When your phone overheats, it can cause permanent damage. Here’s how to cool it off.
Quick Answer: If your phone overheats, turn it off, get it to shade, remove its case, and blow on it to cool it down. You should also remove any unwanted apps and update the applications you use on a daily basis to prevent this from happening.
Your phone can overheat for a number of reasons, whether you left it out in the sun on a hot summer day or you have one too many apps installed. Unfortunately, overheating can deal significant, and sometimes even permanent, damage to your device. Here are a few preventive steps you can take to avoid this type of damage to your device:
- Keep your apps up to date. Start by updating your applications within the Settings folder. An older app might have a bug that’s causing your device to overheat. Bringing it up to date can provide the fix it needs.
- Get rid of unwanted apps. Too many applications running on a device can cause your phone to work harder than it has to, resulting in an overheated device. To help cool it down, go through your apps and discard any that you no longer need or want.
- Keep your phone out of direct sunlight. Hot weather and cell phones don’t always go together. In fact, when it’s in direct sunlight, your phone will actually retain heat, which is why it’s important to keep your device protected from the sun and other heat sources.
Tips for cooling down your phone
If your phone does overheat, here are a few ways you can help it return to a normal temperature:
- Provide shade: If you’ve accidently left your device to bask in the sun’s rays, you should get it to shade as soon as possible to help it cool down.
- Remove the case: To protect your investment, you most likely bought a case for your cell phone. However, when your device overheats, the case can actually trap the heat inside and worsen the problem. Remove it right away so that your phone’s heat vents can help return it to a normal operating temperature.
- Fan it: After getting your phone to shade and taking off its case, blow on it, wave a sheet of paper, or use a household fan to bring the temperature down. You may also want to turn the phone off for the time being.
Avoid the freezer
Never put your phone in the refrigerator or freezer.
Whatever you do, never put your phone in the refrigerator or freezer. Not only will doing so put excessive strain on its components, but you’ll also risk creating a moisture problem inside your device. The resulting condensation can lead to irreversible water damage.
Get something new
Sometimes, older cell phones just can’t keep up with all the software updates and memory-heavy apps. If you’re unable to solve the overheating issue, it might be time to consider a new device on a no-contract plan from Tracfone.