As a Nexus 7 owner, I’ve been dealing with a few issues since receiving the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update, namely, a slow-charging Nexus 7 that takes what seems like forever to load. However, that issue didn’t prepare me for the trouble that I ran into earlier today with my Nexus 7 wherein an issue rendered my tablet useless, that is until I found a fix.
Read: New Nexus 7 Tablet Will Use Snapdragon S4 Pro Processor.
It had been a few days since I last charged my Nexus 7. Last week, I had been using it as normal, and then, as is usually the case, the battery ran out over the weekend meaning I needed to charge it today.
The Nexus 7 tablet has an issue where the device becomes unusable, until the user applies a fix.
I decided to do that just a short time ago and plugged my Nexus 7 into my MacBook Air as I normally would and to my surprise, the Nexus 7 booted on without me touching the power button. A little odd, but nonetheless, I allowed the device to power up. And it did, though the screen flickered a bit right where the lock screen widgets are placed. Again, a little odd, but I figured it was because I hadn’t charged my Nexus 7 up for a few days.
Then, my device started to shut down by itself. As someone who has experienced random reboots in the past, on my iPhone 5 even, this didn’t disturb me. I just thought it was powering down because it didn’t have enough juice. However, a few seconds later, I jumped back, as my Nexus 7 starting hissing out a static noise with static roaming around the display.
After 10 to 15 seconds of me thinking that the battery was about to explode, the noise died as did the static. I was left with a blank black display. You can see the issue on video below.
Turns out, the issue would happen again, and again, and again, well, you get the point. It rendered my Nexus 7 completely useless. So, I did a little troubleshooting like anyone who might be in danger of losing their tablet would and found that I was not alone, that others were having similar issues. But was there a fix?
Fortunately, after shooting that video, there is a fix that worked and returned my Nexus 7 to a usable state. The fix comes courtesy of Google itself, by way of Android Central forums user jcoppola33 who has spelled out a fix and here is how those who encounter the very random and very disturbing (that noise was scary) issue should handle it.
1. Plug Nexus 7 to a wall charger.
2. Immediately press Volume Down and Power at the same time to reach the bootloader
3. From bootloader menu, press Volume Down until you see “Power Off Device.”
4. Press the Power button to select the ‘Power off device’ option
5. Once your device is off, unplug the charger and then plug it back into the device.
This fix is for the device going into sleep mode but a static hiss, endless cycle of rebooting and static lines on the display seems like it could be something else.
For me, that simple fix worked. My Nexus 7 now shows a battery meter when powered off instead of cycling endlessly and the device itself now works properly instead of shutting itself off.
If you always charge from a USB port, no wonder your Nexus 7 charges slowly! Its designed to be charged vy a 2A charger! They can be trickled charged, but yes it takes a lot longer.
Wish I had known this two weeks ago I had the same situation. I religiously charge my nexus 7 when its getting low on battery, but after an extended stay in hospital I got home and it was dead. I plugged in the charger and got the same result. I was crapping myself as I had only bought it a month or so before. The store I bought it from would have nothing to do with it as they said they had a lot returned with the same issue and told me to contact Google. After a while I found a number that worked but it was a US number (all the UK ones were dead out gave other numbers to call instead that were also dead!) All the guy there said was he had heard of it and the only solution was a curved factory reset by holding the power button and volume buttons.
One thing can you only apply this fix after the issue happens or can you do it now to avoid it again in the future
The problem is that the n7 allows the battery to overdrain whicb undervolts the core and results in the crashing cycle. Be aware that even plugged into a laptop and say its charging it might not be. The screen and games can use more than 500ma. In that case the n7 will not shutdown to protect the battery. Also letting a lipo battery drain damages it.
even the model in display at store couldn’t turn on.
I am so frustrated with the Nexus 7 that I’m thinking of crushing it.
It is painfully slow. lighting changes constantly. text size changes while scrolling. I have been patiently trying to find something that is can do well. No luck so far.Can’t copy and paste. Yahoo finance app is crippled, same for CBNC app.
Complete junk. the first $100 offer I get, this pig has anew home. It’s past the 15 day return policy,no answer at customer service. so I will have to get Visa involved
I would have expected better from Google.
Strange.
I’ve had a Nexus for 6 months and it is fast and works perfectly.
The lighting changes changes if you set that as an option which is hardly surprising.
Thank goodness I read your post whilst my nexus7 was working. When this happened to me I had to use an iPad to find your post so that I could get my nexus working again.
I tried all of the above and my N7 still charges really slowly – 8% to 13% in 24 hours. Not happy at all. will charge for a few more days then its back to comet!
I’ve read this elsewhere and have tried it three times with no luck.
Btw I’ve always charged it from the wall outlet and I’ve always been startled at how slowly it charges. But I could live with it.
I’m going to leave it plugged in overnight and will try this again tomorrow. Like a previous commenter, I was glad I had another device (my iPhone) so I could look up this problem! Sooo glad I’m not alone in this!
Now I have that staticy screen and I can no longer even get OT to the bootloading screen at all!
Thank goodness you posted this! I was having the exact same problem with mine. It SEEMS to be working properly, though I’m not sure. At least it’s not automatically powering on, and is showing the battery charging symbol.
Thanks for the post. I have read this post via the Nexus 7 drippler when my nexus 7 was running hale and healthy. Just now I ran into this issue – although the problem and the causes for the problem are not exactly similar. I searched for your post again from my laptop and applied the fix as mentioned here ( I had to ‘volume up’ to get to the power-off option, btw!) and my nexus 7 is back working as usual.
thanks for the useful post…
Yes I have a brilliant bit of kit that was rendered rubbish by 4.2.2. Takes forever to charge, runs down quickly. I’ve tried nearly everything apart from hurling it onto a hard surface. After weeks of searching I’ve come to realise that there are thousands affected and probably thousands who are not!
Google need to address this sooner rather than later, and appreciate we are not a captive audience.
Advice for who use N7
Never let it discharge completely at least 5% and don’t let it charge overnight also only 4H is enough.
bagate
Like Jules said it charges at a rate of between 8 and 13% (sometimes less/more), consequently it takes all night to charge. Mine has never been discharged below 20%.
It went on the charger at 45% last night and has taken 10 hours to reach 100%. After 4H it was sitting at 60%.
Problems only started with 4.2.2.
I charge mine overnight every night. Never had a problem.
My Nexus 7 isn’t charging properly
If your tablet isn’t charging properly, please confirm that you’re using the charger that came with your Nexus 7 tablet. The Nexus 7 charger is rated at 2 A, whereas most phone chargers deliver a current of 1A or less.
If you’re using a charger rated less than 2A, your tablet may charge very slowly or may not charge at all.
Charge a drained battery
If your Nexus 7 tablet’s battery drains completely, you can recharge it by following these steps:
Connect the charger to your Nexus 7, then plug the charger in to an outlet.
Press and hold Power until the device powers on, then immediately press and hold Volume Down (while still pressing Power). You will see the word Start with an arrow drawn around it.
Press Volume down until you find Power off, then press Power to select that option.
When your tablet is off, disconnect the charger, then reconnect it.
You should see a battery on your screen that indicates your tablet is charging.
http://goo.gl/lV8W7