"No Connection" error message

[Ron Miel]

I'm having problems installing apps on my recently purchased (2nd hand) Android phone. I keep getting the message "No connection".

details:


I've done obvious things like reset the phone to factory settings.

This is the second such device I've tried. The first phone had the same problem. I took it back to the shop and exchanged it. The second phone had the same problem. Probably not a fault in the device.

I have used the same Google account on both devices. When I registered on the phone, it asked for confirmation on the tablet. Probably not a problem with the account.

Google on my phone is displaying a message showing me as signed in.

The phone settings shows I am connected to my WiFi. I am able to run Google searches, for example. Also, I tried it on different wifis. Probably not a problem with Wifi.


Pre-installed apps on my phone seem to work. I've tried several without any problem.

The model is BLU Life Play.

 

[ocnbrze]

try rebooting the router. i know it might seem like wifi works. but any connection issue should always start with the router.

 

[Ron Miel]

Thanks for the suggestion.

I tried it. No joy.

I didn't expect it to work, because I've tried it in different locations with a different wifi network.

 

[svim]

If you go into your phone's Settings >> Accounts menu is your Gmail account listed as your primary user account on your phone?
Hopefully it is so now, using a web browser, try logging into your Google account at:
https://accounts.google.com
In the resulting page tap on 'Security' in the upper menubar and in the 'Your devices' section is your Blu phone in the list of connection devices?
If it's not there, something might have gone wrong as far as your Blu phone being registered to your online Google account. You might need to go through that arduous process of a Factory Reset a second time so you need to enter your Gmail address and password again to authenticate your user account on that phone. The thing is, in order for you to be able to install apps from the Play Store the phone needs to linked to your Google account.

 

[Ron Miel]

If you go into your phone's Settings >> Accounts menu is your Gmail account listed as your primary user account on your phone?

It's an Outlook email account, not Gmail.
It's the only account on my phone. I don't see any indication that it's "primary"

Hopefully it is so now, using a web browser, try logging into your Google account at:
https://accounts.google.com
In the resulting page tap on 'Security' in the upper menubar and in the 'Your devices' section is your Blu phone in the list of connection devices?

It's there.

 

[Dannydet]

Your Gmail is linked to the device by default, so you do have that as your other email account, along with your outlook account.
So at least we now know the "no connection" message is only happening with your outlook account.
Have you tried changing your password for this account, or added 2 step Authorization security to make sure no one else is in your account?

 

[svim]

It's an Outlook email account, not Gmail.
It's the only account on my phone. I don't see any indication that it's "primary
It's there.

OK but entering a valid Gmail address and its password is part of the setup process with a typical Android phone. In your first posting you did state you were using your Google account, it makes no difference what email service you have set up in the email app. That doesn't anything to do with the Google account your phone is linked up with. You can have multiple email accounts (extra Gmail, MS Outlook, AOL, Yahoo Mail, etc.) set up concurrently to your email app, but the Google services running on your phone will only use one Google account login at a time (if you have multiple Gmail addresses, you can switch between them, it's still just one at time -- log into one and things like the Play Store will be using that particular Google account and only that account).
So basically, your phone is logged into a Google account, which may or may not be yours. I'd suggest you take your phone to a local service shop and have them show you how to find out which one, and set it up to your Google account for you.

 

[mikedt]

I'm having problems installing apps on my recently purchased (2nd hand) Android phone. I keep getting the message "No connection".

details:


I've done obvious things like reset the phone to factory settings.

This is the second such device I've tried. The first phone had the same problem. I took it back to the shop and exchanged it. The second phone had the same problem. Probably not a fault in the device.

I have used the same Google account on both devices. When I registered on the phone, it asked for confirmation on the tablet. Probably not a problem with the account.

Google on my phone is displaying a message showing me as signed in.

The phone settings shows I am connected to my WiFi. I am able to run Google searches, for example. Also, I tried it on different wifis. Probably not a problem with Wifi.


Pre-installed apps on my phone seem to work. I've tried several without any problem.

The model is BLU Life Play.

is it this device? Came out in 2013, nine years ago, and is running Android 4.2
https://www.gsmarena.com/blu_life_play-5359.php

My guess the "no connection", is it's trying to connect to a server that's no longer online. And if it is, there's probably not a lot you can do about that, except changing to a more recent and supported phone.

 

[Ron Miel]

is it this device? Came out in 2013, nine years ago, and is running Android 4.2
https://www.gsmarena.com/blu_life_play-5359.php

That is the device I have,

My guess the "no connection", is it's trying to connect to a server that's no longer online. And if it is, there's probably not a lot you can do about that, except changing to a more recent and supported phone.

Sounds possible. What does anyone else think?

 

[nickdalzell]

Play Store still supports Android Jelly Bean (4.1+). It only recently stopped supporting Android 2.3 Gingerbread in September 2021. Any version from Ice Cream Sandwich onward still allows Play Services to run, and Play Store, though I don't believe 4.0.3 still gets updates to either which makes Play Store break and not download/install anything, but purchase verification from paid app APKs tied to your account still work as does purchases of movies/books via the store.

I know 4.2 works because my Galaxy Note 8 tablet from 2013 still allows installs from Play Store.

Enjoy that phone while you can though. My damned carrier stopped allowing me to use any phone older than a Galaxy S5, which runs Android 6.

 

[Dannydet]

Just log in to the account using Chrome instead of the outlook app.
Problem solved