Hi,
I've recently aquired a Google Nexus 7. One of its great uses, I believed, would be as a driving aid, w/ cached Google Maps or with an alternative driving/location app, such as CoPilot. But, after testing it for two days I see that the device can't get hold of a GPS signal at all.
What the problem seems to be:
- The device is stuck at "searching for GPS". It never actually gets a response; no GPS at all.
What I've tried so far:
- Resetting the device to factory settings -- since it's brand new and I only had a couple of apps installed, I thought that a fresh start would be a good idea just in case.
- Moving to various locations and checking whether it was a location problem. I've tried both "on the go" -i.e. in a car- and static. No GPS at all cases.
- Downloaded GPS Status. It's always at "Looking for GPS location". My longest record so far is 10 minutes of it -- still, no GPS.
- Checked with a couple of other apps just to see if I'd find more information related to the problem, none helped. It seems that if a GPS fix isn't found, they can't offer much help.
- Disabling Google's Location Services and disabling Wi-Fi access, in case it messes up with the GPS receiver. No luck.
- Rebooting the device. Nope, doesn't do anything.
- Using GPS Doctor's -a paid-for app- auto-fix and manual fix features. Tried aquiring a GPS signal for 10+ minutes, nothing happens.
- Leaving the device for more than 30 minutes under clear sky and more than an hour next to the window, trying to find a signal. Nada. No workie.
- Dancing naked under the stars next to twelve lit black candles. No luck, but it felt great.
Things to note:
- It's running Android 4.2.1
- I'm in Greece ATM, maybe this is a country thing? I'd bet against this, just pointing it out.
- AFAIK, the device hasn't aquired a GPS signal at all so far.
- The device is brand new, never operated before I opened the box.
- It has not been rooted, messed with etc. etc. at all.
Any ideas welcome. Thanks in advance for your help!
The reviews of GPS Doctor indicate that it MIGHT solve your problem. It's a paid for app at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.epekware.gpsdoctor&hl=en
peterk-1 said:
The reviews of GPS Doctor indicate that it MIGHT solve your problem. It's a paid for app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Since it was only 1,5 euros I gave it a try -- no luck. After using both auto-fix and the manual fixes and searching for a GPS fix for 10+ minutes, it doesn't seem to work.
Sorry I've just re-read your initial post and saw you had tried GPS Doctor.
You've tried it outside. Is there any indication that signals are being received - satellite number and a bar graph that changes colour when a satellite has been "resolved". Is this a Greek model? - If it was for a different market then it may be that it is trying to resolve the satellites to give a location in the intended market (once a location has been fixed the GPS will quickly get a fix when powered up again within say 100km using the data it stores, the almanac etc you can clear in GPS Doctor). Before returning the unit I'd give it a try by leaving it with a view of the sky for at least 30mins
peterk-1 said:
Sorry I've just re-read your initial post and saw you had tried GPS Doctor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's actually not your fault -- I've added GPS Doctor to my initial post *after* you've suggested it & I've tried it, for bookkeeping and so that other who try to help see at one place what I've tried doing so far.
peterk-1 said:
You've tried it outside. Is there any indication that signals are being received - satellite number and a bar graph that changes colour when a satellite has been "resolved". Is this a Greek model? - If it was for a different market then it may be that it is trying to resolve the satellites to give a location in the intended market (once a location has been fixed the GPS will quickly get a fix when powered up again within say 100km using the data it stores, the almanac etc you can clear in GPS Doctor). Before returning the unit I'd give it a try by leaving it with a view of the sky for at least 30mins
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, I've tried it outside. It's a Brittish model, not a Greek one, but I'm trying to use it in Greece ATM. There's no indication whatsoever that it has resolved a connection to a satellite when I'm trying, so I guess it'd be reasonable to say that it hasn't reached one so far.
I'll try your suggestion. 30 minutes of straight satellite-searching it is -- thanks again!
*Update*: 30 mins doesn't seem to do the trick. I'll keep trying, then, until a better suggestion comes up.
There is an app called GPS Test or GPS Test Plus which will show the strength of each satellite signal received. My Nexus 7 often gets a lock inside a wood frame house but going outside with a clear view of the full sky works fastest. Hope you are not using a conductive case as the antennas are on the rear of the tablet.
jinx100 said:
There is an app called GPS Test or GPS Test Plus which will show the strength of each satellite signal received. My Nexus 7 often gets a lock inside a wood frame house but going outside with a clear view of the full sky works fastest. Hope you are not using a conductive case as the antennas are on the rear of the tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, thanks for the suggestion. I've tried GPS Test -it's under the "couple of other apps" that I've mentioned trying in my OP- but it seems that my Nexus 7 doesn't even get a satellite signal to begin with -- thus GPS Test displays no information.
I'm not using a case and I've tried leaving it for about 30 minutes under the clear sky. No signal at all. I have it by the window, ATM, just searching & on charge.
Okay, after quite some time out in the open sky and next to the window, I'm quite sure it's not about finding the time to contact satellites or anything of the such. The device simply cannot find my location.
Any new ideas?
Send it back if possible,sounds like a faulty GPS.
There are location setting hidden in accounts,see if they are on.
Sent from my A100 using xda app-developers app
My problem with the GPS is that it will SEE the satellites (according to several GPS test apps), it just won't lock on to any - no matter how strong the signal or whether or not I'm indoors or out.
Kodiack99 said:
There are location setting hidden in accounts,see if they are on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, thanks for the reply -- do you mind sharing more info on this one?
Try faster fix, its free but requires root.
Sent from my GT-I9100
alferret said:
Try faster fix, its free but requires root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure of what you mean by that, could you please elaborate? Thanks!
Sino316 said:
Hi, thanks for the suggestion. I've tried GPS Test -it's under the "couple of other apps" that I've mentioned trying in my OP- but it seems that my Nexus 7 doesn't even get a satellite signal to begin with -- thus GPS Test displays no information.
I'm not using a case and I've tried leaving it for about 30 minutes under the clear sky. No signal at all. I have it by the window, ATM, just searching & on charge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If Settings - Location access - location access ON and GPS checked yet you still receive no satellites then your GPS function is defective. Return it to the seller.
Same GPS issue with N7
Hi OP, did you get any solution for your problem?
I am facing a similar issue, I am trying to use GPS on a US bought N7 in India.
Is this a common problem, i have tried many gps apps, but none shows my location.
If your N7 is new and GPS never worked properly and your various location settings are correct, you might want to return & exchange it for a different unit as it could be a hardware problem, beyond any software or Apps-based solutions here. If you are using a weather app, does it find & use your location info?
I had a similar issues with GPS and eventually returned that malfunctioned unit locally to exchange it, upgraded from 16GB to 32GB unit as it was also having the random touch-screen key-pressed issues, etc. It either won't find the location and/or is off by a few miles to as much as a thousand plus miles, sometimes putting the N7 in the middle of the ocean, LOL. The new 32GB unit is flawless.
What I recommend is to try to download from Google "Play Store" - GPS Status by MobiWIA (v 4.0.1 is what I'm running on mine - has been using this for 2 years on multiple devices and it worked for us here - USA) Basically, it download & update, refresh and give assisted hand to the built-in GPS receiver - it run in the background and will turn on to track/lock on to various GPS satellites, inititially showing 5 to 7 sources indoor and at many as 8 to 12 sources within 60 seconds. Outdoor and clear view of open sky, it will lock faser & find more satellites. It is ad-supported and free, not a metered trial-ware
With a WiFi signal, Google Maps open quickly and zoomed it quickly to my locations in 15 seconds - very accurate and as good as when I'm using it on our HTC devices - same is true when I use Nav(free) USA - free off-line GPS software with preloaded maps as it does not drain the battery quickly.
I like the giant 7" screen for "cool" naviagation but until I'm comfortable with a solid & secure mount inside our Honda CRV, I'll stick with the smaller 4" screen of our HTC smartphone with unlimited 3G data access, as a drop will risk breaking the fragile glass lens that's prone to cracking.
similar issue but...
Had already tried Faster Fix (which gave error) and Faster GPS (which managed to reset GPS.conf) but still couldn't get Google Maps to lock in GPS. Was wondering if problem was GMaps or N7.
I googled 'nexus 7 can't get GPS lock' and ended up here. Decided to try GPS Status which showed everything working as it should ('copy location to clipboard' option lets you verify the location via browser). Went back to GMaps hoping GPS Status might help it along, but still got the same 'your location is temporarily unavailable.'
So not hardware must be software. Didn't have to look far checked 'other apps' in the GPS Status program and discovered Orux Maps, free. Upon starting and clicking GPS button didn't take it more than a few seconds to get the lock.
OP issue might still be hardware but thought I'd post here in case someone else ends up here.
i know its an old post but i am facing the same issues here! at the beggining i thought i have got a faulty device. Thats why i bought a used one and tested it before purchase live. The GPS was working just fine. I installed Cyanogen 13 opened GPS Status again and found Satelite. I thought everything was working like it should be. After 10 Min. i went to the car and drove to a friend without any issues. After 3 hours i went home again without any problems. But as the tablet restarted i never got a satelite signal again... always looking for my position.
I am pretty sure thats a software issue. Went back to stock firmware. Problem remains.
Related
I bought the HTC Touch HD a few weeks ago and noticed that the accuracy is not just bad, but atrocious. It can't even locate me within a 300 meter radius. Is that normal? Does anyone else have this problem? I am using the latest Google Maps.
Thanks in advanced.
I would try a proper GPS program and see if it is the same, if so your HD is faulty.
No problem here. .Maybe silly question, but did you click on "Use GPS"?
--cheerios
skotler said:
I bought the HTC Touch HD a few weeks ago and noticed that the accuracy is not just bad, but atrocious. It can't even locate me within a 300 meter radius. Is that normal? Does anyone else have this problem? I am using the latest Google Maps.
Thanks in advanced.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure you have a satalite lock? Google maps also determines position from cell towers and gives an estimate to your location within approx 500M. Once gps is activated and satlites have been aquired, a more accurate position is displayed (and i get a blue triange above the location - i guess to indicate actual position).
The little blue trianlge shows the direction you're moving - so the GPS is pretty accurate! Sometimes it doesn't get a lock for a while (it'll say at the top-right when it has active satellites) - if not, then it just uses that cell tower triangulation thing which gets it within about 500m as mentioned above.
aabye said:
No problem here. .Maybe silly question, but did you click on "Use GPS"?
--cheerios
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya, it is on.
It can get working when I'm on the move, but as soon as I am still, it screws up. For instance, I can be driving to work and it works fine as far as telling me where I am at the moment. As soon as I close it and reopen it at work, it tells me I am somewhere 300-500 meters from work.
I guess I don't understand how it can work so well on the move, but as soon as I need an accurate reading, it is way off. Does this happen to anyone else?
skotler said:
Ya, it is on.
It can get working when I'm on the move, but as soon as I am still, it screws up. For instance, I can be driving to work and it works fine as far as telling me where I am at the moment. As soon as I close it and reopen it at work, it tells me I am somewhere 300-500 meters from work.
I guess I don't understand how it can work so well on the move, but as soon as I need an accurate reading, it is way off. Does this happen to anyone else?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once it's closed it loses the "Use GPS" setting and you have to turn that back on and wait for the Satellites to be located all over again.
Well i think there is a gps delay issue with the latest HTC phones as blackstone, Raphael and diamond and i believe there is a little on the x1. Well there will is always ways to tweak settings in the registry i guess. well you'll probably find something here at xda...
Ok, I see what you are saying...sa we speak, I am trying to get the location of where I am at on my phone. The status has been on "Seeking GPS satellites (0)" for about 3 minutes now. It just relocated my location nowhere near me.
Ok, I just got a message telling me that my "GPS receiver is having trouble tracking GPS satellites." It's a very clear night in southern California, no clouds, no trees, etc...If it is because I can't get a satellite, is there a way to configure it?
Can it be because I am inside my house? If so, that is absurd!
skotler said:
Ok, I see what you are saying...sa we speak, I am trying to get the location of where I am at on my phone. The status has been on "Seeking GPS satellites (0)" for about 3 minutes now. It just relocated my location nowhere near me.
Ok, I just got a message telling me that my "GPS receiver is having trouble tracking GPS satellites." It's a very clear night in southern California, no clouds, no trees, etc...If it is because I can't get a satellite, is there a way to configure it?
Can it be because I am inside my house? If so, that is absurd!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well i suggest you to go out and test it.. well also i suggest you to always keep your quick gps application updated so you'll get a quick fix locked to sattelites.. my Raphael locks on around 20-30 seconds and sometimes even less....
no problem here!
i've tested head to head with my old Asus P535 SirfIII (wich is pretty good as gps) on a 300km trip and they react in the same way.
no lag, no errors.
i use iGO8!
Well i found this on youtube: omnia vs HD in gps...
i am aware of that greek clip
what can i say? they have their experience, i have mine.
from my experience i say the gps of hd is good enough, as long as i don't make maps and i don't need precision on cm level
GPS works great on HD. Tested with IGO8 and latest TomTom, as well as Google Maps - all have accuracy within 5m range, wich is more then enough for normal navigation use.
I also tested my HD along side with Garmin car navigation unit - they were literary synchronized to the very second, even the voice instructions came at the same time, it was actually very funny
If you're having problems, I suggest you look up here on the forum for HTC GPS tool.
Well just to say, I agree with you guys eventhough i have a Raphael.. well i guess the gps chipset are the same.. (correct me if im wrong though) .. well many people in the Raphael community is talking about 50 - 100 yards lag but i only experience 5m, the most ive experienced was 10m but that was just once..
GPS doesn't work inside. Not just on the Touch HD but on any GPS device.
At the most, my lag is a car's length. I think my Trinity was slightly more accurated but not by much.
As far as getting a lock from inside, I can occaisionally get a lock if I am sat by my West facing window, but otherwise not a chance!
Ok, I got it working! I guess it just takes a couple minutes without touching any keys to acquire the satellites.
So in conclusion, to impatient people like me, don't touch any keys for a good minute or two. Thanks, guys!
HandGrip said:
GPS doesn't work inside. Not just on the Touch HD but on any GPS device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine does. Can take about a minute/minute and a half to lock to the satalites, usually finds about 9 of them, and from google maps when zoomed in to max you can see roughly where abouts in the house the handset is.
The cell tower lock is useless. I'm in the north west of england. The cell lock feature keeps telling me I'm in Russia!!
like all gps i have used, sometimes getting a fix is hard work, regardless of apparent sky conditions.... i guess thats what happens when technology (the gps sats) are made by the lowest bidder
if you have a "your postion within 300-500m" message displayed, then that is using the cell mast to get your position, you never see this message when using GPS
some progs and some roms prefer to have the gps ports mapped, i do it manually for all my gps progs using com4 and bit rate of 9600k... seems to offer best situation
afaik, no civilian GPS can assure an accuracy of greater then 15m, although some units some of the time seem to be more precise
i dont see lag, i see the limitations of GPS (outside of military application... but then again, we've seen how accurate smart bombs are not!!)
Well like everyone I had the GPS issue and it was frustrating. I do run an app killer and I always notice many apps (especially the preloaded ones) Keep launching themselves. It got rather irritating. Specifically Telenav.
I noticed with Telenav my GPS would be very flaky. Once I got "killed" it the gps seemed to improve. I thought to myself maybe I'm just being paranoid.
Did a bit of research and found an app called "Start UP Auditor" which completely kills an app and restricts it from every starting up again. My gps seems to be working much better now.
I drove a few miles and on the Verrazano Bridge here in NY and the GPS was super percise. When I was at the end of the block it was at the end of the block as well at the same time. Not like it was before.
Now I can launch google maps and it will find me exactly in front of my house and not 200 feet away.
Takes a solid minute to lock on. Not more but not less unfortunately. So there still is a bit of a problem but for me at least it has exponentially gotten better. Versus it not even locking on previously.
I think I might be on to something. I cannot give all credit to me because I saw on a Tmobile forum someone say that they think the problem might be with the self launching apps so that's where I started to draw conclusions.
EDIT: Scratch that one min thing. It seriously just now took me 10 seconds to lock on and the GPS to start talking to tell me where to turn inside my house. Issue fixed?
I completly removed TeleNav and I still have GPS issues... It is not any software causing this problem. It is a Hardware / Firmware / Driver issue.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
gravis86 said:
I completly removed TeleNav and I still have GPS issues... It is not any software causing this problem. It is a Hardware / Firmware / Driver issue.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, one of the first things I did after rooting was remove all the bloatware, and Telenav was one of them.
gravis86 said:
I completly removed TeleNav and I still have GPS issues... It is not any software causing this problem. It is a Hardware / Firmware / Driver issue.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... Interesting.
My GPS issues seem to have disappeared after killing Telenav.
This just takes me back to the drawing board once more. I just do not understand...
I would like to see others responses. Does there happen to be vibrants with different firmwares?
So what happened to me?
Was it some magical stroke of luck?
Wow.
Initially, disabling TeleNav gave me a significant improvement in GPS performance. Indoors, I went from having 50-60ft. of accuracy (with multiple locks), to 12-15ft. of accuracy with a single lock. Initial accuracy was in the upper 40s, but quickly dropped to the highest accuracy I've seen with the device (the 12-15ft. figure) - indoor or outdoor - within a minute. Crazy.
Outdoor, on a perfectly clear sky, the best I've achieved was previously 25ft. of accuracy.
I rebooted (the phone froze, wheee!), with TeleNav still selected as disabled, and now, I'm only getting 30-52ft. of accuracy with a single lock. This took about two minutes to come down from 170ft. or so.
GPS settings have been switched to 'Automatic', from the stock supl server, for all of these tests.
Maps still shows me in Issaquah, initially (incorrect data), but quickly updates my position my exact location (within a few seconds). Previously, Maps would take at least a half hour to place me in even the correct city! Margin of Error: ~50ft. or so (shows me on the street, rather than on my property), within seconds.
Compass, as expected: still totally ****ing broken and ****ty.
I can confirm that - besides not being able to lock onto more than a single sat - I'm seeing drastic improvements. Thanks for pointing this out.
Still, I'm not sure the improvement will be enough to convince me to hang onto the device while we wait to hear from Samsung. :/
Jon C said:
Wow.
Initially, disabling TeleNav gave me a significant improvement in GPS performance. Indoors, I went from having 50-60ft. of accuracy (with multiple locks), to 12-15ft. of accuracy with a single lock. Initial accuracy was in the upper 40s, but quickly dropped to the highest accuracy I've seen with the device (the 12-15ft. figure) - indoor or outdoor - within a minute. Crazy.
Outdoor, on a perfectly clear sky, the best I've achieved was previously 25ft. of accuracy.
I rebooted (the phone froze, wheee!), with TeleNav still selected as disabled, and now, I'm only getting 30-52ft. of accuracy with a single lock. This took about two minutes to come down from 170ft. or so.
GPS settings have been switched to 'Automatic', from the stock supl server, for all of these tests.
Maps still shows me in Issaquah, initially (incorrect data), but quickly updates my position my exact location (within a few seconds). Previously, Maps would take at least a half hour to place me in even the correct city! Margin of Error: ~50ft. or so (shows me on the street, rather than on my property), within seconds.
Compass, as expected: still totally ****ing broken and ****ty.
I can confirm that - besides not being able to lock onto more than a single sat - I'm seeing drastic improvements. Thanks for pointing this out.
Still, I'm not sure the improvement will be enough to convince me to hang onto the device while we wait to hear from Samsung. :/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea like I said in the OP the fix is better but there definitely is a problem that needs to be addressed. That might be either hardware or firmware, All thats left is to wait for sammy to fix it up. However my GPS performance for my needs is more than exceptional.
I have noticed that while running GPStest, Google Maps starts to work. Something is wrong with the API.
If anyone is getting black screen freeze ups, disabling GPS will clear that right up.
And, we're back to square one. So much for that.
Location services can no longer locate me, and show that I'm in a neighboring city. Nothing I adjust fixes this for more than a short period of time.
Oh, Samsung...
dattaway said:
I have noticed that while running GPStest, Google Maps starts to work. Something is wrong with the API.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems to me that it is definitely a software problem. I don't think the hardware is bad. (The gps chip?)
heygrl said:
If anyone is getting black screen freeze ups, disabling GPS will clear that right up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I drove for miles and had nothing. Though if I am not using GPS I always turn it off to conserve battery.
Jon C said:
And, we're back to square one. So much for that.
Location services can no longer locate me, and show that I'm in a neighboring city. Nothing I adjust fixes this for more than a short period of time.
Oh, Samsung...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wonder if they can't even find the issue yet. It will probably be fix in the 2.2 update.
I removed TelNav within 4days of owning my phone and it really for me hasn't changed a thing.
What helped me was turning off the wireless location feature. From what I noticed it looks for your location based off the cell towers first then it looks for your location via GPS. If its slow to find you via wireless then well its slow to find you via GPS too.
I didn't really tried the GPS when I saw the threads saying there was a problem with it and I read somewhere about "how to fix it" so I applied the fix before even using the GPS before, so I have no clue if I had problems or not, but after the fix, the GPS locks in about 10 to 15 seconds and gest my location on the spot, even indoors.
just change the GPS settings to google servers
Directly after rebooting my gps/navigation seems to work much better.
To make it more clear... I'll be using my phone throughout the day and then i'll try to use navigation. Usually it will just keep trying to find the route but it never actually finds it. I'll reboot the phone and it'll find my location and the route in <10 seconds.
kizer said:
I removed TelNav within 4days of owning my phone and it really for me hasn't changed a thing.
What helped me was turning off the wireless location feature. From what I noticed it looks for your location based off the cell towers first then it looks for your location via GPS. If its slow to find you via wireless then well its slow to find you via GPS too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe the wifi and GPS share the same antenna. Anyone know which antennas do what for sure?
Our cellular antenna is at the bottom under the bump. The one at the top next to the antenna port does the rest.
heygrl said:
If anyone is getting black screen freeze ups, disabling GPS will clear that right up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this tip, I hadn't caught this in the other GPS threads.
I ran and used My Tracks but forgot to turn on GPS. When I tried nav it could not get a fix until I restarted. Next time I'll try killing conflicting apps.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I just deleted the Tel-Nav app and now my GPS locks on in about 10 seconds and is dead on accurate. I even drove 165 miles today and never dropped a GPS signal. I could never do that before.
Does anyone know why the times are off one the gps sensors? My local time is 10:51, but gps test has it as 18:51 that is about 8 hours off.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Hey all,
First off, I'm very excited to start working with everyone here at the Iconia A500 forum! Secondly, is anyone else having issues with the GPS? I went into Google Navigation and it constantly said "searching for GPS." I never got a result. Thanks!
Same issue, I eventually got a brief fix but its not good.
I did a test, with GPS Status.
2 android, my nexus one and my acer A500.
nexus one 8 satellites
A500 3 satellites
Yeah, so far it looks like the a500 is as bad or worse than the vibrants before the devs got hold of the source and fixed it.
same problem only get 2 satellites
fasrerfix from market
this improves the speed.i think it works bye membering or knowing the sat in your view
so less time guessing on best ones
FYI, returned my A500 for a different on, same issues with GPS as the old one...
Make sure all GPS settings are enabled or won't work. I have tried it and works even without wi-fi connection
Required:
Root access
Fasterfix app from market
read all of this post so you don't screw yourself.
Instructions:
To speed up google maps nav: Install "Fasterfix" app from market, open app, accept super user permissions, pick region (!!!never change this) then test via google maps navigation. Should speed it up $hit load, just as fast as my incredible when it was new. Hope this helps
Honestly until android comes up with a fix for the maps app I'm going to use WASE GPS found in market you won't get a search for signal b.s. unless you close app and come back to a recent destination.
FYI!!!!!!!! DONT REPICK or you will have to do the steps
It appears I was having some issues cingularly in the davlik cache because I changed my region because I figured what the fnck, and that screwed up my speed so when you pick your region stick with it or you will slow the crap out of navigation plus to fix it you will have unistall fasterfix, delete" [email protected]@[email protected][/email]" under davik-cache, reinstall pick region, test via navigation.
Info:
Sorry about last post: you will only need to open Fasterfix app once.
Misc:
It appears that fastfix is server based location finder, what ever that means
I did a quick test earlier.
Got a fix from the driveway then set a course in Navigation - left the house and it wasn't until a few minutes into the drive that the signal was strong enough that I had a pretty good real-time representation of my status on screen. Meaning, after a few minutes, I could see the blue arrow moving along the road as I drove, while initially, it was still and would pop around for a bit.
When I got to my location I check the satellites and I was connected to 7 of them from 10 it could see.
It took about 5 minutes to find and connect to any sats from the driveway. As stated, it was another 2-3 minutes after initial connection that the signal was consistent enough to show me a real-time loc as I drove.
I figure, if you can see/connect to at least 1 sat, then it's fine. Once connected, and you're in motion, it will find and connect to more if there are any available.
I rarely, if ever, can connect to any satellites while indoors. I don't see this as a limitation of the a500, but gps in general. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can't. It's not something you should rely on.
To properly test your gps, standing still in the backyard isn't going to cut it, regardless if your other devices do or not. Do a proper test. Make sure you have a connection to wi-fi (with location aware on) set a course in Navigation and wait until you connect - head out.
While I don't discount the possibility of there being a hardware issue with some people's tablets, I don't believe there is an inherent flaw in the a500 gps.
The fix has been posted please search for it.
Thread closed.
The fix has been posted please search for it.
Thread closed.
There seems to be MANY factors that affect the GPS on these tablets and exchanging one for another *may seem* to get you a better unit. I bought a second a500 unit today and when I first brought up google maps, it had my fix as soon as the screen opened. Cool, this must be a better unit than my other right? Not necessarily because I believe the new unit used my wifi for the quick fix. As soon as I turned off the wifi assistance, the unit no longer gave me immediate fixes. I loaded gps status and the new unit struggled to find just 1 satellite. My other unit which I've had 2 weeks, is now suddenly a gps 'mofo' as it finds and locks position really quick, sometimes in 5 or 10 seconds (wifi assist turned off). The only thing I installed recently is gps monitor, but that's just gives you a monitoring status in the taskbar. It does state that it's turning off gps when you exit maps, which if it does may help conserve battery.
So I'm not sure why my A500 decided to suddenly work really well with GPS. When I first bought it, it was actually kind of terrible. Of course I have the 3.1 update on my unit, but the new one is still 3.01. I don't know how much of a difference that makes either. I had planned on buying an Asus unit today, but could not find the 32gb unit locally (not settling for 16gb).
My unit is stock and not rooted. I don't see a need to root it because so far it's working quite well. If only the microphone pickup was better, but I can live with talking louder at it or into the top of the unit. I have to do that with my samsung galaxy phone also.
Rob
It's funny, the very first time I used the GPS It took forever to find & lock on to sats. Now it's really fast. I'm thinking it has a " learning curve" ?
Update : Tried in the same place tonight , it only picked up 1 sat & didn't lock.
It is aGPS which means Assisted. It uses WIFI to set your location and search for satellites based on that location.
There are a number of factors which affect the GPS on this unit, as the original poster stated. I've been researching this for sometime, and found a number of things that could lead to a replacement unit working better than a current unit.
I've another thread on this subject, but I'll post the cliff notes here.
The following can affect GPS on your unit:
Obstruction (Roof, Cover)
Weather (Clouds vs Sun)
Internet Access
Nearby magnets
Compass Calibration
Your almanac server (gps.conf)
For starters, download a program called "GPS Test", not to be confused with "GPS Status and Toolbox", which you should also have for different reasons.
Plug your unit in and set it up in a spot where you know you can get a signal on other devices (phone, etc). This does not include your basement, but it also doesn't have to be outside. A woodframe house will not usually obstruct the signal enough to interfere. Use your best judgement.
Start up GPS Test and go into the settings menu. Select the option where the screen stays on all of the time. Check to see if your unit will ever pick up any satellites. If it takes more than 30 minutes and you are sure you should be picking up satellites, this indicates a problem. The first step should be diagnostic.
Leave it run overnight. If you look at it in the morning and find a multitude of satellites then your GPS receiver is working fine. This means your GPS can see the satellites, but the only way it can find them is through sheer dumb luck. It needs to be told where to look, and its having problems getting that information. The problem is likely with your compass or almanac.
If you arrive in the morning to find no satellites at all, then your GPS is likely broken (not unheard of) or you need to try again in a better location.
If you know your GPS transmitter is working, the next step is the check your compass. This is where GPS Status and Tools comes into play. The first screen you see when you open the program will be the compass. Make sure north == north. If it does not, almanac data is useless because the tablet won't know which way to look. GPS Status and Toolbox comes with a compass calibration tool. Use it. If your compass will not stay pointed north, then your compass is broken. If it works, then its time to look at your almanac.
Unless your system is rooted, there is no point in reading further. All the following steps require root access.
There are two files that you need to be concerned with. They are /etc/gps.conf and /etc/gps/gpsconfig.xml
You either need to edit them manually, replace them with pre-configured optimized versions for your region (link below), or use a program (fasterfix) to edit them for you. Results with each approach may vary.
I won't go into this step into detail since its been covered a million times on the forums already. I will provide a link:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1068416
This is the one that helped me the most, but there are others.
Best of luck. And remember: Hardware failure is a real possibility, but so is a crappy environment. Make sure there is no outside interference and you're not trying to get your location from an underground bunker and wondering why it doesn't work. A little common sense goes a long way.
Cheers,
-PW
long time lurker on this site.
I just bought an A500 and have been trying to get this GPS to work.
The first one I got had 3.01. I first tested GPS and it worked fine. Was able to get connected to the satelites no problem. Downloaded and installed 3.1 on it and now GPS doesn't work at all. Tested it with the two programs: GPS test and GPS utilities.
Stood outside on a clear day and nothing happened. Tested all the settings and still not one satellite.
After reading a lot of the threads and doing a lot of searching I exchanged it for another one.
Did the same thing. Tested it on 3.01 and it worked then installed 3.1 and it didn't work again on this second one. Went throug all the troubleshooting steps: deleted the cache, reset the gps, etc. Even left it on over night sitting at GPS Test and Google Places.
Doesn't make sense that it works on 3.01 and not on 3.1. Sounds more of a software issue than a hardware issue. But for it to work with some others with 3.1 then I may exchange it for another one again.
Wondering if it was during a certain build that other are having the same issue. Both of the ones i got were manufacturered in April. Could April just be a bad month or several months before that?
3.1 does not have any problem with GPS
Wifi assist turned off, get lock with sygic and can use the navigator.
(but)
- if you go under an express way (like I got in my country they are highway), you lost the signal very quick
HOW TO FIX ?
- buy a GPS enhancer and put in your car, that will increase the signal received and give the tablet a very big help
the poor part of the GPS tablet is the antena... the receiver is not that happy behind a metal case, and oftenly... GPS antena should be on the roof of the car, or external for better signal.
I got locked in 15s
sanaell said:
3.1 does not have any problem with GPS
Wifi assist turned off, get lock with sygic and can use the navigator.
(but)
- if you go under an express way (like I got in my country they are highway), you lost the signal very quick
HOW TO FIX ?
- buy a GPS enhancer and put in your car, that will increase the signal received and give the tablet a very big help
the poor part of the GPS tablet is the antena... the receiver is not that happy behind a metal case, and oftenly... GPS antena should be on the roof of the car, or external for better signal.
I got locked in 15s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My guess is that Acer subcontracts out parts production for items like the GPS antenna used in the A500 and the quality of those antenna has been very inconsistent (same with the microphone). I have an A500 with a June build date and it has very good GPS pickup. It doesn't lock instantly like the Xoom does, but usually within 10-20 seconds (sometimes sooner) which is still acceptable. Surprisingly, this unit also has a fairly good microphone that picks up my voice well while holding it at any angle. It's still running 3.01 unmodified since it hasn't got the OTA yet. I previously had an A500 with an April build date (it's on the back of the box) and both the GPS and microphone performed rather poorly even with 3.1.
Rob
going to exchange this one at a different bestbuy store and see if they have a different manufacturer date. I did the exchange on Monday and hope they have a different lot.
tekageek said:
long time lurker on this site.
I just bought an A500 and have been trying to get this GPS to work.
The first one I got had 3.01. I first tested GPS and it worked fine. Was able to get connected to the satelites no problem. Downloaded and installed 3.1 on it and now GPS doesn't work at all. Tested it with the two programs: GPS test and GPS utilities.
Stood outside on a clear day and nothing happened. Tested all the settings and still not one satellite.
After reading a lot of the threads and doing a lot of searching I exchanged it for another one.
Did the same thing. Tested it on 3.01 and it worked then installed 3.1 and it didn't work again on this second one. Went throug all the troubleshooting steps: deleted the cache, reset the gps, etc. Even left it on over night sitting at GPS Test and Google Places.
Doesn't make sense that it works on 3.01 and not on 3.1. Sounds more of a software issue than a hardware issue. But for it to work with some others with 3.1 then I may exchange it for another one again.
Wondering if it was during a certain build that other are having the same issue. Both of the ones i got were manufacturered in April. Could April just be a bad month or several months before that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The 3.1 you're installing is OTA or you are downloading it from somewhere ? My first unit failed with 3.1 with a downloaded 3.1 (it seemed to be the correct for Spain) ... I exchanged the unit, and this new one offered me OTA. It's working perfect with OTA 3.1
I did a test one day with GPS and found it to be marvelous if used properly.
Here is what I did.
1. I cleared my agps data with program GPS Status
2. Redownloaded the data and waited until I had like 6 up 11 fixes
Then I went out and waited at bus station and got a lock with Google maps and I travelled about 75 kilometers and had a perfect fix the entire time, I had about 5 satellites fixed constantly on average. And this was using stock everythings I love the GPS it works fine now.
In the 3.01 version I did the exact same test and it didn't work, everytime the train or bus started moving the signal was gone and stayed gone.
Now its fine! You just have to remember. That this is Agps not GPS A is for assisted, so you use the internet abit and download the data and you're fine! Just learn to use A-GPS!
I have tried everything, and nothing works. What a ****ty thing to screw up on a tablet. I'm trading mine in tomorrow, and if I have the same issue, I'm rooting and switching roms. This is ridiculous ..........
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
well well well, this one worked. I exchanged for another one.
3.01
turned it on and opened Navigator. in 10 seconds it locked into the gps. Installed gps test and saw 6 to 7 satellites, in use= 6 looked at the map and it found my location. Opened both Navigator and Places
3.1
Installed 3.1 OTA, once rebooted i opened gps test and now i see 7 satellites! Opened Navigator and worked fine. Opened Places and also worked fine. Both found my location and saw 6 to 7 satellites.
4.010.13.comgen2
wish there was a list of what this update does. installed this update and gps still works. Seeing 6 to 7 satellites. navigator and places still work.
Before i even took this tab i asked the sales guy the manufactured date. This one is from: May
GPS fix
Initially, my gps did not work that well. When I compared my gps.conf with the 2 A500's whose GPS worked very well I found that their GPS.conf contained only this
"NTP_SERVER=north-America.pool.ntp.org". I'm in US, by the way. After I rooted my A500, my GPS worked alot better. After I edited my GPS.conf the fix time was improved.
Before: outdoor : cold start and there.after
Time to fix= 5 min to infinity and 3 mins to infinity
Indoor = no GPS.
After: outdoor= 30 sec to 211 sec. and 10 sec to 90 sec
Indoor= 110 sec to 5 mins. and 29 sec to 90 sec
Hope that helps.
I'm on rooted stock 3.1.
I guess I got lucky then.
When I start mine up, it locates for the weatherbug app update feature and I've never seen it fail.
I haven't done any GPS-specific stuff with it yet, but much of the time I'm using an ad hoc connection from my phone, so it's not a wif AGPS fix.
Interesting read. Makes me want to explore the GPS feature more.
One other thing that is universal across any device using GPS, both commercial and military---your device needs to know where in the sky the satellites are. The initial gps fix will always take more time because the device doesn't have a reference fit the sats. This will also be the case the longer you go between fixes as the device will lose track of the sats over time. Aside from physical obstructions this is often the biggest contributing factor to the length of time required to get a fix.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
Noob question here. So this is assisted GPS. I assume it needs the WiFI to access the aGPS servers, but they aren't necessary if a) you have a confirmed working device and b) everything is calibrated properly. Is this correct.
I just don't understand the inconsistency in the GPS fix. I have a rooted A500, with 4.010.13_COM_GEN2, manufactured in April. For some reason, I cannot get a consistent, day-to-day lock on position. I have installed and used successfully in the past:
Fasterfix
GPSFix
GPS Test
GPS Status
I have edited the gps.conf file manually to use, separately, both north-america.pool.ntp.org as well as us.pool.ntp.org;
I have used the "manage A-GPS status" to reset the status as well as downloading the assist data in GPS Status;
After several unsuccessful attempts last night, I was able to gain a GPS lock from my living room in about 20-30 seconds. Today, in the clear open air I could not obtain more than a partial lock on more than 3-4 satellites at a time, and only once obtained a fix, and then for only 20 minutes while stationary. I am now in the exact same position as I was last night, and cannot find a single *blinking* satellite.
While traveling home on the Interstate, I could see more than two satellites at a time and never got a lock on position. In contrast, my Droid (2.3.3) obtained a lock in about 5 seconds with GPS Status. Using a Bluetooth GPS unit and a Bluetooth Mouse GPS, I obtained a position lock in 2 seconds on the A500.
So what gives here? Is it a hardware problem? Why does it work so well one day and then not at all the next, with all other things being equal? It does not seem to be a software issue or sky visibility issue.
UPDATE, 8/9/11: I noticed that in the current configuration as described above, the only satellites that could be seen were those on a bearing of 000, and largely on the horizon. When a different satellite was seen, it would only appear in the northern two quadrants. I restored a back-up from two days ago, and uninstalled FasterFix but manually edited the gps.conf file to us.pool.ntp.org. The GPS fix was improved - not lightning fast, but at least 4 satellites were seen relatively quickly, without particular preference for hemisphere. Position fix still takes a few minutes - two to five minutes or so. Still working on consistency, but may switch to a custom ROM.
UPDATE, 8/11/11: This thing is driving me nuts - no clear consistency on when the GPS works or not. Tried two custom ROMs, same lack of consistent lock. Back to square 1. Droid-1 picks up 10 sats (w/o network checked), A500 only 4. Got a lock away from home this morning, cannot get one at home tonight. Taking it in for exchange tomorrow. Since the first sat it does see is always at 000 and at the horizon, I am wondering if the internal referencing for the GPS unit within the A500 is somehow not set up to handle the assist data format properly. Sort of like it is reading the data, but things are off a space or two. Thus, the GPS unit seems to look, but is looking in the wrong direction. Comments?
GPS not working on SM-N910F. Show much "In view" satellites, but 0 "In use"
Have problem with GPS. It never can find satellites, even under clear sky. "GPS Test" application always show many "In view" sattelites and zero "In use" satellites.
Changing android version (even CM) doesnt help.
Anyone help! How to fix this problem?
AlexN said:
Have problem with GPS. It never can find satellites, even under clear sky. "GPS Test" application always show many "In view" sattelites and zero "In use" satellites.
Changing android version (even CM) doesnt help.
Anyone help! How to fix this problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same issue here, I'm starting to think hardware issue, did you find a fix?
I had the same problem and I tried everything, different ROMs, different programs, to no avail.
It probably is a hardware issue. The GPS connectors inside the phone do not make contact with the GPS antenna on the backplate. Open the phone and raise the connectors a little, very gently, so you don't break them. Before closing it, put a tiny paper under the connectors, so it won't happen again. It's not very easy, but not too hard either.
Thanks
I ordered a phone repair kit (small screw driver etc) yesterday as I suspected the same. I'm going to open her up when it arrives, I'll let you know what I find.
Cheers for the reply
R
Took mine apart, extended all the pins I could see bilut same issue. Where exactly are the GPS pins and antenna? All I could find online was stuff for the note 3.
Cheers
R
rickoneeleven said:
Took mine apart, extended all the pins I could see bilut same issue. Where exactly are the GPS pins and antenna? All I could find online was stuff for the note 3.
Cheers
R
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To the right, as you see the device from the back. It's the two tiny pins on the up-right corner.
Cheers
I'll take another peek tonight
Just opened it up again, give them a good extend but the issue remains. I think I'm a special case though, I got mine from Hong Kong (sent to UK) and then through a custom ROM Modem/Bootloader on without testing anything - idiot. So after further reading I think my issue may be related to CSC stuff, although I'm not sure exactly what that means yet - I'll keep reading.
Cheers for prompt reply.
R
Hello, I had the same issue when running android 5.1
It was after waiting a long time to get some good gps lock. Assuming it was an hardware problem I also checked out the 'pin' issue.
But amazingly, when flashing a android 4.4.4 rom, the gps is now awesome!
It now has almost instant lock everytime and I use it all the time for tracking my running and cycling. So I noticed the difference quickly between android 4 and 5 with the gps. It's like there's a big software bug in the 5 version.
Thanks choko, the one good thing I did before the flash was take a picture of all the info in "about phone" and a full backup including efs etc, so one of my steps when I have more time is a full roll back to stock (4.4.4).
Just need to locate the stock bootloader and modem for my "special" Hong Kong device.
Cheers all
R
I couldn't get a GPS connection on my Note 3 and was about to take it apart when I came across GPS Status Test and Fix I ran it and then everything was sorted! I've just bought a Note 4 and thankfully the GPS worked first time (I'm on MM now)
Thanks wold
I tried that and clicked the buttons at the bottom and it just varied between 0/19 and 0/24, not sure if that means my phone is "seeing" the sats but just not locking or what.
Feel so close to a fix yet so far away as I've tried everything apart from a CSC reset thing I read elsewhere. But that formats your phone so waiting for when I have more time.
Cheers all
R
Okay all - tried flashing back to my original backup from when it was new but it got stuck in reboot loop. I found the exact firmware online that came with my phone, flash it including modem etc and the phone booted as new, no warning sign it had been rooted or any recovery's installed. Even got offered some security updates once I'd logged in. Even after all that and comparing my ABOUT PHONE info to my original screenshot and confirming they all matched exact, I still have the same problem.
Some times when it's broke, I guess it's just damn broke!
Good luck with your journey's my friends, may the odds be forever in your favor.
This solution is the one that finally fixed the GPS on my Note 4 (currently on Android 5.1.1).
I had tried all the other options I could find on the internet (clearing cache, removing SD card, removing/reinserting SIM, calibrating compass, changing location modes, clearing AGPS data, etc., etc., etc.). None of them helped. Powering down, removing the back, then removing all the screws (about a dozen I think), then twisting the case gently several times in a "hand wringing" motion, followed by pushing firmly around the back to reseat anything that may have come loose inside (I did get a satisfying click of something snapping back together around the camera area), and then reassembling everything finally fixed the problem.
I now get a GPS fix in 3-4 seconds while inside on the main floor of a two story home. I get a signal-to-noise ratio that ranges between 15 and 30 and typically get a fix on around 10 satellites now (while indoors). Outdoors the performance is outstanding; the SNR is even better and the time to fix is nearly instantaneous. Before the fix I was lucky if it even got a fix on 3 or 4 satellites and it would often take several minutes, if ever.
I use GPS Test by Chartcross Limited to confirm satellite signal-to-noise ratio and time to first fix. I used to use GPS Status & Toolbox, but I prefer the GPS Test GUI and it has many of the same functions (including clearing and updating AGPS data). Incidentally, before the fix if I cleared the AGPS data I was lucky if I ever got a fix indoors; usually I had to go outdoors and wait many minutes to get the first fix. Now, I will get a fix while inside within 15 seconds after clearing AGPS data.
My Note 4 is like new again. And, as an added bonus, my battery life seems to have improved immensely. I suspect that the poor satellite reception made the GPS run nearly full time trying to get a fix. Now it seems to have dramatically reduced the battery drain required to run the GPS. I suspect that many of the reports of poor battery life are actually Note 4's that have poor GPS satellite reception problems.
AlexN said:
Have problem with GPS. It never can find satellites, even under clear sky. "GPS Test" application always show many "In view" satellite and zero "In use" satellites.
Changing android version (even CM) doesn't help.
Anyone help! How to fix this problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same problem it shows many in view 20 OR 26 but doesn't fix to any of them. SM-N10F
1-Opened my phone clean all the points pins No avail.
2-Forced Stop the location services then In view 0 in use 0 (google play services and google play-store)
3-Changed online found GPS drivers gps.default.so etc..... Goes to boot loop.
4. Still waiting for solution.
Test Apps ---- GPS STATUS AND TOOLBOX PRO GPS TEST AND FIX FASTER GPS
PUT MY IMEI TO IMEI INFO AND IT SAYS THAT ITS SM-N910C OR SM-N9108V MODEL PHONE.. STRANGE I DONT THINK SAMSUNG KNOX WILL LET OTHER MODEL FIRMWARE BE INSTALLED ON THIS HARDWARE. PLZ CHECK YOURS AND REPORT.
AND DONT SAY ITS A HARDWARE PROBLEM IF IT IS THE GPS IS INTEGRATED IN QUALCOMM SOC SO IT SHOULD BURN ALSO.