We regularly receive questions at the editors about how you can still log in to a android tablet or Android smartphone if you forgot your password. It’s also stressful: if you don’t remember your pattern, you’re afraid you’ll never get into it again. Fortunately, that doesn’t have to be the case. In this article, we mention tablet, but the tips also apply to Android smartphones.
You can protect your tablet in several ways. We are all familiar with a pin code and fortunately this is often a kind of basis. You set your pattern and it is a certain ‘drawing’ that you make with your finger by connecting different balls (in a grid of 3×3). The advantage is that with many tablets, if you have forgotten the pattern, you can still fall back on your PIN code. Another solution might be to take a quick look at the grime on your tablet: sometimes swiping or fingers on the screen can help you remember what your pattern was again (best seen when the screen is off).
If you don’t know that either, there are other solutions. We’ll walk you through all the possible solutions, but it depends on your tablet and your software version which one you have at your disposal.
1. Doing wrong a lot
It sounds strange, but getting your pattern wrong very often can sometimes trigger a certain mode of getting your pattern wrong very often. To do this, your tablet must be connected to the internet and logged in to your Google account. Once you’ve done your pattern wrong a number of times (sometimes it’s 30 times), you’ll get a message that you have to wait 30 seconds before you can go again. Then tap ‘OK’ and tap ‘Forgot pattern’. You will then see a login window where you must enter your username (email address) and password. You will then be redirected to the settings of your tablet and then you can reset your pattern.
2. Back to factory settings
Another solution is to reset your tablet to factory settings. It’s pretty rigorous and means you’ll lose all your photos and messages (if you haven’t backed them up). But if the alternative is no access at all, then that can certainly be a choice. Go to android.com/find or for your Samsung phone to https://findmymobile.samsung.com/ and you can reset your tablet remotely from this menu. Normally you mainly use this if your tablet or phone is stolen or really lost, but it also works for these kinds of situations. You can follow the steps online to reset your tablet or smartphone.
3. Recovery Mode
If those factory settings are all a bit too much for you or if Find My Device does not work, you can also choose to open your tablet in recovery mode. You will also lose all your data. First, turn off your tablet. Then reset it. To do this, press the volume up and the on/off button at the same time and when the tablet starts up again. Then select the recovery mode (or recovery mode) and then choose ‘Restore to factory settings’ or ‘factory reset’ in the menu. Confirm it and your data will be deleted, but you can then set up your tablet as if it were new.
More tips and advice
Unfortunately, there are no more flavors: you have to make do with this. Unfortunately, there is a good chance that if you forget your pattern you will be forced to reset your device and you will lose everything. On the other hand, you can still use your tablet and save new memories.
