• The computer does not see the new phone via USB. The computer does not recognize the mobile phone. What to do

    As a rule, if the computer does not see the Android phone connected to it, then the problem looks like this: the charging process is displayed on the smartphone screen, but there is no access to the files located on it and to the device itself. In this article, you will learn why the computer does not see the Samsung phone via USB.

    The reasons may be the following:

    Damage to the USB cable

    A cable malfunction may not always be immediately visible. Very often, the charging wire can fail without obvious external signs. The reason for this is the low-quality devices that the market is teeming with.

    To check the functionality of the USB cable, just connect it to another computer, and for greater reliability, to another phone. If these actions do not produce results, then the wire needs to be replaced.

    Damage to the computer USB port

    It is impossible to repair the port without the help of a specialist, but you can check it simply. If the computer does not recognize the smartphone, then you need to connect through another USB port. If it helps, it means the cause has been found, if not, let’s move on.

    System problems in the phone

    Sometimes the problem of lack of connection can be solved very simply: by turning off the smartphone, removing the battery from it for a few seconds, returning it to its place and turning on the device. Simple and effective.

    Phone jack failure

    If the phone has been damaged by water, or its connector has been mechanically damaged, then this may be the problem. Alas, if cleaning the socket does not give any results, then only replacing the damaged part will help.

    Incorrect connection settings

    In the device settings, you need to find the menu for USB connection to a computer. In many Samsung models, it is located at “Memory” > “Properties”. If by default the checkbox is next to using USB as a modem, uncheck it, find the “Media device” item and activate it.

    Driver problems

    They are solved by installing drivers from the “native” disk, or downloading them from the manufacturer’s official website.

    Also, the problem may be that power is turned off on some ports on the computer. You can check this by going to the “Control Panel”, finding the item “Hardware and Sound”> “Power Options”> “Power”. Next, open the appropriate settings and click on change additional parameters. In the menu that opens, open the USB options, and then the options for temporarily disabling the USB port. Change its value to “Prohibited” and activate it with the “Apply” button.

    Problems with device drivers

    In the “Device Manager”, the “Portable devices” item should be without any warning signs. You should also check the functionality of the device through “Properties”. If it is not there, then you need to reinstall the corresponding driver.

    Another solution would be to update your smartphone drivers. On the Samsung Galaxy A5, as well as on other models of the brand, this can be done using the Samsung Kies software.

    Android OS malfunction or viruses

    In this case, cleaning the phone with an antivirus, resetting the settings to factory settings, or completely flashing it can help.

    As you can see, there can be a lot of options for why the connected Samsung phone is not located on the computer, so to find a solution you need to be patient. We hope everything works out for you!

    If your computer does not see your mobile device because it is not connected via USB, there may be several reasons for this, as well as solutions. We will try to name all the reasons and give detailed instructions to fix the problem.
    Everything that we describe below is applicable to smartphones on the Android operating system, but can be used for other devices, and even for devices with other software.

    Why is my Android phone not visible via USB?

    Before you determine the cause of the malfunction and find a way to solve it, answer yourself the question: is this a pattern or an accident. If everything was connected reliably before, what actions could have led to the error? Maybe you installed a program on your smartphone or computer, deleted the file you needed, or edited it incorrectly? Or did you take absolutely no action? If you answer these questions, you can find out the cause of the problem.

    If your old mobile device connected without problems to a PC running Windows XP, then the problem is in the new smartphone. In this case, you can solve the problem by updating the software or installing a hardware-independent protocol from Microsoft on Win XP. It is this MTP protocol that is responsible for data transfer via USB.

    To download the Media Transfer Protocol Porting Kit to your computer, visit the company's official page: . Installing the protocol will take a little time, and after the process is completed, the PC must be restarted. If this was the problem, the mobile device will be detected on the computer.


    If the mobile device does not see Windows 7, 8 or 10, the problem can be solved in another way. All the following steps are described for phones running Android 4 and higher, but they can also be applied to older versions.

    If your smartphone/tablet is locked with a password or pattern, it must be unlocked, otherwise you will not be able to see the contents of the memory from your PC.

    If you connect your mobile device via USB, you should see a corresponding message on it. There should also be a USB icon on the Windows OS toolbar.


    When you open the notification panel on your Android device, it should show how your smartphone is connected to the computer. This can be a storage device, a USB modem or a web camera that supports the “precise time protocol”. If the device is connected to the PC as a USB modem, it is invisible in Explorer. In this case, the USB modem is disabled in the wireless network settings.


    If the mobile device is connected as a web camera, then the problem lies in the hardware-independent protocol responsible for file transfer. In this case, you must enable the MTP protocol.


    If your smartphone has an older version of software, you have more options to connect via USB. And in this case, we recommend connecting via a USB drive (Mass Storage). You can do this from the notification panel.

    The phone does not connect via USB to the computer, but only charges

    If there is no device connected to your computer (there is no notification), you can try one of four actions:

    The latest versions of Android OS connect to the PC via USB in battery charging mode by default. To change the mode, use the option to select a different option.

    Additional information

    If the mobile device is faulty and therefore cannot be seen by the computer when connected via a USB connector, you can use additional data transfer methods. Information from a smartphone to a computer and vice versa can be transferred as follows:
    • Synchronize via any cloud.
    • Use one of the best applications that allows you to easily and quickly connect your computer and Android devices. You can install the Windows version of the program and use all its functions. For example, with this tool you can not only synchronize data, but also have access to contacts, receive messages on the Desktop, view and work with the phone display by controlling it with the mouse. The program is so simple and intuitive that even the most untrained user can quickly master it.
    • Create an FTP server on your smartphone.

    Does your computer not see your Android phone or tablet via USB? This is a fairly common problem, but it can be fixed on your own. In this article you will find useful recommendations how to do it.

    In addition to the solutions given below, there are several more that we have already talked about on our website! If your phone does not connect to your computer via USB, try via Wi-Fi: , .

    Also pay attention to applications for transferring files over the Internet: and. In general, there are decent alternatives to connecting via USB (unless, of course, you are interested in other options like).

    As for the problem with connecting mobile devices via USB to a computer, there are only two types:

    • The phone is not recognized by the computer, but is charged from it;
    • The PC (or laptop) does not completely recognize the smartphone.

    We will consider both options in detail and try to help you fix everything!

    The computer does not see the Android phone via USB. What to do?

    1. First, use a different USB cable. If there is no effect, the problem is not there.

    2. Check the functionality of the USB port: to do this, connect the mobile device to another connector. If the PC still does not see Android, the problem lies somewhere else.

    3. Try connecting your phone to another computer. If you fail here too, there may be a problem with the microUSB or other components of the smartphone. In this case, only repairs will help you.

    4. If you connect an Android smartphone to a laptop or PC running Windows XP and the computer does not see the phone, you need to install the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) protocol for Windows XP. You can download it from the official Microsoft website: http://www.microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=19153

    5. Now regarding devices protected with a graphic key or password. For your computer to see your files and folders, you must first unlock your phone or tablet. Tested on Nexus 7 2013 with Android 5.1.1.

    If the downloaded drivers come immediately with the installer (.exe file), then you just need to run its installation. Also, drivers will be installed when downloading and running programs from various manufacturers to synchronize devices with a PC (HTC Sync, Samsung Kies, etc.).

    7. Enable USB debugging. Might help.

    8. Try to completely remove the old driver, then restart the computer and reinstall the driver as described in step 6.

    9. Make sure that your smartphone or tablet is not connected to the computer in “Charge Only” mode.

    10. Also make sure that the “USB modem” item is not activated. In this case, the phone will not be visible to the PC. You can disable it in “Settings” → “Wireless & Networks” → “More” → “Modem Mode”.

    11. When connecting Android to computer, you can select the connection mode. As you can see, I only have 2 available (Nexus 7 2013 with Android 5.1.1). But on other devices, versions of Android, firmware, there are other modes like “USB Mass Storage”.

    You can also select the connection mode from the notification panel.

    12. Restart your phone and computer (yes, it happens that this helps too).

    13. If everything was fine before, but now for some reason the computer does not recognize the device, you can reset the settings on it. How to do this is written in detail in, but keep in mind that all your applications, accounts, contacts and other data from the internal memory will be deleted, so do it first.

    14. You can also flash your device without using a computer. For example, using ROM Manager (), you really need .

    Or a tablet connected to USB? You are not the first to be affected by this problem, but do not rush to despair. Today we will try to help by talking about possible reasons why the phone is not detected by the computer. In addition, you will learn how to deal with this common “disease”.

    Why doesn't the computer see the phone connected via USB?

    So, all problems with connecting your phone to a computer via USB can be divided into two types:

    • hardware;
    • software.

    We will talk about each of them, but first, a little advice that very often helps users, saving them from further actions:

    We simply reboot both devices (phone and computer). As practice shows, this simple action helps with solving a lot of problems, so we resort to it first.

    The computer does not see the phone - hardware problems

    First, let's go through hardware problems that are often identified by users.

    USB cable is damaged

    As a rule, the “victims” include users who decided to save money by choosing a cheap wire from an unknown company. They can work well when paired with a power adapter, but they don’t want to be “friends” with a USB port.

    The solution is very simple: try another cable that works.

    However, do not rush to call the wire manufacturer bad names - check it for damage. Sometimes they are so small that they are unnoticeable. The wire may be broken at the base, chewed by pets, or otherwise damaged.

    Carefully inspect the USB cable for damage. If no problems are found, then try connecting the phone to the USB port of another computer.

    The USB port on the computer is damaged

    Less often, but the cause of connection problems is a non-functional USB port on the computer. It is very simple to check whether the connector is functioning: insert any other device into it, for example, a flash drive or an external hard drive.

    We just try to connect the phone to a different connector. Some users recommend using USB 2.0 ports (USB 3.0 blue).

    Problems with the charging connector on the phone itself

    Typically, problems with the phone socket begin after falls, water, dirt or other damage. If any of the above has happened to your gadget recently, you will have to visit a service center where specialists can replace the damaged port.

    Device battery problems

    Another hardware cause could be battery problems. In the best case, you just need to remove the battery from the phone for a few seconds, if possible. At worst, you will have to replace the battery.

    The computer does not see the phone - software problems

    If you tried changing the wire, connecting the phone to another USB port, but nothing helped, then we move on to software reasons, which in most cases are the culprits of the problem.

    Problems with phone settings

    Very often, it is precisely because of incorrect settings that the system sets by default that it is impossible to pair a computer and a phone. So:

    • Check connection mode. Smartphones running the latest versions of the Android operating system can be connected to a personal computer in charging mode by default. Therefore, the latter does not react in any way to pairing with a new device, but only powers it through the port.

    As a rule, you can select a mode in the notification shade on your smartphone. A system message with the selected mode should appear here. Click on it to see the available options. We select the mode that is associated with the transfer or access to phone files (it may be called differently depending on the operating system, manufacturer, and so on).

    Sometimes the connection notification does not appear among the notifications, so you will have to find the menu with modes yourself. It is located in the phone settings (USB connection option or something similar), where the desired mode for accessing files on the phone is also selected.

    • The phone should not be in modem mode. Often, by default, mobile devices, when connecting to a PC, start working in modem mode, which does not make it possible to access files.

    You can disable modem mode in the wireless network settings. You just need to turn the toggle switch to the inactive state opposite the desired item.

    • The phone is infected with viruses. Increasingly, the cause of many problems with the phone are virus attacks, which can really cause a lot of harm. Some users have already determined that their smartphones could not connect to their PC precisely because of malicious software that blocked access.

    Remove recent apps that make you suspicious. Use antivirus programs to detect viruses. We recommend the free utility Dr. Web CureIt!, which can be downloaded fromPlay Market .

    Problems with the computer and USB ports

    Quite often, the culprit of the confusion can be a personal computer, or rather the lack of necessary settings or drivers, as well as various errors.

    • Installing port driversUSB . If USB drivers do not work correctly or do not work at all, then the devices connected to them will not function or will start with errors.

    Solved by reinstallation. Drivers must be taken from the disk that came with the motherboard (laptop) or from the manufacturer’s official website. Installation usually does not take much time. When finished, be sure to restart your computer if the system does not do this on its own.

    • USB -ports do not receive power. Some users, experimenting with hardware, accidentally or deliberately turn off the power supply to the USB connectors, which leads to understandable consequences - complete inoperability.

    You need to go to the “Nutrition” section. To do this, go to “Control Panel”, “Hardware and Sound”, then “Power Options”. Here we find the item “Setting up a power plan”. We look for and click on “Change advanced power settings”. From the list that appears on the screen, find the “USB Settings” item and click on the plus sign opposite. You will see the “Option to temporarily disable the USB port” and also click on the plus sign located next to it. The “Prohibited” parameter should be set everywhere here. Set it up for everyone and click “Accept” at the bottom.

    • The phone drivers have crashed. Another equally common reason for the phone not being detected by the computer is a problem with the drivers. The cause may be errors, incorrect installation, and so on. The problem is solved by a simple reinstallation.

    You need to go to “Device Manager” (can be found through the search bar). All devices that are connected to your computer are listed here by subsection. You need to make sure that there is no exclamation mark next to the “Portable Devices” section. If the symbol appears and your device is indicated in the item, then:

    1. right-click on the phone name;
    2. select “Properties”;
    3. go to the “Driver” tab;
    4. At the very bottom, click the “Remove device” button;
    5. we agree with the warning;
    6. disconnect and reconnect the phone to the computer;
    7. We wait until the system reinstalls the driver.

    It would be a good idea to visit the website of the mobile device manufacturer, where you can always download the latest drivers for your phone. Some even provide special programs that help synchronize your PC with your phone and automatically update the driver regularly.

    • Requires update KB3010081 (KB3099229). Some versions of the Windows 10 operating system require the Windows Media Player update KB3010081 to be installed. It is directly responsible for the normal operation of the Media Transfer Protocol service, which is activated upon connection.

    You can find and download updates on the official websiteWindows . It is distributed free of charge. After installation, do not forget to reboot the system so that the changes work stably.

    More problems when connecting your phone to a computer via USB
    "Curve" build of Windows

    Unofficial Windows, and even poorly assembled, often causes a variety of errors, including problems with connecting the phone. The only solution is to reinstall the system on a personal computer - yes, a tedious and difficult task for many.

    Custom firmware with a lot of errors

    Many owners of smartphones running Android OS prefer custom firmware from third-party developers. These firmwares bring a lot of useful features, but are often accompanied by an abundance of errors. Custom firmware can also cause problems connecting the phone to a computer via USB.

    The solution may be to reinstall or roll back to the stock (native) firmware of the smartphone. Often other users find the cause of the problem in the firmware and share the solution on thematic forums.

    Unknown problems and errors

    It often happens that the cause of the problem is simply impossible to find. In this case, you have to resort to radical methods:

    • Reset your phone to factory settings. A feature found on most phones and smartphones that restores the device to factory settings. As a result, the process may remove or reset the cause of the problem.

    The reset process directly depends on the model of your mobile phone. The required item must be found in the device settings. Save important files in advance, otherwise they will be permanently deleted.

    • Troubleshooting adapter problems using Safe ModeWindows . The developers of the operating system foresaw various problems that a user might encounter while using a personal computer, and therefore provided special tools to combat them. So:
    1. restart your computer;
    2. while turning on, hold down the F key;
    3. a window with various settings will appear (navigation is carried out using the arrows on the keyboard);
    4. go to the additional settings section, where using the “Enter” key select “Safe mode with loading adapters”.

    The system will automatically find all problems with connected devices and try to fix them.

    • Contact the service center. If you have tried all the methods, but none of them helped, then you may need to seek professional help. Service center employees, as a rule, solve most problems and also indicate the cause of their occurrence. True, you will have to pay for this.
    Bottom line

    As you can see, problems with connecting your phone to a computer can be both software and hardware in nature, and there are a great many reasons for their occurrence. Be that as it may, we are sure that most of those who read today will help. The main thing is not to despair.

    Carefully check the cable for damage, restart the devices and, most likely, your problem will be successfully resolved. You should not immediately resort to radical methods, such as reinstalling the operating system or resetting the phone to factory settings. You risk losing personal information and time, and the reason will be a damaged cable. Good luck!


    Some files and applications on an Android smartphone or tablet are much easier to manage via a personal computer. For example, programs that are too large can take a very long time to download directly to your phone or copy or transfer directly to the device. More advanced functions, such as flashing the device’s firmware, can also be implemented through a connection to a computer. After all, having a USB cable and a PC at hand, you can charge your phone - at work, for example. However, when connecting an Android-based device to a computer, problems sometimes arise: the PC does not see the gadget, does not charge, or does not display any specific files. How to deal with such problems?

    Why doesn't the computer recognize the Android device?

    When connecting an Android gadget via USB, something can go wrong, and you end up with a phone and cable that are completely useless when connected to a computer. In other words, we get a problem with controlling the device via a PC or a lack of recognition of the gadget at all. In most cases, this situation is completely correctable, and by using only one’s own strength. Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, you must first figure out what exactly the problem is and act through its correction.

    So why can't a computer or laptop see an Android tablet via USB? There are several variations for the connection problem. The inconsistency can be expressed in the computer completely ignoring the device, in a problem with displaying the internal or external memory of the phone, or only charging, but not using the phone as a USB drive. It is much easier to consider possible types of problems separately from each other.

    The phone charges when connected via USB, but the PC does not see it

    The problem may be, for example, in the USB cable - this can be solved or checked by replacing the cord. Another option for localizing the problem is a broken USB port; this error goes away by connecting to another port. You can also try connecting your phone to another computer, if possible. If the problem does not go away, unfortunately, you won’t be able to solve it yourself. E sl and several computers do not recognize the device as a USB drive and only charge it, it is better to contact a specialist, since a malfunction with such symptoms can be eliminated by repair.

    It’s worth starting with something else: check the settings for connecting your phone to your computer. If you select the “charge only” or “USB modem” options, it will be impossible to see files on the phone - to do this, you need to connect the phone as a storage device, as a camera (if you need photos) or in media data transfer mode. Another point that is important for devices with a graphic key installed: to open access to files, you need to unlock the phone connected to the computer.

    The problem may be related to the drivers. Two possible options:

    • via Device Manager, update the driver for the device: either automatically search for the update on the Internet, or run a search for it on your computer;
    • remove the existing driver, download a new one and install.

    For owners of computers running Windows XP: unlike the seventh, eighth and tenth versions of the operating system, XP may require an additional protocol to work with Android devices. The Media Transfer Protocol, or MTP, can correct the situation. You can find a link to download it on the Internet in the public domain.

    The gadget is not recognized and is not charging

    The first thing to check is the cable and its connector. Something may be wrong with either the first (a hall, a rupture, the contacts coming off), or the second (the presence of dirt or dust on the connections, again the contacts coming out). The first is “treated” by replacing the cable, the second by carefully cleaning the connector with a brush (optionally with a toothpick with a piece of cotton wool wrapped around it), but if the connector is poorly secured, by repairing it at a service center. You can charge the battery for a while using a special adapter separately from the phone, but it will still be more convenient to repair it.

    Owners of Android devices are lucky: a damaged USB cable can be easily replaced with a new one. But for iPhone owners, such a purchase will cost a pretty penny.

    In addition to mechanical reasons, a malfunction can be caused by software problems. To avoid this, you should regularly use a program to clean your device from unnecessary processes and residual files: newer versions of Android have it natively, and there are many free applications for older ones. If the problem has already appeared, you can try two options:

    • flash the device,
    • do a hard reset - a complete reset of all user settings to factory settings.

    The firmware must be carried out consciously; if the algorithm is incorrect, you can easily make a “brick” out of a smartphone.

    The computer sees the flash drive, but does not connect to the internal memory

    The most common option that causes such a failure to occur may be selecting the wrong item when connecting the device itself to the computer. By default, Android devices are usually connected in charging mode, sometimes as USB storage, which only gives access to a flash drive. To access the memory of the device itself, just switch to connection mode to transfer media data: you may need to disconnect the phone and connect again.

    If you have previously performed similar actions, you should reconnect the device and select the correct item

    If it doesn’t help, you can try a radical method and hard reset the entire system, which consists of completely clearing the device from user settings and resetting it back to factory settings. This can be done through the settings, the “Personal data” block, the “Backup and reset” item.

    If a full reset does not work, it is better to contact a technician, since the problem may be related to software or firmware.

    Files are not located on the tablet or phone (photos, videos, etc.)

    You should start with the measures described in the previous paragraphs: check the serviceability of the cable, input and pay special attention to the mode of connecting the phone to the computer. To freely manage files, you need a media data transfer mode, also known as MTP; for photographs, the option of connecting your phone as a camera may be suitable. Using a smartphone as a USB drive or connecting it only for charging are the most common cases that lead to recognition problems and difficulties when working with files via a PC.

    What to do to make sure everything connects correctly

    The key to a successful tandem of a computer and a phone or tablet lies in the attentiveness of the owner. Making sure that the cable and its inputs are in good working order and especially connecting the phone through the desired mode in accordance with the task does not sound difficult, right? At worst, you can use the classic “disable and re-enable” approaches, or at most try resetting the phone data. In more serious cases, it is better to entrust the decision to a professional.

    How to solve a problem connecting a tablet or smartphone to a computer: video

    If you look into the possible causes of problems with such a connection, it becomes clear that most of them are not as complex and insoluble as it might seem at first glance. Nevertheless, it is better not to get carried away with independent work. If the problem is beyond your competence, contact a specialist so as not to complicate everything yourself.