If you use a phone, there is a high probability you’ve experienced it overheat before. In truth, overheating smartphones are a common occurrence that many people have experienced.
Despite this, it is not ideal as it can result in several problems. For example, if the phone is too hot it can cause:
- Data loss or corruption
- Second degree burns
- Battery drain
- A total meltdown of the Central Processing Unit
We already have a guide on overheating laptops and how to cool them down and we think its only fair to churn out one for overheated smartphones! So… let’s get to it then!
Cool Down Overheating Smartphones
Fortunately, phone overheating is a temporary occurrence and there are some things you can do to quickly cool it down. We discuss some of the best tips below.
Close Apps
Smartphones heat up when they are running too many applications. The reason is that: when you open numerous apps at the same time, your phone’s processor and RAM will work extra hard to keep up. This will strain the battery, thereby causing the phone to overheat. Apart from overheating, using too many applications at the same time can also cut your phone’s life short.
To fix this, ensure you close the apps you are not using.
For example, if you are watching a movie, close the social media apps, games, and messaging that you used earlier.
You can go one step further and uninstall applications that you hardly use. This is useful because some apps run background processes and closing them doesn’t stop them from working entirely. However, when you uninstall them, you totally eliminate their processes.
Don’t Charge Phone While Using It
Another fix for an overheating smartphones is to stop charging it while using it. When you plug your phone to charge, the battery heats up.
Remember that using your phone, which is a computer for all intents and purposes, results in the generation of heat. Now, imagine doing these two things – charging and using – at the same time, and you will understand how charging and using your phone at the same time can cause overheating.
So when you are charging the phone, leave your phone!
Use Device’s Recommended Charger
Charge your phone with a charger that is recommended.
The reason for this is simple: different chargers are designed for different devices. And naturally, some phones are stronger than others. Hence, using chargers designed for stronger phones to charge another type of phone can result in overheating and battery damage.
What’s more? Using your phone’s recommended charger, asides eliminating overheating, can prolong its battery life.
Remove Phone Case
If your phone is overheating, and it has a protective case, take it out of the case.
The thing is some phone cases, especially the rubber made ones, can block phone vents and prevent effective dissipation of heat. And when your phone can’t dissipate the heat it generates, it will get hot.
Remove phone case and put it on a hard cool surface.
Avoid Direct Sunlight
You might not think of this, but having your phone under the sun can cause it to overheat. This is because high temperature impacts phone batteries and cause problems for them.
So, if you are in a sunny place and your phone is getting direct sunlight then you have to move it to a shaded or a sheltered area.
Turn Off Phone
The easiest way to cool down a phone is to turn off.
Perhaps the simplest solution of all, but it always works like a charm. When you switch off your device, every memory intensive process that causes it to overheat will stop. As a result, the heat will dissipate and the phone will cool down quickly.
Update Apps
Buggy apps can cause overheating smartphones. So, if your phone gets hot, you should be suspicious of your recently installed apps.
If these apps have new updates, updating them can fix the issue. If that doesn’t fix the issue, try uninstalling the apps.
If after doing these two things, nothing changes, something else is causing the overheating and its perhaps time you took a closer look at the settings of phone to see which app is taking a lot of memory.
First, put the phone on airplane mode, then look at the settings.
Install Antivirus
If you use an Android device, it is likely that a virus is responsible for the overheating. So, install an antivirus device on your phone. If a virus is responsible for the overheating smaprtphone, the antivirus will get rid of it and your phone will resume normal operations.
Furthermore, junk files on your phone overwork your processor and, by extension, your phone’s battery. Most antivirus software apps can also eliminate junk files. What’s more? They can identify performance-draining apps and suggest what action to take to enhance performance.
Reduce Screen Brightness
When your phone’s screen brightness is turned up, the battery life will work harder to keep up. This, coupled with other things like high temperatures, can lead to the generation of extreme heat. To avoid this, keep your screen brightness down at all times.
One of the major reasons why people turn their screen brightness up is because they use it in the sun. If this applies to you, we recommend buying an anti-glare cover to increase visibility and avoid the need to turn up your screen brightness.
Don’t Keep Gadgets Together
When you keep multiple devices together, there is a tendency for them to conserve heat among themselves and, as a result, you get an overheating smartphone.
So keep your smartphones separate from other gadgets to prevent this from happening.
Pro Tip
To cool down your device, keep it on a hard surface and not fabric.
Avoid sofas, beds, table cloths and even gym mats. Use table tops and hard surfaces.
Also know that there is a difference between a warm phone and a hot one. It is normal for a smartphone to warm up during use. The reason for this is not farfetched: it is a computer. And like every other computer, it generates heat when it runs the processes necessary for it to accomplish the tasks you use it for.
Unfortunately, unlike some other computers, e.g., laptops, smartphones do not have cooling systems. As a result, they are prone to overheating if they generate a lot of heat within a short period as they cannot dispel it.
Overheating can have several bad effects on your device. Hence, you should cool down the phone immediately.
