Hi all,
I'm trying to understand whether my Vibrant crashes more than normal or not. It only really crashes with any regularity when using Google Maps. I should say that I realize that smartphones are a pretty new technology, and a lot of the time we're pushing these devices to their limits. So I can accept that it will sometimes crash. It is a computer after all, and it's doing a lot of things that there is dedicated hardware for. (And in navigation in particular, there are dedicated devices that sell for as much as an unlocked Vibrant!)
I want to understand if my phone (or the Vibrant in general) is less stable than other Android phones. I upgraded to Froyo recently, and had some issues with GPS initially. They seem to be fixed after I ran the GPS restore fix.
Firstly my usage pattern: I use Google Navigation a fair bit. That's the app you get after searching for something in Google Maps, and then choose Driving Directions (the one that speaks to you). I have a suction mount for my phone that keeps it on the windshield. I don't have a dedicated GPS unit in my car; I use my phone as the GPS, and often I'll use it several times in a day to drive places.
Here's my experience:
So what do other people experience? Firstly, do you use the Navigation app extensively? How often does the phone crash for you when you're using it?
Thanks,
Antun
I'm trying to understand whether my Vibrant crashes more than normal or not. It only really crashes with any regularity when using Google Maps. I should say that I realize that smartphones are a pretty new technology, and a lot of the time we're pushing these devices to their limits. So I can accept that it will sometimes crash. It is a computer after all, and it's doing a lot of things that there is dedicated hardware for. (And in navigation in particular, there are dedicated devices that sell for as much as an unlocked Vibrant!)
I want to understand if my phone (or the Vibrant in general) is less stable than other Android phones. I upgraded to Froyo recently, and had some issues with GPS initially. They seem to be fixed after I ran the GPS restore fix.
Firstly my usage pattern: I use Google Navigation a fair bit. That's the app you get after searching for something in Google Maps, and then choose Driving Directions (the one that speaks to you). I have a suction mount for my phone that keeps it on the windshield. I don't have a dedicated GPS unit in my car; I use my phone as the GPS, and often I'll use it several times in a day to drive places.
Here's my experience:
- Every 5-6 times or so - maybe even less frequently - that I used Navigation it would crash - inexplicably. That means, the phone would completely freeze, and I'd either have to wait until it automatically rebooted or I would power cycle it. It's happened at odd times - e.g. driving down a freeway (with good GPS lock). This was all after the JI6 upgrade, but before the Froyo one. I don't really have a good average crash rate post-Froyo.
- When first getting a GPS lock, it usually gets a decent lock. However sometimes, it goes into a state where it never gets a lock, and the GPS icon keeps blinking. This seems to happen in fairly densely-built-up areas. When it goes into this state, it doesn't seem to get a lock at all. In this state, if I exit and re-enter Maps, Maps doesn't start properly - it won't even load the map images. Sometimes disabling/enabling GPS in the power control widget seems to help.
So what do other people experience? Firstly, do you use the Navigation app extensively? How often does the phone crash for you when you're using it?
Thanks,
Antun
