The accelerometer built into your Android phone can detect the orientation of your mobile and act accordingly by turning the screen to landscape or portrait mode. But sometimes auto rotate in Android may not work properly.
It may be because you have the option disabled, but also because of more serious problems such as your phone’s firmware, a faulty sensor, or glitches in certain applications. If your Android phone’s screen isn’t rotating when it should , here are some potential causes and how to fix it.
Are you sure auto rotate is on?
While Android phones typically have autorotate enabled by default , you may have disabled it at some point, either by accident or on purpose.
Turning it back on is as quick as going into the Quick Settings panel (on my phone, swiping from top to bottom on the main screen) and checking it. The icon can be a lock or two arrows.
Try restarting your phone
The next most common and effective solution to restore auto-rotation on your Android phone is to reboot it, as a quick reboot can fix any temporary glitches that prevent some system function from working properly.
To reboot your phone, hold the power button and when the pre-power off menu appears, select reboot. Be careful because although the automatic rotation may work as soon as you turn the phone back on, the problem may persist shortly after.
Don’t touch the screen while it’s spinning
Android allows you to temporarily disable automatic screen rotation with a long press. For example, if you need to change the orientation of the phone without entering the Quick Settings, something quite common when we are using the browser. In that case you just have to keep the screen pressed and turn the phone.
So if you have thought that your Android auto rotate is malfunctioning, you may have simply paused auto rotate by touching the screen. Pay attention to avoid it.
Beware of third-party applications and conflicts
Sometimes autorotation can cause problems due to a specific application. For example, the YouTube app for Android doesn’t always work fast and well when it comes to adapting the content to the orientation of the phone.
If it is a general error, it will most likely be fixed in future updates (you can check for pending updates in the Google Play Store by tapping on your profile picture and accessing ‘ Manage apps and device ‘).
If you found that the crash occurred right after installing some apps, maybe there is a conflict between this phone setting and the apps . Try uninstalling them and reboot to see if it still happens.
Install a third-party rotation app
Interfaz de Control Screen Rotation
If your screen does not work well (for example, if there is a part that does not capture touches well and it is the upper area from which Quick Settings is displayed), you can always fix it by using an application to rotate the screen.
One of the most popular options is Control Screen Rotation (available for free with in-app purchases on the Google Play Store). This app allows you to change the screen orientation automatically based on the orientation sensor or do it manually. It also has a function to integrate it into the notification panel.
Using a standalone rotation control app is quite simple (although in English): after enabling the corresponding permissions, tap on ‘ Start service ‘ and then enter ‘ Select screen orientation’ to switch to orientation sensor and then tap on ‘Add a button to the notification for stopping service’.
Drastic Measures: Factory Restore
If the third-party app fix doesn’t satisfy you, the last option can fix it, but go through factory reset your Android phone .
A factory reset will wipe your Android device back to the state it was in when you took it out of the box. In ‘Settings’, go to ‘System’ (depending on the brand and model it may also be in the ‘ Backup ‘ section , in others in ‘ User accounts ‘ , others in ‘ Security ‘) . Normally it does not appear on the first screen, but you have to enter ‘Advanced’ and there access ‘ Recovery Options’ , where there is also another type of reset besides the factory one. Here you will find ‘ Erase all data (factory reset)’.
