How to Wipe a Phone That Won’t Turn On

Vicky Carter Last Updated: Dec. 15, 2022

“My phone died and won’t turn on or charge!” This sentence is so familiar because many users face this problem regularly. When you have an old phone that doesn’t respond to any actions you take, you can’t perform even the most basic tasks, such as wiping its contents clean to restore a phone to factory settings.

It’s urgent to search for a way to regain access to your phone and fix your Android phone or iPhone that won’t turn on. Ideally, your data should be backed up in the cloud or on a memory card, so you can restore from the backup after wiping the phone. There are several reliable methods for you to wipe an Android or iPhone that won’t turn on.

Also Read: How to Reset an Android Phone without Password >

How to Wipe an Android Phone that Won’t Turn On

1. Erase Android by Find My Device

Google Find My Device is an appropriate method for unlocking, finding lost Android, or deleting all content even if your phone isn’t in your hand. This method only works if you are have previously turned on Find My Device on your Android and are currently signed into a Google account.

Step 1: Go to android.com/find and sign in to your Google account at your computer.

Step 2: Select the name of the device that you have trouble turning on.

Step 3: Choose the Enable lock & erase option from the list.

Step 4: You will see a list of possible actions. Choose Erase Device, and click the OK button. Your content will be deleted permanently.

Choose ERASE DEVICE to Delete All Content

2. Factory Data Reset

This method is the most reliable approach to removing all data from a device. Factory Reset will wipe all your data from the Android and instantly return the phone to factory settings. Here is how to perform this operation:

Step 1: Press and hold Power and Volume Down buttons together for a few seconds until you see the Android logo on the screen.

Step 2: Use Volume Up and Volume Down keys to navigate to Recovery Mode.

Step 3: Press the Power button.

Step 4: Select Wipe data/factory reset and press the Power button again.

Erase the Android Phone in Recovery

How to Fix a Phone that Won’t Turn On

DroidKit is software that can fix various system problems like the phone won’t turn on, Samsung Galaxy getting a black screen, the phone is stuck in a boot loop, etc. Because DroidKit is a complete Android solution to get Android users out of dilemmas. Now DroidKit supports all Samsung phones & tablets.

Except for reapring various system problems, you can wipe a locked screen, recover data from a broken Samsung, etc.

To Fix a Phone that Won’t Turn On:

Step 1. Get the latest version of DroidKit on your computer. Open it and choose System Fix.

Click System Fix Function

Step 2. Connect your phone and head to Start.

Start to Repair Samsung Phone

Step 3. DroidKit will access the PDA code of your Samsung Device Automatically. Then click Download Now button to get the matching firmware from Samsung.

Access Matched PDA Code and Download Firmware

Step 4. After downloading, click Fix Now button. Follow the on-screen instructions to put your phone in Download mode and start the repairing process. Wait for a minute, you will get a successful page as below. Get your phone restarted normally now.

The Repair Process Completed

iPhone 14/13 Won’t Turn On? Wipe with Find My iPhone

If you want to delete all your data from an iPhone you can activate the Erase option through iCloud. The remote deletion process will start the first time your iPhone comes online.

Step 1: Use a computer go to icloud.com/find and sign in to your Apple account.

Step 2: Click All Devices and then select the name of your iPhone.

Step 3:  Answer the security question or enter the verification code and continue.

Step 4: Tap on the Erase iPhone icon.

Erase iPhone that Won’t Turn on

Wipe iPhone by Entering Recovery Mode

Recovery mode in combination with iTunes is another effective way to delete all data from an unresponsive iPhone. Just follow the recommended steps and this task will be completed without the need to start the phone.

Step 1: Press and quickly release the Volume up button.

Step 2: Press and quickly release the Volume down button.

Step 3: Press and hold the side button until you see the Apple logo.

Step 4: Press and hold the Home and Sleep/Wake buttons simultaneously for half a minute.

Step 5: Open iTunes on a computer and you will see a message that your iPhone is in Recovery Mode.

Step 6: Choose Restore and let your computer do the rest of the job. All data on your iPhone will be erased.

Further Reading: How to Fix iTunes Not Recognizing iPhone in Recovery Mode >

How to Quickly Get an Old Phone to Turn on?

Before you decide to take any drastic action, try some simple ones. Sometimes a phone might be functional but is disabled because of software glitches. We listed a few useful tips to try right away:

1. Check your battery power. Sometimes, your phone died and won’t turn on just because of that. Try to take it out on an older device with a removable battery. Wait a few seconds and return it to its place.
2. Charge your battery for 15-30 minutes. It may be discharged and there is not enough power to turn on the phone. Also, check your charger and cable connections.
3. Press the Turn on button on the device and hold it down for several seconds. The contacts on an older phone might be damaged and extra pressure might be needed.
4. Take out the SIM card from the phone and then insert it back. This might reset the contact between the card and electronic circuits in the phone.

If the smartphone doesn’t respond to any of these options, you need to wipe your phone as the solution of last resort. In the next segments, we present several ways to do this.

Conclusion

It’s good to know how to wipe a phone that dead or won’t turn on, to protect privacy. Therefore, depending on which brand or operating system you have, you can use some of the methods we described and fix the situation. You can factory reset an Android or iPhone that won’t turn on. Of course, DroidKit is software that enables you to fix a phone the won’t turn on. Click and free download it now.

Vicky Carter

Member of iMobie Inc., is also a more than 8-year user of iPhone, iPad and iMac, like to fix all kinds of iOS and Mac OS problems.