Motorola Moto G20 common issues and how to solve them

The Moto G20 is a new budget-friendly entry in the Moto G series. And, for the price, it’s quite a good device with competitive hardware and clean software experience. Nonetheless, there’s no Android handset without issues. So, today, we decided to list the most common issues plaguing Moto G20 users and provide some solutions, where possible. Learn more below.

Note: All the issues mentioned in this article are individually reported cases, which doesn’t mean any of the problems will occur on other devices. If you’re looking to buy this phone, DO NOT take these issues into account.

Table of contents:

1. Randomly getting a black screen
2. Can’t download images from WhatsApp
3. Mobile data not working on the Moto G20
4. Moto G20 is not charging
5. Audio problems on the Moto G20
6. Battery draining on the Moto G20
7. Moto G20 hangs and freezes
8. Common troubleshooting steps for Moto devices

1. Randomly getting a black screen

Some users on the official support forum report black screen issues. It seems that, although similar, there are two distinct issues behind random black screen occurrences.

For some, the black screen occurs during calls and this is probably either a proximity sensor calibration issue or a system bug with the Phone app. To fix it, try to restart your device, open Moto Help, test the Proximity sensor, and make sure that a screen protector is not causing the problem. If that doesn’t help, reset your device to factory settings.

The second problem seems to be just a boot loop issue, where the Moto G20 reboots on its own from time to time. If this is something you’ve experienced, resetting your device to factory settings is the best approach. Also, you should probably report the problem to your phone dealer and ask for a replacement if the issue persists after the factory reset.

2. Can’t download images from WhatsApp

One of the Moto G20 issues concerns downloading images from WhatsApp or other third-party instant messengers. The problem here is, most likely, caused by permissions or a temporary halt of the app. To resolve it swiftly, you’ll need to reset the app. Just make sure to back up your WhatsApp chat. After that, here’s what you need to do:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Apps.
3. Open WhatsApp from the list of available apps.
4. Tap Storage.
5. Clear data and restart your device.
6. Open WhatsApp, sign in, restore the backup, and grant all necessary permissions. In this case, the focus is on Storage permission.

3. Mobile data not working on the Moto G20

Some Moto G20 users have had a hard time with Mobile data (LTE/4G). It seems that the device automatically switches to EDGE which is much slower than 4G. If you have this exact problem or similar Moto G20 issues, make sure to check the system settings.

Navigate to Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile Network > Preferred network type and make sure that 4G/LTE is set as the default option.

If that doesn’t help, you can reset network settings. Of course, it’s important that you have good network coverage for mobile data to work at the highest available speed. Try disabling Bluetooth and NFC.

If the issue persists, check our article that talks about Mobile data issues where we offer some viable solutions.

4. Moto G20 is not charging

There’s hardly anything worse than buying a brand new device and it has some factory fault. However, maybe there’s something you can do to fix it. In this case, users report that Moto G20 just stops charging after some time. Stick to the original charger and make sure that you run the latest firmware.

This is more likely a software issue and it seems that updates fixed it for most users. On the other hand, if you still can’t charge your device, report the issue to the retailer or carrier and ask for a replacement or repairs.

5. Audio problems on the Moto G20

Some users report that the in-call audio quality is really lackluster. Rarely, do they hear a cracking and distorted sound while conversing, but the more common issue is that the other side can’t hear them clearly or not at all.

Again, check the network coverage, make sure that nothing is blocking the microphone or the earpiece speaker, and restart your device.

6. Battery draining

Although it comes with a large IPS LCD 90Hz display, the Moto G20 should do quite well in the battery department. The 5000 mAh is good enough to keep you through the day and more. However, some users report that the battery is not holding up to promises. It seems that the idle drain is much bigger than expected.

If you want to improve battery life on the Moto G20, follow these steps:

• Disable background apps. You can use a third-party app to do so. The one that comes to mind is Greenify.
• Bad network coverage leads to constant signal-hunting which leads to battery depletion.
• Disable Auto-brightness and set preferred brightness manually.
• Disable Location Services and Bluetooth when you are not actively using them.
• Reset your device to factory settings.

7. Moto G20 hangs and freezes

Finally, we can’t skip on scarce but still present reports about sluggish performance and freezing. This happens while gaming, but some users report that the Moto G20 hangs when watching YouTube videos or just regularly navigating through the UI.

If that’s what happens to you, too, try some of these steps to reduce hangs and freezes on the Moto G20:

• Disable the Battery saver and re-enable it.
• Reboot the device.
• Limit the number of apps working in the background. You can do so in the Developer options, under the Background process limit.
• Lower the Animations in Developer options.
• Boot into Safe Mode and, if the device performs better, uninstall recently installed apps.
• Reset your Moto G30 to factory settings.

8. Common troubleshooting steps for Moto devices

Enter Developer Options

1. Open Settings.
2. Select System.
3. Open About phone.
4. Tap on Build number 7 times. You should get a message informing you that you are now a developer.
5. Get back to the main menu of Settings and, at the bottom, you should see Developer options.

Boot into Safe Mode

1. Press and hold the Power button to bring out the Power menu.
2. Tap and hold the Power off icon until you are prompted to enter Safe mode.
3. Tap OK.
4. To get out of Safe mode, just reboot your device again.

Reset Network settings

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose the Network & Internet.
3. Tap on the 3-dots menu and choose Network settings reset.
4. Confirm and tap Reset.

Reset the device to factory settings

Note: We don’t recommend doing this if you’re not entirely sure what you’re doing. To learn more, we suggest reading our article on the topic o factory reset.

1. First, navigate to Settings > System > Backup and back up all your settings and app data. Besides that, make sure to connect your device to a PC and back up all your media. You can also use Google Photos to back up all your photos from the device. You’ll need your Google Account password later.
2. Once you are certain that everything can be safely deleted, in Settings > System > Advanced, choose Reset options.
3. Select Erase all data (factory reset).
4. Confirm the selection. Your device will reboot and after some time, you’ll start from scratch.

And, with that, we can conclude this article. Do you have any additional issues or need more help with the ones we listed above? Tell us in the comments section below.

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Editor’s note: This article was originally published in July 2021. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.