Factory Reset Vs. Recovery Mode (Hard Reset)

[w2tq]

My Google Nexus 7 tablet is running Android version 5.1.1 - the latest the hardware will accept. At times, the device is sluggish and Chrome, Firefox, and the Settings panel occasionally crash, even after a full charge. I have removed every app not in use and driven down the cache. Currently, the internal storage is showing 16.40 GB free out of a total of 27.56 GB. The tablet otherwise functions well.

I have seen advice on various sites about resetting by performing a factory reset or using the recovery mode. Everything of importance is stored elsewhere, so a complete erasure is of no concern. What is unclear is whether I would see a performance from either of these procedures.

Any advice, including potential downsides, would be appreciated.

 

[bonsaibarrie]

I would do a factory reset from the tablet's settings if the tablet is that sluggish,it will mean that you will have to sign in to your wifi network and your Google account again and install the apps you want to use

Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk

 

[w2tq]

Thank you. I am not concerned about having to reload apps - probably just a few this time given my current usage of the device.

Do you recommend that over the so-called hard reset (recovery mode)? If so, please let me know why the factory reset is preferable. Thanks.

 

[bonsaibarrie]

The factory reset via the settings is just easier to do than doing the the factory reset via recovery option(hard reset).

Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk

 

[w2tq]

Thank you.

 

[Traveller]

My Google Nexus 7 tablet is running Android version 5.1.1 - the latest the hardware will accept. At times, the device is sluggish and Chrome, Firefox, and the Settings panel occasionally crash, even after a full charge. I have removed every app not in use and driven down the cache. Currently, the internal storage is showing 16.40 GB free out of a total of 27.56 GB. The tablet otherwise functions well.

I have seen advice on various sites about resetting by performing a factory reset or using the recovery mode. Everything of importance is stored elsewhere, so a complete erasure is of no concern. What is unclear is whether I would see a performance from either of these procedures.

Any advice, including potential downsides, would be appreciated.

I believe you have done everything you can to reduce your memory footprint. Unfortunately for you, I don't believe a factory reset of any kind, whether through the settings or in recovery, will be of aid to you here. Both of them do the same thing, with the only difference being how you get there.

Your biggest issue is one you cannot solve: RAM. 2GB I feel no longer offers the optimum experience you once had with the device. The main cause of this is Chrome and Firefox in 2020 use up more storage space and require more horsepower than they did seven years ago when your tablet was still new. The combination of the browser and other apps running in the background that you cannot disable are the cause of the notification shade force closing on you when you try to use it. There simply isn't enough available RAM for the shade to run.

There are lightweight browsers on the Play Store, e.g. Via browser, that interface with the built-in Android System Webview to create a fully usable browser while using minimal resources. I would look into switching your browser rather than performing a factory reset. There is no harm however if you want to perform the reset, especially if you don't have anything of importance on the device.

 

[w2tq]

Traveller -

Thank you. Given the device's age and hardware limitations, I've had a nagging feeling all along that a reset might not result in a performance improvement. Moreover, the tablet is a first generation Nexus 7 and has only 1 GB of RAM, not 2 GB. A system monitor I just installed shows that the device is using about half of the free RAM, i.e., ~500 MB.

The device was never intended to be a primary platform; I use workstations/desktop PCs for nearly all of my work. The tablet was purchased to play mp3 files and now, given the closure of libraries until quite recently, to read books from Overdrive. Further, I am restricted to using Chrome for this purpose, so a lightweight browser would not be assistance, but thanks for the suggestion.

For now, I am will not take any action.

Thanks again.

 

[Traveller]

Why are you restricted to using Chrome? Overdrive has an app on the Play Store, and its current version is compatible with Android 4 and later.

 

[w2tq]

Yes, indeed, there is just such an app. Inexplicably, it stopped working in mid-June and I received the following message:
SUSE Paste
That's in part what kicked off my investigation of the tablet's performance.

Even though OverDrive specs state that Libby is supported by Android v.5 and up, my 5.1.1 install is apparently not - or not anymore. As I made no changes from the day before (or updates to the device or its software), I suspect that the developers rolled out a change to Libby's code causing it to fail on my device.

Now I'm using the Chrome-embedded app, but for the reasons you noted, the overhead penalty is likely leading to crashes and the need to open the browser multiple times before the book loads (the wi-fi connection is fairly solid - and I'm the only one using it).

I am working with the executive director of the library cooperative through which OverDrive is provided to resolve this issue. But OverDrive hasn't been able to answer my very simple question - is my version of Android still supported? To further assist OverDrive, I forwarded a series of screen shots showing the sequence. The public health situation has probably not helped matters. And the app's development may well have been outsourced to another entity.

 

[Traveller]

Older versions of the app are available for download at APKMirror. OverDrive APKs - APKMirror

Find the one that works for your device, install it, and then disable automatic updates to the app in the Play Store.

 

[w2tq]

Thank you. I'll look into the earlier versions. If I'm successful, I'll compare the loading against Chrome and report back.

 

[EricaR]

Factory reset is the best option to resolve your problem at the moment . But most probably, sluggishness pop up when time passes.If you can use app such as Easy cache wiper (In play store, root need), you can keep cache cleaning regularly which cause to device sluggish