My phone randomly died. What caused it and how should I respond?

[The Toch]

One morning my phone (Moto G5S Plus, bought in March 2018) had randomly turned off. It had been charging overnight when this happened. When I try to turn it on, it shows an image which I think implies the battery is critically low, and then turns off again after about a second. (I have a picture of this display, but I don't know how to share it on here.)

If I try to perform a recovery (holding the volume down and power keys), then the phone displays what I believe is the recovery screen for a couple of seconds before turning off again. It also says "battery low" on the bottom of the recovery screen.

If I try to charge my phone, it does not respond or display anything at all. However, a weird white light intermittently flashes at the top left corner of the handset, to the left of the front camera. I have never noticed this flashing before. I also have a short video of this phenomenon, but don't know how to share it on here. The phone still behaves the same as before even after charging. I have tried to charge it with different chargers, but there is no difference.

Does anyone know what is going on? It could be that the battery reached its end of life, but isn't that supposed to happen more gradually? Also, the charging cable has not been fitting very snugly into my phone in recent months, but the phone doesn't react even if I push the cable right in. A Motorola Support assistant suggested that it could even be a software issue, and they want me to send the phone for repairs (which I would have to pay for, as it is out of warranty).

 

[VidJunky]

The is 3 years old and you've owned it for 2 which is kind of the expected life of devices these days. I know some people go much longer but in general.

Anyway, if you've tried other chargers and it simply will not hold a charge there's a good chance the battery has failed. The odd thing is that it doesn't sound like it's registering being plugged in. I would take it to someplace like your carrier's repair center or an independent repair center and have it looked at. Typically they will look at it for free and at least tell you what they believe is wrong. It could be your power port if it doesn't register being charged. If it is the battery the good news is the battery is inexpensive. The bad news is the phone has to be almost completely disassembled to change it.

You need to know for sure before making a decision in my opinion.

This will show what's involved in changing the battery...
https://youtu.be/L0hczOSWFds

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! To add to VidJunky's excellent suggestions:

Try plugging the phone into a wall outlet and let it charge undisturbed for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. Then try powering on by pressing and holding Power for about 20 seconds.

If that doesn't work, then I would agree that the battery has probably failed. Batteries will naturally deteriorate over time with normal use, but their overall lifespan can depend on how they're used during that use -- for example, frequent deep discharges (i.e., letting it go down to zero or near zero) can significantly decrease a battery's lifespan to well below 2 years.

But batteries can also just fail due to defects or a phenomenon called dendrites (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releas...lding,commonly used lithium-ion counterparts.) It doesn't happen often, but it does happen, and unfortunately, most phone manufacturers don't cover the battery under warranty.