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Help Major GPS Problems

S

stevo95

Lurker
Hi Folks

Since I got my Bionic, although I love the speed of my phone, I have been experiencing the dreaded data issue.

I feel like this may be impacting my GPS as well because it seems like GPS is more closely tied to a data connection than it was on my OG Droid.

I rely on GPS so much that it is causing me a serious problem. I find it very difficult to get a lock on GPS, especially from cold. I have downloaded GPS Status, GPS Test and GPS Fix. I used mainly GPS Status to clear aGPS data and download again but it does not seem to help, especially from cold. I just don't get a fix quite often. Sometimes I can turn GPS on/off, turn Plane mode on/off, WiFi etc and eventually it fires, but there does not seem to be a logical sequence that fires it up. Today for example I rebooted the phone and got a lock within 30 seconds but that doesn't normally help.

Also, even when I get a lock, when I am driving and have the data connection drop, the GPS also drops and sometimes will not come back leaving me SOL.

Seems like most people have a good GPS experience, if not a good data experience. Would be really grateful if anyone has any suggestions for a fix. I have already hard reset my phone and it has not helped.

Thank you.
 
Something might be iffy with the GPS chip in your phone since I use GPS everyday myself and have never had an issue at all.
 
I use mine for probably a total of 5 hours a day during the week for my job. It has been alright for me for the most part but it has never dropped the GPS as the data drops as you claim. Thatguy maybe right with the faulty chip. You may want to try to bring it to verizon and explain the problem to see if they can get you a new phone. I sometimes can not lock onto the GPS but i just reboot and it works.


One problem that I do have though that I have not seenmentioned is that when the girl talks and tells me where to go the speaker kind of freaks out and it sounds like a tin can. It is almost as if the speaker isnt pushed in correctly or something. Has anyone had that problem yet? I haven't noticed it with any other app that uses the speaker. It only happens once in a while and seems to fix itself by the next time she has to talk.
 
Thanks for the responses. I went to the store today and the lady told me that the November update will fix the GPS problems and that some people are having it and others are not. She said she also has the problem. She said the only thing I can do is uninstall and reinstall maps or try another Nav program (which I called her out on as BS, because I cannot get a lock using GPS Test).

Right now I am indoors and i am consistently getting a lock in 3 seconds. If it is a faulty chip, why does it work great sometimes and not so great at other times? Any suggestions?
 
The only time I have had a problem with gps is when I was in a metal building and my gps was like 10 blocks off where I was. I knew where I was so it wasn't a problem just saying. Other then that perfect!!!!
 
stevo95 said:
Thanks for the responses. I went to the store today and the lady told me that the November update will fix the GPS problems and that some people are having it and others are not. She said she also has the problem. She said the only thing I can do is uninstall and reinstall maps or try another Nav program (which I called her out on as BS, because I cannot get a lock using GPS Test).

Right now I am indoors and i am consistently getting a lock in 3 seconds. If it is a faulty chip, why does it work great sometimes and not so great at other times? Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

if you're still within you're return period, I would exchange it. It might be a hardware problem. Why wait until the November update if you can fix it now.
 
Newbie here.. but hopefully I won't embarass myself. ;)

So I had problems all of a sudden with my GPS. We took a flight to another state and I had left my phone on. When we got to the new place, the locator wouldn't work.. it thought I was on a road that seemed 100+ feet away so directions were all messed up. I rebooted the phone and it seemed to resolve the GPS issue.

Anyway, my point is only, rebooting may be helpful. Worth a shot. :)

Jason

By the way.. is it normal to get only 3-4 hours of battery when using navigation? I hate that!!
 
holmgren said:
One problem that I do have though that I have not seenmentioned is that when the girl talks and tells me where to go the speaker kind of freaks out and it sounds like a tin can. It is almost as if the speaker isnt pushed in correctly or something. Has anyone had that problem yet? I haven't noticed it with any other app that uses the speaker. It only happens once in a while and seems to fix itself by the next time she has to talk.
Click to expand...

Yepp I've had that happen. Freaked me out because I thought my speaker was blown. Kinda scared the heck outta me too, lol. But since it seemed to fix itself the next time the lady talks I haven't bothered asking about it.
 
This phone has the best GPS I have ever had. Coming from the DroidX it had a really good GPS however at work in my office it would never get a lock, which I thought was fine, I work in a 5 story concrete building on the 4th floor and have two windows.

I was amazed when I looked at my Bionic and noticed that I can get a GPS lock within second in my office at the same place I could never get it with my X.
 
Kevmueller said:
This phone has the best GPS I have ever had. Coming from the DroidX it had a really good GPS however at work in my office it would never get a lock, which I thought was fine, I work in a 5 story concrete building on the 4th floor and have two windows.

I was amazed when I looked at my Bionic and noticed that I can get a GPS lock within second in my office at the same place I could never get it with my X.
Click to expand...

This is what is infuriating for me. I left my Bionic on all night, currently at 1 day and 43 mins and 8% battery remaining :-)

I do a GPS test and it locks in 18secs inside the house. I know if I change something at some point (GPS off/on for example, or even something as benign as bluetooth on/off), it will not lock again until I start seriously messing about with it. I am no expert but that leads me to believe there is a setting or software thing I can adjust or fix on this thing.

When I am having issues, the locate icon will not flash in the notification bar. If this flashes, I know I will get a quick fix.

I'd really like someone to explain to me the difference between the Bionic and the OG as far as GPS goes because my Bionic will lose GPS *every* time it loses data. With the Droid, when I was on the phone, as long as the map was set and didnt need to re-route, GPS would work just fine (and as everyone knows, with Verizon CDMA, you can't use 3G data and voice at the same time). :confused::confused:
 
I purchased an LG Thrill last week, and the navigation was working fine. Now, for the past few days it will not locate a satellite. In fact, I do not even see the GPS icon. I've confirmed that "Use GPS Satellites" is turned on in Settings/Location & Security. I've tried powering it off/on. I've also tried apps "GpsFix" and "GPS Test". Nothing. Now what? This is highly annoying!!:mad:
 
Hi,
I purchased a Bionic a few weeks ago and have noticed in the last few days that the GPS will sometimes lock right in and then sometimes will randomly place me somewhere in Finland (I live in San Jose, Ca). I have two separate weather apps that are both indicating this Finland location. When it's acting up and I go to Google Maps, the gps indicator flashes and does not lock. Then, at a random time, it will lock back in. Also, the nightstand dock that I purchased will often show random locations too when I place the phone there. If I turn off the gps, I will get a good city ID using the cell tower triangulation thing, but not good for navigation.

Verizon was not helpful because I had already tried what they suggested without success. I'm hopeful that the November update that Steve mentioned will solve the problem.

Thanks for sharing your stories!
Dave
 
I also have a question abou this. I've had the phone for a little over a week now, I used the gps for the first time yesterday and it was acting very odd. When I was trying to get it on my location, it would get within a few miles, but it placed me at one point about a 1.5 miles away in the middle of the highway...and I was sitting outside the verizon store lol didn't think much of it. Then later that day it did it a few more times. I rebooted it and it got the location pretty close like it should. Is it normal for the gps to be that far off? I had 4 bars of 4g. Anyone else having this problem?
 
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