[Android] Phones get slower over time and bog down... what do you do?

[AznAnarchy99]

I have no slow downs on my GNex with a near ASOP rom. Before that I did though. I havent had the need to change this rom in months.

 

[styrafoam]

http://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/19gs2r/tip_android_phone_slower_over_time_try/

 

[gmaster456]

My Nexus 4 hasn't slowed down yet and I'm not anticipating that happening anytime soon.

 

[foghorn67]

Here's the trim app.

This. I used this on my GNex, and it's downright awesome. My phone shreds now. It's faster than it's ever been.

 

[zerocool84]

My Nexus 4 hasn't slowed down yet and I'm not anticipating that happening anytime soon.

All that extra ram definitely keeps it that way

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

This. I used this on my GNex, and it's downright awesome. My phone shreds now. It's faster than it's ever been.

So I know SSDs on computer slow down to hell if TRIM doesn't kick in, but this i sthe case with phones too it seems.... there isn't an auto TRIM or anything for phones?

 

[Bman123]

QUOTE=foghorn67;34694166]This. I used this on my GNex, and it's downright awesome. My phone shreds now. It's faster than it's ever been.[/QUOTE]

Ive never heard of this app. My Gnexus feels fast and snappy all the time even on the stock ROM.

 

[jleach1]

Why not get her an iPhone? That's what I do. Can't speak for slowdown myself because my experience of Android is way too short, but I tend to recommend iDevices for seniors and juniors while recommending Android devices for my peers.

Edit: Didn't mean to say that your gf is a senior/junior, my bad. Sorry that's not what I meant.

While I can corroborate the existence of a common A.S.S. infection (Android Slowdown Syndrome) , it's fundamentally different from the DICS (Data Induced Coronary Syndrome) infection commonly dealt with on iOS.

I have continuing and extensive experience with both, and the only way to effectively treat both is with a proper and thorough wipe (soft wipes tend to treat the problem temporarily, but before you know it, they'll be back; if you don't change your behavior).

The Android slowdown has a steep curve: it tends to start at around 50%, and gets exponentially worse once the /Data partition begins to fill up. However, the number 1 cause is something quite obscure. Moving apps to the SD card (which is necessary nearly 100% of the time, due to the 2GB limit of the /data partition), and stuffing the .android-secure folder is a sure way to cause a coronary blockage that not even a quadruple bypass could fix. As the /data and SD Card become more and more burdened, the device will seek a full stop, getting worse and worse with every app.

Apple's problem is more subtle, and gradual. If you've ever owned two iOS devices, and have configured them similarly yourself, you'll know that iOS suffers from the same problem. But to notice it, it's necessary to have a device with 0 apps, and 50 apps side by side. And more important than the number of apps (which is significant on android, because the more apps you have on a microsd or the internal SD card, the more android likes to keep track of simultaneously) on IOS, is the size, and the amount of free space. Once you approach 150-200 apps, and 80%, your UI performance will consistently falter....in a consistent manner. Android is more accustomed to full stops and starts, while iOS suffers from a continuous seizure.

This is something that all generations of iOS suffer from...and it's something that Android has managed to deal with in AOSP ROMS reasonably via brute force, but I've seen 0 improvements on the iOS side. The slowdown profile of an iOS device hat's larger than 16gb may be a bit different, owing it's presence to a certain lower limit of optimum free space (about 3-3.5 GB on a 16gb iOS device). But the reality is, at least in Android's case, that all of this can be, and often is undone by the manufacturers with their battery and performance profiles, memory and storage management, and smothering the scheduler with tasks that deal solely with their poor social services and apps, and their skins.

 

[Raduque]

. Moving apps to the SD card (which is necessary nearly 100% of the time, due to the 2GB limit of the /data partition),

Completely unnecessary. Show me a single decent Android device since the Galaxy S II that has shipped without Unified Storage.

 

[WelshBloke]

So I know SSDs on computer slow down to hell if TRIM doesn't kick in, but this i sthe case with phones too it seems.... there isn't an auto TRIM or anything for phones?

Most phones do it automatically, theres a few that are bugged that dont (maybe bugged is the wrong word there). I think a few nexus phones and HTC phones are the worst for this.

 

[TerryMathews]

There are two separate slowdown issues on Android that I've run into.

1) Memory leak. This one gets better with a regular reset. Might get progressively worse after a certain amount of time or after using certain apps. Always works correctly after a regular reset. I have smartphone where the latest carrier rom has this issue. Previous does not so I rolled back.

2) Background services. Does not get better after a regular reset, does after a hard (restore defaults) reset. Be mindful of what you install AND update.

Also worth noting that certain versions of the android media scanner can cause #2 with excessive amounts of music and/or video.

In a bubble android does not get worse over time.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Used to be a flashoholoic, now I'm not flashing at all. I recently went to MIUI (4.1.2 5v) and I'm too lazy to flash the 4.2.2 version.

No slowdowns at all, I do, however, delete alot of crap

 

[gmaster456]

All that extra ram definitely keeps it that way

Yeah. It's been 6 months and still no issues.

 

[Graze]

I have had an LG G2X which had notoriously bad rep due to LG's crappy Gingerbread rom and I never experience any slow down over time.
I have been using the Nexus 4 since December and needless to day there is no noticeable slow down. I dont know what the hell you people put on your phones really to have this effect on them!

 

[shortylickens]

truth be told I only had that issue with 1.6 through 2.3.

From 4.0 on its never been a problem.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Used to be a flashoholoic, now I'm not flashing at all. I recently went to MIUI (4.1.2 5v) and I'm too lazy to flash the 4.2.2 version.

No slowdowns at all, I do, however, delete alot of crap

Same with me. Too lazy to redo/relogin/redownload apps.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Same with me. Too lazy to redo/relogin/redownload apps.

Plus losing my game data since I switch between CM10 based ROMs and stock based Roms

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

http://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/1gkiuv/one_year_later_the_nexus_7_has_gone_from_the_best/

yikes!

 

[Sid59]

Yeah. Sounds like the NAND is el cheapo and degrading over time, plus Android code that limits the something or rather .. top comments in the thread explain it.

Side Note: Digitizer+LCD cracked on my 199 8gig Nexus7. The part on ebay is 99 bucks, worth fixing? I was planning on pawning the nexus my mom and get the updated Nexus7.
At the moment, using my 3rd Gen iPad .. i just dont enjoy the experience, rather using my N4 in bed,

 

[tvdang7]

its from having so many opened apps. my galaxy nexus got slow becuase it ran out of ram alot. my nexus 4 is great with 2gb of ram. My nexus 7 exhibits the same behavior with its 1gb of ram.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

we can't keep a phone running smooth on 1gb RAM? Shrug. I know the iPhone 4S wasn't amazing in specs, but it still flies today.

I feel like brute force specs aren't really the solution.

 

[tvdang7]

we can't keep a phone running smooth on 1gb RAM? Shrug. I know the iPhone 4S wasn't amazing in specs, but it still flies today.

I feel like brute force specs aren't really the solution.

Yea unfortunately. I mean it is possible for it to be usable but when you add widgets and have certain apps installed ram just starts to get eaten up. That's why a reboot usually solves it. You can solve it by manual closing it also. iphone multitasking isn't like android (it might have changed I'm not sure) So I guess ram isn't a problem.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

we can't keep a phone running smooth on 1gb RAM? Shrug. I know the iPhone 4S wasn't amazing in specs, but it still flies today.

I feel like brute force specs aren't really the solution.

No it doesn't. iOS has the same issues as Android when it comes to weird random lag.

My friends ip4s was almost unusable because it lagged every single page turn and its battery drained in 2 hours flat. Phone is only 1.5 years old.

He needed to factory reset it to get it back up to speed. And even now, even Ip5 lags when you scroll over to the search screen on the home page.

 

[gmaster456]

its from having so many opened apps. my galaxy nexus got slow becuase it ran out of ram alot. my nexus 4 is great with 2gb of ram. My nexus 7 exhibits the same behavior with its 1gb of ram.

Go to developer options and limit the number of apps running in the background

 

[gmaster456]

we can't keep a phone running smooth on 1gb RAM? Shrug. I know the iPhone 4S wasn't amazing in specs, but it still flies today.

I feel like brute force specs aren't really the solution.

No it doesn't. It's still useable but I wouldn't say it flies. It's definitely starting to get long in the tooth. It's still a solid phone however. And iOS gets flaky over time as well.