What is cache memory? Should it be deleted? How to clear cache on phone

One of the factors that causes the phone memory to decrease quite quickly is the cache memory. 

So do you know what the phone's cache is, should the cache be cleared? And how to clear the cache on the phone? Please follow the following article.

1. What is cache memory? Is that important?

Cache is a temporary storage area of a device that helps to retain certain types of data. This is basically an area that stores frequently used data or processes for faster access in the future.

The purpose of this is to save time, speed up the operation of the device and reduce the amount of data that needs to be processed during use.

Have you noticed that after restarting your phone, applications start up quite slowly, and will be faster the next time you open them? The increase in speed in later boots is due to this cached data. 

When you clear an app's cached data, you're deleting that app's temporary files. However, it should be noted that this will make subsequent use slower. 

2. Should the cache be cleared?

Clearing the system cache won't cause any trouble, but it won't help much either. The files stored in it will allow the device to access the reference information without having to constantly re-initialize.

If you clear the cache, the system will have to re- initialize these files the next time the phone needs it, similar to the application cache. Therefore, you should not regularly clear the system cache especially if there is no reason.

Should the cache be cleared?

However, the purpose of these operations is to save storage space. Some apps can store up to GB of data that you no longer need. In this case, you need to delete them to free up memory space.

Another and more common reason for this is to help you reset the app to its default state when the app crashes or becomes difficult to use.

In addition, there are some other reasons why you should clear the cache such as:

• The app's cache files are corrupted, causing the app to misbehave.
• You want to delete files that contain personal information to protect your privacy.
• You're running out of storage space on your phone and don't want to delete videos, photos, and apps.

3. How to clear cache on Android phones

To clear the entire cache of all apps, you need to do the following:

Step 1: Go to the Settings menu.

Step 2: Click on Storage > Select  Clean up files. In addition, each phone will have different options such as: Cache data, Saved data, Clean files, ... 

Immediately, the phone will scan for junk apps, cache,... then confirm to delete everything stored in the cache. Select Confirm to delete.

To clear the cache and data of individual apps, you need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Go to Settings menu > Tap Apps. Then find the All Apps tab.

Step 2: Select apps that take up a lot of space.

Step 3: Tap the Clear Cache button. If the device is running Android 6.0 Marshmallow or later, you'll tap Storage and then select Clear cache.

To clear app data instead of cache, just select Clear data.

What's the difference between clearing app data and clearing cache?

After you clear the cache files, you will regain some storage space and the app will continue to work as it should. However, all the data used to degrade performance has been exhausted, so it may take more time for the phone to get the information back in the first place. Over time, the app rebuilds its cache based on your usage.

Clearing app data will reset the app to its default state, which will make your app work as it did when you first downloaded and installed it.

The difference between these two operations is that clearing the cache will not affect the saved settings. Conversely, deleting stored data will delete all information, settings, and customizations on your application.