How To Fix An Android Phone That Won’t Charge/Discharges

Photo of author
Written By Larious

Larious is the Executive Editor of LowkeyTech. He is a tech enthusiast and a content writer. 

 

 

 

 

Last Updated on September 21, 2018 by Larious

Android phones are known for long-lasting battery capacity irrespective of how many processes you are running at the same time, the battery life shouldn’t be an issue. But it could be really confusing when you discover your android phone not charging when connected to your charger only for your battery percentage to remain at the same level for hours or in fact drop steadily.

The problem occurs in various ways, either your phone won’t charge when it is plugged in, or it only charges very slowly (sometimes barely faster than it is discharging). It’s a very common complaint, and I recently encountered this issue with my blackberry 9790.

See How To Fix Battery Drainage And Overheating On Blackberry

Am very certain you must have thought of “Why is my Android phone not charging or discharging despite being connected to a power source?”

Lets see the obvious reasons below:

  • Insufficient power source: If you’re charging using a PC (via USB cord) or from a faulty power source then this is possible.
  • Bad USB port: A loose, cracked or broken phone USB port could be a cause.
  • Bad charger: If the charger is faulty or not powerful enough then you can expect something like this.

android charger

  • ROM Issues: If you flashed a custom ROM / Firmware upgrade with power efficiency bugs then you have another possible reason.
  • Heavy Usage During Charging: If you’re running processor / battery intensive processes during charging then you have another possible cause
  • Bad battery: Some batteries have problems retaining charge after extensive use.

Some of you may have suffered from a phone that won’t charge properly and probably rushed out to buy a new charger to fix it, well, you are wrong. What if the issue isn’t the charger? and the actual issue is your phone battery.

How To Fix An Android Phone That Won’t Charge/Discharges

Below are 100% tested and trusted ways based on my experience and am very certain it would work for you. Lets Get Started.

When you notice your android phone is not charging even though it’s plugged to power source, first action is to:

  • Make sure the USB jack and USB port are making firm contact
  • Switch Usb cable and try charging it again.
  • Try a different battery
  • Try a different charger
  • Consider changing the USB port if it looks loose, cracked or damaged in any way
  • Try a different power source
  • Flash the stock ROM back to the phone
  • Consider using an external (like desktop) charger to be sure the battery is working.

NOTE: You don’t just rush to buy anything without being 100% certain you need to, so you don’t waste your money and time.

How To Care for Android Battery life And prevent Future Occurrence

  • Avoid over-charging your device: Once your battery is full please remove it from power source. Over charging kills your battery cells.
  • Avoid charging your device using a PC or low power source.
  • Employ good battery management practices
  • Do not rotate the USB jack during charging or force it into the USB port.

I hope after reading the above article, you would treat your battery with care and wait and find out the actual reason before jumping to buy accessories to get it fixed. Kindly drop all your comments below.

NEW UPDATE:

Is Your Android Phone Slow, Overheating and Loosing Battery Quickly?

If your Android phone is lagging, losing battery life too quickly, or is overheating often, then you should be worried because it might have been hijacked by a cryptocurrency miner. These symptoms may mean you’ve been the unfortunate victim of a cryptojacker.

These are the guys and gals who are figuring out complex problems to earn a new Bitcoin, or one of several other virtual currencies.

android phone

These mathematical problems, used to verify cryptocurrency transactions, require serious processing power, more than what is available from a single smartphone.

So the latest scam involves cryptocurrency miners taking control of multiple Android smartphones and linking their processing power. This is accomplished by having ignorant smartphone users install an app that has malicious software inside.

According to a new report from ESET, Bug Swasher, a game loaded from the Google Play Store between 1 million and 5 million times, was mining cryptocurrency without the knowledge of those who installed the game on their phones.

Forget the fact that Google announced earlier in July banning Cryptocurrency mining apps, even Google doesn’t know which app has been crytop hijacked. This is why extra security measure is expected from Google to protect users.

What to do to Prevent Crypto Hijacking Your Android Phone

>Make sure you have the latest version of android and your apps are constantly updated

>Load an antivirus program like avast etc

>Avoid installing applications from unknown sources or sources you don’t trust.

>Don’t grant your apps unnecessary permission.

Infinix Hot Specs, Features & Prices

MTN Has Finally Blocked MTN BIS On Android: Affordable Alternatives

Previous

Infinix Hot Specs, Features & Prices

MTN Has Finally Blocked MTN BIS On Android: Affordable Alternatives

Next

129 thoughts on “How To Fix An Android Phone That Won’t Charge/Discharges”

  1. Please, I noticed that after attempting to flash my phone, it wasn’t successful and the battery started misbehaving. Is there any relationship between the two?

  2. There is no relationship linking flashing and battery issue. I guess you should try and flash the device successfully and see how it goes.

  3. My phone is charging but not increasing percentage. I’ve gotten a new battery but still the same experience. Another observation is that it drains faster.

  5. my infinix zero is misbehaving first the keypad types by itself and the I tried shutting it down the power button won’t work even the reboot button only the aeroplane mood..pls hlp

  9. My Infinix hot note x600 4G only charges when its off…when i switch on it stops charging,what could be the problem?

  11. thanks for this tutorial. i have similar issue but can fix it. my infinix zero while charging wont increase, it just stay in 2%. sometimes it charges but takes hours before it increases to a little % up, for instance it can take 3 hours to increase from 2% to 10%. i am totally fed up. please bro i need your urgent attention to this.

  12. My infinix hot x551 is very slow in charging, i changed d USB cable but still it doesn’t work well. Am contemplating changing d charging port, I need your advice pls. Thank you

  13. Did you make use a original charger? Most chargers are fake and always slow when charging. Try using a original travelers charger to charge the device..Or you can try and replace the battery if that did not work..Please it is not your charging port, do not waste money changing what is not faulty.

  14. That is quite weird, Its obvious your battery needs replacement or the charger your using is fake, try changing the battery and charger.

  15. Comment:My Infinix x507 would only discharge when ever I am charging it even the 2G network won’t come I have been using 3g network since then and whenever I am inside my room my 3G network would be in total blackout It’s been so frustrating ever since . Please I need ur advice on what to do!

  16. I’m using a Samsung Galaxy s 5 and it’s slowly discharging itself even when it’s fully off. I’m using the original box charger and cord but still isn’t working I’m not using it to much either. But I’ve tried different outlets, cords, batteries, etc but still nothing please help

  19. I have the same problem with my galaxy s3 it always discharge when I put it on charge I have change my battery and my charge but the problem continues and it can take more than one hour to add one % please I need your help.

  21. Pls my tecnoG9 was flashed and the battery wouldn’t charge morethan 3% what do i do pls help urgently

  22. My H T C Desire Is Failing To Charge All It Does Is Showing A Flashing Red Light And Then After 5 seconds It Goes Black,need Ur Help Plz

  23. My tecno m9 screen recently just got broken since den whenever I plug in my charger ,it will display charging but the percentage won’t incrase..is it bcos of d broken sCreen or wat?..pls I nid ur advicE

  24. Broken screen doesnt affect the charging, I think when the device got broken it affected the battery/charging terminal. Its obvious it fell on the ground and might have affected the charging port or so. Try use another charger and Usb cord and also go see a phone technician around you.

  25. My tecno y4 doesn’t power up when switched off…. I’ve changed the battery still does the same thing…. It’s shows a thunder bolt sign offs then shows the sign continuously until the phone switches on by itself and starts change going from 1%. Please what is the problem cause USB port have been worked upon and phone flashed still no positive results.

  28. My HTC desire600c is not charging instead it is discharging.I’ve tried many ways it’s not working.what can I do?

  30. Infinix x551 has stopped flash charging all of a sudden. It only charges slowly like 30% in 3 hrs. I have replaced my charger and USB cable with original from the infinix store but, the problem is persisting. Could it be a software issue? If yes, can I restore the android phone?

  32. My people if your phone does not charge then try changing the cable to a thicker one. My phone infinix zero discharges when charging. I changed the battery, this time it doesn’t charge more than 39%. Then I used a friend’s cable and to my surprise I saw 41%.
    So it likely your Cable is no longer able to carry the same current as your charger. So get an original cable.
    Cheers!

  34. I flashed my tecno g9 but is showing indications of charging but it’s not. What should I do?

  35. Was the device working and charging before you flashed it? Well, the possible cause could be the battery or the charger. Try and use another battery or charger?

  36. So sorry about all the stress and effort your mobile phone has caused you. Have you tried replacing the battery? when you go fix your device in the store what exactly is the issue they told you they fixed? The store shouldnt be making money off you. If replacing the battery didnt work, then i think the issue has to do with your phone battery terminal. Its an hardware fix.

  37. pls my infinix battery keeps bliking when charging like the phone doesnt evencome on …. what can i do

  40. Please brother i was charging my phone infinix hot 2 x510 and a friend of mine tried charging it this morning but it dodn’t come up and later after about few Minutes mone too stopped charging…..We haven’t been able to charge since then……Please help out

  41. Have you tried using another charger cord? if that didnt work then its probably the charger point is damaged. You need to visit a phone technician.

  43. The issue lies between your battery or the charged used. Your battery cycle could be weak or old, that allows the battery to quickly discharge. Try and change the battery or charger used.

  44. I have the same problem with my infinix zero. I managed to charge it to 20 percent and i dowloaded a booster to save my battery (built in ultra power saver mode doesnt help anymore) and as soon as i unplugged the cable off my zero the charge went from 20 to 10 percent. i panicked and i plugged it in again. From 10 it went to 7 percent. And it continued to drain to 0 percent. Thinking it might be an error or bug i went to use factory reset. Done it 3 times could only charge to 2 percent. I used 750 mAH 1A and 2A to charge it. Is it safe to assume that my zeroes battery is dead and how much to replace it should i just buy a new one

  45. Got few questions, Have you changed the battery and see if this still continues? your battery cells might be dead, so you need to replace it. Takia

  46. I could solve my problem by changing my charger… I got a blackberry playbook charger and my goodness it gives my gionee m5 just 2hrs to get full and last me for three days with heavy usage….

  49. my techno j7 is charging but not increasing, instead its decreasing, have bought a new charger same thing, i also went and buy a new battery its still the same problem. plz wat do i do next

  50. If after doing that you have mentioned, yet it still didnt improve, go see a phone technician to help you check the device battery terminals they might be faulty.

  51. I flashed my phone recently… I am suspecting it’s the ROM having power bug. …. What will I do… re flash? ??.

    The battery is good, the charger is good because I have used different ones, same thing.

  52. Some custom roms have different bugs that affects the device smooth operation, you just need to try another rom or go back to your latest stock rom for the device.

  53. My techno 5+ is not charging well. If I use a power bank it decreases. If I plug it into a wall socket it charges very slow. I have changed the battery and the cord. Please what is the problem?

  54. The issues could be from the Rom, are you using a stock rom or custom rom, because some Roms comes with bugs which drains battery. Also you use the original charger that has the high capacity to fully charge the device. Those cheap chargers you see out there doesnt really work and gives lower power when charging.

  55. My TECNO N3 was not charging properly i.e,increase in percentage,but will charge if i use a desktop charger, so i complain to a technician and he asked me to buy an original TECNO charger which begins to charging fully until i try to downloading and installing a whatsap application while charging and since then it cant charge again unless i use a deskstop.pls what is the solution

  57. my infinix hot 2 doesnt charge when on, but when I switch it off it charges, I changed the. charging port but it is still the same thing

  58. Comment:my infinix hot note x551 is discharging, have tried another charger it’s still d same and d battery is non removable, am fed up and it doesn’t do that b4 o

  60. help my infinix hotnote x551 is not charging, and when i leave the for about 3-5mins, the phone starts getting hot

  62. I’m actually impressed you take time toreply…. keep it up bro…. My phone’s agioneem2 mini…. its10 months old…. All hell let loose when I tried updating the os to 5.1 from 5.0 … i caused some problems and the phone was flashed … it came back with a 5.1 ever since its been seriously lagging, battery drain with real speed, takes very long to charge.. discharges when plugged and in use. I’m going crazy … ive lost count of how many times ive restore factory settings… please help… what do I do… a friend said I should downgrade back to 5.0 … help please…

  63. Thank you for stopping by, Appreciate. Well, you might try downgrading which would require you to download the official 5.0 for your device and flash and install it. if that didnt solve your issue, go give a phone technician to help you check it out. Also try to do a full flashing and install a new software version for your device.

  64. hi my tecno l5 charging system has a problem. wish to know if you can help me trace the charging patent since one of the charge keys was destroyed by water(rust)> urgently need your help please

  66. My phone will charge with the charger in the house but not my car. Bought a new battery and charger but still discharges.

  67. How old is the phone? the issue might be with the device itself. If changing the battery and the charger, then its definitely the device. Go see a phone technician to help you check the battery terminals.

  68. Comment: My huawei phone shows charging when it is connected to charger or cable but it is not actually charging. I tried using another charger but still d same issue as it may take 3hrs for it to increase from 2% to 10%. I tried using desktop charger to charge d battery, it charges it to 70% after 8hrs.

    I took d phone to Cellular logistics in Ojota. They opened d phone cover and showed me one place that it has turned to red instead of white. It also showed dat d phone is somehow wet though it did fall inside water. it is an android phone. D screen is broken too and they said they repair d battery drains without repairing d screen. I was told d repair will cost me 21,400# d phone I bought for 12,000# last year. so I collected my phone back.

    Please what is actually wrong with my phone? Could it be dat charge port is faulty? If yes, can it be repaired without replacing a new screen?

    Sorry for long story, I just want to know what is d prob is as am to take to phone technician. thanks

  69. Am not a phone technician, so i cnt just tell you what is exactly wrong with your device. I advise you to try another phone technician, sure the charging port can be fixed without fixing the screen. All the best

  73. I have an INFINIX x551 which i discovered is not a genuine INFINIX after sending the IMEI no to some infinx genuine phone verification site. No my headache is that the phone has never been able to connect to my PC, secondly the phone has now refused to chagre completely. Iam tech savy, so ivisted the infinix perfomance review page and got a video of how to repair the charging problem in infinix x551 i followed the instructions and dissasemnbled the phone and blew awy the dust in the charging poertal then re assembled it again. the phone just came on as usual and also received a call which i answered , Now am still stuck with the charging problem what could be wrong could it be that the software is corrup and what do ido I do not really understand how to do factory reset please help

  74. Nice one, you did well, well charging problem would have do with the charging point of your device. here you need a phone technician help. Thank you.

  75. Hi, I mistakenly clicked on ultra power mode on my infinix hot note, ever since I can’t access my apps…please oh do I rectify this

  76. More so, my Gironde m5plus just stopped charging, whenever I plug in d charger…it shows charging but d percentage doesn’t increase…what do I do please. Thanks

  77. Pls my new infinix note 3 doesn’t charge… .. It’s very extremely slow nd d battery drains off easily… .. I tried other charger is the same instead after sometime it’s discharges.. …. Pls wat do

  78. Since its a new phone, you can go back to the store you got it and tell them. or try using an original travelers charger like the samsung charger or the long blackberry charger.

  80. Comment:one day I remove my phone from charging point and my phone started charging by itself. from there my phone is discharging when plug to charger,I try replacing battery and chargers;it continues discharging. pls what could be cause?

  81. It’s helpful. Tnx alot.
    My tecno R7 gets hot at the upper part of the screen while:
    1. Charging.
    2. Operating it.
    What could have been the cause(s).
    Thanks.

  82. Am glad the article was of help. The device might be old, or possibly your running too many apps which are eating up the device resources. lastly go see a phone technician for further assistance.

  84. i am grateful for this article.

    Pls my tecno y4 is not powering on again, it displays ” experience smart life” and if i charge, it doesnt show percentage but a large lightning bolt in the battery icon..

    Pls help me out

  88. My tecno w-5 won’t charge. Percentage remains the same for a long time and discharges too.. It’s new. What do I need to do?

  89. hey sir I have problem with my tablet it won’t charge on her original fast charger so I use a cheap cable but same adopter and it charge but to slow. when I charge always blinking 3 times and the 3rd blink a battery charging apear. also it takes half a day to full charge my battery .my guese was the battery fail or deffective .what do you think sir. and also I clean the port and try to open the phone if there’s a lose of wires but there’s not.

  90. Why not try a different charger entirely. The main issue might be the charger used. if problem persist go visit a good phone technician for help.

  92. Comment: my phone battery is not removable (it’s in built) and I have changed charger and and did all you said here but all to no avail…

  94. Comment: Wow, thanks for all the replies, they are really helpful.

    My Infinix hot4lite doesn’t charge any more, it stopped at 97% and its been like that for two days, it’s not even draining and I’ve been using it a lot, please help…

  96. Am using hotwave cosmos v188 I bought this phone within some weeks later it doesn’t work well when am charging it but it rather decreases when charging sometimes it charges but sometimes too it doesn’t I tried changing the battery and the charger but still the same problem so I need your help
    ….

  100. My Infinix hot s could not charge up quickly and if charge it drains gradually and become cold.
    How can I fix. I already changed the battery and charging port. X7.
    It takes hours to charge 10%.

  101. Also my Blu 5 S S. If I power it, it will power. But when booting, immediately is about to reach menu, it will hang, vibrate and off.
    I flashed it and change the battery connector same problem.
    Please help.

  105. Hi Larious. Please after i flashed my tab, instead of increasing charging percentage it was decreasing, what can i do? please help me.

  107. Thank u for this article Larious but I still have some questions. is it possible for your battery to repair itself after being damaged by overcharging, using it while charging, and charging it with a low power source? I use Tecno’s c9 and the battery’s irremovable so I have no option of buying a new battery. I’ve decided to stop doing those things to my battery but I just want to know if that would somehow repair it.

  108. My Infinix note 4 pro’s fast charging stopped working.

    It would come on after twisting the cord to a certain degree, and mostly when the battery is above 60% what could be the problem?

  110. if i plug my infinix hot 3 it started charging but instead of it to increase it started discharging…have change the battery to new one even the charger to samsung charger…but no solution…please any help

  112. My sony xperia phone is discharging while not used, what could be the reason, at the same time when connected to power source it suddenly reach 90% but when disconnected it suddenly drop to 15% then increase even if not connected to power source

  116. Hello, Pls I need help.. .. My infinix hOtS is having issues, if I plug it to a source it doesn’t charge, no sign that is charging, but it gets hot

  119. yesterday i dropped my android coolpad in tub having water accidentally,now my mobile charging is seem to be very low and i feel the metal body is discharging something and that too my mobile is charging in switch off mode..

  120. My infinite hot 4 pro just switched off and refuses to come up again even after being charged …This is not the first time I’ll experience this…last time it happened I repaired it with 10k

  122. Please i had the same problem with my infinix X521 phone. it charges but doesnt increase in percentages. i went for a change in battery but still the problem persists. please should i change my charging port or what do i do?

  123. my tecno w3 when put in charge it keeps showing 1% then goes back to 0% av tried changing chargers even using good ones but it doesnt charge now its totally off

  124. Sorry about the nagging problem. Have you tried changing the battery before? sometimes the issue might be the battery terminals. Kindly try to get a uk used battery and try it. if no improvement kindly visit a good phone technician for a fix. Thank you

  125. HI Larious, i recently change my infinix hot 2 screen, since then my battery started draining very fast, it can drop from 30% to 0 in less than 1mins. i have replaced the battery twice, and even factory reset the phone but the problem still persist. your thoughts on this?
    Thanks bro

  126. Hello kingsley, have you visited a phone technician? go give a good phone technician to help you check the battery terminals and get it fixed. That should fix the drastic fall of battery levels.

  129. My phone is Infinix hot 6,when am charging it will be showing charging but the percentage will never increase from zero percent

Leave a comment