Database Users

why does it take so long to get gps-signal?

hey guys,
i have a little question,
i just bought a haicom gps receiver and use tomtom 2 software. When i get out of my garage, it takes always more than 15 minutes to get a signal. sometimes during driving i also lose it. How comes?
when i connect my device to the receiver and power, i get something like "connecting to t-mobile MMS"...
oh, btw i have a MDA II with latest NL t-mobile rom. 1.60....
if anyone could help please...
thanks!

The gps should only take this long when first used, after that it should lock in a matter of a couple of minutes, to test the gps properly it is best to test it outside the vehicle, I think most Haicom mouse gps come with magnetic base so stick it on the roof and drive around, if it works better it is probably becuase your car has a metallised windscreen which blocks the signal. The message about connecting to the service provider is an error due to the com port being accessed i think, mine used to bring up activesync every time but once I canged my activesync settings on the xda to manual instead of auto sync it solved the problem.

so i should always drive around with my window open?? and stick the receiver outside the car?

I would agree with Crusin Through - I think your car may well have some form of heated windscreen or heat reflecting windscreen. What car do you have.
If when you do place the receiver on the outside of the car you do get good signal you can get a special anntenna that had an outside part and an internal part that you can fit permanently to the car so you can still move the thing about. Bit like a mobile phone antenna.
Alternatively as you have the XDA II you can get a bluetooth receiver an place it on the rear parcel shelf (I think the wider heating strips won't affect it - but can't confirm it.)

John, I wasnt suggesting you drive around with your window open, I was suggesting a way to ascertain if your windscreen is the problem regarding your blocked gps signal, by the way I have used a gps on the roof and the window will shut almost all the way however as the last post mentioned you can obtain a re-radiating antenna, this will solve your problem if indeed the windscreen is the culprit.

Re-rediating antenna - that's the word I couldn't remember :lol:

ok guys, thanks. i'll try with such an extern antenna.
thanks for your help

Before you spend your money on the re-rad antenna - try the thing on the roof - if this works then the antenna is your only real option if you want to continue with the thing in the front windscreen.
I'd hate you to buy the re-rad and then find it doesn't work.
Incidently what car do you have? (Does it have a heat reflecting or headted windscreen)

And if it works outside,
you still don't have to buy an external antenna, as normally the windshield have an area where is not metal coating...
try to check the manual of your car..

i own a toyota Camry 2002 model, it has indeed a windscreen etc...

GPS internal

I know this has been up before but I´m still confused.
On this site http://cnn.cn/shop/htc-tytn-c-277_279.html
they sell antenna for the hermes gps.
As we know Hermes has an internal gps but without the internal antenna that is necessary...
So has anyone installed such hardware?

It would certainly be interesting to know if with the external antenna the GPS would work. Looking at it I think it might, the only problem I can think of would be the device recognising the GPS. Great find!! Good on you!!

strandkanten2 said:
On this site http://cnn.cn/shop/htc-tytn-c-277_279.html
they sell antenna for the hermes gps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looking at the product page on this antenna there are som pictures with it installed.
It attaches to the connector behind the rubber protector next to the camera.
Is'nt this the connector for external radio antenna?
Or is there any smart electronics that connects this connector to the internal gps module?

mippen said:
Looking at the product page on this antenna there are som pictures with it installed.
It attaches to the connector behind the rubber protector next to the camera.
Is'nt this the connector for external radio antenna?
Or is there any smart electronics that connects this connector to the internal gps module?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wondered the same thing.

This has been discussed to death so many times. Most recently, this exact antenna was discussed in the Hermes Accessories section of this forum (use search, I'm not going to do it for you).
Here's the FACTS!
1) There is some of the circuitry (hardware) for a GPS in a hermes. Some is missing. This is most likely due to the chips that the hermes uses having multiple built in functions. One function was needed so they used a chip that just happened to have part of a gps built in.
2) Adding the rest of the gps harware isn't practical and has a 99.9% chance of destroying the device even if you are highly experienced in working with surface mount components.
3) Even if you added the antenna, etc. successfully there is no firmware to drive it. You still need to write everything from scratch and make the firmware work with the rest of the pda/phone. You would have to do this without benefit of having any existing source code for the pda. Good Luck
4) Assuming you managed to do all this, and plugged in this antenna, you would have a gps that needed this big ugly antenna wired to the phone. So why not just spend the $50 and buy a bluetooth gps that works without wires and doesn't need the phone modified?
5) The store selling this antenna have stated to queries (see other threads) that this antenna is for use when using an EXTERNAL gps with the hermes. In other words, some bluetooth and wired gps units that work with the hermes have an external antenna jack so that if they are used in poor conditions this antenna can be used to boost the range by placing the antenna outside the vehicle, etc.
6) You cannot use this antenna plugged into the hermes external antenna jack. it will probably destroy the phones radio instantly and permanently. In fact, its a very bad idea to use any external antenna with any radio that wasn't specifically designed for the radio. There are many reports of frying the radio by using 'universal' cell phone antennas.
In conclusion.... GIVE IT UP!
There is no usable gps in the hermes!

deach01 said:
.
In conclusion.... GIVE IT UP!
There is no usable gps in the hermes!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok then, anyhow very misleading pictures on that site then.
why would i install a wire to my phone if i have gps on bluetooth. makes no sense.
Ps. I knew this was discussed earlier but I wanted uptade on if someone tried it recently.

strandkanten2 said:
ok then, anyhow very misleading pictures on that site then.
why would i install a wire to my phone if i have gps on bluetooth. makes no sense.
Ps. I knew this was discussed earlier but I wanted uptade on if someone tried it recently.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
deach01 is correct. I agree the people selling this antenna should make it MUCH clearer as to its purpose.
To the best of my knowledge all development work has stopped, on getting the partial GPS functionality of the chip to work on the Hermes for the reasons deach01 states - it's just not practcal, and as said already the bluetooth receivers work well without major surgery to the Hermes.
Mike

Total BS! That site actually shows a picture of that antenna plugged into the back of the Hermes, talk about misleading!

deach01 said:
This has been discussed to death so many times. Most recently, this exact antenna was discussed in the Hermes Accessories section of this forum (use search, I'm not going to do it for you).
Here's the FACTS!
1) There is some of the circuitry (hardware) for a GPS in a hermes. Some is missing. This is most likely due to the chips that the hermes uses having multiple built in functions. One function was needed so they used a chip that just happened to have part of a gps built in.
2) Adding the rest of the gps harware isn't practical and has a 99.9% chance of destroying the device even if you are highly experienced in working with surface mount components.
3) Even if you added the antenna, etc. successfully there is no firmware to drive it. You still need to write everything from scratch and make the firmware work with the rest of the pda/phone. You would have to do this without benefit of having any existing source code for the pda. Good Luck
4) Assuming you managed to do all this, and plugged in this antenna, you would have a gps that needed this big ugly antenna wired to the phone. So why not just spend the $50 and buy a bluetooth gps that works without wires and doesn't need the phone modified?
5) The store selling this antenna have stated to queries (see other threads) that this antenna is for use when using an EXTERNAL gps with the hermes. In other words, some bluetooth and wired gps units that work with the hermes have an external antenna jack so that if they are used in poor conditions this antenna can be used to boost the range by placing the antenna outside the vehicle, etc.
6) You cannot use this antenna plugged into the hermes external antenna jack. it will probably destroy the phones radio instantly and permanently. In fact, its a very bad idea to use any external antenna with any radio that wasn't specifically designed for the radio. There are many reports of frying the radio by using 'universal' cell phone antennas.
In conclusion.... GIVE IT UP!
There is no usable gps in the hermes!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If they used a chip and it had GPS as a bonus and they just ignored it, why then would the go through the troubleb of adding an external antennal connection and mod the device housing to accomandate it?

The external antenna connection is NOT for GPS. Its for the cell phone radio.
Don't believe me?
Go ahead, plug in an antenna!
Hope you can communicate by smoke signals as your cell radio transmitter final amplifier toasts itself.
THERE IS NO WORKING GPS IN A HERMES!
Do you really think that HTC would build in a feature like GPS and NOT market it?

An expensive option, Kaiser!
An expensive option is to go for Kaiser(soon to be at&t 8925 ?)
Does anyone know for sure that at&t is NOT gonna kill GPS on Kaiser? Just heard today it has pass thru FCC (
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/windows-mobile/-283367.php )

As soon as the Kaiser comes out over here I'm going to get one, it's like the WM version of the N95.

HTC touch pro car kit

I've just bought this off ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=140294161361
I had a similar car kit for my prophet for gps navigation. it's not a hands free kit though. it had an inbuilt speaker so you can hear directions clearer and you can charge at the same time.
this seller is selling one with out the fm transmitter for approx the same price, so went with this for the fm transmitter. Hope it works ok... not a real fan of the swan neck design, prefer the angled neck as in the picture. This guy is selling it a bit cheaper than other sellers with the same/similar product. Other sites like brando were selling it for a lot more. There is the original HTC or other cheaper products, but no speaker.
Will review it once i get it, really hope it works ok like for my prophet...

wanwarlock said:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=140294161361
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wanted to take a look cause I'm looking for a nice solution but the link already returns :
"This item has ended with Buy it Now."

that's because i bought that. hehe
you can go and look at the sellers other listings. he has 2 kinds of these as i said above, 1 with speaker/no fm transmitter or 1 with speaker/fm transmitter.

Don't quiet understand the listing:Ca
Item # 130282049119 HTC Touch Pro FM TRANSMITTER CAR MOUNT KIT CHARGER $ 19.99
Flexible goose neck included
Item # 120354898072 Car kit for HTC Touch pro FM transmitter + charger $ 27.99
Flexible Gooseneck included
But both show a swivel mount (which I do like much better) and both items look the same
In case the item # disappears, sellers are zhoujing0209 and turbo-express
Can one clarify?

i think they maybe just copy & paste the descriptions. my seller is different than the 2 you listed. turbo-express was the most expensive 1 that i found including shipping.
yeah i like swivel as well. i think they all get them from the same supplier, hence the same 'stock' pics.
will tell when i get mine. looks like these 1s you can use as a handsfree...

Hah - I bought these last night.
I've already got a car charger.
A car mount - holder only.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=130282829189
Handsfree Mic
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=180321523945
3.5mm Audio to Pioneer Aux (CD Stacker control input)
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=320314793352
I figure the mic, the charger and the Pioneer input should all plug into the next device giving me a handsfree kt that comes through my stereo. I'll also be able to play music through it.
3in1 Stereo device. Two mini usb ports and 1 3.5mm audio jack socket.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=180322159245
If it works I'll then invest some money in a mini usb extension cable just to tidy things up.

Well...
mattyman said:
Hah - I bought these last night.
If it works I'll then invest some money in a mini usb extension cable just to tidy things up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So...did this all work? I really like the idea of using an external mic and then pumping the sound through the stereo.

Still waiting on delivery of the items...

mattyman said:
Still waiting on delivery of the items...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let us know how the FM transmitter work? Usually the sound quality is nasty.
I found this on DX a similar mount for $17.99, just to give you guys an idea how much other people are selling it for.

pandaboyy said:
Let us know how the FM transmitter work? Usually the sound quality is nasty.
I found this on DX a similar mount for $17.99, just to give you guys an idea how much other people are selling it for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
still haven't received mine yet, but my wife did say i got a parcel this morning. will update if it is & a brief review.
DX is always good for cheap electric/tronic stuff. they don't have a touch pro version AFAIK, also reading the forums, seems like DX gave another version to a buyer without the speaker. the pictured version looks exactly like the 1 i have for my prophet but mine is the swivel neck version.

anyone know if this will work with s cdma version

HTC Touch Pro car kit has in http://www.expansys.pt/p.aspx?i=170929 ???
if the holder fits, you can use it...
I bought one for my TP... It works ok!!!

I've had mine for a few days now. I have the cradle WITHOUT the FM transmitter, It's a charger/holder only. Fit and finish are a little above what you'd expect for a $15 piece of plastic. To be honest I expected to find casting tabs and rough/sharp edges, and I didn't. Granted that it's cheap plastic, but it works well with me FUZE.
**WARNING** The power supply that comes with it is regulated to 5v. It is NOT passing the full 12v from the car to the cradle. I know that other car kit brands (Seidio especially) put the power regulation inside of the cradle itself and send out a 12v cigarette adapter with their kit. Personally, I had my Seidio kit for my Wizard hardwired into my car. I'm glad I checked voltage prior to connection. I'd imagine the full 12v would fry the USB port/charging circuit in the phone.
Pix to follow next time I go to the car...

i did get the cradle yesterday.
a bit different from the pictured item, it came with a goose neck - but ok. the suction cup initially wasn't holding well, after a few tries & a bit of saliva (ewwww! haha) it worked ok & managed to hold my touch pro. good build to be honest
the fm transmitter worked well. i opened s2p & the sound is good. as good as a clear radio channel. volume is a bit on the low side - even at touch pro max volume. need to turn the radio vol. up quite a bit (remember to turn it down once finished!) the channels go up by 0.1 MHz (if that's correct) so pain if you need to use higher frequencies. I just used 88.5 i think, no radio stations here using that frequency.
Good fit of my touch pro, not as tight as the 1 for my prophet (which was tight enough to cause a bit of chipped paint). i guess it's not for CDMA versions due to the back cover?
the cable that came with it is a bit short if you want to mount it on the windscreen. it is the coil type, but stretches if put on windshield. a worry is that the stretch would make the whole thing fall!
there is no speaker or mic input!! the description says it has a speaker & mic & can be used as a handsfree kit. NO it can't...
1 other annoying thing is that if you use the fm transmitter, u can't charge the pda & vise versa. there is a switch on the side to choose from charging/transmitter. damn annoying if you asked me, wanted this to work with charging & transmitting... u can only do 1 thing at a time. also the short or tight adaptor that came with it...
not too sure on voltage, i guess it is 5V?
all in all, good product/build but annoying that it does not have a speaker/mic input & u can't use the transmitter while charging!
will post pics when i get home. i don't know whether it's worth complaining or not to the seller about the product description not accurate, but for $56 NZD i might just do that...

pbmestre said:
HTC Touch Pro car kit has in http://www.expansys.pt/p.aspx?i=170929 ???
if the holder fits, you can use it...
I bought one for my TP... It works ok!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes & no. that is just a holder & adaptor. what i'm talking about is like that with a speaker/fm transmitter so that if e.g. u use GPS, the voice is louder.

*Looks at watch and sighs wistfully while still waiting for parts*

Why don't you open it up to see if you can connect the wires yourself? Shouldn't be too hard to tweak the kit to charge and receive at the same time...

might do that actually. was thinking of it earlier on. i'm sure u can 'cross' the switch so that it can both work together...

I just receive my car kit.
This is what i received ( sorry for the quality of the pictures)
If you link the marked wires together the phone will always be on charge
My biggest problem is that the phone wont fit with the Seidio's Innocase Surface Case on it.
I am planning to atach a microphone also.

how did you get the swivel neck?? i hate my goose neck....
it's the same unit as mine, i guess you bought from the same seller? turbo-express? i emailed the guy saying that it doesn't have a speaker & it came with a goose neck, he replied in broken english like - oops sorry, not like in the picture & no speaker.... hmmmm
used this over the weekend to navigate, i hate the fact that i can't listen to my cd's while i use it. the car kit for my prophet just had a nice, loud speaker which was excellent.
another problem is that for some reason, the transmitter would switch off all of a sudden intermittently.
show us your completed 'hack' ok? will do like you said so it will always be on charge
shame about your case... maybe now use invisible shield or the likes????

Somebody know what it is?

Maybe an antenna connector? For the GPS? It is located above the upper right corner of the battery

I think that is an GSM connector

someone in another forum identified it as a MMCX socket, indicating it was for a GPS antenna,
he also posted a link to an auxiliary GPS antenna with the mmcx connector, looked just like the GPS antennas we used to buy for the mapping programs that ran on our laptops, or the auxiliary antennas available for the dash mounted GPS units

I think it's an internal antenna (don't think it's GPS), had the same on my Omnia II. Some people thought it was the reset button and ended up messing up their devices badly.

it's a connector for external antenna. which one I'm not sure, could be WIFI, GPS, FM.
commonly use for lab measurements.

Ok, thank you... we must to investigate

Bump, just noticed this..... It certainly looks like a MMCX socket. maybe we can boost wifi/fm/gsm signal by adding external antenna? We could use some thin wire and lead it around the battery..

I have a sirius satellite radio antennae with the same connector. I'm not going to plug it in though, for fear of shorting something out...

It's a connector for GSM external antenna.

You could measure resistance with multimeter...
Its quite risky, since there is no information about this connector.

xan said:
You could measure resistance with multimeter...
Its quite risky, since there is no information about this connector.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or you could use a oscilloscope. and it would be safe

meybe could work like that
http://blog.wpsantennas.com/2007/05/samsung-blackjack-i607-external-antenna.html
http://www.wpsantennas.com/359921-samsung-captivate-galaxy-s-antenna-adapter-cable.aspx

Its a GSM external antennae plug for people with car kits. Use mainly by country people as they need it due to distance or professional drivers like truckers. I find it odd as you would need a modded back cover when using it. I WONDER if you can improve reception of GPS/GSM if you make a backcase out of required material

[GUIDE] Putting GPS antenna on WiFi port. ( Better WiFi Signal )

Hi
I was in my grandparents house when i tought i need better wifi signal cause it was reconnecting me all the time.
I opened up my phone and put out wifi and gps antenna.
Then i connected gps antenne into wifi ports.
My friend have LG OPTIMUS 2X so i compared those phones before and after this tweak.
Before i hade like -90 dBm (on LG from -80 to -75dBm) and its was reconnecting me very often.
After i have from -80 to -70 dBm and now its working even little better than LG.
If someone would try something like that please share your results to see if it works, for me it works perfectly

careful with that, i did all sort of testing on the hd2's antennae system. Basically you bridged the wlan and gps antennas into one big one. The first logical conclusion is that it should work better, and as far as this goes, it does. However there's a reason gps and wlan/bt antennas are separated by the manufacturer. The gps part has a LC filter near the antenna and the filter is connected to a hi gain signal amplifier. When you feed to much signal into the gps part the small transistors in the gps signal "amplifier" will get fried over time - will loose sensitivity. GPS will still work but as time goes by, you'll find out that it is increasingly difficult to get a lock. On one motherboard i tested, this leaded to total failure of the gps receiver side (needed an external hi gain antenna to get a fix, otherwise totally dead).
The reason for this problem is the fact that when bridging the antennas you create a ground loop on witch wifi/bt signals (higher amptitude) will get into the gps side, damaging it.
The solution is to separate both antennas and if you need a higher gain on the wifi side, develop a small fractal antenna or add a small enameled copper wire, wrapped around in a small coil, both ends connected to the wifi antenna pins.
If you really need stronger wlan, use some electric tape and insulate the gps pins from their antenna, if you want to keep your design. You will loose gps functionality, though.
NEVER mix up, gps with radio (GSM/3G) antenna, this is the most dangerous, again for the gps side. If you look at the hd2 board you will see that these 2 are actually in opposite sides.
Some newer phones use unified antenna designs for wlan/bt/gps etc, by means of some fast detection/varactor diodes in a signal mixer located in the input stage of the amplifier/emitter circuitry but no phone uses unified antenna for these AND the GSM part.

facdemol said:
careful with that, i did all sort of testing on the hd2's antennae system. Basically you bridged the wlan and gps antennas into one big one. The first logical conclusion is that it should work better, and as far as this goes, it does. However there's a reason gps and wlan/bt antennas are separated by the manufacturer. The gps part has a LC filter near the antenna and the filter is connected to a hi gain signal amplifier. When you feed to much signal into the gps part the small transistors in the gps signal "amplifier" will get fried over time - will loose sensitivity. GPS will still work but as time goes by, you'll find out that it is increasingly difficult to get a lock. On one motherboard i tested, this leaded to total failure of the gps receiver side (needed an external hi gain antenna to get a fix, otherwise totally dead).
The reason for this problem is the fact that when bridging the antennas you create a ground loop on witch wifi/bt signals (higher amptitude) will get into the gps side, damaging it.
The solution is to separate both antennas and if you need a higher gain on the wifi side, develop a small fractal antenna or add a small enameled copper wire, wrapped around in a small coil, both ends connected to the wifi antenna pins.
If you really need stronger wlan, use some electric tape and insulate the gps pins from their antenna, if you want to keep your design. You will loose gps functionality, though.
NEVER mix up, gps with radio (GSM/3G) antenna, this is the most dangerous, again for the gps side. If you look at the hd2 board you will see that these 2 are actually in opposite sides.
Some newer phones use unified antenna designs for wlan/bt/gps etc, by means of some fast detection/varactor diodes in a signal mixer located in the input stage of the amplifier/emitter circuitry but no phone uses unified antenna for these AND the GSM part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i've always enjoyed reading your posts, extremely informative! thanks (and thanked)!

your saying i connected gps and wifi antenna into one piece. Propably its because i used bad words to describe what i was doing
truth is, i just changed between those antenna so i still have them.
GPS is now on wifi ( i dont have gps now ) and wifi antenne is in a safe place.
Is there any danger in the way i use it now? I dont see anything to proof that, except those wires look different.
Thanks for respond

Hmm, doesn't sound like a good thing to try. I don't really have problems with my wifi, but mixing the antenna's... yeah the manufacturer did't split them for no reason.

its almost week after i changed wires and nothing happend since then, except i have a feeling my battery lives longer with better wifi signal.

aah, you only changed the antenna wires (black - white). That's ok, no problem here.
I understood that you soldered the 2 antennas together. That's another story.