The Nokia Lumia 1020 is certainly not without its foibles, but there’s no doubting the credentials of that stunning camera. We’ve been hanging out in dingy forums, wading through customer support, and investigating the downsides of the Lumia 1020. Our aim in this mission? To bring you a set of possible fixes for what ails your smartphone. These are the common Lumia 1020 problems that we found and our top suggestions for how to overcome them.
Problem: Rapid battery drain and overheating
Modern smartphones, like the Lumia 1020, are packed with features and people use them for longer than ever before. That tends to result in a major drain on the battery, and the device can also get very warm. There are a few things you can do to reduce the strain. Check out our tips on saving smartphone battery life for some ideas. If you still have persistent overheating and battery drain problems with your Lumia 1020 then there are other things you can try.
Potential solutions:
- Go to Settings > battery saver and choose when it should be activated. Bear in mind it will reduce updates, pause some live tiles, and prevent apps from running in the background.
- Use the Back key to exit apps so they are not left running in the background.
- Make sure your battery is actually fully charged via Settings > battery saver > battery information.
- Hold the volume down and power buttons for around 15 seconds to hard reset the Lumia 1020.
- Make sure that your operating system is up to date via Settings > phone update > check for updates.
- Make sure that your apps are up to date. A rogue app could be the cause of your battery drain so note any correlation between problems and specific apps, and consider uninstalling any likely culprits. You can also go to Settings > applications and swipe left to Background tasks. Disable problem apps from running in the background.
- You could try a factory reset to completely wipe your phone, but you will lose everything so back up anything important first. Go to Settings > about > reset your phone and see if that helps. Be sure to pay attention to any changes in behavior after you install new apps.
- If nothing we’ve suggested works, you may have a faulty battery. Contact your carrier, retailer, or Nokia and ask about a replacement handset.
Problem: Random reboots or freezes
A few Lumia 1020 owners have run into issues with their phones randomly rebooting or freezing. The Lumia 1020 may turn itself off and on again during use, or even at rest. It may also freeze and become unresponsive. There’s a good chance this is related to specific apps or services.
Potential solutions:
- Make sure that you use the Back key to exit apps so that they aren’t running in the background.
- Try a soft reset by holding the volume down and power buttons until the phone vibrates.
- Make sure Windows Phone is up to date via Settings > phone update > check for updates.
- Check that your apps are up to date as well.
- Try a hard reset to wipe your phone (back up everything important first). You can do this via Settings > about > reset your phone. If your phone is unresponsive, you can reset by pressing and holding the volume down button and connecting your charger. You should see an exclamation mark on screen. Now press these keys in order: volume up, volume down, power, and volume down again.
- If you still have a frequent problem, take it back to your retailer or carrier, or contact Nokia and try to get a replacement handset.
Problem: Poor voice call quality
A number of Lumia 1020 owners have run into issues with call quality. It may sound like the other caller has a lisp, or there’s a rustling noise or static during calls. The other caller may also find that your voice is cutting in and out during the call.
Potential solutions:
- Using the wrong SIM or having a damaged SIM or a SIM that isn’t inserted correctly could contribute to this issue. Try changing the SIM card and test it.
- There could be a hardware fault, in which case you’ll need to get a replacement handset. Take it back to your carrier, retailer, or contact Nokia.
Problem: Screen orientation locked
You can’t currently lock the screen orientation in Windows Phone 8 devices, but there is a rumor that the ability is coming in the next update. In any case, some people have found their screen orientation is getting locked in landscape or portrait and no longer responds to the device being rotated.
Potential solutions:
- It may be that an app you were using locked the screen orientation. If that’s the case then a soft reset will fix it. Just hold down the volume down and power buttons until your phone vibrates. Let go and it will restart.
- If that doesn’t work then your gyroscope could be faulty and you’ll need to take the phone in for repair or get a replacement.
Problem: Wi-Fi keeps dropping out
A lot of people have been complaining about their Wi-Fi connection slowing to a crawl or cutting off altogether when the screen times out. Wi-Fi issues are very common, but this could be caused by settings.
Potential solutions:
- Go to Settings > wifi > advanced and tick Keep wifi on when screen times out. This is a battery saving feature.
- If that doesn’t work then try turning off your router and soft reset your Lumia 1020.
- Make sure that your router firmware is up to date and that your phone software is up to date via Settings > phone update > check for updates.
- Check up on how to change channels on your router and turn your MAC filter off.
That’s all folks, but if you have another Lumia 1020 issue or you’ve found an alternative fix for a Lumia 1020 problem that we haven’t listed, then please share your experience in the comments.
