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[Q] Google Maps with GPS

hi everyone ! can anyone tell me how i can use Google Maps with Gps technology ?? when i select "Use GPS" it says "Network Unavailable"

You're connected to the Internet?

An activated GPRS, EDGE or UMTS is necessary.

sharax said:
You're connected to the Internet?
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no i'm not !
Dnst said:
An activated GPRS, EDGE or UMTS is necessary.
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you mean if i want to browse maps with gps, i have to connect to the internet ??

Oh yes the maps are not on your device they are downloaded!!

Google Maps gets your location from the GPS sensor, but then has to go online to download the actual map data for that area.

so if the map of the area we are in, was downloaded befor then i think there wont be any problem ! i think it would be just like the quick gps software in diamond ! am i right ?

I think that should be a way of download the map and use it offline. Some cracker should make it easy

diogoperas said:
I think that should be a way of download the map and use it offline. Some cracker should make it easy
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hehe, i tried 5 different apps and currently use gpsVP /w cached Gmaps imgs
pretty good for a free app, altho not totally easy to set up as there is no info...
since there is no maps for japan that i know of, never tried a commercial product, then again i prefer gmaps and my brain for navigation

diogoperas said:
I think that should be a way of download the map and use it offline. Some cracker should make it easy
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in the last few versions of gmaps just install it onto the storage card and then you can just save whats in the applicationdata\googlemaps folder and use that offline

Dnst said:
An activated GPRS, EDGE or UMTS is necessary.
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Can also be Wifi.

hey everybody, first post here....
i read that i should not start new posts if theres one going already.
I got my diamond about a month ago, its an alltel cdma diamond with original ROM, no registry tweaks, pretty much stock.
the GPS is being finicky. ive tried atleast 10-15 different GPS applications (all freeware or trials) and they are alway hit or miss. sometimes i get a 6-12 sat lock in seconds, even indoors... but sometimes i cant lock on outside even after 15min or more (even if i had a lock on less then 8hrs earlier). Ive been trying to find a pattern to why it sometimes works (certain settings, maybe after a resets, quick gps, etc)
side note, i used the G-Watch app while in poland where i have no phone coverage. it worked perfectly everytime i turned it on with almost instant lockon. but back in florida every program i try sometimes works and sometimes doesnt, even if i turned the phone to airplane mode.
question 1- is this considered normal for the alltel diamond
question 2- does the software that costs money (ie tomtom) work any better/more consistently
question 3 - could there be something wrong with my phone
question 4 - any ideas how to make it more stable
thanx for the help

also, on some of the gps programs, it will say i have found up to 8 or so sats, but wont lock onto any of them...
thanx again

GPS - Software, Performance

Now that Verizon finally has unlocked the GPS on a new device, I am curious about what navigation software and performance everyone is seeing. I tried TomTom 7 on my Imagio and it is lagging about 10 seconds. I haven't had time to really give it a good test, however it was a little concerning. How is your GPS working for you?

Same with me, Navigator is too laggy to work. I've installed Nav4All (free at nav4all.com) and it works great but is very rudimentary.
Goggle Maps works fine but not TTS so the search continues...

Interesting, I was using version ttn7.915.9196 for the record. I saw somewhere that there is a newer version for the TP2 out but i think it only added the ability to use the keyboard. I noticed that on the TomTom sight it only shows the Iphone edition I wonder if they are tweaking it for the new rev of WM phone. I think i might buy Copilot 8 if we can't find a fix considering its only something like $35.

Copilot 8 works great!

I use Ostia from pharosgps.com.
It was lightning fast to locate me, compared to using my old Tilt.
This is my third phone using Ostia and have to say currently liking it best.

GPS
You must first use HTCs Quick GPS. It speeds up the lock on the satellites. Google maps finds my location within seconds and Bing in less than a minute

Hormazdd said:
You must first use HTCs Quick GPS. It speeds up the lock on the satellites. Google maps finds my location within seconds and Bing in less than a minute
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Is QuickGPS a memory hog? And is it always on? I'm a little afraid to install it.
In the meantime, I have always like Garmin software. Garmin XT works very well on the Imagio. I got it off of ebay for about $25. It's also got lots of connected services, like nearby gas prices, flight times, google search, weather etc.

no quick gps isn't a memory hog and should already be on your device. The way it works is:
The GPS chip receives a synchronized timed signal from the satellites (birds) the US DoD launched into orbit. Each bird uses a different channel. With a good signal from three or more birds, GPS starts to get a fix. It does this by calculating the time difference between the reception of the different signals, then calculating the relative distances to each of the birds, then figuring out where it sits in the middle of the birds.
The GPS calculates four spheres, and its located somewhere on the surface of each of these spheres. There is only one point where these four spheres intersect. That's you.
If you're good at geometry, you might think that it needs 4 birds to get a fix, but in fact, if the GPS assumes that you are on earth, that provides another sphere, so it only requires 3 birds to get a decent fix. More adds altitude and accuracy.
But the GPS needs to know where each of the birds is before it can decide where IT is. That information is not calculated, but is available in a detailed download of orbital data provided by the DoD called ephemeris data. It is transmitted...from the bird to your GPS. For a cold start, your GPS needs to download the entire file, without interruptions in the signal - BEFORE it can even start getting a fix. In fact, the GPS may not even know which channels to tune into, since it doesn't yet know which birds are currently overhead. This causes a slow first fix.
Quick GPS, is simple. Ephemeris data is passed thru WiFi or cellular data connection ahead of time, and you never have to wait for it to download over the satellite. Awesome.
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I'm using IGo8 and it works perfectly.

I'v been happy with Bing for Maps/Turn-by-Turn GPS, with the bigger screen of the Imagio it's more than adequate for my needs. It also has gas prices, movies, and speech recognition which is very nice. Use Quick GPS to cache satellite info and it locks very quickly after that.

makryger said:
Is QuickGPS a memory hog? And is it always on? I'm a little afraid to install it.
In the meantime, I have always like Garmin software. Garmin XT works very well on the Imagio. I got it off of ebay for about $25. It's also got lots of connected services, like nearby gas prices, flight times, google search, weather etc.
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Isn't Quick GPS already on the Imagio. I don't remember installing it on mine and its been working great.

Boss428man said:
Isn't Quick GPS already on the Imagio. I don't remember installing it on mine and its been working great.
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It is if you go into the All Applications area from the TouchFlo Start Menu.

Boss428man said:
Isn't Quick GPS already on the Imagio. I don't remember installing it on mine and its been working great.
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I was confused, when I opened up QuickGPS, it said "Download", so I assumed it was like the Windows Marketplace icon, and that you actually had to download the program first. I was wrong- download means download GPS Data.

makryger said:
I was confused, when I opened up QuickGPS, it said "Download", so I assumed it was like the Windows Marketplace icon, and that you actually had to download the program first. I was wrong- download means download GPS Data.
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Correct, and it will auto-close after as it's not needed to stay running to work, just download cache files and exit.

Give it a try it has always worked will for me

IGO 8 is by far the best navigation software takes some tweaking to get it to work but if you do some searching you can find what your looking for on the net. Garmin XT uses a bit less program memory and still works well but not near as slick as IGO. Make sure you use latest possible release and maps.

Is it Igo 8 or OnCourse 8 in the US. I went to the site and found it a little confusing. Looked pretty nice either way.

Can't get Tomtom to work
On the topic of GPS programs, I have used Tomtom Navigator 6 (purchased version) for some time. Worked great on my AT&T fuze, but when I tried to install it on the imagio, it looks like everything is smooshed to the top of the screen, and is unusable. I contacted Tomtom, but they replied simply that it was an unsupported phone. I guess I'll have to try a different program. Anybody else had issues?

sdph said:
On the topic of GPS programs, I have used Tomtom Navigator 6 (purchased version) for some time. Worked great on my AT&T fuze, but when I tried to install it on the imagio, it looks like everything is smooshed to the top of the screen, and is unusable. I contacted Tomtom, but they replied simply that it was an unsupported phone. I guess I'll have to try a different program. Anybody else had issues?
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I've been using TomTom for years too. On my PDA's and winmo phones. I didn't install it on the Imagio because I was going to get the latest maps from TomTom and see if they had any software updates. But all they have on their site now is iPhone and zip for winmo, so it looked to me like they were dropping windows support, so I dropped them.
I can get by with Google Maps and/or Windows Live Search (Bing) - and for turn by turn I'm now using the $35 CoPilot 8. Works real well, but I have very limited time on it so far.
I was going to switch to Garmin XT, but you need a completely dedicated microSD for that - that's a deal breaker.

My friend installed wm 6.5 on his wing and he is having a similar problem with TOMTOM being very laggy. I think its a wm 6.5 issue and not and Imagio!

GPS Cost

For AT&T does using GPS cost money? From my understanding it only uses data to download maps but retrieving my coordinates is free. Do I understand correctly or have I been misled? (I do not remember where I read that.)
Also if it is true, then is there any GPS program that I can use that I can just download a map of a single city to my phone. That way I can just use Wifi at home to retrieve the map, then I can use it in my city for free.
Thirdly, assuming it true. Apps that tell me how fast I am going and how far I have traveled, would they cost me money. I think not because all they use is my coordinates, right?

GPS is free of charge, because it uses a satellite and no internet service.
There are a bunch of navigation softwares out there, but as far as I know, they all cost money. I, for example, use TomTom Navigator in Germany. You can buy it for around $100 with a detailed map of Germany and major roads of western europe. You can also purchase extra maps, for other countries. Dont know if you can buy a single city or state with at TomTom USA.
TomTom tells you how fast you are going at the moment you are using it. But there are a range of Tracking Apps, that can monitor the distance you do (Like TrackME). There is one program (forgot the name), that tracks your location like every 5 minutes and safes the coordinates in a format "Google Earth" is capable to read. So you can import the date and import it into Google Earth and then see the route you took.

If you have GPS in your phone, coordinates comes from satellites and is free. This is the signal that most of the non-map GPS apps use, so indeed free.
However, Assisted-GPS, which helps your GPS finding a signal faster, downloads a few kilobytes from the network, so costs very little, but is not free.
Maps are different. If you want it for active routing, you either need to buy and preload (TomTom, Garmin, and the likes), or you need an online service (Google) and you will need to pay data traffic for that
If you want the maps just for reference, not for active routing, and preload them at home, than there are a few nice programs, this one is very nice for the non-demanding user

Why does the edge symbol say its connected?
Don-Carlo said:
GPS is free of charge, because it uses a satellite and no internet service.
There are a bunch of navigation softwares out there, but as far as I know, they all cost money. I, for example, use TomTom Navigator in Germany. You can buy it for around $100 with a detailed map of Germany and major roads of western europe. You can also purchase extra maps, for other countries. Dont know if you can buy a single city or state with at TomTom USA.
TomTom tells you how fast you are going at the moment you are using it. But there are a range of Tracking Apps, that can monitor the distance you do (Like TrackME). There is one program (forgot the name), that tracks your location like every 5 minutes and safes the coordinates in a format "Google Earth" is capable to read. So you can import the date and import it into Google Earth and then see the route you took.
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The E will pop up while the phone asks the network for the co-ordinates of the local masts your are connected to. This can happen not just to get the original lock and your postition but if you are indoors it will stay on untill it picks up enough sats to navigate on its own.

Can I tell it to use Wifi for that instead of the Edge network? Will it only need to use this once?
anarchyuk said:
The E will pop up while the phone asks the network for the co-ordinates of the local masts your are connected to. This can happen not just to get the original lock and your postition but if you are indoors it will stay on untill it picks up enough sats to navigate on its own.
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If you are that worried about data connections, just disable AGPS. You can do that with Advanced Config tools 3.3. And/Or disable the data connections themselves, so *no* program can use data, also possible with Adv Cfg 3.3, but easier with Modaco NoData. Search the board for these utilities.
After disabling AGPS, you can still use QuickGPS when connected to WiFi to pre-download satellite positions, otherwise getting a fix takes several minutes. Search the forum for more info, all of your questions have been asked and answered before.

Thank you very much. I did search, however I must not have used the right keywords as I could only find programs that used GPS.
cybermaus said:
If you are that worried about data connections, just disable AGPS. You can do that with Advanced Config tools 3.3. And/Or disable the data connections themselves, so *no* program can use data, also possible with Adv Cfg 3.3, but easier with Modaco NoData. Search the board for these utilities.
After disabling AGPS, you can still use QuickGPS when connected to WiFi to pre-download satellite positions, otherwise getting a fix takes several minutes. Search the forum for more info, all of your questions have been asked and answered before.
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[Q] How to use GPS with no internet connection?

Hi, What do I need for my blackstone in order to use any (suggestions, which is better, would be a great help) GPS sowtware without internet connection. I am not an expert in this, but I know that GPS devices (like tom tom or similar) use satellite data to show coordinates. How can this be done on my touch hd? As only preinstalled program is google maps that require internet connection.
I don't have unlimited data plan, so this is extremely expensive for me, but I am a fan of geocatching, so I need GPS.
Please help me with description of how this GPS works and what soft should I use?
Thanks

There are lots of good Navigation/GPS Apps around that read standalone maps from your SDCard.
Take your pick.
Some info here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=566657

bethybabes69 said:
There are lots of good Navigation/GPS Apps around that read standalone maps from your SDCard.
Take your pick.
Some info here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=566657
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Hi, thank for the info, but....
I installed TT7 with my region maps, but I still seem not to receive any GPS signal - my phone seems not to catch any satellite signal - is this a setting issue?

in tomtom7, just access the gps settings and set them to "internal gps receiver", then it should work immediately, given that in your very location you have gps coverage.

I've found that my Touch HD's GPS capabilities work great when I'm at home testing them, then fails to locate any satellites when I'm lost! lol
Not exactly true - but has got me before!
I would suggest that you try your GPS in various locations just to make sure that the building you live / work in, or the weather isn't blocking the signal that your phones GPS listens for...
I used TomTom for ages without issue, it can be copied directly from a memory card on a TomTom compatible device usually.
Recently my Dad bought iGo8 with the entire world maps installed, so I pinched that and run it straight off my storage card with just a few teething problems. This is the best GPS / SatNav on my phone so far...

+1 for iGO8
Best GPS software by far for me. This is the only and single reason why I haven't bought an Android phone yet.
If they would have created the same skinable thing for a HTC Desire etc the HD would be history.
If I were you.
1) disable a-gps, causes roaming costs and most gps application freak out on it (download advanced config tool and disable it that way)
Lock, no lock, lock, ... mostly caused by agps (assisted-gps). Assisted means that it also gets data from the cell-tower which abroad can cost you loads of money (and yes I had that once)
If you use HTC quick gps you will probably get a lock in seconds if you are outside so no need for assisted.
2) install the gps mod driver , this one 'thinks' ahead by calculating points that it gets from the GPS receiver. If you don't feel confident about this one skip it but read the thread and keep it in the back of your head.
3) buy iGO8 and install the gurjon skin which makes iGO look fantastic and makes it fully configurable the way you want it.
4) enjoy a fantastic GPS system

about GPS works

I have an easy question about GPS, I am using Vibrant without network plan. So I don't know if I can use GPS with out any wifi or 3g? I am using the BV 1.3.1 now.. If that will work, how can I set up?

GPS uses military run satellites to determine you location. The network or data transfer is irreverent. Your GPS will work without network connection.
Now lets say you try to navigate to a location with Google maps. This will not work, although the phone will know your location it can not use the network to DL the maps nor calculate your route. If you use a nav app that store a maps on your SD card, then you'll be fine

SykesAT said:
GPS uses military run satellites to determine you location. The network or data transfer is irreverent. Your GPS will work without network connection.
Now lets say you try to navigate to a location with Google maps. This will not work, although the phone will know your location it can not use the network to DL the maps nor calculate your route. If you use a nav app that store a maps on your SD card, then you'll be fine
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+1 yup plus it will be slower

oka1 said:
+1 yup plus it will be slower
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It will be slower? The GPS navigate will be slower or the phone will be slower? much slower?

oka1 said:
+1 yup plus it will be slower
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Is there any nav app that we can't download free and store the maps in SD so that can navigate without network?

oka1 said:
+1 yup plus it will be slower
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pxc668 said:
It will be slower? The GPS navigate will be slower or the phone will be slower? much slower?
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I don't see how the phone would be slower, in any regard. It would not affect the phones processing speed, nor would the gps run slower. The only thing that could be slower is finding your location from a cold start, using network location can speed this, but imo it's irrelevant. Network location is too inaccurate for navigation.
There are some apps which store maps, but none that are free. Maybe someone else knows of one.

In my experience, GPS lock can be considerably slower without the network. The AGPS works by querying the network to get supplemental information like precise time and maybe ephemeris data (precise sat location) which can make a huge difference in acquiring lock. The phone is capable of acquiring lock without this network aid, but locks can take minutes, and accurate locks can take many minutes.
Of course, the other caveats about requiring off-line maps etc for navigation functions also apply.

I don't have a data plan either but my gps works just fine. It locks onto sats in about 10 sec.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=10488647
thats open source map app where u can drop locations to go turn by turn (initially the maps load over wifi, but u can choose to save them and save them according to the resolution. I live in Atlanta so i only saved the GA portion with a decent resolution, which is nice that i dont have to worry about downloading states ill never need).
i personally use copilot live more (about 1gb for USA maps with poi)
i forgot the price, but it is 100% worth it (almost better than my in car navi)
Running bionix btw if that helps with gps lockon timings
and dont forget to get apn droid from the app store to make sure it disables all cellular network data. only downside is that if you want mms then u have to turn it back on reboot and then download the mms then turn it off again, but i dont get many mms anyway so its ok.

Get CoPilot Live USA.
Its $5 on the market and it preloads the maps for the country on your phone. Works WITHOUT data and the interface is SLICK. Full 3D navigation with really good voice turn by turn.
One of the best purchases I ever made. Hope it helps you too
PS: Maps get updated about every month so they are always current as far as road names and points of interest. Note that since it isn't using any data and data triangulation, if it is the first time you use it after a phone reboot it will take up to 3-4 minutes to lock on. This is normal as it is the same if you try any 3rd party GPS receiver navigation system. Once you've used it once since the phone has booted up, lockon time will be under a minute.