Troubleshooting Philips GoGEAR Problems

Frequently encountered Philips GoGEAR media player problems include the device locking up, users forgetting the screen unlock pattern, the device not being recognized by your Mac or PC, and more. Work to resolve your problems on your own if the manufacturer's warranty has expired or if you don't want to deal with the hassle of sending it back to the manufacturer for repairs.

• Try pressing the Reset button on the lower-left side of the Philips GoGEAR media player using a straightened paper clip or any other long, thin, solid object. The device forces itself to shut down after you press the Reset button. Wait a few minutes after the device shuts down and then power it back on. If you're still experiencing freezing problems, try repairing the player using the Philips Songbird software, as outlined in the next bullet.
• Using the Repair My Philips Device option in the Philips Songbird software allows the software to detect and repair problems with your device. You can use the Repair My Philips Device option to try repairing problems with your GoGEAR by doing the following:

1. Open the Philips Songbird software on your computer. If you don't have the Philips Songbird software installed on your computer, you can download it here.
2. Select "Tools" from the Menu bar along the top of the program window and then select "Repair My Philips Device."
3. Click to highlight the "GoGear Connect 3(SA3CNT)" choice and then click "Continue." The Repair Device dialog box appears on your screen with instructions for connecting your Philips GoGEAR media player for repair. Keep this dialog box open and don't close it.
4. Power down your Philips GoGEAR device, hold down the device's "Play" button and then connect it to your computer using the USB cable that came with the device. Continue holding the "Play" button down until the Repair Device dialog box on the screen displays a progress bar, meaning it's detected the device.
5. Follow the specific instructions that appear in the dialog box, as the instructions are slightly different depending on which GoGEAR model you have. When the process is complete, you'll be instructed to disconnect the device. If the Philips GoGEAR media player is still having problems, following the instructions later in this article to restore the device to its factory settings.

• Try disconnecting USB devices you currently aren't using from your computer, restarting the computer and then connecting the GoGEAR to an available USB port to see if that fixes your issue. Having a large number of USB devices connected to your computer can use up all of the power allocated to USB ports without you actually using all of the USB ports.
• Try connecting the Philips GoGEAR media player to a different USB port in case the USB port you're currently using is disabled or defective.
• Ensure that you're connecting the media player to a working USB port that's recognized by the computer. For example, USB ports on computer monitors and keyboards often aren't recognized by your computer, and you need to connect the media player to a USB port on the computer's tower. However, if you're using an all-in-one computer, you'll need to connect the device to a USB port on the computer's monitor, as all-in-one computer's don't have a tower.
• Try replacing the USB cable connecting the media player to your PC in case the cable is damaged or defective.

• If you've recently upgraded your Mac computer, try the following to reset your Mac's parameter random access memory:

1. Power down your Mac computer and then power it back on.
2. Press the "Command," "Option," "P" and "R" buttons at the same time after the computer begins booting up.
3. Try connecting your Philips GoGEAR media player to the computer after it boots up to see if your problem is resolved.

• Try replacing the USB cable connecting the media player to your Mac in case the cable is damaged or defective.

It's easy to panic if you forget your screen unlock pattern, but don't worry. After entering the incorrect screen unlock pattern five times, a message appears informing you that you need to wait 30 seconds before trying to enter the correct pattern again. When the screen appears where you can enter your pattern again, tap "Forgot Pattern." You'll then be given the opportunity to enter the username and password associated with the Gmail account that's set up on the device. After correctly entering that information, you'll be asked to set up a new screen unlock pattern on your device.

You're likely using a third-party cable to connect your Philips GoGEAR media player to your computer for syncing with the Songbird program. Third-party cables will often charge your media player but don't allow you to sync your device with the Songbird program. Try using the USB cable that came with the media player or a Philips-certified USB cable to see if that resolves your problem.

Updating the firmware can resolve problems with the Philips GoGEAR media player and a number of other problems with the device. You can update the device's firmware by ensuring you're connected to a Wi-Fi network and then doing the following:

1. Tap the "Options" button. The Options button is the button just beneath the touch screen that features three horizontal lines.
2. Select "Settings" in the list of options that appears on the lower part of the media player's touch screen.
3. Tap "Philips" in the list of options that appears.
4. Select "Upgrade" at the next screen. Your Philips GoGEAR media player will search for available updates. Install any updates that are found.

If nothing else resolves the problem you're experiencing, back up your media player and then restore it to the factory settings. You can restore the Philips GoGEAR media player to its factory settings by doing the following:

1. Tap the "Options" button.
2. Select "Privacy."
3. Select "Factory Data Reset." All personal content, such as audio, video and apps that you added to the device, will be erased and the media player will be restored to its settings it had when you first turned the Philips GoGEAR media player on.