• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Help Samsung Galaxy S3 USB "Unknown Device"

After days, and nearly weeks, of fiddling around with drivers and downloading allsorts of programs, it became clear that the cable was the issue!!! I really don't know why but the cable that came with the phone became dodgy at some point, perhaps a surge of power ruined it, but clearly it's not useful for data transfer... at all!!! It just led to the "Unknown Device" message popping up. I just borrowed another micro USB to USB cable from a colleague in the office, one which he uses for his HTC phone, and the computer recognised my device instantly, like it should! Kies popped up and I could see my phone in Windows Explorer. So the solution for me is just to get a new cable... I hope that works for other people who have come across this problem too...
 
I have just built a new PC and installed Kies on it today. Naturally it didn't work so I uninstalled it, disabled Windows Firewall then reinstalled Kies. It still doesn't work. I have to say, reluctantly, that Kies is a crock and Samsung should be ashamed of it.
 
Hi

Zeggy I dont know if you have solved your problem but here is what worked for me.

Samsung Galaxy S3 4G - Model: GT-I9305T (international)
Android version 4.1.1
Windows 7 64bit

If you are getting usb error code 43 (check under device manager on !USB Device). Then your problem will very likely be the usb cable you are using to connect your phone to your pc. My usb cable that came with the phone was only good for charging. So I took it back to the store and they sent it back to samsung for a replacement cable. In the meantime I went and bought a new usb cable and it worked first try.

Then comes the issues with drivers. After many days of trial and error... I finally found a fix.

This is for windows 7 64bit. Mac users should use Android file transfer software.

1) Make sure your phone is not plugged in to the computer.
2) Have your phone with USB-Debugging mode on.
3) Download and install Kies (latest version) - Do NOT install USB drivers
4) Do not open kies at the end of installation.
6) Open up Control Panel > programs and features: uninstall sumsung phone drivers
5) Go to Kies folder > USB drivers : and run the USB_drivers_for_phones file.
6) Plug in your phone and allow it to install drivers.

If all goes well. You won't get any errors.
You can use kies to export/import but i find it easier to just use the explorer to browse for files and make any uploads/downloads.

Its important not to have kies opened during the drivers installation as kies will mess it up.

Don't forget to turn usb-debugging off unless ofcourse you are developing apps. To be honest it doesn't affect the data transfer at all.

For anyone else with similar usb problem. Theres is another usb code 10 that I'm awared of which can be fixed by modifying the registry. A quick google should get you the answer.

Took me 2 weeks to get this fixed. Tried every solution out there. Last thing to try was a different usb cable. Its unbelievable how little support there is out there for this issue.

Goodluck
 
I actually had the same problem with mine and i couldnt conect it for month either windows or kies would recognise it and i finaly found a fix i was searching for secret codes for samsung to find the usb debug one and these codes have to be entered by dialing it in the phone dial pad and i tried this one *#7284# USB I2C Mode Control then a selection screen apeared i had two options (MODEM) or (PDA), (PDA) was selected i selected (MODEM) then there was and other option below i cliched on it and there is (MTP) (MTP+ADB) (PTP) (PTP+ADB) (RNDIS+DM+MODEM) (RMNET+DM+MODEM) and (DM+MODEM+ADB) now mine was on PTP+ADB and i left it there clicked okay on the bottom and voila it worked
 
alexlula said:
I actually had the same problem with mine and i couldnt conect it for month either windows or kies would recognise it and i finaly found a fix i was searching for secret codes for samsung to find the usb debug one and these codes have to be entered by dialing it in the phone dial pad and i tried this one *#7284# USB I2C Mode Control then a selection screen apeared i had two options (MODEM) or (PDA), (PDA) was selected i selected (MODEM) then there was and other option below i cliched on it and there is (MTP) (MTP+ADB) (PTP) (PTP+ADB) (RNDIS+DM+MODEM) (RMNET+DM+MODEM) and (DM+MODEM+ADB) now mine was on PTP+ADB and i left it there clicked okay on the bottom and voila it worked
Click to expand...
******mine was on MTP+ADB AND I LEFT IT THERE NOT PTP+ADB
 
Before I look into trying this, which carrier and model of phone do you have? I noticed a post above has the GT-I9305T (international) version. I use Verizon and have an SCH-i535.

Also, although I am not currently having any problem transferring files to Windows 7 if I use the S III's USB cable, I am still dealing with this issue on my Acer Iconia A500 notebook. I wonder if there might be some sort of variation of these codes that would work on it, being it is not a phone? If there are, what might these codes be called?

Thanks!
 
im with rogers I have a SGH-I747M but these codes work with all android devices I tried it with the rugby and the ace II it should work on yours
 
alexlula said:
im with rogers I have a SGH-I747M but these codes work with all android devices I tried it with the rugby and the ace II it should work on yours
Click to expand...

"Welcome to Verizon Wireless. Your call cannot be completed as dialed. Please check the number and......."

Looks like that only works with certain carriers and/or phones. Thanks anyway. It was interesting to try. :)
 
I recently updated to Windows 10 (64-bit) and had no difficulty in connecting my Galaxy S3 GT-I9300 to my laptop.

The problem started when I installed Kies 3 and it clearly updated the USB driver to the latest version 1.5.59.0. I have tried installing / uninstalling Kies 3 with and without drivers. With and without USB debugging. Installing USB driver separately from from Kies. All with no success.

I connected my phone to other PCs and laptops. On first connection everything was ok and the S3 was recognised and readable but then became unrecognised. I looked at the USB drivers on these machines (which are networked) and discovered that the USB driver had been updated to the latest version on these two. Now I cannot connect to any of them. I backed up using Kies whilst I still had a connection and reset my S3 but I have no means of retrieving the backup !

I read many forums and blogs and concluded that the newer USB drivers are not fully compatible with the S3. However, when trying to load older versions which are known to work, I received an error saying that this publisher (Samsung) is blocked.

I have concluded that this might be a deliberate ploy by Samsung to persuade people to upgrade to their later offerings for which the latest drivers work.

I also noticed some posts relating to the need for Media Player to be loaded as well and, of course Windows 10 does not have this included.

I believe that if I could get hold of a USB driver that worked and could load it, the problem would be solved but I am reluctant to download from unofficial sites owing to the risk of an attached malware payload.

When I look in Device Manger, the S3 does not appear and all USB devices are shown as working normally.

Any Suggestions Anyone ? If I had any hair I'd be tearing it out!
 
Some things that have helped me with USB connection issues on Android smartphones and tablets:

-A new or different USB cable
-Cleaning USB ports on PC and smartphone with compressed air and CAIG De-Oxit contact enhancer
-Plug the cable directly into a motherboard USB port on the PC ( not a front or top panel port or a USB hub)
-Freshly rebooting both the smartphone and the PC just before connecting the cable
-Making sure there are no USB conflicts in the PC Device Manager.
-I've seen PC USB ports fail. Trying a different port sometimes helps.
-Avoiding any other file access tasks on both PC and smartphone while using the USB connection to copy or transfer files.

I hope you find a solution. This is a most frustrating issue I have seen all too often.
 
Zoandroid said:
Some things that have helped me with USB connection issues on Android smartphones and tablets:

-A new or different USB cable
-Cleaning USB ports on PC and smartphone with compressed air and CAIG De-Oxit contact enhancer
-Plug the cable directly into a motherboard USB port on the PC ( not a front or top panel port or a USB hub)
-Freshly rebooting both the smartphone and the PC just before connecting the cable
-Making sure there are no USB conflicts in the PC Device Manager.
-I've seen PC USB ports fail. Trying a different port sometimes helps.
-Avoiding any other file access tasks on both PC and smartphone while using the USB connection to copy or transfer file
I hope you find a solution. This is a most frustrating issue I have seen all too often.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for replying so quickly.

I've done all of those things and of course it won't be a USB port failure as it now happens on all of my computers.

I am beginning to think that the connector on the Phone itself that is the culprit. I put the phone down whilst still plugged in and the phone connected OK but only for a few moments - it recongised it and I could view the phone and SD card on explorer. However, I have been unable to do this again.

I disconnected for the internet and tried to load a slightly older version of the USB driver. When I had done this it said it had not loaded properly and gave the option of loading with compatibility settings. I did this and even though I was disconnected from the intranet and the Homegroup network, it still managed to load the latest version of the driver 1.5.59.0 ! Baffling.

I am giving up now and have upgraded to a refurbished S5 - I hope that will solve the problem !
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom