How much overheating is normal for the Note?

[collyesta]

I recently bought my note 4 and after starting it up I noticed it getting quite noticeably and uncomfortably warm while installing all the updates and apps. I know that phones tend to get warm while doing that but it was uncomfortably warm..

Now I'm noticing it getting warm after browsing the Internet, playing one game of solitaire (which is hardly graphics intensive) and also when installing one or two apps. It usually gets warm at the top first, near the camera.

Is this normal? Or should I try to exchange my note 4 for new one? How much heating up is normal?

Thank you!

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[H3aTeRzz]

Hi Collyesta!

Its common for the phones to get warm, when doing all the things you mentioned. If you do not notice any significant battery life issues, then I wouldn't worry about it. Now, uncomfortably warm, well its hard for us to determine what your version of that means.

It wouldn't hurt, if you have the option to exchange, to just do it. I probably would, if it concerned me to the point where you apparently are now.

Hope this helps!

Chris

 

[collyesta]

Hi Collyesta!

Its common for the phones to get warm, when doing all the things you mentioned. If you do not notice any significant battery life issues, then I wouldn't worry about it. Now, uncomfortably warm, well its hard for us to determine what your version of that means.

It wouldn't hurt, if you have the option to exchange, to just do it. I probably would, if it concerned me to the point where you apparently are now.

Hope this helps!

Chris

Thank you for responding! The battery life appears to be fine when I'm not using the phone, but when I do use it for things it does seem to drain quite quickly (which I suppose is also relative and hard to measure). When my phone was updating the battery was draining super fast though (it went from 55 to 35 in about 20 min).

What bothers me as well (I don't know if this is normal or not) is that the screen heats up just as much as the back does and that it's always hot at the top near the camera first.

Is this a widespread problem with the Note 4? (I have seen a few threads about it) I'm worried about experiencing similar problems (if they are problems) with the replacement..

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[Tsepz_GP]

Thank you for responding! The battery life appears to be fine when I'm not using the phone, but when I do use it for things it does seem to drain quite quickly (which I suppose is also relative and hard to measure). When my phone was updating the battery was draining super fast though (it went from 55 to 35 in about 20 min).

What bothers me as well (I don't know if this is normal or not) is that the screen heats up just as much as the back does and that it's always hot at the top near the camera first.

Is this a widespread problem with the Note 4? (I have seen a few threads about it) I'm worried about experiencing similar problems (if they are problems) with the replacement..

Posted via the Android Central App

It shouldn't get uncomfortably hot at all for such little tasks.

I'd suggests checking how frequently your social apps refresh their timelines e.g. FB and Twitter.
May be also try using Power Save Mode, that should keep it cool.

 

[collyesta]

It shouldn't get uncomfortably hot at all for such little tasks.

I'd suggests checking how frequently your social apps refresh their timelines e.g. FB and Twitter.
May be also try using Power Save Mode, that should keep it cool.

I have power save mode on and I haven't moved over my social media from my old phone yet. It's not that it gets too hot to the touch from solitaire or 15min of YouTube, but it's noticeably warm and for some reason the top is warmer than the bottom of the screen (perhaps because of the processor?).

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Tsepz_GP]

I have power save mode on and I haven't moved over my social media from my old phone yet. It's not that it gets too hot to the touch from solitaire or 15min of YouTube, but it's noticeably warm and for some reason the top is warmer than the bottom of the screen (perhaps because of the processor?).

Posted via the Android Central App

Oh okay. That is quite normal.
The CPU does sit near the camera, indeed.

Unfortunately most phones these days do that.

 

[collyesta]

Oh okay. That is quite normal.
The CPU does sit near the camera, indeed.

Unfortunately most phones these days do that.

So most phones these days get quite warm where the processor is? Does that mean that if my phone gets noticeably warm but not too hot to the touch that everything is alright with it? Should I only be worried if it gets too hot to the touch?

Thanks for all your help so far

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Tsepz_GP]

So most phones these days get quite warm where the processor is? Does that mean that if my phone gets noticeably warm but not too hot to the touch that everything is alright with it? Should I only be worried if it gets too hot to the touch?

Thanks for all your help so far

Posted via the Android Central App

Yep, this is why some phones have heat pipes:
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Feel...reading-heat-pipes-for-liquid-cooling_id80308

As long as its not unbearably hot, its fine.

The Processors these days are ridiculously powerful while the phones are also getting ridiculously thin despite more and more hardware being packed inside them, so there's less space for heat dissipation, and thus you have a phone that tends to get warm sometimes.

 

[nahoku]

Phones should never get too hot to touch. If the phone is getting warm when you do stuff like playing games or watching videos, that's normal. It's seems scary sometimes, but it's actually normal. You can always check your temps by installing Aida64 and do before and after temp comparisons.

Aida64 before and after playing Riptide GP2 for 15 minutes. Average temp increase of ~ 15+ degrees, give or take.

View attachment 225542 View attachment 225541

Phone definitely feels very warm right now! But, I'm used to it on both my Note 4 and Note 10.1 playing this game.

 

[collyesta]

Yep, this is why some phones have heat pipes:
Feel the burn! 5 phones with thermal spreading heat pipes for 'liquid' cooling

As long as its not unbearably hot, its fine.

The Processors these days are ridiculously powerful while the phones are also getting ridiculously thin despite more and more hardware being packed inside them, so there's less space for heat dissipation, and thus you have a phone that tends to get warm sometimes.

Oh I see, thanks so much for the explanation! That makes a lot of sense and explains why I never really had such issues with my older smartphone, which is less powerful and thicker. It sure is a relief that I don't think I need to bring the phone back anymore

 

[collyesta]

Phones should never get too hot to touch. If the phone is getting warm when you do stuff like playing games or watching videos, that's normal. It's seems scary sometimes, but it's actually normal. You can always check your temps by installing Aida64 and do before and after temp comparisons.

Aida64 before and after playing Riptide GP2 for 15 minutes. Average temp increase of ~ 15+ degrees, give or take.

View attachment 225542 View attachment 225541

Phone definitely feels very warm right now! But, I'm used to it on both my Note 4 and Note 10.1 playing this game.

Thanks for this! This is very useful I think I will install this app to check what kind of temperatures my phone reaches.

 

[collyesta]

Also, I am wondering, is it safe to keep a phone in a thick case? (Otterbox symmetry, commuter for example) Or should I be worried about heat being trapped in there? Maybe thinking about this is overkill I don't know...

 

[nahoku]

Thanks for this! This is very useful I think I will install this app to check what kind of temperatures my phone reaches.

Be sure to post back what you see. It'll be interesting to see how our phones compare.

One thing I notice about both my Note 4 and 10.1 is how well they dissipate heat. After playing Riptide GP2, the temps drop really rapidly... in like 3 minutes, give or take, and already back to normal. Considering these devices have passive cooling (no fan), these things are amazing!

Also, I am wondering, is it safe to keep a phone in a thick case? (Otterbox symmetry, commuter for example) Or should I be worried about heat being trapped in there? Maybe thinking about this is overkill I don't know...

I used to use a Defender case with no problems... except I eventually found it too large for me. I use a Samsung Protective cover now. It's actually a very nice and small case... doesn't add much bulk to the phone. My brother still uses a Defender on his Note 4 and he's had no problems either. One thing we both did on the Defender is removed the plastic screen saver off the case and ran without anything. I eventually put on a iCarez tempered glass screen protector, but I think he's still running naked. The Defender plastic actually rides above the screen... it doesn't sit flush against it. Because of this, the "oil slick" or "rainbow effect" is seen with this case. Beyond that, any dust trapped between the plastic and screen will rub the screen. Might not be that bad, but just thinking about it, plus the oil slick look, made me rip the plastic out! I'm picky!

 

[collyesta]

Be sure to post back what you see. It'll be interesting to see how our phones compare.

One thing I notice about both my Note 4 and 10.1 is how well they dissipate heat. After playing Riptide GP2, the temps drop really rapidly... in like 3 minutes, give or take, and already back to normal. Considering these devices have passive cooling (no fan), these things are amazing!

I used to use a Defender case with no problems... except I eventually found it too large for me. I use a Samsung Protective cover now. It's actually a very nice and small case... doesn't add much bulk to the phone. My brother still uses a Defender on his Note 4 and he's had no problems either. One thing we both did on the Defender is removed the plastic screen saver off the case and ran without anything. I eventually put on a iCarez tempered glass screen protector, but I think he's still running naked. The Defender plastic actually rides above the screen... it doesn't sit flush against it. Because of this, the "oil slick" or "rainbow effect" is seen with this case. Beyond that, any dust trapped between the plastic and screen will rub the screen. Might not be that bad, but just thinking about it, plus the oil slick look, made me rip the plastic out! I'm picky!

Okay, here are my temperatures before and after around 15min of playing piano tiles 2 (this game even made my old phone heat up quite a bit so I thought it would be appropriate for this test).
(I do hope they'll attach properly)

It seems that our phones are acting in a very similar way, which I guess is a good thing

I'm also quite picky with cases and I always wondered if people really liked the plastic screen saver on the defender. I think I would have removed it too.
I really wanted to get the Samsung case actually, but unfortunately it's not available in my area so I settled for the otterbox symmetry case in black. Guess if there were no problems with the defender for you, it's unlikely there will be problems with the symmetry case for me I will be monitoring the temperature of my phone with the app just in case though!

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[collyesta]

I think the before temperature didn't attach properly, so here it is again.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[nahoku]

It seems that our phones are acting in a very similar way, which I guess is a good thing

Yup, looks about the same. Hopefully now, your mind is a little calmer about how warm your phone gets. I notice that even when playing a chess game, the temps go up. There's a lot the GPU has to draw to display the board, I guess. I bought my phone in Jan 2015, so its a year and four months old and still running strong. No problem at all with overheating. And, last night, I played Riptide on my tablet for 1.25 hours straight and the temp went up to ~135 degrees... it started cooling down before I could even launch Aida64 and was back to normal in about 3 minutes. Amazing passive cooling!

Guess if there were no problems with the defender for you, it's unlikely there will be problems with the symmetry case for me

Yah, you shouldn't have a problem with the symmetry. Even the Samsung protective cover covers the back of the phone but it still cools quickly. I don't know where you live, but can't you order the Samsung case on-line?

 

[collyesta]

Yup, looks about the same. Hopefully now, your mind is a little calmer about how warm your phone gets. I notice that even when playing a chess game, the temps go up. There's a lot the GPU has to draw to display the board, I guess. I bought my phone in Jan 2015, so its a year and four months old and still running strong. No problem at all with overheating. And, last night, I played Riptide on my tablet for 1.25 hours straight and the temp went up to ~135 degrees... it started cooling down before I could even launch Aida64 and was back to normal in about 3 minutes. Amazing passive cooling!


Yah, you shouldn't have a problem with the symmetry. Even the Samsung protective cover covers the back of the phone but it still cools quickly. I don't know where you live, but can't you order the Samsung case on-line?

I agree, the passive cooling on my note is really impressive too. It's a life saver for such a powerful device! I am definitely a lot calmer about things now. Thank you so much for all your help with it all! I really appreciate it!

I live in Europe (The Netherlands) and those samsung cases are pretty rare here. The ones that are available for the note 4 here don't come in colors that I like (I always go for either black or dark colored cases). My own pickiness does frustrate me sometimes lol.

 

[nahoku]

I agree, the passive cooling on my note is really impressive too. It's a life saver for such a powerful device! I am definitely a lot calmer about things now. Thank you so much for all your help with it all! I really appreciate it!

You're welcome! I'm glad you overheating fears have settled a bit! At least you have yourself a comparison to fall back on should your phone ever truly overheat.

live in Europe (The Netherlands) and those samsung cases are pretty rare here. The ones that are available for the note 4 here don't come in colors that I like (I always go for either black or dark colored cases). My own pickiness does frustrate me sometimes lol.

I don't know why I was thinking you must live in the Netherlands! Yup, I've heard it's hard to get some things there. At least the symmetry case is a nice one, although not quite as slim as the Samsung. I understand about black and dark colors too... both my Defender and Samsung case are black and dark grey. Just don't like light colors myself.

 

[mike104393]

Just thought I'll add some info as well to this thread. I also have experienced warm/hot temp under normal operations. After throughly researching this issue. I found out it was the SD card I was using. Once I removed it, I saw a significant decrease in heat. Instead, I replaced it with a higher quality micro SD card used for recording 4k movies. This solved the problem. I would suggest removing your SD card for a period of time to test and see if your temp goes down.

 

[collyesta]

Just thought I'll add some info as well to this thread. I also have experienced warm/hot temp under normal operations. After throughly researching this issue. I found out it was the SD card I was using. Once I removed it, I saw a significant decrease in heat. Instead, I replaced it with a higher quality micro SD card used for recording 4k movies. This solved the problem. I would suggest removing your SD card for a period of time to test and see if your temp goes down.

Thanks I will give this a try as well to see if it makes a difference! May I ask, was your sd card issue affecting your phone even when you were doing things that weren't related to your sd card at all?