My device will not turn on

Sometimes phones freeze or stop responding. Mobile devices are small computers, and like a computer, if the device is left on for extended periods, it can eventually freeze or stop responding correctly.

Even though this may seem really basic, you'd be surprised how often this simple step will fix many of your phone issues. You can save yourself time and a lot of frustration by simply rebooting your "mini-computer."

Let's start by powering off the device normally. Don't worry, this will not erase any information on your phone.

The steps are similar for most devices. If you need specific steps to power cycle your device, you can find them here:

www.verizon.com/support, select your device, then click the Simulator tab. Under First Time Use, select Turning your Phone On and Off.

Press and hold the Power button, until a window with power options appear. Tap the option to "Power off," then tap "OK." Wait several seconds for the device to completely power off.

Once it's powered off, press and hold the Power button until the device begins to power up. Once the manufacturer logo appears on the screen, you can release the Power button.

If you can't power off the device this way, press the Power and Volume Down buttons at the same time until your device turns off. If there is no response you can also try pressing the Volume Up and Power buttons at the same time. Steps can vary by device.

Once your device turns back on, check to see if it works normally over the next few days.

If this still doesn't solve the issue, check to see if your device has a removable battery. Remove it, and put it back in.

Power your device back on to see if it's working normally.

Okay, so we've tried a few things and your display is still frozen. It's time for a factory reset. Also called a hard reset, a factory reset will restore your device to its original settings. It will remove all personal information, including apps, media, messages and contacts. Remember what your device looked like when you first activated it? That's what it will look like after a factory reset.

So, it's really important to make sure your information is backed up. If you use Verizon Cloud, you can check that your content is backed up through My Verizon. If you have a different cloud service provider, check with them to be sure your content storage is up to date.

There are many ways to back up your contacts, media and other information, so be sure to use the best option for your content. Unfortunately, if you haven't backed up your content, it will be lost when you perform the factory reset.

Verify that your device is backed up before going on to the next step.

Make sure you have all passwords you'll need once it's time to set up your device again. This could be your Gmail, Samsung Account, or Blackberry ID passwords. Failure to enter them after this type of reset may cause your phone to be locked out for security purposes.

Got it? Great. Now it's time to complete the "hard reset."

For most Android™ devices a hard reset is done by going to: Settings: Backup and Reset: Factory Data Reset, Reset Phone: Erase Everything.

If you find the device is damaged, then you do NOT want to have it replaced under warranty, as you can be charged a Damaged Device Fee. Whether your device is under warranty or not, check to see if you have equipment insurance for device replacement on My Verizon.

To help keep your device from freezing again, turn it off for 15-30 seconds and then back on at least once every 48 hours to clear out memory and cache and shut down any apps or processes that may be affecting your device's performance.

For additional help, visit www.verizon.com/support/troubleshooting/