How to Fix Common Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra Issues
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The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra are two of the best Android smartphones you can buy right now. They feature powerful processors, versatile cameras, huge batteries, beautiful screens, and excellent overall performance. Of course, technology being what it is, they can run into trouble sporadically. We've looked at the most common issues with the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra, explaining why they're likely to arise and defining what exactly you need to do to resolve them.
As with most smartphones, certain issues can be quickly resolved by installing a new software update (if one is available). As a last resort, you can also try performing a factory reset, but this should only be attempted if you have exhausted all other possible solutions.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is not connecting to the network correctly
More than a few people have reported their Note 20 Ultra is having cellular network connection issues. In most cases, users cannot get any kind of cellular network signal, although others report having a connection at one point but then losing it.
It is very difficult to say what exactly is causing this issue, although in many cases it appears to be a hardware/phone issue rather than affecting the mobile network. A forum user in the UK reported having this issue with the phone model that runs on an Exynos 990 chip, but it disappeared after he replaced it with the model with Qualcomm Snapdragon 865. However, users in the US (where models Snapdragon 865 are sold) also reported the same issue, so we're not sure this has much to do with the Exynos 990.
Possible Solution to This Problem
- Try restarting your phone. This worked for some users.
- Try turning off Wi-Fi calling if you have this setting turned on. Go to Phone ⇒ More ⇒ Settings ⇒ Wi-Fi Call.
- Clear the Note 20 Ultra's cache. You can do this by booting your phone into recovery mode.
- If possible, try a different SIM card and/or network on your phone. This can help determine if you have a phone or network issue on your hands.
- Switch from 5G to 4G. Go to Settings ⇒ Connections ⇒ Mobile networks ⇒ Network mode ⇒ 4G / 3G / 2G (automatic connection).
- Redefine the access point names for your network. Go to Settings ⇒ Connections ⇒ Mobile networks ⇒ Hotspot names ⇒ More ⇒ Reset to default.
Assuming none of these actions work for you, you should try to contact Samsung and request a repair or replacement. As always, also check for a software update.
Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra overheating
This is a problem that tends to affect virtually all smartphones, but it seems a little more common with the Note 20 Ultra, if only because of its larger output. Overheating, in particular, seems to be an issue when using the Camera app, with users complaining that they use the camera for more than a few minutes can actually increase the phone's temperature.
Few users (if any) of the Samsung Community Forum have reported clear solutions to this issue, with some suggesting that it is an inherent problem with the Exynos 990 processor. However, here are some things you can try that tend to work with other devices Android with similar heating issues.
Possible Solution to This Problem
- Avoid excessive use of the phone in high temperatures and/or direct sunlight. This can really incite any overheating trend.
- Do not shoot 8K or 4K videos for a long time. Take breaks if you need to record longer stretches of 8K / 4K footage, or try shooting 1080p only.
- Delete battery-consuming apps from your Note 20 (Ultra). This includes apps that promise to improve performance or battery life, as well as apps that tend to run in the background. Social media apps (Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, Tinder) are often big offenders in this regard, so get rid of any that you no longer use.
- Try clearing the cache of any app that you believe is causing it to overheat. To do this, go to Settings ⇒ Applications ⇒ [App] ⇒ Storage ⇒ Clear Cache.
- Some users recommend clearing your phone's system cache (via recovery mode) or even doing a factory reset if the issue doesn't resolve. However, be sure to back up your phone before performing a factory reset.
As always, you should contact Samsung and/or the seller of your phone if problems persist even after trying all of the above steps.
Autofocus is not working properly
A fairly large number of users have found that the Note 20 Ultra's main camera lens autofocus (and, to a lesser extent, the Note 20) doesn't always work correctly. Many note that autofocus does not automatically focus as it should, and the resulting images tend to be less than 100% sharp. Some also report that this problem is particularly acute when taking close-up pictures of objects.
This issue likely comes from a combination of hardware and software issues. On the one hand, the lack of a macro lens may have something to do with the difficulty of taking perfectly sharp close-ups, but it's also apparent that some sort of image processing issue is happening with non-close-ups.
As such, we hope this is something Samsung will address with future software updates, so always check to see if an update is available. Otherwise, you can try the following workarounds.
Alternative solutions:
- Close and reopen the Camera app.
- Try clearing the Camera app cache. Go to Settings ⇒ Applications ⇒ Camera ⇒ Storage ⇒ Clear cache.
- Try switching to Video and then back to Photo. Some users report that autofocus is working again.
- If you are taking a close-up, try moving your phone away from the object. Try using the telephoto lens of the periscope at a distance if you want a close-up instead of the main wide-angle lens close to the subject.
- Some users have reported that shaking the Note 20 (Ultra) may initiate autofocus. If you try to do this, make sure you don't do it too vigorously.
- Try cleaning the lens with a microfiber cloth.
Battery draining quickly on Note 20 and Note Ultra
Given that they can operate at such high capacities, it's probably not surprising to hear that some users have complained about their batteries draining a little too quickly. Some people have reported the Note 20's battery dies overnight while others have noticed they encountered the issue after upgrading to Android 11.
This is a fairly common problem for most phones and can often be caused by a variety of issues, from faulty hardware to suboptimal usage.
Alternative solutions:
- Clear the phone's cache partition through recovery mode. Turn off your phone and hold down the Power and Volume Up buttons. Release them when you see the Samsung logo. Then use the volume buttons to scroll through the options until you reach the Clear cache partition, which you can select by pressing the Power button.
- Try resetting your app preferences. Go to Settings ⇒ Apps ⇒ More ⇒ Reset app preferences.
- Disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth scanning. Go to Settings ⇒ Location ⇒ Improve accuracy ⇒ Disable Wi-Fi scanning. Then select Disable Wi-Fi scanning.
- Turn off background data and activities for less important apps. You can do this by going to Settings ⇒ Apps ⇒ [App] ⇒ Mobile data ⇒ Allow background data usage ⇒ Off. Then do the same again, but after choosing an app, go to Battery ⇒ Allow background activity ⇒ Off.
- Try turning on adaptive brightness for your screen. Go to Settings ⇒ Screen ⇒ Adaptive Brightness.
- It's also worth turning on battery optimization. You can do this by going to Settings ⇒ Device Care ⇒ Battery ⇒ Power Mode ⇒ Optimized. Also, enable Adaptive Power Save on the same screen.
- Try to check your settings carefully for any other features that might be working in the background and that might be unnecessary. For example, certain apps check location data, which you can turn off by going to Settings ⇒ Privacy ⇒ Permissions Manager ⇒ Location.
Also, read
- How to know if an app uses your cell phone camera or microphone
- How to Set Up a VPN on Android Smartphones
Note 20 and 20 Ultra restarting randomly by itself
This is one of the most unusual issues affecting the Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra. A relatively small handful of users have reported that their phones tend to reset themselves at various points throughout the day. Although the Note 20 and 20 Ultra have an auto-restart feature, this issue occurs with this feature turned off, leaving users wondering why this is happening.
Possible solutions:
- Boot into Safe Mode (holding the Power button and then holding the Power Off button until the Safe Mode option appears). This restricts your phone from using only native apps, preventing downloaded third-party apps from affecting its operation. If you find that your phone does not randomly restart, this gives you an indication that a third-party application is causing the issue. So, delete all these apps and add the most important ones back one by one, making sure the phone works normally after each new addition. If it starts playing after you've added a particular app, delete it and keep it off your phone.
- Clear the Note 20 or Note 20 Ultra cache partition. You can do this by booting the phone into recovery mode by holding the Power and Volume Up buttons when the device is off. Then select Clear cache partition.
It almost goes without saying, but if you continue to have problems after trying these two steps, please contact Samsung.
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