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GPS issues

Yea I remember reading about the GPS issue when the Epic came out. I just posted in a "phone vs. phone" thread about picking the Fascinate over the other phone.

The thing is....one of the things that made me wanna try an Android phone is the free GPS. If its not reliable....it would be a deal breaker for me too.

Now for my next phone, along with great reception it has to have a decent functioning GPS.
 
In store now hands on fascinate for the past half hour. Went into settings and turned on all gps functions and google maps locked on my locale in less than 10 seconds. Gps test reports 10 sats available using 6, reports accuracy to 100ft. Hope this helps!
"Sent from the Fascinate in store!"

Just got back to work from the VZW store and wanted to follow up on what I found while playing with the fascinate. I know this is a GPS thread so I'll start with it works flawlessly from what I could tell in the 45 min I spent with the device. GPS locked a couple seconds faster than my eris which consitantly takes about 10 sec. the accuracy was exactly the same on the map and I ran GPS Test on both my eris & the fascinate. My eris listed 10 satalites available with 4 being used, the fascinate also listed 10 sats available but using 6 of them, it reported accuracy on my eris at 111ft and on the fascinate accuracy was 100ft. The phone overall felt very nice in hand & I noticed quite a weight different compared to my eris which was heavier, the fascinate even had a nice hard rubber case on it. The screen was amazing by the way, inside & outside, much better than my eris when outside!
 
this coincides with what people have been saying about their epics. Sounds like it's been improved, although there are still some nuances. I'm hoping the fascinate is the same and that it's been improved from the captivate, vibrant, and international SGS.
 
EliC said:
BTW, many people have stated that the "fix" does NOT work and doesn't fix anything. Given that the fascinate still seems to have the problem I am actually very worried that this is a hardware problem and may not be fixable with software. I won't believe it until I see it.
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I can vouch for your statement.

You guys have to realize, xda-developers is just a forum like this one. Some idiot, made thread, misleading people putting "Fix" in the threads title. Then this supposed "fix" spread from blog to blog, site to site, forum to forum. Some nerd infront of his computer is laughing, and getting way too much credit.

None of them are fixes, infact, i've applied all supposed fixes, and my GPS performance is worse on the vibrant, compared to stock settings.

Again, this was just some nerd misleading everyone with the thread he/she started.
 
SamsungVibrant said:
I can vouch for your statement.

You guys have to realize, xda-developers is just a forum like this one. Some idiot, made thread, misleading people putting "Fix" in the threads title. Then this supposed "fix" spread from blog to blog, site to site, forum to forum. Some nerd infront of his computer is laughing, and getting way too much credit.

None of them are fixes, infact, i've applied all supposed fixes, and my GPS performance is worse on the vibrant, compared to stock settings.

Again, this was just some nerd misleading everyone with the thread he/she started.
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Vibrant and Captivate might have different settings/firmware than the fascinate. The Epic definitely does, so maybe the Fascinate does too. The Epic's GPS seems to be usable, so I'm crossing my fingers.
 
It seems as though some are getting good GPS functionality when the aGPS is being used (ex. D_Sweet) (and some recent Samsung Fascinate reviews, here's just one example: Verizon Samsung Fascinate hands-on and initial impressions | Android Central [see 11 minutes, 0 sec]).

Some are testing the GPS, but not reporting if "use wireless networks" (i.e. aGPS) is turned on (ex. in this forum: honeymic, EliC).

From my reading, the GPS chip in phones is not as robust as a standalone GPS chip. So if you're trying to get a GPS lock on a cell phone indoors without a clear view of the sky (ex. especially inside a Verizon store) without aGPS (or another program like "QuickGPS"), it may be tough. It would be similar to trying to get a GPS lock using a Garmin standalone indoors in a store.

EliC (and others), it would be great if you could repeat the tests comparing the devices (ex. Fascinate, Droid Incredible, Droid X, etc): comparing each of them: 1) with aGPS turned off, and 2) with aGPS turned on. And when aGPS is turned off, need to have a clear view of the sky.

Furthermore, look forward to the same testing, by navigating to various destinations and testing the accuracy.

Thanks.
 
Precisely DoctorPDA, it is hard to ascertain the fact when there is no systematic testing in a controlled environment.

As I have said before, I have both Google Navigation and VZ Navigator on my BlackBerry. The reason why I continue to use VZ Navigator over Google is because Google could not give me an accurate lock on when I am INSIDE a building (e.g. office building). It is usually either quarter-mile off or nothing at all. On the other hand, VZ Navigator locks on to me accurately, probably because it is using the cell towers. Some might jump to the conclusion that it is a hardware or software problem on the BlackBerry. But I wonder if it is just Google. Who knows? But as long as my VZ Navigator is working fine, I am happy. :)
 
^Using my Droid, thats not activated anymore, I get an accurate lock using GPS in my apt. Its also running Froyo. I just tried my X. At work, in a bad reception area, I got an accurate GPS lock.

Again, I'm running Froyo... Froyo could be giving me the more accurate results. Could be the GPS chip in the Droid and X, who knows....And I'm not about to go back to 2.1 just to test it...lol
 
I have my Fascinate in hand (in my car) running GPS test. I have 12 satellites in view and 9 in use! Accurate within 4ft!!! Went for about a half hour drive befor getting on the forum and Google Maps Navigation Beta worked AMAZINGLY WELL! Now if we could only get a google maps to be the default navigation program!! I am so glad I decided to buy this phone so far the experience has been wonderful!
 
I went to the Verizon Store and turned on only the GPS on the display Fascinate.....after downloading Google Maps of course....and the Fascinate could not get my location...and then got me within 3300 meters with all of the location crap on? My shitty Eris located me within 8 meters at the same time? Any ideas?
 
11 in view, 7 in use. Accuracy 9.8 feet. It seems to take a while to get the initial lock. After that, all is well. Google Navigation also works well.
 
From my ~ 2 hours of in store testing (see below), I couldn't get the Fascinate to get me more than within 1500 meters accuracy on Google Maps. I love screen and the form factor, but I won't be getting the phone until this issue is fixed. I don't understand how some are getting a lock on the Fascinate; perhaps it has to do with being outside? The Fascinate may not be working well enough to get a lock indoors in a store, but maybe works well enough outdoors???

Methods:
I tested the Droid Incredible, Droid 2, Droid X, and Fascinate. I made sure that all of the
 
I can't wait until I get mine, I wish I were in all of this excitement with the rest of you. The upside to not being due until November is that you guys will have answered all of these questions for us late bloomers- thanks.
 
DoctorPDA said:
From my ~ 2 hours of in store testing (see below), I couldn't get the Fascinate to get me more than within 1500 meters accuracy on Google Maps. I love screen and the form factor, but I won't be getting the phone until this issue is fixed. I don't understand how some are getting a lock on the Fascinate; perhaps it has to do with being outside? The Fascinate may not be working well enough to get a lock indoors in a store, but maybe works well enough outdoors???

Methods:
I tested the Droid Incredible, Droid 2, Droid X, and Fascinate. I made sure that all of the
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I haven't carefully read all of the previous posts, as I've been too busy playing with my Fasc! But my GPS is working fine, as it seems everyone else's is. It was off by about 1/2 a block when I turned it on inside my house. I went to run an errand, it found me and tracked me on Bing Maps precisely the whole way (only about 3 miles). I don't know yet how to check how many satellites I have or anything, but so far, it is working well enough for me. It also found me on Google Earth; as I zoomed in as close as possible, the dot was actually over the room in my house in which I was standing at the time! Pretty cool.

I know very little about how it functions, but my experience makes me wonder about those who just went into a store and turned it on. A little movement seemed to help it find me a little better.
 
Yall got me testing my X's GPS now...lol

I got 9 in view, 8 in use. Now its 10/10...Accuracy 2-3 meters. I'm at home in my apt, a good reception area, and I'm running Froyo if that means anything. Imma have to try this app at work.

I got a quick, accurate lock at work today, and its a bad reception area if that means anything. But I didnt have the GPS test app.

Is the app yall using called GPS Test or GPSTest? I'm using the 1st one.
 
Just picked up my Fascinate...and I am loving it. Ten times more than my Incredible. And at least for me, the GPS worked the same or better so far. I haven't used any special or unique test, but it seems to be just as accurate if not more so than my Incredible.

When it's counting down 500 feet, 400 feet, 300 feet, etc. it hits 0 right when I hit my turn, just fine. (I should probably focus on the road...)

Anyway, there's my GPS report for now...I am going to go continue being fascinated by this screen, it is gorgeous.
 
DoctorPDA said:
Some are testing the GPS, but not reporting if "use wireless networks" (i.e. aGPS) is turned on
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Don't mean to pick on you. You are just repeating the same factual mistake several commenters on this thread are making. To me it is like screeching something across a blackboard.

The "Use wireless networks" setting is NOT the same thing as aGPS (Assisted GPS). The former is all about a relatively dumb location function using towers only. aGPS is a form of satellite GPS, and uses some satellite data downloaded from servers to accelerate the first fix. But it still uses satellites to determine location.

What the aGPS configuration setting is on the Fascinate seems to be a mystery right now, from what I read. The hidden menu that displays that configuration detail on other phones is disabled.

On the international I9000 Galaxy S models, the Vibrant and the Captivate, aGPS was disabled by default, leaving the phone in pure Standalone GPS mode. (In fact, all the purported "fixes" promulgated on the forums did was enable aGPS into MS Based mode, which is the reasonable configuration setting within aGPS for a smartphone. Unfortunately, the Galaxy's GPS problems are deeper than that, and a real fix also requires low-level programming of drivers and other firmware.) On the Epic, the default is set to MS Based.
 
Well, I finally got around to testing the GPS and it is broken. When to my backyard. Rebooted both of my phones (Fascinate, Sprint Hero). Both have GPS turned on and use wireless networks turned off.

Used GPS Status. Hero got a lock in 6 seconds and had 8/9 satellites in seconds. It took the Fascinate 5 minutes or more just to get to 3/7.

Additionally, the compass on my Fascinate seems unreliable. Anyone know how that works?
 
boomerbubba said:
Don't mean to pick on you. You are just repeating the same factual mistake several commenters on this thread are making. To me it is like screeching something across a blackboard.

The "Use wireless networks" setting is NOT the same thing as aGPS (Assisted GPS). The former is all about a relatively dumb location function using towers only. aGPS is a form of satellite GPS, and uses some satellite data downloaded from servers to accelerate the first fix. But it still uses satellites to determine location.

What the aGPS configuration setting is on the Fascinate seems to be a mystery right now, from what I read. The hidden menu that displays that configuration detail on other phones is disabled.

On the international I9000 Galaxy S models, the Vibrant and the Captivate, aGPS was disabled by default, leaving the phone in pure Standalone GPS mode. (In fact, all the purported "fixes" promulgated on the forums did was enable aGPS into MS Based mode, which is the reasonable configuration setting within aGPS for a smartphone. Unfortunately, the Galaxy's GPS problems are deeper than that, and a real fix also requires low-level programming of drivers and other firmware.) On the Epic, the default is set to MS Based.
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Thanks for the post.

Here's a pic of a Droid Inc and Fascinate using GPS test. Although the Facinate could not lock onto as many satellites as the Droid Inc, and with less strength, both devices got me down to 10 meters accuracy on Google Maps, which was nice. I think the Fascinate would do OK with routine navigation, but clearly it doesn't fix onto satellites like other devices (see pic). Whether this translates into any issues "in the field" remains to be seen. Some are complaining of poor accuracy (one example: Samsung Fascinate (Verizon Wireless) Cell Phone reviews - CNET Reviews). Some are complaining about longer time to lock (Samsung Fascinate Review - page3 (Phone Arena Reviews)). There are tons of reviews and links about this now, some positive, some negative. Maybe I should just try it out for myself for a month and see how it functions in real life scenarios?
 

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avhokie said:
My fear is that this is a hardware issue. I have a tough time rationalizing how this could be software based.
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I agree and VZW and Samsung have 30 days to prove its software and they can fix it. I got 2, one for me, one for wife.

GPS does work, kind of.
Satellite signals reception is VERY weak.
Indoors, GPS is completely broken.
In a CAR the signal is very weak and often lost.
Under an open sky in the country with GPS Test I have yet to see a signal strength above yellow in GPS Test.
 
Maybe I'm confused...from every test I have tried I have had very few issues.

Buy anyway here is a description of my experiences so far:
The only Location Settings I have are "VZW location services", "Standalone GPS services", and "Google location services". Is every one just disabling the wifi to keep it from "Using Wireless Networks"? What is fairly strange is...I have had my wifi disabled since I bought the thing! I was in our mall the other day..opened Google Maps and it narrowed down to inside the mall. But if I run GPS Test indoors I don't get a GPS signal showing at all....I would think that with Wifi off and Google Maps getting a lock indoors that GPS Test would get something..but it doesn't...Any ideas whats behind this??
 
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