Samsung’s Smart TV range is an upgraded version of its older televisions which no longer carry the “idiot box” title. Running on Android-based operating systems, these units have features similar to a smartphone. Users can cast or browse content and install any application on their smart TVs. A dedicated memory is offered on these smart TVs to perform these tasks. With time, this memory gets filled with caches of older data which might hamper the TV’s performance.
Caches are nothing but temporary storage locations for data files. They play a major role in retrieving frequently used data files, which in return, reduces the loading time. Since not all caches are not important for the TV’s functionality, they can slow down the TV by occupying space in the memory. Fortunately, you won’t have to deal with a slow Samsung TV since caches can be easily cleared.
Follow this article to learn about caches and how to clear them on your Samsung TV. We will also discuss the various benefits of clearing caches and how it affects the performance of Samsung TV.
What Are Caches And What Role Do They Play On A Samsung TV?
To put it in simple words, caches act as short-term memory storage for regularly accessed data files. These storage spaces are small yet offer very high-speed data retrieval. In short, your favorite content text or file will take less time to load. Caches are a part of almost every type of system, including computers, smart TVs, smartphones, and many more devices. In the case of Samsung TVs, caches are important to run it smoothly.
Caches are the reason why your favorite app on the Samsung TV loads fast. The store app quickly loads all apps with their logos, thanks to the caches. While searching for content on a website, the search field also loads previously searched text, which is another application of cache. Due to the stored caches, even the resume option on previously played content papers.
Clearing Cache On A Samsung TV
As explained earlier, older caches can slow down the system. They have almost zero contribution to the system once they are outdated. Since you would not desire a slow performance while scrolling through media on Samsung TV, detailing with these caches becomes crucial. We have explained some common processes below to clear the caches from your Samsung TV.
1. Reboot The TV
The most popular technique of clearing the cache from Samsung TV is a simple unit reboot. Restarting the TV will clear caches by default, thereby freeing memory space. Users can reboot the TV with the remote, by pressing the power button. Once the TV is switched OFF, the user can turn it ON again. Similarly, removing the TV’s plug for 30 seconds and plugging it back will also perform a cold restart.
2. Clearing App Caches
Sometimes, the App caches are not cleared by the reboot process since they are considered essential for Apps. To clear these caches, users can follow a defined procedure for different models of Samsung TVs.
For Models Manufactured In 2020 And Later Years
- Access the settings menu from the homepage
- Select “device care” option
- Select “manage storage” option
- Select the app whose cache needs to be cleared
- View details of the app and choose the “clear cache” option
- Caches will be cleared
For Models Manufactured Before the 2019 Year
- Access the settings menu from the homepage
- Choose the “self-diagnosis” option
- Select “TV device manage” section
- Choose “manage storage”
- Select the app whose cache needs to be cleared
- View details of the app and choose the “clear cache” option
- Caches will be cleared
For Other Models
- Visit the settings section from the homepage
- Enter the “broadcasting” tab and choose “expert settings”
- Select “HbbTV settings” and choose the “clear browsing data” option
- Confirm the process by selecting “yes”, and caches will be cleared
3. Upgrade Software On TV
The manufacturers push software updates to remove bugs from the older version of software. This helps make the TV efficient and removes unnecessary things, including caches. You can visit the settings menu to update the software on your Samsung TV. A list of various options will be opened, including the “support” section. You will get the “software update” option in this section. The system will check if a new version is available by selecting this option. If yes, you can update the latest software version to clear the caches.
4. Using A Cache Cleaning Application
Cleaning of caches can be done with applications in two different ways: by using the app’s built-in cache cleaner or using a third-party cache cleaner application. Many apps have a built-in cache cleaner which can be accessed through the settings menu. Depending on the app, the location of the cache menu changes, and hence you should refer to the app’s website. You can access the app store on Samsung TV to install a third-party cache cleaner. The application will offer you multiple cache cleaning levels and additional features.
5. Restore The TV To The Default Settings
If caches are still on your TV, you can restore it to the default settings. Restoring to the default settings clears all the data, including caches from the Samsung TV. After this process, the TV works like a new unit as if it has come straight out of the factory. To perform a factory or default reset, you can access the settings menu of Samsung TV. The “self-diagnosis” tab includes a “reset” option in the support section. By selecting this option and confirming the reset, the TV will automatically go back to the default settings.
6. Uninstall And Reinstall Applications
If caches of a specific app are causing trouble, you will notice it while using other applications. The specific app will run slower than other apps, thereby narrowing down the issue to this app. You can uninstall the app by visiting the “apps” section of your Samsung TV. Selecting “uninstall” from app-related options will remove the app from the TV. Any type of corrupted data or cache files will be removed too. Users can then visit the app store to install the latest version of the app. Due to the fresh installation, the app will no longer contain unnecessary caches.
7. Use USB Drive
When Samsung TV’s memory is full, it prevents you from installing third-party cache cleaner applications. If you do not want to uninstall your favorite app from the TV, you can use cache cleaner via a USB drive. You just have to download the cache cleaner application on a USB drive. By connecting this drive with the Samsung TV, you can view the storage location of the app. By clicking on the app, it will load in the USB drive. This will help clear caches from the TV while the app loads on the USB drive.
When To Clear Cache On Your Samsung TV?
Now that we have gone through several steps of clearing caches, you can easily do it. However, it is important to note that clearing caches should be done in only certain situations. This is done to prevent waste of your precious time. This section will help you understand the purpose or need of cache clearing for your Samsung TV.
1. Frozen Or Glitchy Display
If the screen of your Samsung TV suddenly freezes and remains frozen for a certain amount of time, caches are to be blamed. Not only do they freeze the screen, but also cause visible glitches while streaming any content. By clearing the caches, old and corrupted ones are also removed. The TV screen no longer freezes or shows glitches.
2. Slow Performance
You will experience a slow performance while using the TV. the TV will take time to load minor animations or open selected sections. This happens due to the piled-up volume of caches, which takes a large percentage of memory space. As a result, the TV no longer gets enough memory to do any type of task. By clearing caches, more memory space is left for the TV to perform regular tasks.
3. Failure Of Applications
While loading any application on Samsung TV, an error message is displayed. The application fails to load and might not open again. The culprits behind these issues might be the corrupted or residual caches. By clearing the application’s cache, the faulty caches are removed. As a result, users will notice that applications load without any error messages.
4. Slow Response
When you give the TV a command, it responds very late. In the worst case, multiple commands are received at the same time. This misguided the user into clicking the wrong section of the TV. When cache memory is full, it prevents the storage of new caches. As a result, the TV shows slow or no response. The TV instantly accepts commands by removing the caches and offers improved responsiveness.
5. Uneven Or Bad Streaming Quality
Streaming of media on Samsung TV is done at high qualities like 2K or 4K. The TV also features high-resolution screens to support this level of streaming. Uncleared caches restrict the loading of all the pixels in a streamed media. As a result, a video appears blurred with low quality, even when the streaming quality is set at a higher value. When you remove older and outdated caches, the TV can stream in higher quality.
6. Defense Against Malware
Some malware finds its way to the caches to infect a system. The corrupted caches can hide this malware for a long time. This can hamper the security of the TV and increase its malfunction. With regular cleaning of caches, the hidden malware is flushed down from the TV. As a result, the malware fails to spread before infecting the system files.
Benefits Of Clearing Cache From Samsung TV
Since we have understood how certain problems arise from uncleared caches, we will move on to the good side of this process. As already stated, clearing the caches is a good thing for your Samsung TV, to keep it running efficiently. Besides this, it also offers several benefits, which are stated below:
- An increase in the performance of TV is achieved
- The TV offers a faster loading speed for any content or application
- Unnecessary malware or virus-infected files are dumped, thereby increasing the security of TV
- The built-in browser TV shows a better response to the commands
- The TV screen does not freeze or display any glitches
- You get to visit any type of website since outdated cookies and caches are deleted
- The streaming quality is restored to the highest level with zero distortion of pixels
Samsung TV – FAQs
Ans: It is safe for a user to clear caches on their Samsung TVs. This process is recommended for the efficient working of the Samsung TVs. Regular removal of outdated caches helps in preserving memory for important caches. This process helps in improving the speed and response of the TV. It is, however, important to clear caches only through specified steps.
Ans: Deleting caches from your Samsung TV will not affect your data. The removal process applies only to caches, where no personal data is stored. This ensures users won’t lose personal data every time caches are removed. With caches, data like browsing history, logs, temporary files, etc are removed.
Ans: Besides removing caches, there are other ways of boosting your Samsung TV’s performance. Users can perform regular software updates to remove bugs from the TV’s system. Similarly, multitasking becomes smooth by freeing up the memory space of TV. Users can also switch to an optimal streaming resolution to get an uninterrupted picture quality.
Ans: Yes, there is a major difference between clearing data and clearing caches of a Samsung TV. Whenever caches are removed from the TV, outdated files, app data, logs, etc., are removed. This does not affect the personal data of the user. However, the app is restored to its initial state when data is cleared. As a result, personal information like login credentials, settings, etc are deleted.
Conclusion
While enjoying your favorite show or movie on Samsung TV, interruptions like frozen screens or blurred pixels can ruin your experience. These issues can arise due to minor things like the stored caches. Thanks to the operating systems on Samsung TVs, clearing caches is a simple process. Users can easily clever caches from their Samsung TVs by following a defined process. This article offers information on the cache-clearing process, its needs, and benefits. By using this knowledge, your Samsung TV will never get issues from caches.
