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I just got the JI6 update and the GPS is definitely much better. However, I was wondering how it matches up to the GPS on other smartphones.
Does anyone have a Nexus One or another android phone to compare it to? Could you please post some results. Only post results from the official OTA JI6 update.
I just got my OTA update this morning.
I am comparing my Vibrant with my BF's Nexus One (running Froyo 2.21) using GPS test.
The result:
Nexus views fewer satellites and locks them much faster than my vibrant on the other hand Vibrant views more satellites locks them a bit slower (Nexus : in view : 8 in use 8 instantly, VIbrant in view : 13 in use 7)
Nexus has better accuracy 9.9 feet VS. 22ish feet on vibrant.
I definitely like the gps on my vibrant much better after the OTA.
I am curious about the GPS performance test among other samsung galaxy s brethren (Captivate, Epic 4G, and Fascinate)
yea my nexus had much better GPS
and got instant lock when any app required gps location
but vibrant works perfectly fine just takes little longer
Just tested against N1 in a real life situation using C:Geo on both phones and the N1 had me rock solid on a Geocache and the Vibrant had me 15 feet off of it plus after trying to get my bearings it decided to start wondering off and I ended up in another county in 3 minutes. The N1 GPS just works and work rock solid, the Vibrants GPS is obviously not a hardware issue but a software issue. The reason I say that is because when I got the Vibrant Geocaching was a no go at all, wouldn't even lock onto enough sat's to be useful. Now at least it has me within 15 feet of my caches.
So all in all it has improved, but it is still not as good as my old N1.
Gps on the vibrant sucks. I honestly believe it's a hardware issue. JI6 update addressed a stupid software issue that prevented the gps to lock onto satellites probably due to wrong time information, but even after that, performance is really lacking.
I have a nexus one, and it gets a fix in less than 5 seconds with an accuracy of 2 m (6 feet). Once it gets a fix, it doesn't wander all over the map. It stays put.
The vabrant ( before and after JI6) doesn't get an accuracy better than 6 meters (20 ft). That's not to bad, but in google maps, it starts jumping all over the map until it settles -usually- at the farthest place from the actual location.
After JI6, the gps locks very quickly, definitely an improvement, but it it's more important the accuracy than the TTF.
In google navigation, when you stop at a red light, the inaccuracies og the gps and its constant jumping from place to place, triggers re-route after re-route. This is uncomfortable and dangerous when you are driving in an unfamiliar area.
The phone is great, but could have been better had some minimal QA been done.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
reddragon72 said:
Just tested against N1 in a real life situation using C:Geo on both phones and the N1 had me rock solid on a Geocache and the Vibrant had me 15 feet off of it plus after trying to get my bearings it decided to start wondering off and I ended up in another county in 3 minutes. The N1 GPS just works and work rock solid, the Vibrants GPS is obviously not a hardware issue but a software issue. The reason I say that is because when I got the Vibrant Geocaching was a no go at all, wouldn't even lock onto enough sat's to be useful. Now at least it has me within 15 feet of my caches.
So all in all it has improved, but it is still not as good as my old N1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This saddens me. I used to be able to cache almost exclusively off of my G1, unless under heavy cover.
studing
After manually flashing the updated (the OTA bricked my phone), I tested the GPS on its own, as well as side by side with my wife's G2. While JI6 allows the Vibrant to get a satellite lock in seconds, the accuracy of the GPS is virtually nonexistent, with the location bouncing all over the place. Forget about stopping at a red light - the cursor will start jumping around, sometimes placing me 2-3 blocks away from my actual location. While driving on a local highway (with a clear view of the sky), the GPS would frequently lose signal, although it would lock on again in a few seconds. Although the Vibrant can now get a satellite lock, the accuracy has not been fixed. The G2 does not suffer from these issues, reporting accuracy of 4-6 feet and getting a much quicker satellite lock than the Vibrant.
I am starting to think it is definitely a hardware issue. With GPS test I am getting locks on 9 of 10 or 10 of 12 satellites, but the bar is not very high for the signal on any satellite. Driving down the road it losses signal randomly. My G1 and HD2 had much better GPS performance.
I guess I will live with this until it is time to get another upgrade phone for the cheap price. Maybe the new Mytouch when it comes out. I have extra lines on my account just so I can get early upgrades. An extra line using the same minutes is $5 a month. It is worth it to me to keep getting new phones and selling the other phone on ebay.
Just did a side by side test with my Vibrant running Bionix 1.7 with the JI6 modem.bin vs. my wife’s brand new G2. My Vibrant instantly saw 13 satellites and took around 10 seconds to lock 11 of those 13. Initially it showed 90 ft. accuracy and after around 20-30 seconds it was bouncing between 18-25 ft. on accuracy. On my wife’s G2 as soon as I opened up GPS Test it saw 11 satellites and locked all 11. It initially showed 20 ft. on accuracy and then after 2-3 seconds it showed 12 ft. on accuracy. I watched it for about 2-3 minutes and it didn't really move as far as how many satellites it had locked or its accuracy.
Gps will never be as good as other phones lets face it, but it does the job, it haven't failed me yet since ji2 and up..... Not perfect but usable... I'd rather have a not so great gps that still works vs a n1s multi touch bug that don't get real mt......
Take the good with the bad
I just flashed the ji6 and although the GPS is improved it is far from being fixed. With my Nexus One and G2 I get a fix within 5 seconds and usually locks on all birds. With the Vibrant it takes much longer and the best it can do is 5 out of 12 birds. This GPS is a real shame as it takes a marvelous phone and makes it less than stellar IMO. I would love to use the Vibrant as my Main Phone but with the GPS still not quite right it is not happening as I use GPS everyday throughout the day/.
For those that have gotten the update, what are your GPS settings now? Is it a different server?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Agreed with most comments already posted. The update helped to lock faster, but accuracy really sucks. Google navigation only works about 70% of the time. I find my location drifting to side streets quite often which keeps triggering re-routes all the time. I lose lock randomly (although it does regain lock fairly quickly).
Overall, compared to all other android smart phones I've used, the accuracy/reliability of gps is horrible.
I've also lost all hope in a software fix. With all the press it got and the two plus months to release a fix with marginal improvement...means one of two things.
1-samsung software engineers suck or
2-its a hardware issue and they've done the best they can with software to optimize the broken hardware.
Although both may be true to some degree ... I think we are dealing with case #2...
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Roomates Nexus one sees 7 satellites, 10 seconds lock.
My vibrant JI6 sees 9 satellites, 4.5 minute lock
GPS is no worse than the other phones I currently have access to.
Google Maps doesn't jump around like Google Navigation. Google needs to implement smoothing software into their navigation program. Copliot works great with JI6 and Google Navigation gets Parkinson's disease at stop lights. Like I said, same place and Google Maps shows me as stationary while Google Navigation is all over the place
heygrl said:
GPS is no worse than the other phones I currently have access to.
Google Maps doesn't jump around like Google Navigation. Google needs to implement smoothing software into their navigation program. Copliot works great with JI6 and Google Navigation gets Parkinson's disease at stop lights. Like I said, same place and Google Maps shows me as stationary while Google Navigation is all over the place
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. With CoPilot it works perfect. I havnt noticed any jumping around at all. The only problem I have had with the GPS since JI6 is that it sometimes takes 3-5 minutes to get a lock on my location.
Try to delete your GPS Data and make sure it's all stock under lbstestmode. I get locks fairly quickly.
kgbkny said:
While JI6 allows the Vibrant to get a satellite lock in seconds, the accuracy of the GPS is virtually nonexistent, with the location bouncing all over the place. Forget about stopping at a red light - the cursor will start jumping around, sometimes placing me 2-3 blocks away from my actual location. While driving on a local highway (with a clear view of the sky), the GPS would frequently lose signal, although it would lock on again in a few seconds. Although the Vibrant can now get a satellite lock, the accuracy has not been fixed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got the identical behavior last night. Is the GPS that flawed that it thinks it's moving when it's not? If they could at least have the software not move the pointer when you're standing still that would likely make a huge difference. Instead it moves you onto another street and starts speaking out "corrections".
I have a non-rooted Vibrant. After the OTA J16 fix a couple of weeks ago, the GPS went from non-functional (hardly ever locked on any satellites, even after many minutes) to quite good (usually locks on 6-9 satellites within 10-30 seconds). The Google Navigation works well and stays on track 99% of the time. However, Google Earth seems a little wonky. It can locate me in my neighborhood and usually within my 1-acre yard, but, after I'm located, it can begin to wander around by 100-200 feet even when I'm standing still...not always, but sometimes. Am I expecting more than I should?
I know how to get into my GPS settings with the dialer. Is there any point in clearing the GPS data? I assumed that the J16 update would have reset this. I'm generally happy with the GPS function now, but wonder if there is anything more I should do now that it works pretty well.
Can we take another run at this?
Ok, I'm a little surprised that I didn't get even one response to this. Let me try a slightly different approach.
How good can the GPS in a smartphone be? Do any of you have any model of phone where the GPS is blazingly fast to lock, never gets lost or off track, and is always dead-on? Since the Vibrant is my first phone with GPS, the only thing I have to compare it to is my Garmin navigation unit, which is less-than-perfect.
So, can anyone give me a reality check or a realistic set of expectations? Thanks.
After the J16 update, my Vibe's GPS is a bit better than my G1's GPS. Both are lightyears ahead of my girlfriends TomTom.
after the update, my GPS still does not work. I think the GPS is just absolutely horrible and I really do hope they release a new software fix because the ji6 did nothing for me.
to compare, my g2 was able to find my location within 5 seconds. in terms of my location, it was pretty dead on within a few feet, and also accuarate in the direction I was facing.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
ZX3ZX4 said:
Ok, I'm a little surprised that I didn't get even one response to this. Let me try a slightly different approach.
How good can the GPS in a smartphone be? Do any of you have any model of phone where the GPS is blazingly fast to lock, never gets lost or off track, and is always dead-on? Since the Vibrant is my first phone with GPS, the only thing I have to compare it to is my Garmin navigation unit, which is less-than-perfect.
So, can anyone give me a reality check or a realistic set of expectations? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All my Nokia phones had great GPS. Locks were pretty fast, but they were dead on and I don't remember ever losing the signal outside.
I haven't had to use the gps much since fixed, but it locks on in a reasonable amount of time now and within 20 feet usually. What I don't know yet is if it stays locked on while driving.
To be honest though, it's still much better than the magellan gps I bought last November. That thing wouldnt lock on unless I was out on the road. Not inside my house right up against a window, not under a carport. I'm satisfied for now as long as it stays locked when I use it for roadtrips.
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allthrottle said:
That thing wouldnt lock on unless I was out on the road. Not inside my house right up against a window, not under a carport. I'm satisfied for now as long as it stays locked when I use it for roadtrips.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If that is what you looking at, I haven't seen one GPS unit in any store with an acquired signal.
Just flashed one of my Epics. I am under the distinct impression that the main bug is not fixed. I am getting less locks on froyo epic than on two other epics held in same place with cold start workaround. The fact that it took four minutes to get first fix means that even on the first attempt it did not properly fill the almanac/ephemeris cache! That first fix should have taken about 5 to 10 seconds!
Will report some additional testing over the next few days.
aero1 said:
Just flashed one of my Epics. I am under the distinct impression that the main bug is not fixed. Will report some additional testing over the next few days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Keep in mind that this is a leak, a beta at best - it's still using the DI18 modem.bin.
aero1 said:
Just flashed one of my Epics. I am under the distinct impression that the main bug is not fixed. Will report some additional testing over the next few days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
we don't know yet...cause most likely the fix will be in modem not the rom and the devs don't have the modem yet....The rom just helped out the accuracy...
Why dont we wait for Froyo to actually be released before we say things dont work.
I agree, that people should not post thread titles that suggest they are part of the official source or internal testing unless they actually are.
My gps locks within 10 seconds on froyo and eclair. No mod needed.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
joefx13 said:
My gps locks within 10 seconds on froyo and eclair. No mod needed.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had any idea as to how the bug presents you would know why it will sicne you just flashed your phone.
Jedi2155 said:
I agree, that people should not post thread titles that suggest they are part of the official source or internal testing unless they actually are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Welcome to XDA. I have spoken to ADS doing the testing.
aero1 said:
Just flashed one of my Epics. I am under the distinct impression that the main bug is not fixed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a given! The official Froyo on the International SGS's GPS didn't get fixed, so why would they fix it on the Epic?
Personally, I say the problem is hardware and Samsung will brush this under the run. Really, it's not like the phone isn't selling and they're getting ready to put out a new Flagship phone. Why would they invest time and money into fixing something that going to be replaced soon and is still selling well?
I think the only way they will fix it is if there is a lawsuit and they are forced into it. Outside of that, all Galaxy S variant owners, that don't have a working GPS, is SOL.
If it's not fixed I'll have to let go of samsung. There's no reason something like this should be ignored. It was annoying on the moment, and now it's annoying on the epic. My evo and hero never had a problem.
How is it that I have never had an issue with the GPS? It works flawlessly for me. It isn't very accurate, but it locks on near instantly every time as long as I am outside. Doesn't seem like there is a bug at all to me, other than the accuracy of the lock.
Might just be something you guys are doing or some setting you changed.
muyoso said:
How is it that I have never had an issue with the GPS? It works flawlessly for me. It isn't very accurate, but it locks on near instantly every time as long as I am outside. Doesn't seem like there is a bug at all to me, other than the accuracy of the lock.
Might just be something you guys are doing or some setting you changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it was something people were doing, you'd see GPS issues on all phones that have GPS. Currently, no phones seem to have an issue with GPS except for Samsung Galaxy S phones.
What might cause different issues (some have decent GPS, others can't even get a lock, some in the middle) is the antenna may be marginal. A marginal antenna might work or have issues based on just how well it's soldered in. Too much solder, not enough, or it got soldered in at just a slight angle... Who knows other then Samsung, and their not saying or fixing it. If it was just a software problem, I'll bet they would have had it fixed by now and you wouldn't see such a wide variety of problems.
muyoso said:
How is it that I have never had an issue with the GPS? It works flawlessly for me. It isn't very accurate, but it locks on near instantly every time as long as I am outside. Doesn't seem like there is a bug at all to me, other than the accuracy of the lock.
Might just be something you guys are doing or some setting you changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you running the leaked Froyo release? (That is what this thread is about.)
The general property of the GPS locking bug is that it does not occur under all conditions. It's root cause is buggy handling of the GPS cache after it becomes stale. There are many things that can cause the time-dependent cache to be cleared or refreshed, including frequent use of the GPS or rebooting.
How do you even know that you have a good GPS lock if the fix is inaccurate? Do you use a utility such as GPS Test to show how many satellites are being used? Since the actual accuracy of the GPS, when it does get a multi-bird lock, is pretty good, my bet is that you don't have a good satellite lock at all. In any case, if the bottom-line accuracy is poor, it cannot be said that your GPS "works flawlessly."
muyoso said:
How is it that I have never had an issue with the GPS? It works flawlessly for me. It isn't very accurate, but it locks on near instantly every time as long as I am outside. Doesn't seem like there is a bug at all to me, other than the accuracy of the lock.
Might just be something you guys are doing or some setting you changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are threads everywhere on how to replicate this problem. Enable WiFi or 4G, wait 4 hours, then try to get a lock. Your phone won't. It is unable to get assistance data over anything other than Ev-DO/1x-RTT.
I have seen anecdotal reports on the main DJ29 thread in which users first experienced good GPS performance, but later the GPS locking failures started. This is completely consistent with the buggy behavior of the stock Epic. (There also is a lot of noise from naive cowboy "testers" proclaiming that their GPS works fine with the new ROM. Their GPS units would work just as fine -- temporarily -- if they only did a factory reset of a stock Epic. They have no clue how to test for this GPS bug.)
Meanwhile, there are skimpy reports that there is a later Froyo version, DK05, which also includes an updated modem.bin module. Unfortunately, that version is not generally available for testing.
I am CONSTANTLY AMAZED at people saying they have no gps problem AND THEN they follow it up with "I mean it's off by 100 to 300 feet, but I have no gps problem"
If the gps doesn't show EXACTLY what room you are sitting in - in your house, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
I for one use the phone exactly like a normal person does - I walk in and out of wifi zones all day, I use it to talk, I hardly turn it off and power cycle it
AND in that situation, even with cold start enabled THE EPIC GPS IS USELESS!!!
If it's not fixed in the next release, I'm selling it, even though I love it and I will NEVER buy another Samsung product again.
There have been MULTIPLE times the GPS lets me down, across ALL different APPS. It's purely PATHETIC on Sprint and Samsungs part.
J3ff said:
I am CONSTANTLY AMAZED at people saying they have no gps problem AND THEN they follow it up with "I mean it's off by 100 to 300 feet, but I have no gps problem"
If the gps doesn't show EXACTLY what room you are sitting in - in your house, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
I for one use the phone exactly like a normal person does - I walk in and out of wifi zones all day, I use it to talk, I hardly turn it off and power cycle it
AND in that situation, even with cold start enabled THE EPIC GPS IS USELESS!!!
If it's not fixed in the next release, I'm selling it, even though I love it and I will NEVER buy another Samsung product again.
There have been MULTIPLE times the GPS lets me down, across ALL different APPS. It's purely PATHETIC on Sprint and Samsungs part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Worked perfectly for me with cold start on DI18. Room to room and driving. Locked on within 1 minute. I updated to Froyo. Now I have never gotten a lock.
J3ff said:
I am CONSTANTLY AMAZED at people saying they have no gps problem AND THEN they follow it up with "I mean it's off by 100 to 300 feet, but I have no gps problem"
If the gps doesn't show EXACTLY what room you are sitting in - in your house, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
I for one use the phone exactly like a normal person does - I walk in and out of wifi zones all day, I use it to talk, I hardly turn it off and power cycle it
AND in that situation, even with cold start enabled THE EPIC GPS IS USELESS!!!
If it's not fixed in the next release, I'm selling it, even though I love it and I will NEVER buy another Samsung product again.
There have been MULTIPLE times the GPS lets me down, across ALL different APPS. It's purely PATHETIC on Sprint and Samsungs part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont know how you can call something useless that works well for driving navigation. Sure, it is not accurate. It can only pinpoint your location to a circle with a diameter of 98ft. Obviously we would all love to see this fixed. But to say that it is useless is just dumb. It might be useless for certain applications, but for the most used application it is usable. Not great, but useable.
Also, the main complaint I have heard from people is that the GPS simply wouldn't lock, not that it wasn't accurate. As a response to that, I am perfectly comfortable saying that mine is working perfectly, because my GPS locks within 5 seconds consistantly. Sure, it doesn't lock onto 9 satellites and the location data it is providing isnt super accurate, but it can reliably pinpoint my location on this massive planet to within 100ft within 5 seconds of me asking it to.
Don't mistake this response for me defending any of its shortcomings. It is not as accurate as any of my previous phones, which is ridiculous. My only defense of it is that it locks near instantly.
you are not set to have it only work on GPS.
98 feet is not accurate. Sorry but where I live there are LOTS of roads within 98 feet of me.
Actually, i was at a bar about an hour ago and a girl asked me to find directions from where we were, to her car........ it was aabout 600 feet inaccurate. We were sitting in a bar, and it was showing us sitting on I95.
yea that as impressive for a top of the line phone.
NOT
J3ff said:
I am CONSTANTLY AMAZED at people saying they have no gps problem AND THEN they follow it up with "I mean it's off by 100 to 300 feet, but I have no gps problem"
If the gps doesn't show EXACTLY what room you are sitting in - in your house, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
I for one use the phone exactly like a normal person does - I walk in and out of wifi zones all day, I use it to talk, I hardly turn it off and power cycle it
AND in that situation, even with cold start enabled THE EPIC GPS IS USELESS!!!
If it's not fixed in the next release, I'm selling it, even though I love it and I will NEVER buy another Samsung product again.
There have been MULTIPLE times the GPS lets me down, across ALL different APPS. It's purely PATHETIC on Sprint and Samsungs part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so sell it? whats stopping you.. you are going to get another phone with better GPS but its going to suck at everything else the Epic does very well. I for one am willing to take ****ty gps vs a ****ty phone
J3ff said:
I am CONSTANTLY AMAZED at people saying they have no gps problem AND THEN they follow it up with "I mean it's off by 100 to 300 feet, but I have no gps problem"
If the gps doesn't show EXACTLY what room you are sitting in - in your house, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
I for one use the phone exactly like a normal person does - I walk in and out of wifi zones all day, I use it to talk, I hardly turn it off and power cycle it
AND in that situation, even with cold start enabled THE EPIC GPS IS USELESS!!!
If it's not fixed in the next release, I'm selling it, even though I love it and I will NEVER buy another Samsung product again.
There have been MULTIPLE times the GPS lets me down, across ALL different APPS. It's purely PATHETIC on Sprint and Samsungs part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) Phone works for driving nav, the only reason I need a GPS chip in the phone. I don't care if Twitter knows I'm at a mistress' house while I tweet, in fact, I would hope that it wouldn't know.
2) Unlike my former Hero, I have never been portrayed on the map on a biway. The Hero did it all the time and it used to piss me off to no end. Who cares if the phone can tell you what address you're at, but can't tell if you're in the bathroom or in bed? You do realize that building materials can affect this issue (and since I live in Florida where houses are mandated to not fall down during a hurricane, pretty thick material).
Hi today I bough a Samsung vibrant from T-Mobile an the date on the box is 10/26/10 and it came already updated software and I truer the GPS and its perfect locked in 8 seconds and while I was driving it kept on the road spot on. I had vibrants before maybe 4 of them and the back cover is smooth I think the ones I had before I fulfilled feel the dots now its smooth. I think they changed the phone internals becouse even the vibrants I had before after update the GPS was crap. Anyone had any experiance?
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Mine locks pretty quick too, I never had any GPS problems since I got the phone two weeks ago.
So does that mean the rest of us that got our phone, few months back are screwed?
That's what owning a samsung phone is like always getting screwed. The days are numberd
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What?! Does this mean we wont get a fix for the other people? I'm always travelling and GPS is one of the most useful things I need... my old blackberry has a perfect GPS isn't this meant to be a smartphone
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The thing is that all the phones have something wrong or screwed IP there is no phone that is perfect its just us we are beeping to perfectionists.
My wife and I got ours on the buy 1 get 1 free deal. Ours are both dated 09/26/2010. The SIM Serial # on hers ends in 22288F and mine end in 22296F.
It takes me about 45 second to a minute to get a lock running Axura 2.0.4 and I got a lock using 6 of 7 satellites with accuracy of about 70 feet.
My brother-in-law standing right next to me with a HTC Dream G1 locked on 12 of 14 satellites in about 9 -10 seconds and a accuracy of 10 feet running stock.
My wife running stock saw 2 satellites and never got a lock.
EDIT: This thread is now depreciated. Please visit http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=878970 for a fix. I thought I would put the edit here so you don't have to read to page 7 to see the link to the fix.
they didnt change the antenna..give it a few days and i gurantee u it wont work as good
My gps has worked since day one
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You did not buy a GPS Receiver, you bought a phone with a GPS antenna which is used to track your movement. It just also happens to receive signals from GPS satellites that you are able to use. If you require dead on GPS location then you should go buy a GPS Receiver.
Think of all the things this phone does. It doesn't do any of them better than a device designed to do just that. All-in-one devices are never as good as the devices they are designed to combine.
Zylograth said:
You did not buy a GPS Receiver, you bought a phone with a GPS antenna which is used to track your movement. It just also happens to receive signals from GPS satellites that you are able to use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is correct, BUT when pretty much EVERY other Android phone on the market out performs it in this aspect, there is a flaw in the system. As stated, the G1 locks on faster & stays locked on much better than this phone.
With that said, I tell the GPS where I want to go, and by the time I've left my neighborhood, it's working great. The fact that it takes 10 times longer to lock on doesn't really matter to me.
Using all of the Bionix ROMs and now using the Axura 2.0.5 ROMs, I've been happy with my GPS. When I was using complete stock, it was crap. IIRC, JI6 wasn't bad though.
I'm currently playing with a friends Galaxy Tab and inside nowhere near a window, it locked on and showed my location without the wireless network assist or verizon location assist being turned on (but that could just be because the phone is bigger and would therefore use a larger antenna).
It's just sad what has happened to businesses, they really just don't care about consumers. I really doubt we'll ever see a fix and if we do, i doubt it'll work for more than 50% of people. I've never been so disappointed with a company. The only thing we can do is just never buy samsung again. Just so disappointing all around.
Microwave frequencies antenna design is fraught with both peril and magic
tjhart85 said:
I'm currently playing with a friends Galaxy Tab and inside nowhere near a window, it locked on and showed my location without the wireless network assist or verizon location assist being turned on (but that could just be because the phone is bigger and would therefore use a larger antenna).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NOPE! All antennas must be designed with a physical length that matches the frequency they are designed to operate at. For GPS this is 1575.42 Mhz and therefore due to the physics of radio frequency ALL GPS antennas are about 7.5 inches long, they have to be to work. Antennas typically work better if they are designed with some type of coil (wrapped around something) so by the time you take 7.5 inches of wire and coil it the resulting antenna is quite small. You can also make a panel antenna by creating a trace of conductive line on a flat surface, but the length still has to be the same to work. Regardless of the size of the device it is going into, if you want the antenna to work at a specific frequency it must be a specific length - end of discussion.
So if the GPS issue varies from phone to phone so much, assuming the antenna is the problem, but it can be affected by software, what is likely the problem? Logic would say that it might be either poor quality control in manufacturing causing slight variances in length (at 1575.42 Mhz a small difference in length can make a big difference) or a design that partially obstructs the antenna. Software can not fix the physical antenna issue, but it can compensate by attempting to filter noise better thus increasing the receiver sensitivity, boosting transmit power, or by shifting phase of the signal to make minor adjustments to the effective conductive length of the antenna.
Another possible issue (but less likely because I see no way for software to effect this) is that Samsung did not get a good impedance match between their antenna and their radio. If this was the case you would lose a great deal of signal to and create a lot of noise because of reflective power. Transmitting at a lower power would reduce over all signal, and boosting power would just create a greater reflective power problem.
lolcopter said:
My gps has worked since day one
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Ditto
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I too am a replacement Vibrant GPS lover now. Both phones were stock. It has been a week with the new phone and I have not seen any decrease in the GPS performance yet. The old phone had mic issues
I have read many of the GPS posts, but will admit I have not read them all so I don't know if this was talked about yet. While outside tonight as I was doing my daily test I turned the phone upside down so screen is facing the ground and my signal improved from the mid 30's of the "in use" sats to the low to mid 40's. It was nice to see a lot of green for a change. Accuracy improved too. Not sure how the GPS gear is mounted in the phone, but it sure looks like there is a lot stronger signal coming in the the back side then the screen side.
My "use wireless networks" is off
I did this test a number of times while keeping the phone the same distance from the ground. Same results. If there is any other questions or other tests I would be happy to do what I can.
So there you go, the GPS works great, we all just need to hold the phone above our heads..
Zylograth said:
You did not buy a GPS Receiver, you bought a phone with a GPS antenna which is used to track your movement. It just also happens to receive signals from GPS satellites that you are able to use. If you require dead on GPS location then you should go buy a GPS Receiver.
Think of all the things this phone does. It doesn't do any of them better than a device designed to do just that. All-in-one devices are never as good as the devices they are designed to combine.
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My g1 and mytouch 3g and nexus all had great GPS. The sgs is advertised as the premier device. We have every reason to expect GPS to work and we have absolutely no reason to think one of the advertised features will be broken. GPS is a huge part of smartphones, and since its proven to work on thousands of handsets for years it should work on our vibrants. Maybe new technology gets flexibility but this is GPS we are talking about, its been done and been done perfectly a thousand times over. The phone has plenty of small bugs which is acceptable. Its not acceptable for GPS to be f****d. I think even Samsung would say its unacceptable that I have to carry around my nexus one for its GPS. My vibrant works until I'm about 2/3 of the way to my destination. So basically my screen starts spinning when I'm about as lost as possible. Thank God for my nexus one
GPS on the Vibrant is not a hardware issue. If they have change the hardware, which I doubt, it wouldn't have fixed anything unless they also changed the software. And if they've fixed the software -- which they did in JI2 and JI6 for most people -- then we'll get that fix with the official 2.2 release. OR you could just flash a custom wrong and get good GPS now.
Hi this is the software I have on the phone.
Firmware version. 2.1-update1
Baseband version. T959UVJI6
Karnel version. 2.6.29
Build number. ECLAIR.UVJI6
I don't know if anything diferrent.
Sent from my SCH-I800 using XDA App
I don't understand the comparison to other devices and talk of "I'll never buy another Samsung device."
Since the Galaxy's screen demolishes the competition, I guess the rest of the manufacturers out the are just junk. They are supposed to be top of the line devices so their screen should be as good as this subpar samsung.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
My GPS has worked since day one.
raverj said:
Ditto
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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+1
But certainly Samsung should be better at fixes and T-mobile couldn't be any slower.
Still by far the best device I've ever had, and I had a lot. Axura
And Froyo pull it all together.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I knew this would happen. Gps worked great the first day, (eb13) and yesterday I noticed no more insta locks but took about 20 seconds after not using it for a few hours.
Woke up this morning, turned on GPS and rode the entire 30 minutes to work without it ever locking on. Only after resetting the gps data once I got to work in gps status did it finally lock.
So sick of this.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
who said it was a ghost.. it's here to stay forever. It's been horrible since day one with this phone.
I can't say the same - for me, leaving WiFi on all day, every day meant I wouldn't get locks. Now they happen within 4-8 seconds, first time, every time, next day, all day. Do you ever actually turn off the GPS? When you did try to lock, did you have good connectivity? Also, what was your flash method?
Samsungs own app. I'm sick of having to operate this pos platform like it is some god damn rube goldberg contraption. It is a god damn $450 (I paid retail brand new at release) and it should act like one. It has gps and it should god damn work when I need it to work, all the time, every time without having to diddle myself, enter in contra codes, click my heels and rub a magic lamp.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
styckx said:
Samsungs own app. I'm sick of having to operate this pos platform like it is some god damn rube goldberg contraption. It is a god damn $450 (I paid retail brand new at release) and it should act like one. It has gps and it should god damn work when I need it to work, all the time, every time without having to diddle myself, enter in contra codes, click my heels and rub a magic lamp.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
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Amen brother.
I've been disappointed too with EB13. My GPS still doesn't lock in 3g inside my home, though I have one bar showing. I get lock to 3 meters within a couple seconds if I'm outside. But, even at work (indoors) with 3 bars, I can only lock to within a few hundred meters. Definite, disappointment.
Indoors I can understand. I use it outdoors or mounted in the winsheild of my car all the time. So when it laughs at you by never locking on for a 1/2 an hour with a clear view of the sky is inexcusable.
I'm a former burned Moment owner and have been patient enough with this gps Samsung pulled out of the bottom of a box of Fruit Loops. I bit my tongue until they finally released Froyo.. Froyo is here and it is still a pos. 100% inexcusable.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
are you using sprint nav? I have no problems at all on google nav dosnt matter if im indoors or how many bars i have its worked great for 2 days maybe its sprint nav
No Google maps, Waze. This is the same crap as before. The longer the uptime on your phone, the worse it gets. I just stood outdoors and couldn't get a lock. Rebooted, stood in same spot and got insta lock. I hadn't rebooted since flashing eb13 until today.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
GPS is still not perfect but I think you'll find that if you use it for a while longer, it's very rare that it doesn't lock instantly.
I was using DK28 since basically the day it was released and I use GPS twice a day, every day. DK28 exhibited this same behavior - 99% of the time it would lock fine, but very occasionally it wouldn't lock at all.
However, unlike DI18, with DK28 you could just use GPS Status to re-download GPS assistance data and then it'd work. So I think what's actually happening in these cases is that it's getting stuck on the download and then giving up. On DI18, even re-downloading wouldn't work because you could never clear the cache without doing a cold start or reboot. EB13 is obviously clearing the cache, it just once in a while doesn't seem to automatically download the new assistance data. This is still a major improvement, even if it's not perfect.
EB13 and DK28 seem to be the same with regard to GPS. I've done a few commutes since installing EB13, and have probably used GPS a total of 10 times or so (including both my normal commute and just testing things out). One time out of those 10 it failed to lock. Downloading assistance data manually solved the problem.
Ill give it time. I'm on edge because of some family health issues and being irrational about nearly everything. Deeeep breath..
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
Only issue for me is that sometimes it takes 20 seconds to lock indoors. Outdoors it's almost instant with 1 meter accuracy. Been this wasy with DI18, DK28 and now EB13.
styckx said:
Samsungs own app. I'm sick of having to operate this pos platform like it is some god damn rube goldberg contraption. It is a god damn $450 (I paid retail brand new at release) and it should act like one. It has gps and it should god damn work when I need it to work, all the time, every time without having to diddle myself, enter in contra codes, click my heels and rub a magic lamp.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
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That's funny i do all that.. plus I have to hold my hands up and Shout.. "Thunder Cats Hooooo " Then the GPS works. it's embarassing...
shhh. you guys gonna git in trouble. Medic will come by and tell you to break your contract and sell your phone if you don't like it. B/c by his standards, it's ok to have a half-*ssed, sometimes working, no product/accessory support $400 phone with a $60+ monthly plan. It's the coolest.
I'm actually getting sick of complaining about issues with Sprint and this phone. But the GPS was a big selling point in the store (top 5 of why the phone is awesome) and we, Epic owners, got hoodwinked.
GPs works fine overall..outdoor performance is good and indoor is ok..Don't expect anything from indoor as even my Garmin GPS doesn't always lock indoors..
Right now I think GPS is good overall..at this point I think people are too sensitive about the GPS as they pay attention to it more as it fails or not due to its history..overall though I was traveling, took out my TP2 and GPS always worked but that one time it failed, I then took out my Epic and GPS worked flawlessly...
All phones have GPS issues..as the antennas for GPS is not as good as a standalone due to its size..and technology fails here and there its never flawless...That said the GPS right now is fairly comparable to the other phones...
gTen said:
GPs works fine overall..outdoor performance is good and indoor is ok..Don't expect anything from indoor as even my Garmin GPS doesn't always lock indoors..
Right now I think GPS is good overall..at this point I think people are too sensitive about the GPS as they pay attention to it more as it fails or not due to its history..overall though I was traveling, took out my TP2 and GPS always worked but that one time it failed, I then took out my Epic and GPS worked flawlessly...
All phones have GPS issues..as the antennas for GPS is not as good as a standalone due to its size..and technology fails here and there its never flawless...That said the GPS right now is fairly comparable to the other phones...
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I laughed when I read the last line. Nothing about the GPS on this phone is acceptable or comparable to other current, or even past, phones. I can go geocaching with my Epic and my girlfriend will use her Evo and hers will put this one to shame every single time. I've also used my old Hero and Touch Pro AND even tested my Mogul next to the Epic and it just doesn't compare.
It's a joke that this phone can even be advertised as having a GPS. They should be required to advertise it as "assisted GPS" or some spoof gps because that's what it is. But I guess when you can get away with calling 3mb/s "4G" then you can call this bull$hit GPS.
If it was "good" then I wouldn't complain. I can't get a lock for crap and most the time it just gives up and doesn't even try anymore. The best is when you have the lock, are standing in an open field and lose the lock and the gps just turns itself off. Toggling won't turn it back on, clearing cache won't help and usually, a reboot is required.
styckx said:
Samsungs own app. I'm sick of having to operate this pos platform like it is some god damn rube goldberg contraption. It is a god damn $450 (I paid retail brand new at release) and it should act like one. It has gps and it should god damn work when I need it to work, all the time, every time without having to diddle myself, enter in contra codes, click my heels and rub a magic lamp.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
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I see the problem! You forgot to throw salt over your shoulder and your not wearing your thong back wards! That works for most. Try it.
In_da_buff said:
shhh. you guys gonna git in trouble. Medic will come by and tell you to break your contract and sell your phone if you don't like it. B/c by his standards, it's ok to have a half-*ssed, sometimes working, no product/accessory support $400 phone with a $60+ monthly plan. It's the coolest.
I'm actually getting sick of complaining about issues with Sprint and this phone. But the GPS was a big selling point in the store (top 5 of why the phone is awesome) and we, Epic owners, got hoodwinked.
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Click to collapse
lolol! Im sick of that guy riding in on his high orstrich! Comes in a bich at ppl bichin. Lol.
It locks pretty good, however if you have it off for awhile it takes forever from a cold lock, on dk28 and eb13..
Is there an app that makes it lock faster from a cold lock?
jirafabo said:
I laughed when I read the last line. Nothing about the GPS on this phone is acceptable or comparable to other current, or even past, phones. I can go geocaching with my Epic and my girlfriend will use her Evo and hers will put this one to shame every single time. I've also used my old Hero and Touch Pro AND even tested my Mogul next to the Epic and it just doesn't compare.
It's a joke that this phone can even be advertised as having a GPS. They should be required to advertise it as "assisted GPS" or some spoof gps because that's what it is. But I guess when you can get away with calling 3mb/s "4G" then you can call this bull$hit GPS.
If it was "good" then I wouldn't complain. I can't get a lock for crap and most the time it just gives up and doesn't even try anymore. The best is when you have the lock, are standing in an open field and lose the lock and the gps just turns itself off. Toggling won't turn it back on, clearing cache won't help and usually, a reboot is required.
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Either your unit is defective or there is something wrong with your flash..ironically though Ive heard people use Evo and Epic and say their Evo has horrible GPS while their are geocaching while Epic is spot on...get the drift? I am not saying the Epic is better in terms of GPS, no..but with the EB13 update and if your have proper flash it seems to work flawlessly and accurate so far...