Related
Googling and searching these forums doesn't bring up anything obvious. So does anyone know what chipset it uses? Looking at logged data it is operating at 1Hz.
It's built-in the Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset, see here
Thanks. I'm just trying to work out if it will do as good a job as my external bluetooth sirf III one I used for racetrack lap timing with my previous phone.
For normal navigation the inbuilt GPS gets fast lock and seems to work okay but the more accuracy the better for the track.
Guess I can just run it and compare times to the electronic timing (which take 1-2 hours to be printed out and released hence the need for an instant solution).
it's the best inbuilt gps ive used gets a lock in under 10 sec my xperia used to take 30s to 1 min.
michaeljf said:
Thanks. I'm just trying to work out if it will do as good a job as my external bluetooth sirf III one I used for racetrack lap timing with my previous phone.
For normal navigation the inbuilt GPS gets fast lock and seems to work okay but the more accuracy the better for the track.
Guess I can just run it and compare times to the electronic timing (which take 1-2 hours to be printed out and released hence the need for an instant solution).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The SiRF chip is better than the GpsOne on Qualcomm SOCs.
And to above post, this might be because AGPS is actually working on this phone rather than the antenna being better.
dont think i have agps enabled if im correct it uses data, when i start igo 8 no connection is made, im just using antena.
my device recives signals even if iam in home and recives at least 3 satellites
michaeljf said:
Thanks. I'm just trying to work out if it will do as good a job as my external bluetooth sirf III one I used for racetrack lap timing with my previous phone.
For normal navigation the inbuilt GPS gets fast lock and seems to work okay but the more accuracy the better for the track.
Guess I can just run it and compare times to the electronic timing (which take 1-2 hours to be printed out and released hence the need for an instant solution).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it will be down to how fast/often the app polls the gps surely?
I've been playing with it a fair bit (for the same purpose) and it certainly better than one or two stand alone gps
Getting satellites indoors or getting a fast satallite fix does NOT automatically indicate that the GPS chip is good.
Actually GPS on the HD2 is pretty poor compared to the SIRF III chip, or even compared to other HTC devices, I am talking about accuracy and stuff. This is a fact, so i don't want to hear any more about "how good it is because it gets a fast fix" or other crap
For more info:
GPS going crazy (proven with plot screenshots)
Weird GPS problem. Moving even while my car is motionless.
Recent ROM/Radio for the HD2 upgrades do seem to improve this bad GPS functionality though.
barty22 said:
Actually GPS on the HD2 is pretty poor compared to the SIRF III chip, or even compared to other HTC devices, I am talking about accuracy and stuff
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Accurate, scientific data to prove that assumption, please?
kilrah said:
Accurate, scientific data to prove that assumption, please?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand your viewpoint, actually I had such information (plots of the HD2 and of other devices), but I really can't be bothered to make them again and spend all the effort on it... just believe me when i say it (or don't believe it, i'm just sharing what i know)... or have a read through the topics i linked to (should be enough proof in there)
Well if I have time I'll try both at the same time this weekend at the track (still have my old phone and external GPS).
With the high speeds involved and a racing line that varies no more than 1-2m it becomes pretty easy to tell if the GPS is out when plotted on a track overlay.
Plus values for lat/long g forces and speed are all extrapolated so if these are out it becomes pretty obvious.
I've written up a full review of the GPS:
http://briefmobile.com/samsung-epic-4g-gps-test
YouTube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7PBst2OBCw&feature=player_embedded
I tested the GPS with Google Navigation, Maps, and My Tracks applications.
Observations overall:
- Accuracy was slightly off (as shown by My Tracks... worked perfectly in Google Navigation)
- Worked reliably over hours of navigating to and from destinations --- NEVER lost my car
- Compass seems off in My Tracks, shows correctly in Google Navigation
Check out my article for more details. Overall... thumbs up. GPS works well. Always worked with navigation perfectly.
Glad to see it works but still concerned about the lack of accuracy. The Evo my wife has seems to have a much more accurate lock than what was shown in the video.
kennethpenn said:
I've written up a full review of the GPS:
http://briefmobile.com/samsung-epic-4g-gps-test
YouTube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7PBst2OBCw&feature=player_embedded
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) Thanks for this test. So far I see no results that would appear to be a hard stop. But in the other thread, you mentioned that your Epic GPS accuracy was not as good as your G1. So I am still concerned. I think performance on this new, expensive, high-end Android should be at least as good as the performance of the oldest Android model.
Also, driving is the least demanding test of the low-level GPS, and there are many applications for it besides vehicular navigation. On other Galaxy S platforms, the GPS tracks seem to get smoothed or interpolated, which in driving tests seems okay most of the time because the motion of the vehicle ovewhelms the underlying errrors in the smoothing algorithm. The result is that the GPS seems great while moving pretty straight, but can veer off-course on turns, corners and stops. You did mention similar symptoms. (And then navigation programs mask errors further by snap-to behavior layered onto the smoothed GPS output.)
I know it must seem that I am never satisfied, but I am always interested in more rigorous testing. Often a better My Tracks test is over a walking course, preferably along with a benchmark device such as the G1. And the whole track -- not just isolated snapshots -- then can be shared with us via upload to Google.
For example, look at my own tests of the Vibrant vs G1 here.
(If you are worried about your own privacy, just test in some location other than your home. I went to an apartment complex in my neighborhood.)
2) Another set of GPS-bug symptoms reported on other Galaxy S platforms is the failure to use and lock on to enough satellites. That is best seen not through tracking or navigation apps, but by utilities that read and report the detailed performance of the GPS from the Android system. The two most popular utilities for this testing are GPS Test and GPS Status. Among other things, they will tell you how many satellites the GPS thinks it sees, their signal strength as SNR, and how many are actually being used for a fix. Could you try those utilites and report the results?
3) You haven't told us exactly how your test unit came into your hands. But we do know from other intelligence that at least some pre-sales demo units were selectively shipped before the latest Samsung software was installed. So it is useful to know the build date of your unit, as shown by internal file date stamps. (Perhaps this can clear up some confusion about other reported tests.)
4) From the latest build dumps we have seen, it appears that the Epic -- uniquely among Samsung S variants -- has a system utility called GpsSetup. Can you see any evidence that this utility is installed on your unit? If so, what does it do? Are there configurable settings? If so, what are the default settings, and what settings are you using?
Thanks again for your work.
Regarding the compass ...
From the review:
My Tracks Observations:
... Compass pointer totally off. ...
Google Navigation Observations:
... Compass points the right way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this simply means that the compass sensor -- and/or the low-level software that drives it -- remain bad on the tested Epic unit. In My Tracks, the compass is driven by the on-board magnetometer of the phone and is supposed to move when the phone's physical orientation changes. In Google Navigation, the compass is fixed relative to the maps streamed from the app's servers.
The FUBAR compass on Samsung S phones is sort of related to the GPS bugs, because some apps read both sensors. So users often perceive them as the same problem. But they are two separate issues.
Looks like it's the defective compass spoils the accuracy.
I know it's not going to prove much, but here is a video with another user saying the GPS is fine on the Epic:
http://androidandme.com/2010/08/news/sprint-epic-4g-qa-part-1/
6 minutes in.
It's also a good video worth watching if you'd just like to see the phone in action some more. I'll post this in the reviews thread as well I suppose.
hydralisk said:
I know it's not going to prove much, but here is a video with another user saying the GPS is fine on the Epic:
http://androidandme.com/2010/08/news/sprint-epic-4g-qa-part-1/
6 minutes in.
It's also a good video worth watching if you'd just like to see the phone in action some more. I'll post this in the reviews thread as well I suppose.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the correct gps settings no sgs phone has issues standing still. You wont see anything wrong with the gps until you use it while driving. Everyone with a sgs phone should know this. If I had a sgs phone & a epic the first thing I would do would test the gps while driving and post a video. I think its weird how no one will do this. I am getting a epic first thing tues am and will post video of speed of the epic vs sgs phone with lag fix, gps test while driving & video\pic quality. Since these are the main things in question.
shep211 said:
With the correct gps settings no sgs phone has issues standing still. You wont see anything wrong with the gps until you use it while driving. Everyone with a sgs phone should know this. If I had a sgs phone & a epic the first thing I would do would test the gps while driving and post a video..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, in my experience the opposite tends to be true about SGS phones. Driving tests tend to obscure the accuracy problems. Standing still and walking tracks are tougher tests of accuracy. And videos are not as detailed as actual My Tracks output uploaded to Google, where we can all zoom in an explore ther results in detail on a map or satellite background. Some problems that can show up driving are the cases where the GPS track veers off-road on turns and stops.
I have seen plenty of driving "reviews" and "tests" of the GPS in other variants of the phone that erroneously report everything is fine (which is why I still take the OP's results with a grain of salt, no offense). My own testing with Vibrants showed relatively decent tracking while driving, but very poor accuracy when stopped or moving as a pedestrian.
EDIT: I finally found and watched the newly linked Youtube video here, and was totally unimpressed by this reviewer. He was cluelessly misinformed about the status of the GPS problems on other platforms, and his andecdotal report of using the GPS on the Epic through Google Navigate app proved nothing at all.
BTW, for a good summary of the GPS problems on Samsung Galaxy S phones generally, see this post at the international I9000 forum. These issues are much more complex than superficial reviews engage.
boomerbubba said:
Actually, in my experience the opposite tends to be true about SGS phones. Driving tests tend to obscure the accuracy problems. Standing still and walking tracks are tougher tests of accuracy. And videos are not as detailed as actual My Tracks output uploaded to Google, where we can all zoom in an explore ther results in detail on a map or satellite background. Some problems that can show up driving are the cases where the GPS track veers off-road on turns and stops.
I have seen plenty of driving "reviews" and "tests" of the GPS in other variants of the phone that erroneously report everything is fine (which is why I still take the OP's results with a grain of salt, no offense). My own testing with Vibrants showed relatively decent tracking while driving, but very poor accuracy when stopped or moving as a pedestrian.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand what you are saying. Going over 60 mph the gps performs better then when going slow and making turns or tracking a run. But standing still I have never had it not lock and work. The only videos of the epic are of standing still lock times.
shep211 said:
I understand what you are saying. Going over 60 mph the gps performs better then when going slow and making turns or tracking a run. But standing still I have never had it not lock and work. The only videos of the epic are of standing still lock times.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not talking about an apparent locking problem. I'm talking about the other symptom of the GPS bug: lack of accuracy.
There are many reports -- and I have experienced this myself on Vibrants -- where the satellite signal appears to lock. But the accuracy of the lat/lon coordinates being reported is all over the place. And they can be outside the theoretical range of accuracy being reported. For example, GPS Test or GPS Status --reading the ouptut of the Android listeners, which in turn are reading the onboard GPS chip -- may say the fix is supposed to bee accurate within 20 feet. But the coordinates are a couple hundred feet away from the actual location, and meandering over time.
boomerbubba said:
Actually, in my experience the opposite tends to be true about SGS phones. Driving tests tend to obscure the accuracy problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with this. Driving programs "snap" to streets obscuring lateral positioning inaccuracy.
boomerbubba said:
EDIT: I finally found and watched the newly linked Youtube video here, and was totally unimpressed by this reviewer. He was cluelessly misinformed about the status of the GPS problems on other platforms, and his andecdotal report of using the GPS on the Epic through Google Navigate app proved nothing at all.
BTW, for a good summary of the GPS problems on Samsung Galaxy S phones generally, see this post at the international I9000 forum. These issues are much more complex than superficial reviews engage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I absolutely agree. Where are the important tests????:
TTFF (time to first fix) from RTN (factory start) with several different devices, eg touch Pro 2, Evo, etc in same location.
TTFF from cold, warm and hot starts with competing models in same place. IE how well is assistance and cache working
Number of birds and SNR, ie how good is actual autonomous gps hardware "
HDOP, VDOP PDOP ""
I am seeing multiple poorly done youtubes that could easily be tower triangulation which under good conditions will get you >30' standing still but blow once you start moving. These guys are not just not reporting SNR, they are not even reporting number of sats and HDOP!
The ops tests (and thank you) are not too bad, but there is no data. For example he says: "Also, the GPS occasionally took more than 10 seconds to “lock on” with a cold start." That is the average for top smartphones for an actual cold start. a cold start is no current Ephemeris or almanac stored. starting up a data connection and pulling assistance data (almanac and ephemeris) of visible birds is a agps "cold start" and typically takes at least ten seconds (a few minutes in standalone gps)./
New '98 feet' bug on Epic GPS
Now that the Epic is out, we are starting to see the usual confusing mix of anecdotal impressions of GPS performance.
Over on another forum, one interesting fact is emerging: There seems to be a new bug, unique to the Epic's implementation of GPS: The imputed accuracy is being reported by several different testers in different scenarios, always at 98 feet! It is as if this number is hard-coded into the GPS firmware.
See Testing the GPS Satellite usage on your new Epic, the right way. Have "use wireless networks" off and Epic GPS - does yours work or not?
boomerbubba said:
Now that the Epic is out, we are starting to see the usual confusing mix of anecdotal impressions of GPS performance.
Over on another forum, one interesting fact is emerging: There seems to be a new bug, unique to the Epic's implementation of GPS: The imputed accuracy is being reported by several different testers in different scenarious, always at 98 feet! It is as if this number is hard-coded into the GPS firmware.
See Testing the GPS Satellite usage on your new Epic, the right way. Have "use wireless networks" off and Epic GPS - does yours work or not?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The gps has most of the same issues the others have but the epic doesn't lag when it does work.
Some gps videos I made while working Tuesday. Epic gps worked 1\3.
epic gps fail 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7HUQAKg6Lc
epic gps fail 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UV1Na51Dy5A
A 'known issue' with Epic GPS?
FYI, a user on another forum is reporting that Sprint tech support acknowledged a "known issue" with the GPS.
boomerbubba said:
FYI, a user on another forum is reporting that Sprint tech support acknowledged a "known issue" with the GPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the link. I have had the same issue where it wont lock and takes over 5 mins then when it does lock it takes 3-5 mins for it to get your correct location. It looks like the only thing they improved was agps but gps still needs the new driver coming out in September. I really hope Samsung fixes the gps issues.
boomerbubba said:
Now that the Epic is out, we are starting to see the usual confusing mix of anecdotal impressions of GPS performance.
Over on another forum, one interesting fact is emerging: There seems to be a new bug, unique to the Epic's implementation of GPS: The imputed accuracy is being reported by several different testers in different scenarios, always at 98 feet! It is as if this number is hard-coded into the GPS firmware.
See Testing the GPS Satellite usage on your new Epic, the right way. Have "use wireless networks" off and Epic GPS - does yours work or not?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went into my local sprint store that had 2 epics on display with my wife. We were there to decide if they're worth almost $800(waiting for price drop). So I loaded gps status on both demo epics, accuracy 98ft, they also displayed 1-2 less sats than my g1 which had @20-60ft accuracy sitting on the counter 10" lower and directly between the epics. I know this is a static test and doesn't mean much, when I asked the sales people if I could drive around....just kidding.
I talked to a sprint district manager at work today and he confirmed the epics have a gps issue and button issue.. He said a fix is coming out for the gps issue, but the buttton issue is only on some first batch of epics and to take mine back..
kgold708 said:
I went into my local sprint store that had 2 epics on display with my wife. We were there to decide if they're worth almost $800(waiting for price drop). So I loaded gps status on both demo epics, accuracy 98ft, they also displayed 1-2 less sats than my g1 which had @20-60ft accuracy sitting on the counter 10" lower and directly between the epics. I know this is a static test and doesn't mean much, when I asked the sales people if I could drive around....just kidding.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yet another confrirmation of the new '98 feet' bug!
kgold708 said:
I went into my local sprint store that had 2 epics on display with my wife. We were there to decide if they're worth almost $800(waiting for price drop). So I loaded gps status on both demo epics, accuracy 98ft, they also displayed 1-2 less sats than my g1 which had @20-60ft accuracy sitting on the counter 10" lower and directly between the epics. I know this is a static test and doesn't mean much, when I asked the sales people if I could drive around....just kidding.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got my captivate for $50 from amazon. Im sure the epic will drop to $50-100 with in 1 month on amazon. Its at $200 now with free activation.
http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Epic-..._1_4?ie=UTF8&s=wireless&qid=1283358779&sr=8-4
What I am finding is poor Signal to Noise, on average about 10db lower on average for the same birds than Touch Pro2 and Treo Pro are showing while keeping them all in the same spot. For example one satellite is showing me as very healthy 41 on Treo Pro (HTC made Palm), 39 on Touch Pro 2, and same bird is 27 on Epic. It also seems to jump to usage of some of the really bad snr birds.
I am also wondering about what is going on with trigger of almanac and ephemeris population over 3g. I am getting inconsistent results on that.
There is a third problem which is that with 4 >17 SNR birds in view, which should be adequate and give hdop of <2, position still seems to jump and be incorrect by an average of 30' to 60'
Can anyone tell me what your SNR values are? best would be compared to other known good gps smartphones in same location.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...372,0.018947&z=16&iwloc=00048f225d8da9a32da25
on a very very clear day with the Vibrant in my cycling jersey pocket on my back.
supl.google.com
sky hook on
MS Based
a few blips but its fairly close. but should be better. It's not unusable like some say.
It is unusable for some people, you happened to be able to use skyhook. If you were in the middle of nowhere that wouldnt help you.
Yea I used it also and it seems to be a bit off on the track
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Never been unusable for me either. Actually fairly accurate ill have to do a my tracks later....
Lol you guys sound like some of the customers I deal with everyday. These are consumer grade devices. If you want something accurate go buy a Trimble GPS device and spend the thousands of dollars it takes to acquire one. I think even with the hiccups, your tracks are pretty decent. This is a cellphone, not a true GPS device.
BTW I work for Garmin so with my background of GPS and how it works this is probably why the inaccuracies in your track do not bother me. One thing you have to understand there are so many factors that can play into why you might of had these spikes....Heavy tree coverage, cloud over cast, power lines, tall buildings etc...Signal multi-path can also play into these types of spikes. Not bashing, but I think it does a pretty good job for what it is.
Steeltippin said:
Lol you guys sound like some of the customers I deal with everyday. These are consumer grade devices. If you want something accurate go buy a Trimble GPS device and spend the thousands of dollars it takes to acquire one. I think even with the hiccups, your tracks are pretty decent. This is a cellphone, not a true GPS device.
BTW I work for Garmin so with my background of GPS and how it works this is probably why the inaccuracies in your track do not bother me. One thing you have to understand there are so many factors that can play into why you might of had these spikes....Heavy tree coverage, cloud over cast, power lines, tall buildings etc...Signal multi-path can also play into these types of spikes. Not bashing, but I think it does a pretty good job for what it is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Um I am sorry I disagree with you, with my first smart phone, the G1 took seconds to lock on to 4+ birds ... and my vibrant .. see's 10 and locks on to 1 .. and its not even the one with the strongest signal ... then there is an issue. I think that is what people are complaining about.
I agree .. if the true purpose of getting something is for GPS alone, then a Garmin etc .. is great.
aohmer said:
Um I am sorry I disagree with you, with my first smart phone, the G1 took seconds to lock on to 4+ birds ... and my vibrant .. see's 10 and locks on to 1 .. and its not even the one with the strongest signal ... then there is an issue. I think that is what people are complaining about.
I agree .. if the true purpose of getting something is for GPS alone, then a Garmin etc .. is great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The G1 had almost the same exact problem with the GPS when it was first released in October of 08. In the beginning of December, it was updated OTA and it was fixed completely. The update for the Vibrant is coming this month, have faith.
scooterman said:
supl.google.com
sky hook on
MS Based
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Skyhook is not GPS. Period.
scooterman said:
a few blips but its fairly close. ...ore it a 7/10, usable, but far from the best.
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Click to collapse
The release notes for the new Obsidian 2.2 ROM from TW says the GPS is "very accurate". I'm assuming it's got the real 2.2 drivers and SW.
It would be interesting to see a comparison of the JI6 and 2.2 GPS accuracy.
I've definitely had issues with significant inaccuracy using the Vibrant GPS for driving. It's usually fine, but sometimes it goes into rapid recalculations due to miscalculating my location on nearby streets. It's can be quite annoying if you're depending on it. I've used several standalone GPS units over the years and haven't seen this behavior before. In some ways the Vibrant GPS is better than my current standalone unit, but this inconsistent accuracy is a significant flaw.
I'm hoping 2.2 will include some improvements.
samnada said:
The release notes for the new Obsidian 2.2 ROM from TW says the GPS is "very accurate". I'm assuming it's got the real 2.2 drivers and SW.
It would be interesting to see a comparison of the JI6 and 2.2 GPS accuracy.
I've definitely had issues with significant inaccuracy using the Vibrant GPS for driving. It's usually fine, but sometimes it goes into rapid recalculations due to miscalculating my location on nearby streets. It's can be quite annoying if you're depending on it. I've used several standalone GPS units over the years and haven't seen this behavior before. In some ways the Vibrant GPS is better than my current standalone unit, but this inconsistent accuracy is a significant flaw.
I'm hoping 2.2 will include some improvements.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Although GPS test reports an accuracy of 6-10 yards roughly, once I start Maps, the accuracy varies on a much wider range. Driving in big city is not much fun when you could be anywhere within a 200 yard range.
I bought my Galaxy S few weeks ago and I could barely use the GPS. It took way too long to get it working and still it was inaccurate.
Few days ago I flashed JM2 firmware and installed app called TrackerBooster (can be found in the Android Market). Now the GPS works perfectly, takes only few seconds to get it connected (outdoors). I have used it now like 15 times and max. time I had to wait was 20 seconds.
I'm not sure does TrackerBooster app need to be installed, might work well without it, haven't tested.
I hope this helps those who have problems with GPS but this is just my experience, I would wait for other comments before flashing new a firmware.
It's called new firmware flashing syndrom for GPS. Basically, if you flash to any new firmware, your GPS will work for a few days.
As Foxbat said, a full flash/reset cycle improves results on the pathetic, schizophrenic and overall random SGS GPS implementation. But I am not going to be a smart ass and insinuate you don't know what you're talking about.
Instead I'll just ignore all the previous "the GPS issue is fixed" claims by many users who prematurely yelled "fixed" and just cowardly quote one of my favourite authors..."Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." - Carl Sagan
Plus we shall also ignore the previous 308 users who have "cried Wolf"^-1. Please refer to your favorite fable author for proper reference.
Its occurred so many times, it actually has it's own syndrome!! FFS
Beowulf_pt said:
As Foxbat said, a full flash/reset cycle improves results on the pathetic, schizophrenic and overall random SGS GPS implementation. But I am not going to be a smart ass and insinuate you don't know what you're talking about.
Instead I'll just ignore all the previous "the GPS issue is fixed" claims by many users who prematurely yelled "fixed" and just cowardly quote one of my favourite authors..."Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." - Carl Sagan
Plus we shall also ignore the previous 308 users who have "cried Wolf"^-1. Please refer to your favorite fable author for proper reference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you still trolling the forums about your GPS problem even after you sold your Samsung if you ever had one from the beginning. I have never had serious problem as many others and if only 308 of millions have had a problem it must certainly be a really good GPS. Stop trolling you only because look like an ignorant user who really do not want to make the phone better but want to promote NOKIA.
For sure, milsjg. You can add me too as ignorant, 309th user who's GPS sucks d*ck hard.
I wish my GPS sucked d**k... that would at least make it useful! ) 310th user here noticing GPS issues... that said while I was on JM7, I managed to record a very very close to perfect track using mytracks... for the walking section of my test it went perfectly even showing where I retraced my steps to go to poo bins! But when I got on to driving it went a bit mental and I apparently drove through the fire station, the wrong way round roundabouts and demolished a few streets worth of houses, but occationally it did show me going down the right side of the road!
You forget that before he even got it, he was complaining that he was reluctant to buy the phone because of reports about lag and GPS (and then, proceeded to buy it anyway).
The main problem is that people have different quality of acceptance for GPS. Some people expect a signal which compares with a fitness GPS (accurate within 2 or 3 meters generally), and some of us don't care if it drifts off by 20m.
Any technology which doesn't have a definitive state will get various opinions...
andrewluecke said:
You forget that before he even got it, he was complaining that he was reluctant to buy the phone because of reports about lag and GPS (and then, proceeded to buy it anyway).
The main problem is that people have different quality of acceptance for GPS. Some people expect a signal which compares with a fitness GPS (accurate within 2 or 3 meters generally), and some of us don't care if it drifts off by 20m.
Any technology which doesn't have a definitive state will get various opinions...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But then when it comes to navigation (arguably the principal purpose of having GPS in these devices) things go totally haywire! ) Personally I wonder whether GPS was installed purely for marketing purposes, to allow app developers (and of course google!) to snoop as to where their users are and how they are using their devices. For that there's no need for close tracking! )
not sure why you would fault beowulf for buying, if as you indicate he had some concerns - the damn phone is drop dead gorgous. If any product could stimulate optimism or optimistic hope, even in a skeptic, this phone would. And that's what makes it so frustrating.
I'm going to hate sending it back (i negotiated an extended buyer remorse return period) but if GPS isn't corrected by mid sept, this phone is history
samsung having released it w/o working gps is maybe forgiveable, but then even assuming they didn't know about the issue before release, it's been over 90 days since the asian release, and it's still not working.
Lay on top of that that samsung announced the GPS had been "validated" in the EPIC 4G, and it turns out it isn't. That did nothing but strengthen my doubts on samsung delivering a solution.
Tried this tracker booster app, makes no difference, gps still horrendous. If some people think that a 20m accuracy variation is acceptable for a gps lock they are a bloody fool.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Bynar010 said:
Tried this tracker booster app, makes no difference, gps still horrendous. If some people think that a 20m accuracy variation is acceptable for a gps lock they are a bloody fool.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
Then it must be the firmware I flashed. There's a big difference with JM2 and the previous FW I had, if I remember right it was JF3.
The accuracy is good, for example Endomondo regonizes few meter changes. (like changing side of the road).
Sorry to offend you but Beowulf_pt has no SGS and still he is lurking around complaining. If you think about it ,there must be some reasons that I and several others have a perfectly normal (no correction) GPS on our SGS. Why is it working so different for different persons? Some logical alternatives would be error in a batch of phones (switch it), or operator programming has messed it up (get new operator), or just overload caused by program running in background, memory and task mangers etc ( educate yourself or wait for a proper kernel - see below) or in some cases just plain trolling of some non SGS owners (see my last reply).
The GPS chip is new and according to the web only recently the code for efficient low level drivers, for the linux kernel, has started to appear on internet (23 august). It will take some weeks before they are implemented so I would bet that they have fixed it by the end of September. You know, bad driver = slow, no calender etc. You will notice it specially when you use program that uses lots of resources (Maps and My tracker). It is much more efficient with Cardiotrainer for example or GPS test. (see my third conclusion above). I have noticed that (at least for me) it takes 5 - 10 sec to get a first lock in GPS test but half a minute at least in Maps or My Tracks.
Another tip is to run for example GPS test for one minute or so before My Track so the GPS gets some satellite data downloaded (calenders). The time also helps the GPS to calculate the exact position to use as a start point. You normally need a minute or so if the calenders are to old or you moved to get the right positions.
Iphone 4 has a good GPS (3 is crap according to some owners and it is not fixed. Do you hear any complaints?). The chip is one generation older than SGS and Apple do not need to wait for the kernel to be changed in there Iphone. They do it them self and by the way Iphone 4 is not really multitasking which means that GPS programs can easily be prioritized.
Well this is a short version. The net is filled with facts and if you start read a little you can start puzzle together what the cause is for your faulty GPS (nearly nobody believes its hardware any more).
By the way, I am not ignorant and I know rather much about GPS and how to evaluate tracking (I have written several scientific papers on tracking of wildlife where at least one was on the subject - evaluation of ARGOS tracking devices using GPS as reference). I have owned several mobiles and GPSes, programmed and built fish tracking devices, and did my thesis on wildlife tracking. I stating this not to try to end the GPS discussion but to make it a little bit more "scientific" and not so emotional like the comments on my last reply. There still nobody that knows how many that has a problem with the GPS. We only know that a few of millions have complained and a few of millions have said there satisfied with it.
Bynar010 said:
Tried this tracker booster app, makes no difference, gps still horrendous. If some people think that a 20m accuracy variation is acceptable for a gps lock they are a bloody fool.
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On the contrar my friend, 5 - 15 meters is what you can expect and that means that the fix has 95 % certainty to be in that interval. 20 is a little bit above what you can expect but not much. In good dedicated trackers or a good phones you can get 5 meters (which I often get after 30 sec outside) and 2,5 for some fixes but not constant. A mobile is not a dedicated GPS and with the suspected driver problem 20 would not be bad. Try with GPS test, under open sky, and holding it at the bottom of the phone. Before you start you should turn off and on the GPS and close all task managers and started programs. You know that home means often that you leave the program running in the background but using back shuts it down. And wait for 30 - 60 seconds. If you get 10 be satisfied it,s a phone and not a dedicated GPS.
My touch hd would actually follow the f$$king road. Not too much to ask that a brand new smart phone would do the same is it? Its nothing short of pathetic. Even my old tytn2 was superb as a gps device for navigation, this thing cannot be trusted.
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I for one am getting SICK of installing fw's hoping for a fix for GPS.
They put a good hardware-wise device out.. But its kinda shoddy the fw development isn't equally as good. I have flashed nearly ALL the fw's to no real avail..
I am started to get frustrated after all this patience..
FWIW
Running 2.2 with no lag, fix no root, no apps to help. Google Nav and Co-Pilot work flawlessly. Mytracks follows me walking down the pavement at the correct position and on the correct side of the road with very few deviations.
I really cannot see what all the fuss is ablout here.
Tehpriest said:
FWIW
Running 2.2 with no lag, fix no root, no apps to help. Google Nav and Co-Pilot work flawlessly. Mytracks follows me walking down the pavement at the correct position and on the correct side of the road with very few deviations.
I really cannot see what all the fuss is ablout here.
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well try it in a car and get supprised...
praun said:
well try it in a car and get supprised...
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That is where I use both Co-Pilot and Google Nav.....
Beowulf_pt said:
..y quote one of my favourite authors..."Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." - Carl Sagan
.
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Well I rather stick with Popper. Extraordinary evidence or support isn't that hard to get (look at the paranormal claims etc). What is more difficult and more fruitful to come by is some clever tests that eventually will or can refute a claim. If a theory will pass those tests it is actually more trustworthy then when it gets "extraordinary" evidence.
Again, no theory will stand till the end of time, how extra-ordinary our evidences may be.
Lol, back to the gps.
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.
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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.
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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.
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If that is what you looking at, I haven't seen one GPS unit in any store with an acquired signal.