Screen saver on the tablet is useful for your privacy. But what if you forget the pattern or code to unlock the device?
Help, I can’t get into my tablet anymore!
On tablets with older Android versions, it was still possible to get into the tablet via a Google account if the code, password or pattern failed. That is no longer possible with the newer Android versions. That is also not possible on the iPad. The only way to bypass the screen saver is to reset the tablet. This will return the device to factory settings. You will then lose all files and settings. Very annoying, but with a good backup the problem is not that big.
Backup:
- Backup on Android devices
- Backup iPad/iPhone
Reset Tablet (Android)
Can’t get into the tablet anymore and no one else knows the code? Then there is nothing to do but reset the device. With a ‘hard reset’ as it is called, you erase all data and you start with an empty device. Restore most data from a backup. The steps below are based on a Samsung Galaxy Tab A with Android 8.
- Turn off the tablet.
- Simultaneously press the Home button, the volume up button, and the power button.
- Keep them pressed until you see letters. A black screen with yellow and blue letters opens. This is the Android recovery menu.
- If this doesn’t work at once, turn the tablet off again and try again. If you get an error message that says ‘no command’, please wait. The screen will automatically jump to the recovery menu.
- The Android recovery menu is in English. The blue line indicates which option is selected in this menu.
- Use the volume buttons to navigate through the options. Press the volume down button several times until the blue line at Wipe data/factory reset is.
- Press the power button to confirm.
- The recovery menu asks if you are sure you want to delete all data, this cannot be undone. Press the volume key down so that the blue line is on yes comes. Press the power button to confirm.
- The tablet gets to work. If it says ‘Data wipe complete’ at the bottom of the screen, it’s done.
- The blue line will automatically appear at the top of the menu at Reboot system now, that’s the option we’re going to use. Press the power button and the tablet will reboot. This may take a while.
The tablet must be reset before use. Go through the steps. At some point, the tablet will ask for a password or PIN again to verify your identity. If it is unknown, do the following:
- Tap on Using my Google account instead.
- Enter your email address and tap Next one.
- Enter your password and tap Next one.
- Tap on Add previous account to use the same account as before.
- It will automatically check whether you have a backup of your files with Google.
Follow the rest of the steps to reset the tablet.
Reset iPad
After too many login attempts with the wrong password, the iPad will lock. There is then nothing to do but reset the device. With a ‘hard reset’ as it is called, you erase all data and you start with an empty device. This requires a computer with iTunes installed. Restore most files and settings from a backup.
- Connect the iPad to a computer running iTunes using the accompanying cable.
- Turn off the iPad.
- Simultaneously press and hold the power button and the home button until a computer icon and a cable appear.
- Grab your computer and open iTunes.
- iTunes displays a notification. click on To recover.
- A new message appears. click on Restore and Update.
- Restoring may take a while. You can see the progress in the playback bar. If nothing is there, click on the down arrow icon to the right of the search bar to view the progress.
- When the restore is complete, iTunes will ask for your Apple ID and password, enter them and click Continue > Get on > Ready.
The iPad needs to be reset. The article ‘Restore backup to iPad‘ describes these steps in the ‘Restore backup’ paragraph.
The steps above are based on an iPad with iOS 13.