Question My Galaxy Tab A has recently become insanely slow, what can I do to make it faster?

[I Hate Technology]

I'd like help figuring out the steps I need to take to make my tablet fast, also any advice on identifying bloatware I can safely remove, disable, and on improving the update settings so unused apps aren't updating in the background, and updates are happening at times I'm not using the tablet.

Here's some device info, let me know if more info is needed.

RAM: 3 GB
System and Apps: 1.4 - 1.6 GB
Available: 1 - 1.2 GB
Reserved: 404 MB
Foreground Apps:
Chrome (255 MB)
YouTube (148 MB)
Background Apps:
Android Services Library (12.3 MB)
Settings Suggestions (5.06 MB)
com.qualcomm.atfwd (3.8 MB)
Bixby Service (10 MB)
Call settings (13.3 MB)
TeeService (4.44 MB)
Google Services Framework (11.4 MB)
Dsms (3.71 MB)
Calendar (13.9 MB)
BadgeProvider (4.43 MB)
Samsung Internet (19.4 MB)
ClipboardSaveService (16.8 MB
SoundAlive (4.48 MB)
Samsung Experience Service (27.7 MB)
com.sec.android.app.chromecustomizations (3.69 MB)
Galaxy Essentials Widget (5.14 MB)
Media Storage (9.84 MB)
Samsung Notes (18.2 MB)
ClipboardUIService (29.2 MB)
Context Service (10 MB)
Weather (19.3 MB)
Download Manager (9.84 MB)
Package Access Helper (3.39 MB)
Clock (15.7 MB)
Device Health Services (7.52 MB)

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Is that the Tab A7 lite? I recently traded mine in (for the Pixel Tablet -- love it!) because it was getting really sluggish as well. I think it had more to do with the underpowered hardware being unable to keep up with advancing demands of modern apps.
You could try booting into Safe Mode, which disables any 3rd party app you installed, to see if performance is still poor. If performance is much better in Safe Mode, then you can try uninstalling apps one by one to see if performance picks up. https://www.samsung.com/us/support/...st, press and hold the,Tap the Safe mode icon.

If you have any 3rd party antivirus or security apps, uninstall them. They aren't necessary on Android devices, and can often impact performance. The same goes for "RAM booster" apps, which can paradoxically make things worse by forcing the system to reload apps frequently.

 

[I Hate Technology]

I think it is the Galaxy Tab A 10.5 (SM-T597V), at least according to About Tablet.

I tried using optimize/clean under Device Care, but they just reopened.

I don't understand why it's so slow, last month I had over 1,000 tabs opened in Chrome and it was faster than it is now with only 4 to 6 tabs opened.

Assuming there isn't more junk I'm unaware of, of the known background apps listed above which would be safe to disable or even uninstall?

The only apps I purposefully use are Chrome, YouTube, Clipper, TextMe... and occasionally the camera and gallery, but I don't think they count as apps.

Also, on my main screen it tells me the weather, but I don't need that.

This is so strange to me, I have less tabs opened, and have deleted several pictures and videos from the gallery, but it is slower now than before.

 

[B. Diddy]

There are lots of threads in other forums about which preinstalled Samsung apps can be disabled, so it may be easier to search for those. (I don't have any direct experience with this.) But it's unlikely that doing so will make a big difference.

Having 1000 tabs open in Chrome at the same time can be a huge burden on the device's RAM and storage. Even though you're only using 4-6 tabs open at the same time, your habits may have led to a huge cache buildup. You may want to try clearing the app cache and storage for Chrome in Settings>Apps. I also still suggest testing the tablet in Safe Mode.

 

[I Hate Technology]

I think I deleted the cache and memory under Chrome, the tablet is still very slow.
It got a little faster, but nowhere near what it was last month.

I also deleted over 13 GB of photos and videos but the speed isn't improving.

How do I do safe mode properly? What do I do once in safe mode?

***

I'm thinking of restoring to factory data reset.. what do you think of that option?

Also, will that be a problem if my only internet connection is from this tablet?

Will I be able to get back online or will I need a secondary connection to get the tablet working again after resetting it?

 

[B. Diddy]

Follow the steps for Safe Mode in the link I shared previously . When you boot into Safe Mode, any app you installed is temporarily disabled, so all you can use are the apps that were preinstalled. While you're in Safe Mode, use any of those apps (like the browser, YouTube, etc.), and see if it's still sluggish. If it isn't, then something you installed is causing the slowdown -- the challenge would then be trying to narrow it down to the culprit, which sometimes involves just uninstalling apps one by one until the problem goes away. If it's still sluggish in Safe Mode, then the problem is with the system.

To get out of Safe Mode, you simply reboot or power off/power on normally, and it will boot back into normal mode.

Factory data reset is always an option -- just make sure any important data is backed up or saved somewhere. You should be able to reconnect to your wi-fi while setting the tablet back up.