Annoying phone troubles? Yes sir!
My previously wonderful Android phone was recently becoming quite moody. It kept opening the ‘Locations’ application, as if it wanted to navigate away. I get the hint, phone. Even more annoying: during phone calls, it kept turning on the speaker, which made for ringing ears and fragmented conversations.
After reading all across the net, and many people offering solutions to do with removing or blocking the Locations application, I came across a post which hinted it might have something to do with dirt stuck in the micro-USB connector. The post explained that the USB pins 4 and 5 are used, when connected with a resistance between them, as an indicator of a dock being present. Such a dock would be a car kit or a desk dock, and it seems logical to expect the behaviour my phone was displaying. You would indeed want the phone to go to speaker when docked!
Solution
The solution is clear, but is a bit more complex than it seems: Clean your Micro-USB port and headphone jack on your phone.
I had to try this three times before I achieved actual results. Many people suggest compressed air for blowing clean the connector, but that wasn’t enough in my case. Here’s what I did.
- Shut down your phone.
- Remove obvious dirt, dust and grime by blowing in the connector.
- Use a cotton-tip (with a tiny drop of sunflower-oil) to remove large pieces of dirt that are stuck.
- Use a tooth-pick to scrape clean the copper leads of the Micro-USB port.
- Use a tooth-pick to make sure you cleaned out all smaller pieces, and that the port is absolutely clean.
- Try booting up your phone. If the problem persists, try the above steps again.