Why Does My Phone Keep Restarting?
Why Does My Phone Keep Restarting?
Why Does My Phone Keep Restarting?
Your phone restarts out of nowhere. Maybe it happens once a day, maybe five times. Maybe it gets stuck in a loop where it shows the Apple logo or Samsung screen, restarts, and never actually reaches your home screen. It’s frustrating, and it always seems to happen at the worst possible time.
Random restarts always have a cause. Here’s how to work out what’s going on and when it’s time to bring it in for repair.
Software Causes – The Easy Fixes
Start here, because software problems are the most common trigger and the easiest to rule out.
A Corrupted or Buggy Update
If the restarts started right after a software update, the update itself may be the problem. Apple and Samsung both release patches fairly quickly when major bugs are found. Check if there’s a newer update available and install it – it may fix the issue.
A Rogue App
Think about whether you installed anything new around the time the restarts started. A poorly coded app can cause system instability, especially on Android. Try uninstalling recent apps one at a time to see if the problem stops.
On Android, you can boot into Safe Mode (hold the power button, then long-press “Power Off” on screen). Safe Mode disables all third-party apps. If the phone stops restarting in Safe Mode, you know an app is the cause.
Insufficient Storage
When your phone’s storage is nearly full, things get unpredictable. The operating system needs free space to run properly – to manage temporary files, swap memory, and handle updates. If you’re at 95% capacity, delete some photos, videos, or unused apps and see if that helps.
Hardware Causes – The Ones That Need Repair
If you’ve ruled out software, the problem is almost certainly hardware. These are the most common culprits:
A Failing Battery
This is the number one hardware cause of random restarts. Here’s what happens: as a battery ages, it loses its ability to deliver consistent power. When you do something demanding – opening the camera, loading a game, using GPS – the phone needs a burst of power that the worn battery can’t provide. The phone shuts down to protect itself.
You might notice the restarts happen more often when the battery is below 30-40%, or when it’s cold outside. Both of these reduce the battery’s ability to deliver power even further.
How to check: On iPhone, go to Settings, then Battery, then Battery Health. If Maximum Capacity is below 80%, your battery is the likely cause. Android doesn’t have a built-in equivalent, but apps like AccuBattery can give you an estimate.
We do iPhone battery replacements from £49 and Android battery replacements at similar prices. It’s a straightforward repair that solves the problem in most cases.
Water Damage
Your phone doesn’t need to go swimming to get water damage. Humidity, rain, a steamy bathroom, or a small splash can introduce moisture that causes corrosion on the logic board over time.
Corrosion creates intermittent short circuits. The phone works fine for a while, then a tiny short triggers a restart. These can be tricky because the restarts seem random – there’s no obvious pattern.
If your phone has been exposed to moisture at any point, even months ago, water damage could be the cause. We can open it up and check the board for corrosion.
Loose Internal Connections
A previous drop can dislodge internal connectors without cracking the screen or causing any visible damage. The battery connector, display cable, or other ribbon cables can come partially loose. When they make good contact, the phone works fine. When they shift slightly, the phone restarts.
This is especially common if the restarts happen when you pick up the phone, put it down, or tap it. The slight movement is enough to break and remake the connection.
Boot Loops – When Your Phone Won’t Start Properly
A boot loop is different from random restarts. The phone starts up, shows the logo, then restarts before reaching the home screen. This repeats endlessly.
Boot loops are usually caused by:
- Corrupted system files – sometimes fixable with a factory reset through recovery mode, though you’ll lose data if it’s not backed up.
- Failed update – the update process was interrupted (maybe the battery died mid-update) and left the system in a broken state.
- Hardware failure – a dying storage chip or logic board fault that prevents the system from loading.
If your phone is stuck in a boot loop, it almost always needs professional attention. Bring it in before you try too many things yourself – some recovery attempts can make the situation worse.
When to Bring It In
Try the software fixes first. But bring your phone to us if:
- Restarts happen multiple times per day and software fixes haven’t helped.
- Battery health is below 80% on iPhone, or the phone is more than 2 years old.
- The phone was dropped recently or exposed to moisture.
- You’re stuck in a boot loop and can’t get past the logo screen.
- The restarts happen under load – when using the camera, GPS, or demanding apps.
We repair iPhones, Samsung phones, and other Android devices. Most restart issues are caused by batteries or minor board faults that we can fix the same day.
Repair St Andrews, 1 City Rd, St Andrews, KY16 9XQ. Call 01334 478866 or walk in. Open Monday to Friday 09:30-17:30, Saturday 10:00-17:00.
