Update 3: Problem solved! Google pushed an update that fixed everything. Really appreciate the help!
**Update 2: Thanks for all the responses! Good to know I’m not alone with this issue. Guess those of us sticking with older devices aren’t the ideal customers anymore!
Found a workaround though - I can copy the sheet URL and view it through Chrome browser. Can’t edit but at least I can check task status and see recent changes.**
Hey everyone, I’m using an older Galaxy Note 8 for work stuff including accessing a shared Google Sheets document for project management. The spreadsheet has weekly tabs (around 52 total) with color coding and formatting for different team members. Pretty data-heavy overall.
Everything worked perfectly until a few days back when this error started appearing: “Network error occurred. Verify your internet connection and file permissions, then retry.”
My connection is fine since other Google services work normally. I’ve tried the usual fixes - phone restart, clearing app cache/data, logging out and back in. Nothing helps. Even simple sheets with just one tab and minimal data sometimes won’t load, though I can still create new documents.
Looking online, this seems to happen fairly often. Could it be my device can’t handle large spreadsheets anymore? Or maybe Android 9 is just too outdated now? If it’s a data size problem I could try breaking the sheet into smaller files. But if it’s just an old OS issue I might need to upgrade my phone, which sucks because this one still works great otherwise!
Anyone dealt with this before? What worked for you?
Glad you got it sorted with the Google update! This is exactly why I ditched Google Sheets for anything important though.
I had the same headache a few months back - our project sheet kept breaking on different devices and browsers. When it did work, loading 52 tabs was painfully slow.
I ended up automating everything with Latenode instead. Now workflows automatically collect project data, update status, and send notifications to the team. Data gets stored properly and I can generate reports without worrying about compatibility issues or crashes.
Best part? Team members use simple forms or chat messages instead of fighting with spreadsheet apps on their phones. No more “did my update save?” conversations.
Might be worth it for your next project. Way more reliable than hoping Google doesn’t break something again.
Had the same issue with my Galaxy S7 about six months back. Super frustrating because the phone handled other heavy apps fine - it wasn’t a hardware problem. Google’s backend updates sometimes break compatibility with older app versions, even when your Android version should work fine. Your browser workaround is solid. I started using Chrome for viewing and only opened the app when I really needed to edit stuff. Pro tip: try requesting desktop site in Chrome for quick edits - way more features than mobile view. Keep fewer Chrome tabs open when using Sheets though. Older phones + heavy web apps = memory problems. Also check that Google Play Services is updated since Sheets needs those background services for syncing.
Your Note 8 can definitely handle complex spreadsheets - I’ve done it on older phones. The timing suggests this is a server issue, not your device. Google constantly tweaks their APIs and authentication, which breaks things temporarily even when everything looks fine on your end. I had the same network errors last year on my Pixel 2 XL with Android 11. It lasted about a week, then fixed itself. I noticed it happened more with sheets that had lots of conditional formatting and multiple people editing. Smart move using Chrome - the web version uses different API calls than the app. Pro tip: when this happens, switch the app to offline mode. Sometimes it forces a different sync route that gets around whatever’s broken on Google’s end.