Android 8.0 Oreo has started rolling out to more Samsung devices and the Galaxy A3 got the treat, but the update is basically bricking the device.
The Samsung Galaxy A3 Oreo update is far from a smooth release and those who haven't installed the update yet are highly advised to skip it for now, until Samsung patches things up.
Samsung Oreo Problems
Samsung has been having such issues with other smartphones as well. It had to pull the Galaxy S8 Oreo update due to similar reboot issues, and went through the same process again with the Galaxy S7.
The company has since resolved those issues and resumed the Oreo rollout for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S8. However, it failed to anticipate that similar bootloops and random reboots will plague the Galaxy A3 (2017), which recently received the update.
Galaxy A3 Oreo Update Issues
Samsung Galaxy A3 users who have already installed the Android 8.0 Oreo update have flocked to Samsung's official forums to report that the firmware broke their devices.
"Last night my phone updated to Android 8 - Oreo. And today it is unusable," one user complains. "It keeps restarting again and again, and again. The battery drained in less than 4 hours. It constantly freezes."
More users echo the same issues, noting that after the update, their Galaxy A3 randomly reboots, battery drains in just a few hours, apps are crashing, and a factory reset doesn't seem to be helping at all.
Public Wi-Fi At Fault For Galaxy A3 Reboots?
A number of users note that they encountered these random reboot issues after updating their device to Oreo, but only on public Wi-Fi networks. Several users mention the Eduroam international roaming service for European students, and apparently the phone works without issues on a private Wi-Fi network.
This would suggest that public Wi-Fi networks might have something that interferes and causes the reboots, but it's still odd that it affects just the Galaxy A3, and only after the Oreo update.
For some, meanwhile, the update sent the Galaxy A3 into a bootloop, which is more difficult to address. When this happened with the Galaxy S7, Samsung advised users to take their phones to a support center to have it fixed. The same might apply to Galaxy A3 users who are facing the same issue.
Samsung has yet to officially acknowledge the problems, but it's expected to come up with a solution soon enough, considering that user posts are piling up on its forums.
Have you updated your Galaxy A3 to Android 8.0 Oreo? If so, have you encountered the aforementioned issues? Drop by our comments section below and tell us about your experience.
