Samsung Galaxy S4 - Not Charging - Grey Battery

[Andy Gilligan]

i can tell you all what the problem is as its happened to me last week and its been seen by a samsung representative shop that fix their devices.


i knew i had liquid damage on the screen as a bottle of fragrant goo had spilt onto the surface which my mobile screen was laying upon. i had to put it into a bowl of dry rice for over 24 hours and this actually got the phone working again but the charge problem and notifications icon is the exact same issue here, along with the charging only when off/grey battery etc.

the liquid damage has got onto a part of the motherboard and caused this issue, if you take your phone to a place that can look at it on behalf of samsung, they will remove the cage to the phone and see the damage on the motherboard. you can opt to have it looked at/repaired but the device will be void of warranty. the biggest clue that it is water damaged will be the litmus paper on the internal side of the phone showing blue!! i tried to act dumb when i took it in but i knew the liquid damage would be partly or all to do with the problem.

at least the phone works, it could be alot worse but charging it when its off is frustrating. my glass is half full anyway, don't know about yours?

 

[Christian Verreault]

Sometimes, it seems that replacing the internal USB board is the only solution to solve the charging problems of the S4 but I didn't had to replace this unit to solve my problem...

I was experiencing the same charging problems than several users reported here but I found that by plugging my USB cable to a USB connector directly soldered on the motherboad solved the problem and by doing so I could see my S4 to charge as weell as when I'm plugging it on my ac charger.

The fact is that most USB hubs cannot corrrectly provide the required current needed to charge the S4 battery correctly.

So, instead of plugging the USB cable anywhere plug it directly into a USB connector soldered on the motherboard and you'll get back the charging capabilities expected.

Beware...

Several motherboards have extension cables with additionnal USB connectors for the front of the computer case. DO NOT use these connectors because most of the time these connecteors are designed for low current and will not charge your S4 battery correctly...

In other words, only the USB connectors from the back of the computer case are designed correctly to support the higher current needed for portable devices charging.

 

[STARGATE]

SOLVED

The fix to this is to order and replace the USB charging port + ribbon/circuitry as shown in the picture above.

I ordered the port + a new battery from eTradeSupply and got it really quick (like 4 days from Hong Kong to Canada). I tried the new battery first just to be sure, and it didn't make a difference. I then opened up the phone (9 screws) and replaced the ribbon / USB. (there's lots of online videos). It worked right away. Total cost was $50 delivered for both the battery and the port. ($12 - port, $14 - Battery, the rest shipping).

Hope this helps!!!

Good to know. Thanks :thumbup:

Sent From a Galaxy S4 Away!

 

[Waldo Where]

Settings > Display > Daydream then click on daydream then select dream time > When docked

I don't know why this worked or if I changed this setting before without noticing, but thank you for pointing this out. Don't forget "My Device."

Settings> My Device> Display> Daydream> Select dream time> While docked.

 

[huha]

How much does it cost the usb board and ribbon

 

[STARGATE]

How much does it cost the usb board and ribbon

Read 2 or 3 posts before yours, where I quoted kevin, he gives the price there. :thumbup:

Sent From a Galaxy S4 Away!

 

[smile42dey]

I was experiencing the very same problem. No matter what I did to my S4 (remove and replace battery) I continued to receive Grey Battery symbol. Finally, because my wife and I both have S4's I swapped our batteries. My wife's phone had the grey battery initially, but seconds after it changed. I then returned the battery to my phone and I have no more issues. Hope this works for other as it did for me.

 

[Itsm3GeL]

Hello guys, here's what I did with my s4 not charging few days ago, my battery was drained then I charged it then the gray battery appeared and it keeps vibrating while showing the gray battery, so here's what I did, I removed the battery and I took a hair blower, I blowered the charger port around 5-6 inches away then I connect the phone into the charger and it started working again, you guys can try it if you want to, it did work to me.

 

[shoeb elias]

hi im having the same problem. but my question is why we have to pay for it. my is only not even 5 months old. should under warranty. I am a computer tech. often I have climb ladder and replace WAP in buildings. One day I saw my screen has a fine line cracked. and I didn't put any pressure or dropped. I bought it from kogan and they said its not under warranty. my question is I am hiding anything...its not my fault ...so why we have to pay for it. I was using apple for last 7 years and recently switched to android and s4 is my first android phone. I was happy with android but Samsung is really getting sucks. my previous iPhone is still working fabulously. why the Samsung is so crap. is it under warranty if I bought it from Kogan?

 

[transistors]

the solution of this issue (charger not recognized) is very simple...

http://forums.androidcentral.com/general-help-how/312596-samsung-galaxy-charging-issue.html

 

[Stbrightman]

^^^^ This worked for me.
I'm using a radio shack charger that I bought as I'm traveling which would work occasionally (not very often). The trick is this: before you plug the charger into the wall/electrical socket, first plug the micro usb end into your phone. After your phone is attached to the charger cable, then plug the charger into the wall, energizing the charger. Works every time for me now.

 

[DesElms]

the solution of this issue (charger not recognized) is very simple...

http://forums.androidcentral.com/general-help-how/312596-samsung-galaxy-charging-issue.html

I'm sorry, but that thread's first two posts -- by that thread's starter (aka, its "original poster" or "OP") -- are just ridiculously wrong and misleading.

I have, however, added a third post to that thread which sets straight the record; and provides any Samsung Galaxy famly phone user -- particularly a Note II user -- with pretty much everything s/he needs to know about this subject.

 

[CheriNC11]

Hello, I just read your reply to fix the not charging issue. My S4 is only 33 days old, but AT&T will not fix or replace it.
It did get water in the charging port, that is the only thing on the phone that won't work. The phone is fully functional otherwise.
Even though the water damage indicator under the battery compartment is slightly pink. It is my understanding from everything I
read on these blogs that it has to be RED and that PINK is normal. But they would not budge.
I don't want to pay $199 insurance deductible for a replacement phone if this DIY replacement of the port will work.
I noticed on the website that there are 2 options for the charging port. One with the ribbon and one just the port, how would I know which one I need?
And is this easy enough for a non-techie person to replace? I figure the $50 is a much cheaper option than $199. I appreciate
any feedback you can offer. Thanks!

 

[linozsung]

EXACTLY what happened to me!!!!!!!! I am so upset my phone is less than a year old, and I bought it outright so cannot return it.

 

[TweetEdwin]

I also had this problem with the S4 I own since may 2013, it would keep vibrating every second (or so) when plugged in the original wall-charger..I could not remember doing anything with the phone that might have harmed it (so no water damage). When I read Itsm3GeL's post about blowing out the charging port I remembered doing this to my S2 as well. My S2 had huge amounts of dust in the port by carrying it in the pocket of my jeans every day.

Here's what I did to fix it:

1. Find yourself a thin (sewing) needle.
2. Gently remove the large pieces of dust from the charging port. Do not damage the contacts, make sure you know where those contacts are to be sure you don't damage them.
3. If you have a can of compressed air or one of those dustblowers you can finish it off by blowing out the small dustparticles.

If this works for you, let other people know, it might save them some bucks by not buying a new port.

 

[Kat Green]

hi so I'm having the problem now and what happens is i try to hard reboot it and it comes up with that samsung galaxy s4 active symbol. And after a while its still there like its frozen. now I'm really upset about this because my parents said i wouldn't be able to get another phone even if i bought it my self. :'( so if anybody has any suggestions that would be great thank you. and any other suggestions that haven't been said because i have tried all the ones that i can afford.

 

[VJGADE]

SOLUTION: VACUUM THE USB PORT
After reading through the stuff, I decided to vacuum my Note3. In this case I used by Dyson. Took out the back cover and battery and brushed it while the vacuum is on. Held the vacuum for about a minute at the USB port. Plugged the phone back and it's now charging. I see the green battery come on with the white dots dancing back and forth. I think the port starts to collect dust while in the pockets. So cleaning once a month is the key. Let me know if this helped any.

 

[TweetEdwin]

any other suggestions that haven't been said because i have tried all the ones that i can afford.

You might want to try this, the chance that it will help is very small but it's easy to do:

1. shut your phone off
2. hold [volume down] + [power] until the download screen shows up - looks like this
3. select "Cancel (reboot phone)" by pressing [volume down] once.

 

[Knicxs Kimberly]

hi . did you fix your phone already?

 

[Knicxs Kimberly]

hi . what kind of vacum?