Windows Phone 8.1 Cortana Fix: How to Resolve Loading/Resuming Lag Issue

Several Windows Phone 8.1 (WP 8.1) Developer Preview users are reportedly experiencing loading or resuming lag on their handsets even after installing the official final update of WP 8.1, while some users remain unaffected.

According to Windows Observer, though it is unclear why the lag issue is affecting only some Windows Phone users, all affected handsets seem to exhibit the same loading/resuming lag issue while running WP 8.1 update on their devices.

The report suggests affected users have already tried a range of fixes including stopping all running apps, installing bare minimum apps and performing a complete clean install or reverting to Windows Phone 8 commercial/final release.

Windows Observer also notes that the issue is persistent even after resetting the phone, stopping the use of SD card for data storage or delinking the Twitter account from Microsoft account to avoid Twitter contacts from syncing on the phone.

Finally, a Cortana fix has been found via a Twitter follower (@karelj) who suggested a simple trick of removing Cortana Live Tile from the Start screen.

Though the trick seems a bit weird, it does fix the issue without actually affecting the functionality of Cortana as the app is still accessible via the hardware search button on the handset.

The report confirms that the fix is working well even after two days and the actual duration of the fix might vary depending on the handset configuration or apps installed on it.