Galaxy S4: Major problem - SIM card not detected

[nalbi]

Hi,

I Had the same problem and already tried every suggested fix on the net, and nothing worked.
I almost threw the towel till i found a post that recommended removing the two screws above the battery
and when i removed them the error stopped, even the heating problem went away.
it's been three days now, and i even tried two different sim cards to try and check if i get the error back.
so far so good.

Please try it, and i hope it helps

 

[EmPreet DhiLlon]

hey so samsung guys how much they charged to fix it

 

[Carlos Lameiro]

This too started to be a problem with my Samsung S4 (Canadian Edition) sgh-i337.

I originally thought that the SIM card was damaged, and did get a new SIM card, but the problem continued to appear.

I tried adding a few paper pieces or spongy stuff inside the phone, to apply a little pressure over the SIM card and the board connector (beside/between the sd card and camera), and the RESTART message continued to plague the phone at least 1 a day, sometimes when simply resting on my desk, so it couldn't be a hardware/connection problem.

I recently wiped my phone and installed a new MOD, Cyanogenmod 12.1, mainly because I was running out of space for apps and also wanted to remove the Samsung bloatware. I was also tired of the samsung complex menu, and wanted to get a more native Android experience. It's been a week now, and I have NOT seen a RESTART message since then. I am wondering if it is a software problem that was introduced with Samsung software updates that causes the unrecognized SIM issue.

 

[Carlos Lameiro]

Re: Galaxy S4: Major problem - SIM card not detected FIX

Hello,

When my Samsung S4 gave me repeated NO SIM CARD errors, I thought I would have to sell my phone for parts. BUT I was able to get it working. It has been up for three days. No problems.

1 - I did an online chat with Samsung. Not much help.
2 - I went to the Rogers dealer and they gave me a new SIM. It worked for about 12 hours. Then the error came back.
3 - Some sites suggest doing the VOL + HOME menu / Clear Cache and / or factory reset. That did nothing, other than waste time.
4 - I placed a strip of business card behind the SIM. That would work for short periods, but I think that was a fluke.

What DID work was the following:

You take apart the phone, including the white interior back plate, including the eight or so little screws.

Turns out that there is a heat related issue that makes it so that the ribbon cable connector that makes the SIM card and the microSD card tray NOT communicate with the mainboard. Maybe there is some slight warping. Anyway. Look at this image:

View attachment 151038

Literally, I trimmed a piece of a guitar pick, and glued it to the black strip on the plastic phone backing. Then, when the phone is reassembled, it puts enough pressure on the ribbon cable assembly that the phone begins working. It was a ten minute fix, and it seems to be holding up just fine. I would try that fix before replacing the SIM tray.

I tried this, but my phone still had the SIM card not detected, RESTART error come up.

 

[ChrisJ320]

Removing the two screws above the battery worked for me. I've been having SIM not detected, device will restart messages for weeks now. Today all of a sudden, i was getting a No SIM message even after restarting a bunch of times. I tried clearing the cache, but that didn't work. After reading the post about removing the screws above the battery I was skeptical, but willing to try anything. Two hours later and no messages regarding the SIM.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I'll post again if the problem comes back.

 

[epiphoniii]

mine has been working for a while now.
here's what i did:

took out all the screws from the back
opened the phone.
removed the connecting part of the sim & sd card from the mother board
put the connecting part again
then put a thin piece of paper on top of that connector for more pressure
then phone all the screws back

wallaaaah! it worked for me

 

[Roma Rybintsev]

Hey everyone. I had the same problem with my Galaxy s4. Basically whenever I put the sim card it would never be recognized. But after some experimenting just inserting the sim card into the slot worked. I mean put the sim card in but don't fully insert it in. Just place it in there so it rests on the battery. Usually a "click" is heard when you insert it but you should stop before that. Just let the sim card rest on the battery and it should work. Sorry if I didn't explain it well.

 

[k8108]

I have had the sim card error for a LONG time. Last week I dropped my phone and it wouldn't read the sim card at all. Read every post I could find, watched every YouTube video and this is what finally worked:

I had to remove the back cover and then remove the back of the phone itself. I used a piece of double sided tape to tape a small piece of an old credit card right across from the sim card/sd card reader connector on the inside of the back piece of the phone. That finally put enough pressure on the connector to read the sim card. (others suggested a guitar pick, but I didn't have one.)

I tried literally every solution offered here. Nothing else worked. This is the only thng that worked. Hope this helps someone else.

 

[zachc1012]

Re: Major problem - Sim card not detected

Hey guys simply cut a small piece of foam (about 1/8 inch thick and place it on the two metal receptors directly above and to the left of your SD card holder (looking at the phone face down) and restart your phone, works like a charm

 

[spencerbones]

Putting the foam next to the connector worked on both my wifes phone and mine. Both S4's. Thank you

 

[SixFootSte]

I cleared the cache and it seems to have fixed the problem. Hopefully the solution is permanent

 

[Peter Scargill]

I have read through hundreds of these items - people seem to be dancing around the central theme that there is an issue with the SIM card connection- there are threads about pressing down on the cable, pressing on the connector.

I tried all of that to no avail. Eventually I looked up on Ebay and people sell the complete replacement - ie a metal and plastic frame that takes a sim card and an SD and has the connector. I sent off to Ebay - I think the total cost was £4 or £5. When you get the replacement it will be immediately obvious what needs replacing - and it's held on with double sided tape. After carefully flicking the connector off - I peeled the original off - no problem if it gets damaged as you're fitting a replacement. I put the replacement in connector first to ensure no stress.

Turned the phone on - problem completely eliminated. Why bother about the detail - just replace the lot and restore the phone.

Pete.

 

[Jacek N]

Yes.
That is exactly what I did. Purchased sim card holder from phonepartsusa
Installed and problem solved.

 

[PhiPsi32]

Would you post a link to the part you used?

 

[Jacek N]

Would you post a link to the part you used?

This forum will not let me post links. But the part number is FLX-SAM-736 from phonepartsusa.
Good luck!

 

[kunpifagor]

Hi guys, thank you for advice, it is a good knowledge. But it is not works for me.
I tried everything:
- I bought sim+SD slot on Aliexpress and change it twice. Not working.
- I put to connector apeace of foam with different thikness. Not working.
- I disconnect and connet again every connector on the board. Not working.
- I cleared chache and everything, restored the factory settings. Not working.
- I changed SIM card. Not working.
- I tried cyanogenmod 12. I tried ROM from black edition. Not working.

I almost despaired to repair my phone, but 4 days ago I read one of the threads on our russian forum and found a very simple solution, which one guy typed in his post.
He says: I bring my phone to the Samsung service centre and explained a problem of SIM card. The serviceman says, that he will not take a phone to repair, because there are a simply solution - you need to buy new original samsung battery and everything will OK. And this guy did this, and everything is OK!
I removed a chinese battery from phone, and insert my old original battery. There are everything is OK for 4 days till now.

UPD: since 5-th day an error occured once a day. I Think, i will buy new original battery. Because with chinesse battery it is 3-5 error per day.

 

[n2lips]

Galaxy S4: Major problem - SIM card not detected
I've had this same problem, losing SIM 2 to 3 times a day. Bent in Sim holder a little, didn't work. Eventually thought I'd do the taking back off and sticking something under it, got screws off but couldn't workout how to prize it off. So eventually sprayed the back with electronics cleaner, a fast evaporating spray concoction . It hasn't completely solved it but has now only happened once in the week not 3 times a day. (Servisol Aero-Kleen)..

 

[dsilvapt]

I had the issue fixed just by replacing the SIM/SD card module. I tried almost everything before without success!
I only had the issue twice in 48 hours after the part replaced.I guess I have to change the mainboard as well!

The cause seems to be the heat. When speaking with a technician he told me that I have to change mainboard.
By replacing the SIM/SD card module I was only postponing the issue.

 

[Dawid Lazar]

Hi Guys
Probably everyone here has the same problem.
This issue does not affect sim card slot but the motherboard and aspecifically Qualcomm or "Taiwan" chip.
Solution type

it is temporary and after some time the problem will return.
There is here something similar to a cold solder joint but I found some solution - heat treatment: P
I managed to fix the problem by fairly strong heating a Qualcomm chip with iron. A similar effect can be achieved by placing the motherboard with protected plastic elements in the oven
Max 200 Celsius degrees
Both methods are highly risky and I recommend caution. Do not heat too much!

 

[tbbbbbbb]

This has worked for me, and it's been over a month. I used a piece of hard plastic instead of the tape. I tried every other fix, and this is the only one that worked. Thank you!!!!!!