Problems with the LG V30 and how to fix them

The LG V30 is one of the most well rounded flagship smartphones currently available. Featuring gorgeous design and top of the line specifications and features, it offers everything we’ve come to expect from a high-end device.

• Hands on with the LG V30
• Where to buy the LG V30

That said, no phone is without its issues. We’ve rounded up some of the common problems faced by LG V30 owners, as well as some potential solutions on how to fix them!

Note: Not every LG V30 owner will face these problems. In fact, it is more than likely that you won’t come across any of these issues at all. 

Problem #1 – Auto brightness issue

Some have found that the auto-brightness doesn’t work as expected, reducing or increasing the brightness too much and making the display difficult to read.

Potential solutions:

• This is a software issue, and a permanent fix will hopefully be available via an upcoming software update. Until then, you can download and use the Lux Auto Brightness app from the Google Play Store. It’s one of the best tools around to get better control over the device’s auto brightness feature.
• You also have the option to disable auto brightness and manually it to your liking. Go to Settings – Display and disable Auto brightness. You can also disable auto brightness and manually set it via the quick settings menu in the notification drop down.

Problem #2 – Performance issues and rapid battery drain

Some users have come across various performance issues, with a sometimes laggy and slow experience. There have also been cases of surprising battery drain.

Potential solutions:

• Download the Greenify app from the Google Play Store. Here, you can see a list of applications that are active on waking the phone. Changing the settings for these apps should help reduce any slowdowns.
• A rogue app could be the cause for any stutter, lag, or battery drain. Boot the device into Safe Mode (you can find the instructions on how to do so below) and see if the problem persists. If not, an application is the issue. You can then either delete the last few apps installed before the problem started, or perform a factory reset and start over. That’s recommended only as a worst-case scenario, since you will lose all your data.
• LG packs a lot of features into the software experience. Disabling these, unless you use them of course, could provide a boost in performance.
• If you plan to buy the LG V30 from a US network carrier, your device may also come with a lot of pre-installed apps. While you won’t be able to delete these apps, you can disable them. Go to the Apps section of the Settings menu, find the relevant application, and disable it there.
• A lot of users have found that the Always On Display seems to be causing excessive battery drain. While this isn’t the case for everybody, those who have come across this problem should disable the AOD until a fix is available.
• You can find a general guide on how to get the most out your smartphone battery here.

Problem #3 – Issues with the fingerprint scanner, face unlock, and voice unlock

Features like face unlock and the fingerprint scanner have generally been fast and accurate for most users, but some have had trouble using these to unlock their devices.

Potential solutions:

• You can simply try deleting and remapping the fingerprints stored on the device, and you can even store the same fingerprint twice, which has worked for some users.
• In other cases, clearing the cache has done the trick. Go to Settings – General – Phone Management – Device Storage and tap on Internal Storage. Then tap on Cached Data and clear it.
• The face unlock seems to work without issue, but users have found that a picture can be used to fool it. To avoid that happening, make sure that you select “Advanced Mode.” If the face unlock doesn’t work, you can scan your face multiple times for improved accuracy.
• Voice unlock has been pretty hit or miss so far. Hopefully a future software update will help improve this feature.

Problem #4 – No app drawer, app scaling

These aren’t really problems, but are hidden in the settings menu and some may not know how to enable these features.

• No app drawer – Out of the box, the LG V30 comes without an app drawer. All your apps are spread out across the home screens, and using folders is one of the ways to keep things organized. Luckily, LG does offer a simple solution to bring back the app drawer. Go to Settings – Display – Home screen – Select home and select “Home & app drawer.”
• App scaling – With the V30 display featuring the odd 18:9 aspect ratio, some apps aren’t utilizing the entire screen and leave black bars at the top and bottom. With this aspect ratio becoming the norm, app developers will continue to fix this problem, but LG has a solution in place as well. Go to Settings – Display – App scaling and you can enable “Full screen (18:9)” an any app that supports it.

Problem #5 – Connectivity issues

As is the case with any new device, you may find yourself facing some connectivity issues with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi issues in particular have been found with the LG V30.

Potential solutions:

Wi-Fi issues

• Turn the device and the router off for at least ten seconds. Then turn them back and retry the connection.
• Go to Settings – Power saving and ensure that this option is turned off.
• Use the Wi-Fi Analyzer to check how crowded your channel is, and switch to a better option.
• Forget the Wi-Fi connection by going to Settings – Wi-Fi and long tapping the connection you want, then selecting “Forget”. Re-enter the details and try again.
• Make sure the router firmware is up to date.
• Make sure the applications and software on the device are up to date.
• Go into Wi-Fi – Settings – Advanced and make a note of your device MAC address, then make sure that it is allowed access in the router’s MAC filter.

Bluetooth issues

• With issues when connecting to the car, check the manufacturer’s manual for the device and the car and reset your connections.
• Ensure that you are not missing a vital part of the connection process.
• Go to Settings – Bluetooth and ensure nothing needs changing
• Go into Settings – Bluetooth and delete all prior pairings, setting them up again from scratch.
• When it comes to issues with multiple device connection, only a future update will be able to address this problem.

Problem #6 – Issues where the only option is to wait for an official software update

These are a list of problems that don’t have any workarounds or fixes currently available, but are known issues that will hopefully be addressed with upcoming software updates.

• Camera issues – Some users have found the front-facing camera to be quite disappointing, with images appearing blurry, a lot of noise, and generally of a poor quality, even in good lighting conditions.
• Video playback issues – Some users have faced a problem where there is only audio and no video playing, with multiple reboots (more than three) required to make it work again. This has been a problem when using the Netflix app as well as Google Play Movies.
• Display/brightness uniformity issue – This seems to be an issue with only certain batches of the device, and it isn’t particularly common yet. If you do have a problem with the display, your best option is to pick up a replacement.

Guides – soft reset, hard reset, booting into Safe Mode, hardware control mode

Soft reset

• When the screen is not responsive, press and hold the power button for 10 seconds, until the device restarts.

Hard reset

• Turn the device off.
• Press and hold the power button and the volume down key simultaneously, and when the LG logo is displayed, release only the power button, and then immediately press the power button again, and wait till the factory reset menu comes up.
• Press the power button to continue, or the volume keys to cancel.

Booting into Safe Mode

• Turn off the phone and restart it. When the LG logo appears, press and hold the volume down key until you see the home screen, which should take it into Safe Mode.
• When the phone is on, press and hold the power button till the shutdown options appear. Press and hold the “Power off” option till a confirmation pops up and tap OK. This will boot the device into Safe Mode.

Hardware control mode

If the display of the phone is broken or damaged, you can still perform some basic functions using the hardware buttons.

• Turn off the phone.
• Press and hold the power button and both volume keys together for more than 10 seconds to enable the hardware key control mode.
• Press the volume keys to scroll to the option you want, and press the power button to confirm.
• To answer a call, you can now press both volume keys at the same time to do so.
• To end a call, press the power button during the call.
• To stop the alarm, press and hold the volume keys together when the alarm rings.

So there you have it. If you have faced any other issues,  let us know in the comments section below and we will try our best to find a fix for you!