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Samsung S20FE5G fingerprint sensor broken by SYSTEM software update; they want to charge $75 for out of warranty repair

38,318 291 October 3, 2023 at 10:11 AM
Samsung S20FE5G fingerprint sensor broken by SYSTEM software update; they want to charge $75 for out of warranty repair

Two months ago, I applied a routine monthly system software update to my S20FE5G phone which was 4 months out of warranty.

Immediately afterward, the fingerprint sensor stopped working and hasn't worked since. I get a message every time the phone wakes up: "The fingerprint sensor is not responding. Please try again later."

I thought they might fix it with another update, but they have NOT with 3 subsequent updates.

Over the last 2 months I have contacted Samsung a half dozen times, including a waste of time getting runarounds with TEXT support. They now claim they have NO RECORD of the original case ID# I was given.

Yesterday I called and spoke with Cindy who offered to send me a box to ship the phone back for repair. She was unable to give me an estimate for the cost and I suggested they should repair it for free since it was caused by THEIR system software update. She said she would request that, but never got back to me.

Today I called again and was told there would be NO EXCEPTIONS for an expired warranty despite the problem being caused by THEIR SYSTEM SOFTWARE UPDATE.

I told them I would take the $75 they wanted to fix my phone and apply it to a NEW PHONE from a different vendor.

BUYER BEWARE: Samsung can DAMAGE your phone with a system software update and REFUSE to take responsibility for the DAMAGE.
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Joined Dec 2017
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> bubble2 777 Posts
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zeroflight
10-03-2023 at 02:30 PM.
10-03-2023 at 02:30 PM.
Did you force-close it (via Stop), or clear the data & cache on it, then re-run updates?
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Joined Dec 2017
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> bubble2 777 Posts
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zeroflight
10-03-2023 at 02:31 PM.
10-03-2023 at 02:31 PM.
Another is to clear the cache partition.

1.Turn off the unit.
2.Press and hold the volume up button and press and hold the on/off button. When the Android logo is displayed, release all keys ("Installing system update" is displayed before displaying the Android system recovery menu options).
3.Press the volume down key repeatedly to highlight "wipe cache partition".
4.Press the Power key to select. Press the Volume Down button to highlight "Yes" and press the Power button to select. When the wiping of the cache partition is completed, "Reboot System Now" is highlighted. 5.Press the Power button to reboot the unit.
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Joined Aug 2013
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> bubble2 38,318 Posts
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Original Poster
tedcruz
10-04-2023 at 09:09 AM.
10-04-2023 at 09:09 AM.
Quote from zeroflight :
Another is to clear the cache partition.

1.Turn off the unit.
2.Press and hold the volume up button and press and hold the on/off button. When the Android logo is displayed, release all keys ("Installing system update" is displayed before displaying the Android system recovery menu options).
3.Press the volume down key repeatedly to highlight "wipe cache partition".
4.Press the Power key to select. Press the Volume Down button to highlight "Yes" and press the Power button to select. When the wiping of the cache partition is completed, "Reboot System Now" is highlighted. 5.Press the Power button to reboot the unit.
Yes, Samsung tech support had me perform numerous trouble shooting steps; none of which fixed the problem.

I stopped at doing a factory reset, until I get an image backup, due to the huge investment in recreating all my app logins.
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Joined Aug 2013
Lucifier in the Flesh
> bubble2 38,318 Posts
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Original Poster
tedcruz
10-10-2023 at 04:03 PM.
10-10-2023 at 04:03 PM.
Quote from tedcruz :
Yes, Samsung tech support had me perform numerous trouble shooting steps; none of which fixed the problem.

I stopped at doing a factory reset, until I get an image backup, due to the huge investment in recreating all my app logins.
I finally did a factory reset at Samsung tech's urging and promise that it would roll back the software update.

I should never have listened to him, cause after I did it (fixed nothing), I remembered that I'd already determined some time ago that there is NO ROLLING BACK system software from a factory reset.

That would take a system image stored in the phone and no manufacturer will invest in that extra memory space. Frown

AKA, he LIED.
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