The site has been receiving a lot of traffic in regards to Samsung Galaxy S3 battery issues. For those of you with minor issues such as battery life and charge times, you should read our How to Extend Galaxy S3 Battery Life post. If you’re experiencing something more than normal battery drains due to heavy application use, background syncs and bright display settings, then you might be having the same issue I had with my Galaxy S3 in 2012.
If your S3 is draining rapidly while idle and getting very hot, then you should contact Samsung customer service. From what I’ve gathered, some Galaxy S3 units were shipped with a faulty PBA that allows power to run freely from the battery to the charge input. The margin for error when packing powerful hardware into such a small device is high, but Samsung will make good on their mistake.
I simply called Samsung’s support center. and talked to a live, english-speaking tech support member. He quickly listened to my problem, and emailed a UPS shipping label within minutes. He also instructed me NOT TO RETURN THE BACK PLASTIC COVER. He said it wouldn’t be returned if I did. After packaging my device, I dropped it off at a UPS drop-box. Within a few days, I could see the activity of my device via Samsung’s status support page. You can actually see updates of what’s going on with your phone at their facility in Texas.
When the unit was repaired, the status stated that the PBA was replaced in the phone. Before my problems with the phone, I only had it for two weeks. I’ve had it back now for months, and it works perfectly. Problems with new hardware are common during new releases, but not all companies stand behind their product. My experience with Samsung customer support was very pleasant compared to other hardware companies I’ve dealt with in the past.
If you’re S3 is only lasting a few hours or less on a full charge, then your device probably has this issue. If these symptoms include the device getting hot while just sitting, then you are most definitely experiencing a faulty PBA.
Be sure you’re having a hardware issue before you contact Samsung, but these symptoms are a definitive sign that your Galaxy S3 needs serviced by Samsung technicians. For all other battery issues, you just need to become a better Android user. Be sure to reduce auto syncs of services that you can easily update manually such as Gmail. Also be sure to hold the home key from time to time, and remove your recently used apps. This will free memory, and reduce battery usage from cached application processes.
Once you’ve ruled out software related issues, if the device still drains rapidly and heats up while not in use, then it’s time to contact Samsung customer support. It may seem like a headache, but your device is probably under warranty, and their service representatives are top-notch. Good luck, and if your device does need repairs, you’ll love it as much as the day you got it when it’s returned as good as new.
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