I recently dropped my Samsung Galaxy S23. The display still turns on, but the touchscreen no longer responds. I bought a BENFEI 5-in-1 adapter so I could connect the phone to a monitor, laptop, or TV and back up my data before moving to a new phone. However, when I connect it, the phone only displays the message: "To use USB device, unlock your phone." Since I can't interact with the screen, I'm stuck and need a way to unlock the phone or access its files so I can save everything to the cloud.
3 Answers
If you can get a USB-C hub that supports HDMI and USB at the same time, try using Samsung DeX with a mouse or keyboard. That may give you a way to control the phone on an external display, but it still might require unlocking the phone first. If that fails, repairing the screen is probably unavoidable.
Try connecting a USB keyboard through an OTG adapter, then wake the phone and enter your PIN followed by Enter. If the lock uses a pattern instead, a USB mouse may let you draw it. Once the phone is unlocked, reconnect the display adapter and try casting again.
The most reliable solution may be replacing the damaged screen, even temporarily. The phone is blocking external USB access until it’s unlocked, so a working touchscreen could be necessary to approve the connection and recover your data.
That seems to be the problem: every USB device I connect produces the same locked-phone message, and I may need a different OTG setup before the keyboard or mouse will work.