There are many reasons why people sometimes perform a factory reset or hard reset on their smartphones. For one, a hard reset deletes all user data as well as apps from the device, which protects the user from sharing personal information when selling their phone.
Secondly, a hard reset may be a last-resort solution for fixing a device that’s on the fritz. Constantly installing multiple third-party apps and clogging the phones memory is sure to cause it to work slower and slower by the day. It’s not uncommon that the phone becomes faulty after a while.
Since it’s hard to pinpoint the exact apps that are causing the problem, sometimes a hard reset is the only card you have left to play.
Difference Between Hard Reset and Soft Reset
A soft reset is basically a reboot of the device. This action doesn’t delete personal information, user data, apps, or anything else. A soft reset is often used to solve Wi-Fi issues and frozen screens, as well as to close apps that are blocked and unresponsive.
Steps Necessary for Hard Reset
- Hold the Power Button Until the Phone Is Off
- Hold the Power Button and the Volume Down Button for a Few Seconds
- Wait to See Fastboot Mode on the Screen
- Let Go of the Buttons
- Select Recovery Mode
- Wait for the Android Robot Image to Pop Up
- Hold Down the Power Button and Then Press the Volume Up Button
- Select Wipe Data/Factory Reset
- Select Yes
- Select Reboot System Now
Use the volume keys to select different modes and options and press the Power button to accept them.
Don’t hold the Power button for more than two seconds. You don’t have to hold the Volume Up button; just pressing it once is enough.
Alternative
If the previous steps seem complicated, there is an alternative. You can also do a ‘powered on’ factory reset on the Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3 XL.
- Tap the Settings App
- Tap System
- Select Advanced
- Tap Reset Options
- Select Erase All Data
- Tap Reset Phone
- Tap Erase Everything
After choosing to erase all data, you will have to wait for a few minutes for the factory reset to be completed and for the reboot process to finish. Once the process is completed, you can begin setting up the device again.
You may be wondering why someone would use this method. Simply put, it’s a lot easier to get to the settings you need to make than having to worry about holding down specific buttons for different periods of time. Besides, what if your volume buttons are faulty?
A Final Thought
Although a factory reset might restore your Pixel 3 to tip-top shape, don’t forget that all your data (such as photos, passwords, media, contacts, and everything else that you added to the phone) will get erased. It is also important to note that hard resets don’t always solve hardware problems, so make sure that your issues are fixable when using this method.
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