"Please Press a Little Longer" Fingerprint Scanner error

[Misty2002]

Good morning, all.

I woke up today and attempted to use my thumbprint to unlock my phone. I was prompted to "press a little longer," which I did, several times, with both registered thumbprint, to no avail. I read some troubleshooting and removed my fingerprints, intending to simply register them again. When I attempted to re-register my thumbprints, or any fingerprint, I was given the same prompt regardless of how long I pressed: "Please press a little longer."

I have reset the phone, cleaned the screen cleaned my hands, cleared the biometrics cache, done a soft reset, installed some Google Play updates that were hiding for some reason, and the issue still persists.

It was working yesterday as I used biometrics with a mobile payment to buy dinner last night. I haven't noticed any other issues with the phone, no visible physical damage or anything like that 

Has anyone else experienced this issue of being suddenly hit with the "Please press a little longer" prompt no matter what they try? If so, how did you solve it, if at all? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[RedDogRabbit]

You have certainly done the correct steps to correct this. 

Do you have a screen protector installed? 

[Misty2002]

Thank you! I don't have a screen protector installed, but I appreciate the suggestion! I even tried taking my phone case off in case somehow the lip was catching the bottom of the screen.
It's odd, it is almost like the sensor is timing out or something equivalent before it gives itself the chance to scan anything.

[RedDogRabbit]

Try this:

• Open the Samsung Members app & Click on "Support" > Phone Diagnostics & run the Diagnostics for Finger Print Recognition. See if you get any error messages. It's possible that there's a Hardware issue with the Finger Print Scanner? 

The other thing you mentioned (unrelated to the FP issue), Deep Sleeping apps, may not get updated on the Play Store, or Galaxy Store, unless you actively update them yourself. That's likely the reason for the "hidden apps".

 

 

[Misty2002]

Now, I am wishing I wasn't so hasty about searching for a solution on my own earlier. Before posting here, I thought maybe it wanted me to re-register my fingerprints, so I removed them first. Without the fingerprints registered, it doesn't look like I'll be able to troubleshoot the scanner. :(
Shame, because it seems like a hardware issue at this point.

[RedDogRabbit]

Sorry if you already mentioned, but have you tried a Factory Reset yet? 

If it's a hardware issue, it's not likely to be much help, but I'd definitely try it before going to a Service Centre! They're likely to Factory Reset anyway. 

[Misty2002]

My contract for my phone is up at the end of January, so I'm thinking if my phone isn't covered, I might just wait it until I can replace it for free. If I were to factory reset the phone, how would I go about keeping the data? Unfortunately, I don't have a laptop or any other device that I could transfer the data onto for safekeeping.

[RedDogRabbit]

I use Smart Switch to backup my phone, but you can also use Google to backup your device.

Just go to Settings & Scroll down to Google & Click on "Backup". 

Like I said, if it's a hardware issue, a Factory Reset won't likely fix the issue, but if it's anything else, it should. 

 

[MrNavrajSingh]

Maybe is the sensor that need some help

[RedDogRabbit]

Which is why I suggested running the Diagnostics 😉