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After applying the GPS fix I am having an odd issue. When I fist launch google maps it shows me in some small rural village in China. Once the GPS gets a fix it goes to where I am really am. This would not be a big deal except when I take pictures it Geotags the picture as being in this Chinese village which is kind of a pain. Also it screws up my weather widgets sometimes. Any ideas? I was thinking maybe it has to do with the server it is using to pull down the GPS data, but not sure.
I am having a similar issue, but not quite as drastic. Mine just simply shows me being the last place i was before GPS was turned on. Like right now, without GPS connected but using the towers to figure out my location, it shows me at the place i at lunch, about 3 miles away, rather than at work. Its VERY frustrating.
I'm having the same problem. My GPS shows me in a neighboring city that is 50 miles away, every time.
The best way to test this is to load the 'Maps' live wallpaper. It happens every time. Also, booting up the 'Maps' application will throw me into the other city for at least five minutes, before it realizes that the data is not correct.
It's a new "google fortune" feature. It's telling you you need to travel the world.
Same problem here, however, I was thinking it had more to do with the "Use Wireless Networks" not updating my location.
-If I have gps turned off and wireless network location on. My location doesn't update at all until I reboot the phone (although Latitude shows it as being updated within the last few minutes, even though it shows me somewhere I haven't been in hours and is 50miles away.)
-If I turn gps on, it will then get a fix and properly update my location.
I did apply the GPS fix.
lol mine switches between seattle and SPAIN! wtf.
I think it has to do something with the way samsung implements the gps receiver..a friend had a sammie moment..she would be right next to me..nyc...but her gps would say shes in havana, cuba..on good days..some place in estonia..lol...and now i see the issues being replicated here...i blame samsung...my old trusty g1 locks a signal and is very accurate within a min or 2..
Thanks for the info, sync3. That's starting to become my thought as well.
What a shame. I hope an official statement is released, either way.
chastbi said:
Same problem here, however, I was thinking it had more to do with the "Use Wireless Networks" not updating my location.
-If I have gps turned off and wireless network location on. My location doesn't update at all until I reboot the phone (although Latitude shows it as being updated within the last few minutes, even though it shows me somewhere I haven't been in hours and is 50miles away.)
-If I turn gps on, it will then get a fix and properly update my location.
I did apply the GPS fix.
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Click to collapse
This is the EXACT problem I am having. I dont know how to get it to update my location.
I have the same issue. I also had applied the GPS fix... I've tried reverting to stock settings, tried enabling skyhook and tried a few other things.
The only way I've been able to properly get my location is to turn off the network assist and tell the GPS to operate in standalone mode. It takes a heck of a lot longer for a fix, but it's accurate if it does get a lock. Doesn't work so well indoors though.
Who the heck were the field testers for this device? its full of more bugs than an entymologist's labratory.
Clear your GPS data
heygrl said:
Clear your GPS data
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was one of the first things I tried. It didn't help.
My main concern is that this is unrelated to the GPS software issue and that this is actually a hardware issue. Does anyone agree or disagree with this?
pearlblues said:
My main concern is that this is unrelated to the GPS software issue and that this is actually a hardware issue. Does anyone agree or disagree with this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree this is hardware related because others have reported exchanging their phones rids them of the GPS issues.. :-/
I work in Houston and sometimes while at work GPS says I'm in Pawcatuck, CT.
The question is when not using gps what function of the phone updates your location? Could it be a network issue? How do you force it to retrieve tower data that marks your location?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Well, i exchanged my phone last night because of this issue and the new one is doing the same thing. So either this is a problem inherent to this model (hopefully the software not telling the phone to refresh tower data) that can be fixed with an update or i am extremely unlucky.
pearlblues said:
Well, i exchanged my phone last night because of this issue and the new one is doing the same thing. So either this is a problem inherent to this model (hopefully the software not telling the phone to refresh tower data) that can be fixed with an update or i am extremely unlucky.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just had my 3rd call with TMobile- she now assured me that this is a software issue (which i made her mark in my account incase it winds up being hardware later) and that all phones with software # T959UVJFD have it. She said tmobile is working with samsung to fix. I told her all Galaxy S series, domestic and international, have GPS issue and samsung has yet to fix any. She said well that is something you need to consider.
blink55184 said:
Just had my 3rd call with TMobile- she now assured me that this is a software issue (which i made her mark in my account incase it winds up being hardware later) and that all phones with software # T959UVJFD have it. She said tmobile is working with samsung to fix. I told her all Galaxy S series, domestic and international, have GPS issue and samsung has yet to fix any. She said well that is something you need to consider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, very helpful information. How they get this fix released ASAP.
had the phone a couple of weeks and never tried the GPS on it ,so this morning decided to give it ago
in premuim navigation or google navigation it just says searching for GPS all the time with m3g on or off, out side with 3g on i get a spot on fix in no via that in no time but if i try to get the gps to get a fix it just keeps saying searching for GPS
i know it normally takes longer for its first ix and then should be ok but i cant get a gps fixe and yes GPS is enabled
any help would be great thanks
Just a update with 3 g on good navigation provides a fix and directions but with 3g off Google says mobile data lost,on premuim navigation it just searches for god and can not provide directions even with 3 g on
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
just a update after a bit of trying things out today
got GPS in car panel after a while and now it gets a fix very quick
premium navigation works well on 30 day trial and is very acurate for proximity to junctions etc,this does work with 3G turned off no problem (although 3 g does need to be on to activate the trial)tried it tonight in awful weather and never once lost the GPS during the journey
google navigation again gets a very quick fix but will not work unless 3G is on other wise you get the voice saying loss data connection when trying to plan the route
google maps very quick fix and only needed GPS on
locations, not sure how this is working but im sure even with just GPS on i was getting acurate info or maybe it was pre-cached info not sure
Thanks, this helpful.
So after you got your initial fix, the next time you start navigation, the fix was quick?
Did you also test that without using 3g, so creating a fix without 3g, and if so, was that quick as well?
paulus_01 said:
Thanks, this helpful.
So after you got your initial fix, the next time you start navigation, the fix was quick?
Did you also test that without using 3g, so creating a fix without 3g, and if so, was that quick as well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes fix without 3g was quick
mine just will not fix the GPS....it finds 8 satellites in couple of seconds, but then just keeps "determining position"
without a determined position, my nav app can't do anything (copilot btw)...
Anyone any suggestions?
paulus_01 said:
mine just will not fix the GPS....it finds 8 satellites in couple of seconds, but then just keeps "determining position"
without a determined position, my nav app can't do anything (copilot btw)...
Anyone any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The same here.....
Antonio
Locations sadly does not work without data connection, even with gps turned on.
So whats the use of preloading the maps?
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Pre-loaded maps?
matthiasdeblaiser said:
Locations sadly does not work without data connection, even with gps turned on.
So whats the use of preloading the maps?
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly! I pre-loaded with maps of Europe so as not to incur data charges - but Locations is useless without a data connection. How do you use the maps with GPS only? Does anyone know??
You guys are doing something wrong. I'm in Australia and Locations works fine without data connection after having downloaded the maps. It just takes some time to get fix (some 2 minutes) if it was a long time since I last got one. I can get directions fine without any data connection as well.
I'm also having problems with gps, worked fine when.I got the phone but now after I think the third ota update it just keeps searching if I only have gps switched on and not wireless networks. With wireless networks one (with or without gps, dosnt make any difference) I'm consistentlyplaced 2km away and it dosnt.improve the accuracy with time.
So I'm thinking that the updates have messed it up? Did email HTC support but nothing yet from that.
I'm always unable to get GPS fix, even if I'm in an open space. I used an app called "GPS Status", I was connected to 7/8 GPS satellite, but I wasn't able to get my position (in Maps, Locations, Latitude and Nav). How is that possible?
xazac said:
I'm always unable to get GPS fix, even if I'm in an open space. I used an app called "GPS Status", I was connected to 7/8 GPS satellite, but I wasn't able to get my position (in Maps, Locations, Latitude and Nav). How is that possible?
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Click to collapse
So you're not able to use navigation stuff? I'm still waiting to get mine, no availability here in Milan, but for me GPS is a critical feature, so if not works properly it will be a big deal!!! Let me know on that!!!
I've noticed that I am unable to get any GPS fix indoors, even when I am sitting close to a window. I presumed it was because I wasn't outside but this thread is worrying. I'll try to get a fix outside and report back. One thing's for sure - the GPS on the HD doesn't seem as good as the one on my Desire, which found GPS indoors.
bobbyelliott said:
I've noticed that I am unable to get any GPS fix indoors, even when I am sitting close to a window. I presumed it was because I wasn't outside but this thread is worrying. I'll try to get a fix outside and report back. One thing's for sure - the GPS on the HD doesn't seem as good as the one on my Desire, which found GPS indoors.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't get the fix even if I'm outside. I was in Rome in the past 3 days, and I never got the fix! The iPhone 4 worked fine...
UPDATE: I got a fix, pretty quickly, outside (in a city) but it is still unable to get one indoors - including on buses and trains. My Desire managed this.
Does the HD's sat nav work in a car? Are people using it for in-car navigation?
I had problems getting my GPS to get a fix, so I downloaded GPS test from market and noticed I actually had 11 satellites that i was connected to. When GPS test showed how accurate the tracking was I exited out of GPS test, and to my surprise I got a fix almost instantly in Google Maps/My Tracks and even Locations.
I then took a drive, first with my DHD laying in the passenger seat on the first trip, and then with the DHD in my inner pocket of my jacket. Using my tracks I recorded the route and it had tracked me perfectly on both trips. Only time it stopped tracking was when I went in to a mall, but it picked up again when I left.
I live in sweden and the car is not a convertible, and 3G was off.
If the gps test thing actually helped I do not know, so feel free to test and report.
edit: I tried it again and the only thing about gps test "helping" is to see when the DHDs gps actually get a fix. It seems to be slow as crap on fixating but once you get the fix it tracks you very good. Right now I'm indoors(wooden house out in the countryside) and I had to wait about 2-3 minutes with 8-12 satellites in use and standing near a window before it got my position. After that I went back to where I tried before and it is still tracking me with 15-30meters accuracy and currently 7-8 satellites in use.
Those with GPS issues can try this, remove the battery for 10-15 mins then try GPS app again, ports can get messed up if we try out multiple GPS apps, removing the battery for a length of time should clear cache and or memory. Just try it and report back.
I tried alreay couple times, no luck, only fix is reset phone, but not happy, working fine couple days, and issue again, reset again, really not happy, this only one thing i am not happy on my dhd. ANY ADVICE or HELP ?? thanks..
Hello,
I have some problems too with my GPS. Some times the fix can be very quick but it’s not systematic.
What I noticed:
- When I activate the GPS option all the time, the fix is almost always fast. Sometimes it’s still very long: so in GPS status I reset the cache and the fix is after very quick.
- When I activate the GPS only when I need (turn on and turn off before and after using Navigation), I never get a fix. Resetting the cache in GPS Status or restarting Android does not solve the problem. So I launch several times GPS Status to reset cache and several times Navigation and after a while I can get a fix…. I think there is a real problem with the management of the GPS, because in GPS status I can see 11 satellites and Android is still searching!!!
Is there anyone who noticed that turning on and off GPS can seriously degrade the performances to get a fix?
I done few very similar things, clear cache, reset phone, but still I had feeling something was wrong, then I find I had faulty gps receiver, hardware issue, replaced for new one, thanks to very good store manager, and now I have black DHD, before was brown, and already new one is have all latest update installed, GPS lock in couple seconds anytime on open air, inside house It will lock in around 1 - 2 minutes longest, no more resets, no more clearing cache, working on 100 %..., this is just what I find myself, and I glad I had replaced mine old for brand new - and not just repaired..
Damned, I hope this is not an hardware issue ! Maybe you have some updates installed on your new phone which solve the problem ?
Is there anyone who noticed the same issues or I am the only one ?
Okay so I know there are many GPS threads, I went through all of them but didn't find a simliar issue.
When driving around Bartlett, IL (a 4G area, not that it makes a difference but just indicating that the suburb isn't small)... I could not get the GPS lock for the life of me. It thought I was mile away, seemed like it was only picking up the cell tower.. and no turning 4G on or off didn't make a difference.
now here is the kicker,
I drove back to my home town, Rockford, IL (only 3G).... and baam...I got a lock right away and the GPS knew exactly where I was on the road.....
I really dont think it's a 4g/3g issue, as GPS should be independent of them (at least form what I know)....
the question is...if it was google maps, why would it lock in one area and not the other....and same with the phone...you'd think if the phone is jacked/ it wouldnt work in either case...
any thoughts?
Gps is weird in general on the Epic, I have to toggle GPS on, Toggle Off, Toggle on and then it works..
it's expected. welcome the the GPS woes club.
jackal424 said:
Okay so I know there are many GPS threads, I went through all of them but didn't find a simliar issue.
When driving around Bartlett, IL (a 4G area, not that it makes a difference but just indicating that the suburb isn't small)... I could not get the GPS lock for the life of me. It thought I was mile away, seemed like it was only picking up the cell tower.. and no turning 4G on or off didn't make a difference.
now here is the kicker,
I drove back to my home town, Rockford, IL (only 3G).... and baam...I got a lock right away and the GPS knew exactly where I was on the road.....
I really dont think it's a 4g/3g issue, as GPS should be independent of them (at least form what I know)....
the question is...if it was google maps, why would it lock in one area and not the other....and same with the phone...you'd think if the phone is jacked/ it wouldnt work in either case...
any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a 4G issue.
When you have 4G or WiFi on the GPS will not lock. Once turned off, it takes SEVERAL minutes for it to snap back to reality and be able to update it's cache to find the sats.
othan1 said:
It's a 4G issue.
When you have 4G or WiFi on the GPS will not lock. Once turned off, it takes SEVERAL minutes for it to snap back to reality and be able to update it's cache to find the sats.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like I said it occured without even using 4G. All I know is I opened google maps in one area and it works and in another area it didn't.
Difference was only turning gps on/off.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
This is the same GPS issue that is affecting the rest of us. Outdated ephemeris cache bug.
I know this sounds crazy.. and until I tried it over and over.. I did not believe it either..
I did the hardware fix , where you bend up the gps antenna a bit, so it touches the cover when closed. but I litteraly had almost no change in signal.. like I could not even get the GPS restore to work..
I was pi$$Ed..
so I took another look at the phone / antenna etc.. got be thinking about signal and its orientation.. the GPS ant. is on the back of the phone, where it gets covered by your hand faces the ground or whatever is under it.. so I turned it- landscape..screen facing me.. clock wise... so the e from tmobile is top side..
guess what.. it works
I am locking on to 9-12 sats..every time..
let me know what you find happens..
How fast are the locks. Te issue is not how many sats since it only needs a few to get an accurate signal. The problem is that the phone takes 1900% longer than any other phone I've ever used to lock, which makes the GPS functionality virtually useless for geotagging pictures and posts to Facebook, twitter, google+ as well as checking into places.
Until it gets a decent lock the bubble around your location is miles in diameter.
Phone literally take upwards of 10 minutes to get a lock at times.
Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk
with in 10 seconds I was locked in w/less than 40 ft accuracy
N8ter said:
How fast are the locks. Te issue is not how many sats since it only needs a few to get an accurate signal. The problem is that the phone takes 1900% longer than any other phone I've ever used to lock, which makes the GPS functionality virtually useless for geotagging pictures and posts to Facebook, twitter, google+ as well as checking into places.
Until it gets a decent lock the bubble around your location is miles in diameter.
Phone literally take upwards of 10 minutes to get a lock at times.
Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
a little exaggerated perhaps? my phone is the original batch and i've never had it take ten minutes for a lock. i mean i'm in Manhattan so the wifi assist probably helps it alot in terms of lock. the gps on the vibrant was never good enough for navigation but good enough for everything else imo.
I don't know about you but all my gps successes didn't last. first time i did all my gps fixes, it worked great. as time went on, went back to sh|t.
10 minutes it about right for me at the moment... ill try the orientation thing lol
Sent from a cell tower to the XDA server to you.
Yea one of the members here found this out a lonnnng time ago ever since then I always face my phone with the back facing the sky to get that first lock. Most of the times it works
dandab said:
I don't know about you but all my gps successes didn't last. first time i did all my gps fixes, it worked great. as time went on, went back to sh|t.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, same experience I've been having. There are some good days and there some days that it's flat out stubborn like a bull. It won't even lock even on a clear night sky.
Every time I root and install a custom rom gps lock slows down and is less accurate. Why is this true even when custom rom is based on stock rom? I would like to root again but I hate slow gps. IMO anything more than 10 sec is slow. All the fixes do nothing
I do not see how people put up with it
There are probably several things worth checking.
1) Is this something that happens only immediately after the ROM install, or persists indefinitely?
The best unassisted (meaning no aGPS) GPS module will take 60-180 seconds to acquire a first fix from a "cold start" condition, depending on satellite constellation configuration at that moment. It's not really possible to improve on that without differential GPS.
So, that "10 second fix" can really only happen in one way: by having a precise time estimate and also a good previous fix.
Before the advent of aGPS (Assisted GPS) in phones, handheld or marine GPS units would engage in a kind of trickery: they would always save the last fix acquired when shutting down, and then use that as an AP (Assumed Position) the next time they were powered up. A good AP guess can dramatically lower the time to a first fix if it happens to be close to the actual location.
And it just so happens that a lot of people experience that exact usage case: they shut off their GPS in the evening, sleep overnight, wake up and power up the GPS... just a few feet feet away from their last fix. Or consider a boat owner - they turn their GPS unit off when they return to port, and the next time they depart days or weeks later, they turn it back on right at the location of the previous fix (the harbor). Voila! A rapid 10-second fix!
Now enter aGPS; the cell network can give the phone very precise time and also a position to within a mile or so. Now it doesn't matter if you shut the device off, carry it cross country, and power it back on - if it is able to talk to the local carrier, it will have the precise time and a crude but decent estimate of position in a few milliseconds. That AP (Assumed Position) collapses the time required by the GPS to produce a first fix, and Voila! A ten-second fix!
(Remember that in the US, ALL cell phones - even dumb flip phones - have a GPS chip in them to comply with national 911 regulations; the Man always knows precisely where you are if you are in cell range... even when you "turn off your GPS")
So, the "10 second first fix" is a little bit illusory - it is not something the GPS unit is capable of by itself without assistance. Turn off your phone, fly to a different part of the globe, travel to a spot with no cell service, and turn it back on again... and it will take even longer than a cold start to get a first fix... because it starts up with a horrendously wrong "first guess" AP.
The first (Verizon) Android phone I had, I remember other owners claiming that GPS would not work at all when they were in Puerto Rico (roaming on another carrier)... and made the claim that the GPS chip was so heavily dependent on aGPS, that it simply could not ever get a fix without it. (The presumption was that the local carrier did not have any aGPS servers.) Later, I had the experience of using the same phone in wilderness conditions where I would keep the phone either off or in airplane mode to (save juice), and occasionally fire up the GPS to record a special location or two. Many times - whilst outdoors with a horizon-to-horizon view of the sky (with 6 or 7 birds up), that phone would take over a minute to lock. But it would eventually do so.
It is still possible that those folks were correct about the Puerto Rico thing - in my case my prior aGPS fix might have been 60 miles away, "in town"... but those other folks may have traveled closer to 1000 miles with their phones off. So my "last fix AP" guess was crude, but far less crude than theirs. (Either that or they were just impatient, and never waited the minute or two required for a "real" unassisted GPS fix in a brand-new location)
So I mention the above because a lot of stuff has to hang together to produce that "10 second fix"; an effort to decipher where the variability is coming from has to look at a large number of possibilities.
I don't know if this device (VSGN3) uses proprietary firmware device drivers ("blobs") for the GPS end of things - but if that were the case and a ROM was ported from a different carrier and the firmware blobs were not replaced correctly, that could account for something?
As for fix accuracy, remember that the GPS "Accuracy" is not the actual positional error - if you "knew what the error was", you could simply eliminate it by subtraction. At best it is a stochastic estimator based on signal strength estimates, positional diversity of satellite constellation, individual path delay estimates, etc.
Meaning: it is an estimator of system noise. You have to take a ton of measurements of noise to say anything meaningful about it, and a whole lot more than that to compare two noise distributions with any resolution.
So I would be careful about coming to the conclusion that the accuracy is worse - it is possible that you just happened to look when the constellation was poor.
This has happened to me in several phones. Fix 10 seconds before rooting. Several minutes 3 to 10 minutes after rooting and installing a custom rom, even if rom is based on original stock rom. Adding aGPS doesn't seem to help much. It has happened to me repeatedly. AOSP roms are the worst but even custom roms that are based on samsung rom have the issue. Its like vzw has some way to screw up gps once you root
Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 2
Well, if you want to try to dig in and "get to the root of it", I think the area(s) you'll end up looking in revolve around how aGPS data is obtained & cached, how ROMs (read: Google location services) cache location data**, etc.
I just stepped outside with my stock-rooted VSGN3, which always seems to lock in about 8-12s under "normal" conditions. 15 birds in view. Then I:
- put the phone in Airplane mode (no cell, no WiFi**)
- using the GPS Status app (eclipsesim), clear the aGPS state.
- using app manager, force stop GPS Status, clear cache and data (of that app)
- turn off GPS
- start up GPS Status, accept EULA, go into settings and enable "display time to first fix"
- using app manager, force stop GPS Status, clear cache only (of that app)
- turn GPS on
- launch GPS Status
Result? Time to first fix = 215 seconds... With 15 birds in view!!!
If I repeat this process, but instead of waiting more than 60 seconds, I turn Airplane mode off... and within a few seconds the aGPS date goes to 0 hrs, and 8 seconds after that I get a first fix.
**I forgot to mention something in my first post. GPS Apps are clients of the Google Location services. Which means that a location "seed" can be obtained from Google's global location database even if you are using a carrier that provides no aGPS service.
How does this work? By co-opting billions of Android users to become participants in their vast geolocation data collection operation. Your neighbor or a stranger drives by your house with their always-connected Android phone on (& WiFi, GPS on), and it reports back to Google "hey, here I am at this precise lat/lon, and I see the following WiFi SSID/AP Mac Address"... namely - *your* WiFi router. Google then plops this unique device identifier into their geolocation database. Note that this sounds rather sinister, but the reality is that you were probably the first person to "drop a dime" on your WiFi router's lat/lon, with your own Android device. You only needed to authorize Location services once for that to happen.
Now a second Android user drives by. He has his GPS "turned off", and thinks "they don't know where I am, I have my GPS off". But he has unfortunately left WiFi on***. So his phone tells Google - via the (IP) mobile data network - "hey, I don't know where I am, but my WiFi sees the following WiFi SSID&AP Mac Address". And then Google replies, "oh, I know where you are, here is your position to within a few hundred feet". (And then the Google server says to itself, "heh, I also know what Google account owner hangs out there a lot - and that he's there right now. Heh.")
So I am not trying to dispute your observations; it's just that the location seeding data that actually creates an opportunity to get a "10-second fix" can originate from a variety of places, so your task of "getting to the bottom of it" (unless you are just here to complain) is a little bit complicated - you are going to have to spend some time digging if you want a "fix" (sorry, pun intended)
Good luck
*** Note one of the recent "features" of newer versions of Android is "give us permission to scan for WiFi networks even when you think WiFi is supposed to be off" - hmmm, why do you suppose that is?
Wow, great explanation. How did you gain this familiarity?