Series smartphones Honor 8A, despite their popularity and accessibility, over time may lose their former agility due to the accumulation of unnecessary data. RAM is filled with background processes, and internal storage is clogged with application caches, remnants of deleted apps, and duplicate photos. Users often notice that the phone begins to slow down, and notifications about lack of space appear more and more often.
Many immediately rush to download dubious accelerators and cleaners, which themselves consume resources and display annoying ads. However, the most effective and safe method remains manual cleaning. In this article, we will look in detail at how to free up gigabytes of space on your device using only built-in system tools and a file manager, without installing additional software.
Deep cleaning allows you not only to restore performance, but also to extend battery life, since the processor does not have to constantly process unnecessary background tasks. You will learn how to find hidden folders, clear the system cache and properly manage download files.
Analyzing memory fullness and searching for large files
Before deleting anything, you need to understand what exactly is taking up space on your Honor 8A. Android provides built-in storage visualization tools, but they don't always show the full picture. The first step is to check the statistics section in the settings.
Go to the menu Settings and find the item Memory. Here you will see a pie chart showing the distribution of data by category: applications, images, videos, audio, and more. If the "Applications" category takes up the lion's share, the problem lies in instant messengers or social networks.
- 🔍 Check the "Downloads" section - old APK installation files often accumulate there.
- 🗑️ Pay attention to the "Trash" folder in the gallery; deleted photos can be stored there for up to 30 days.
- 📂 Use a file manager to search for files larger than 100 MB.
Particular attention should be paid to messengers like WhatsApp or Telegram. By default, they save all received photos and videos to internal memory. Over time, these media files can take up tens of gigabytes, quietly eating up useful space.
⚠️ Attention: Before mass deleting files, be sure to check if they contain important work documentation or personal photos that are not saved in the cloud.
Clearing application cache through system settings
Cache is temporary data that applications create to speed up their work. For example, the browser saves copies of visited pages, and YouTube saves video previews. The problem is that this data is rarely deleted automatically and can grow to enormous sizes.
To clean it, go to Settings → Applications. From the list, select the most “heavy” apps, such as browsers, social networks or mapping services. Inside the menu of a specific application, find the item Storage.
Here you will see two buttons: "Clear data" and "Clear cache." It is important to distinguish between them. Clicking on "Clear data" will reset the application to its original installation state, deleting your logins, settings and conversations. The "Clear cache" button is safe and will delete only temporary files.
☑️ Algorithm for clearing the cache
Repeat this procedure for all applications that you use regularly. This is especially true for Google Chrome, Instagram and VK. After cleaning, you will notice that several hundred megabytes, and in some cases, gigabytes of free space have been freed up.
Working with the Download folder and system garbage
The (Downloads) folder is the main storage of digital garbage on any smartphone. Files from the Internet, attachments from mail, and documents opened in the browser are automatically saved here. Often, users forget about these files immediately after downloading. Download (Downloads) are the main repository of digital waste on any smartphone. Files from the Internet, attachments from mail, and documents opened in the browser are automatically saved here. Often users forget about these files immediately after downloading.
Open the standard Files or File Manager application. Go to the root directory or select the "Downloads" category. Sort files by date or size. Remove all installation packages with the extension .apkif you have already installed the corresponding applications.
Path to check: Internal memory → DownloadIt is also worth checking the folder Bluetoothif you have ever received files through this function. There may be old videos or music tracks that you no longer listen to. Don’t forget to empty the folder DCIM → .thumbnailswhere photo thumbnails are stored, although sometimes you can’t access it without root access.
Use the search by file extension in the file manager. Enter ".tmp" or ".log" in the search to find technical files that can be safely deleted.
Deleting duplicate photos and media files
Owners Honor 8A often face a situation where the same photo is saved in several copies. This happens when photos are edited, synchronization fails, or accidental resaving occurs. Duplicates take up space, but are not useful.
The built-in gallery does not always know how to find copies, so you will have to act manually or use smart search. Go to the "All Photos" album and carefully look through the images. Pay special attention to screenshots - we often take a lot of them, and then never open them.
| File type | Where to look | Can be deleted |
|---|---|---|
| Screenshots | Folder Screenshots | Yes, if not needed |
| WhatsApp Images | WhatsApp/Media | Yes, old photos |
| Telegram Cache | Telegram/Telegram Images | Yes, through the app settings |
| .nomedia files | Root of folders | No, these are system files markers |
If you have photo editing apps installed, check to see if they back up your originals in separate folders. Often, after processing in the editor, you are left with the source, the result, and intermediate versions.
⚠️ Attention: The EMUI shell interface may change depending on the version of Android. If you do not find the specified folders, try searching by file name inside the manager.
Disabling and deleting pre-installed applications
Smartphones Honor often come with a set of pre-installed software that cannot be removed in the usual way. These apps take up space in the application list and can run in the background, consuming RAM.
Go to Settings → Applications. Find apps you don't use (for example, unnecessary games, partner services, or duplicate browsers). If the "Delete" button is inactive, click on the button "Disable".
Disabling an application hides it from the launcher menu and prevents it from launching, effectively removing its updates and freeing up space. This is a safe procedure for most system components, except for critical services.
What applications should not be disabled?
Do not disable applications named “System Interface”, “Settings”, “Phone”, “Messages”, “Google Play Services”. This may lead to unstable operation of the smartphone or loss of connection.
Also check the list of applications that are allowed to run in the background. In the battery settings, you can limit background activity for heavy apps, which will indirectly help the system run cleaner and faster.
Using Honor's built-in optimizer
The EMUI shell installed on Honor 8Ahas a powerful built-in tool called "Optimizer". It combines the functions of an antivirus, a garbage cleaner and a startup manager. This is the easiest way to perform a quick cleanup.
Find the "Optimizer" application icon (a shield-shaped icon) on your desktop. Launch it and click the big "Optimize" button. The system will automatically scan the device for malware and unnecessary files.
After scanning, go to the section Cleaning. Here you can configure the deletion in more detail: select the cache, advertising files, empty folders and unused applications. The algorithm itself will suggest what can be safely removed.
The built-in Honor optimizer is safer than third-party apps, since it has access to system partitions that are closed to regular applications from the Play Market.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Is it safe to delete the Android folder on your phone?
No, you absolutely cannot delete the entire folder Android . It stores the data of all installed applications, their cache and obb files for games. Deleting this folder will reset all apps and lose progress in games. You can clean only the subsection Android/data/cache manually, but it is better to do this through application settings.
Why does the space quickly run out again after cleaning?
This is normal for active users. Messengers and browsers constantly generate new caches. To slow down this process, set up automatic cleaning of media files in Telegram and WhatsApp or disable auto-saving of photos to the gallery.
Do you need to do a full reset to clean it?
Factory Reset is a radical measure. It is only needed if the phone is critically slow even after manual cleaning. Before resetting, be sure to back up your contacts and photos, as all data will be deleted.
How to clear the DNS cache on Honor 8A?
To do this, go to Settings → Applications → click the three dots in the corner → Show system processes. Find the Google Play Services or Settings application (different versions vary) and clear their cache. Turning airplane mode on and off also helps.
Does full memory affect Internet speed?
Indirectly - yes. If the memory is full (less than 500 MB left), the system cannot effectively use the page file and cache network data, which can lead to browser freezes and slow page loading.