Nexus 5X: How to Factory Reset

If you ever notice your Nexus 5X is acting slow, using too much better, overheating or anything suspicious, then I would recommend to do a factory reset.

Doing a factory reset on a smartphone is a common and very effective troubleshooting step for anytime your device is starting to have issues. I’ll even go as far as to do a factory reset within 10-15 minutes of pulling the phone out of the box. If I sense something is wrong with heat generation, battery life or performance, I’ll quickly do a factory reset right out of the box just to get it out of the way.

We have to remember that these devices are setup and installed by the thousands and there’s always a chance of a hiccup occurring during the process.

Doing a factory reset on the Nexus 5X is also wise if you have just applied an OTA update and you’re experiencing some trouble that I just describe above. An install or an upgrade to any operating system(whether its iOS, Android, Linux, Windows, etc) always has the chance of it not going the way it’s supposed to. I call this a ‘hiccup’ as it is a good way to describe what just happened. A factory reset can also be wise if you have had the Nexus 5X for a few years and it seems to be getting sluggish. Being able to start over with a fresh install of an operating system(again, any operating system) can always help to iron out those kinks that have built up over the years.

So let’s talk about easy steps that you need to take in order to perform a factory reset on the Nexus 5X. I will be covering two types of factory reset methods but you should realize that both methods will result in the same thing happening. One will be described as a Soft Factory Reset and the other will be described as a Hard Factory Reset. Most of the time you’ll just need to follow the guide for the Soft Factory Reset, but if you run into a bootloop on the Nexus 5X or you just can’t boot into Android then you can follow the steps for the Hard Factory Reset.

You will lose your personal data from a factory reset so you will need to activate Android and set everything back up again.

Nexus 5X Soft Factory Reset

1. Launch the Settings Application on the Nexus 5X
2. Scroll Down and Tap on the ‘Backup & Reset’ Option
3. Tap on the ‘Reset Phone’ Button at the Bottom of the Screen
4. Then Tap on the ‘Erase Everything’ Button
5. Wait for the Nexus 5X to Reboot and Factory Reset Your Data

Nexus 5X Hard Factory Reset

1. Power Down the Nexus 5X
2. Boot the Nexus 5X into Fastboot Mode
3. Boot the Nexus 5X into Recovery Mode
4. Press the Volume Down Button Until the ‘Wipe Data/Factory Reset’ Option is Highlighted
5. Press the Power Button to Select This Option
6. At the Confirmation Prompt, Press the Volume Down Button to Highlight the ‘Yes – Delete All User Data’ Option
7. Then Press the Power Button to Select This Option
8. Wait Until the Factory Reset is Completed
9. When Done, Make Sure the ‘Reboot System Now’ Option is Highlighted
10. Then Press the Power Button to Select This Option and Reboot the Nexus 5X

Explanation

As I mentioned, it doesn’t matter which method you follow this because both of them will result in the same thing happening to your Nexus 5X. Neither of these is better than the other so if you can boot into Android like normal, I would suggest doing the Soft Factory Reset method. To do this, simply launch the Settings application and navigate through the menus as directed in the tutorial. You’ll see a few warning screens that talk about how your personal data will be erased during this process. If you are trying to resolve a critical issue on the Nexus 5X, having to restore your apps and data shouldn’t be a big deal at all.

If your Nexus 5X isn’t booting up into Android though, then we need to follow the Hard Factory Reset method because you should always be able to boot up into Fastboot Mode. If you can boot into Fastboot Mode, then you should always be able to boot up into Recovery Mode too. Once there, you’ll need to use the Volume Up and Volume Down buttons to navigate through the menu. Pressing these buttons will move the selector and let you highlight a specific menu item. When you see the ‘Wipe Data/Factory Reset’ option is highlighted, then press the Power button to select this option

Similarly to the Soft Factory Reset method, you’ll see a warning screen asking if this is really what you want to do. If it is, then confirm the reset and proceed with erasing the Nexus 5X. Once the Factory Reset has finished(no matter which method you choose), your Nexus 5X will reboot and you’ll be taken to the standard activation screen that you see when you first boot up an Android device. All you have to do is follow through the menus and you’ll be able to restore all of application data like normal.