1. That's when the fun started.

When back on this god-forsaken software my battery life was crap and worst of all my phone rebooted at will. I put up with this for a bit and after it rebooted seven times within an hour one night I'd had enough. I called tech support again, did the requested hard reset, noted the issue was still there, and they shipped out another replacement (S4 #3). The replacement updated to VRUFNK1 and started shutting down at random - not rebooting. To make matters worse, it wouldn't power back on unless connected to an AC power source. Again, I called tech support, did a hard reset, the phone shut down while in the middle of setup, and Verizon ships out another S4.

I'm now up to S4 #4 which arrived on Tuesday of this week. It was on VRUFNK1 out of the box. I start setup of the device and it immediately reboots before I can finish getting my e-mail addresses added to the device. I dial *611 on the phone, it reboots. I try to dial it again, and it reboots. I call tech support from another phone and they determine that it was DoA. Another phone is sent.

S4 #5 arrived this afternoon. I start setup, and lo, the accursed device reboots on the second screen of the setup process. When it comes back online I find that it too was on VRUFNK1. I call tech support, and they shipped S4 #6 today. I'm not getting a good feeling about this one either. Verizon has no idea what's going on, and I don't know how to fix this issue outside of going to another carrier.

In the meantime, it looks like AT&T sent a 4.4.4 update to their S4 phones a few months ago and they're currently pushing the 5.0.1 update. Verizon has no ETA for either of these updates.

Is anyone else having any problems similar to this?

masterfris13

I have read countless issues with the new operating system and have experienced some of these issues especially with overheating and people needing to return their phone for repair. One thing Verizon should do is credit accounts for time spent with a phone as this is the only contact for alot of people these days and alot of people ,myself included, rely on phones for work use as well. Verizon stating that their hands are tied and giving people the run around and not taking these issues seriously can and will.end up as a liability to verizon. All we have to do is write to the attorney general and explain to then that Verizon is selling faulty equipment which does not meet the standards of quality or safety in the preposterous binding contract and agreements that they make people sign to get the "best deal for their money". I'm also sure the attorney general would be delighted to know about an overheating issue and Verizon pretty much ignoring it with the standard bullshit customer service apologies, as it is a serious safety issue that could result in recalls and lawsuits if anyone is ever injured or property is damaged from a faulty phone. Maybe something to think about Verizon before you have some customer service rep who doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground when it comes to technology talk down to customers and give them the run around.

Verizon_Support

We definitely value the safety of our customers, masterfris13! Let's get to the bottom of what's happening on your phone. Are you experiencing the device melting or smoking? Is there an unusual or burning odor? Is the battery swelling or charring? If so, we can ensure you get it replaced in a corporate store right away. Please keep us posted.

LynnD_VZW Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport If my response answered your question please click the �Correct Answer� button under my response. This ensures others can benefit from our conversation. Thanks in advance for your help with this!!

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