New to google maps calibration

[_wigfield_]

Hi

I have never used my phone to navigate so it's all a bit new, is it normal that google maps keeps asking to be calibrated. Sometimes when I'm out it will come up with the message using the camera to calibrate other times it will ask to do the figure 8.

My phone: Samsung a52 s 5g.

 

[Hadron]

The "figure 8" thing sounds like it wants to calibrate your compass. I don't recall ever seeing Maps do that, but I've known other apps do it. Bear in mind that if your phone case includes a magnet (e.g. to hold a front cover closed) then the compass will not be reliable anyway.

I've never seen anything ask to use a camera for calibration, but I also don't use any Google AR stuff (don't have the apps on my phone) and keep Assistant completely disabled, so there may be things in your setup that aren't in mine.

 

[_wigfield_]

The accuracy will sometimes say low I'm guessing it's the compass i installed a compass app and the accuracy will always say High. I don't have a case with any magnets.

 

[Deleted member 2157292]

I get the Calibrate with the camera (outdoors) thing all the time during a day. It does give me a break for a few days, and I mostly ignore it now. It should be built in if you have a compass sensor. It's validating iother location information I imagine and this is a pretence to confirm Street View information or something more sinister.

I complained about it to Google in a Feedback question, and expect my query to be looked at and binned by their remaining adolescent hunan some time in 2037.

Besides the privacy issue (especially as it can tell what car you're sitting stationary in or who is around you), if it recognises a street scene or building for example it will say its now calibrated; but you can return to Maps two minutes later and it wants to be calibrated again.

Before the calibration via camera in the last idk year or two it would only ask you do the figure of eight thing, and that's still an option. I don't think you can physically rotate your arms in that manner without swapping hands but that's another matter.
I have all Assistant stuff turned off as much as I can.

My phone has a good Compass sensor along with a Barometer and has a very good Compass app pre - installed that can switch to an altitude screen. May be that affects the Maps "accuracy" now you mention it, but unlikely.

The intended point of calibrating is then having your blue dot location indicator display an outer triangular arrow as well to indicate which direction the phone is looking at, useful as you first set off on a route you just set, but thereafter not totally necessary though useful.

 

[_wigfield_]

@Madd63 Thanks, I thought it was my phone that wasn't much good. I have moved to a new area and my satnav is old now so thought it would be better to use my phone. When I'm driving its pointing in the right direction all calibrated but when i get out of the car that's when it will pop up with the camera or ask to do the figure 8 because it's not pointing in the right direction, i agree it's impossible to do the figure 8 lol.

Do you think the Assistant messes with it or do you just not like having it on?

 

[svim]

https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_a52s_5g-11039.php

The Google Maps app does rely upon two things to function, an online connection (unless you previously download local mapping data) and Location to be enabled. If you're seeing some kind of calibration message that's an indicator you need to tweak your phone's Location settings. Location uses GPS signals (emitted by a net of satellites worldwide), local cell tower triangulation, and IP addressing (not accurate) to pinpoint where you are.
Try installing this 'GPS Status & Toolbox' app and use some of its included tools to reset your phone's GPS. Usually the phone's GPS sensors will automatically configure themselves but sometimes it does require the user to manually reset them.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.eclipsim.gpsstatus2&hl=en_US&gl=US
Anyway, in the app's upper Status bar menu, use 'Compass calibration' and 'Calibrate pitch and roll' and probably in this instance more importantly 'Manage A-GPS state'. It might help to be sure you're sitting close to an outward facing window or even outside on porch, this ensures your phone is able to detect those necessary satellite signals. You might want to also go into the Location menu in Settings, and check that the location accuracy settings are set accordingly.
And then just restart your phone, that's a good way to just clear away any one-off glitches.

 

[Hadron]

The accuracy will sometimes say low I'm guessing it's the compass i installed a compass app and the accuracy will always say High. I don't have a case with any magnets.

Low accuracy could refer to the location itself. If you don't have a clear view of the sky (don't have many satellites in view) it won't be able to get as accurate a fix. This can also happen when surrounded by tall buildings (reflections can also degrade accuracy).

If you have a poor GPS fix the phone may rely on wireless network information for location, which has low accuracy. I don't know whether the "low accuracy" message means it's switched to only using wireless information or is a statement based on the estimated accuracy. I never see this message either, and I personally set my phone to "device only" mode so never use wireless network based location, but while my seeing this message would show that it was based on estimated accuracy my not seeing it does not prove that it means you have switched to only using wireless location (i.e. absence of evidence isn't evidence of absence).

I have Assistant off because the trade-off between benefit (which I found to be minimal) and privacy infringement (enabling it changes all of your privacy settings in a single click) isn't worth it for me. You may feel differently.

 

[_wigfield_]

@Hadron That makes perfect sense about the tall buildings.
How do you set it up for device only mode?

 

[mikedt]

Urban canyons can mess with GPS nav accuracy.

 

[Hadron]

@Hadron That makes perfect sense about the tall buildings.
How do you set it up for device only mode?

In your location settings (precisely where will depend on what device/software version you have).

Older android versions used to have 3 modes, typically called "low power" (wireless only), "device only" (just satellite) and "high accuracy" (satellite plus wireless). For the last few years only the latter 2 options are available, and more recently the setting has been renamed to "Google Location Accuracy" with options "on" or "off" ("off" being device-only, "on" being satellite + wireless).

In fact if you have even semi-reasonable satellite coverage adding wireless makes no difference to the accuracy (the satellite system is so much more accurate than the wireless one), despite the switch currently being labelled "improve location accuracy". But device-only location will be degraded if you don't have a clear view of the sky and won't work indoors, so if you select that mode do be aware of this limitation. It may also affect things other than navigation, e.g. if you like to have a weather app tell you the forecast for your current location it will need a recent location fix (which is less likely to be available if you spent all day indoors). These things aren't an issue for me, but may matter more to you.

 

[_wigfield_]

I have driving mode off/google assistant off, one thing i have noticed if i say hey Google while im driving it comes up with Google assistants. when not driving ie out of the car when i say hey Google it doesn't work.

 

[Hadron]

Well if Assistant comes up in any circumstances it's not really off (maybe the voice prompt is, but Assistant is not). That sounds like it's detecting when you are in the car (either from motion or the car's bluetooth) and changing the voice setting - there are probably options for this sort of thing in there (I last used it in 2017, so even if I could remember all of the options it would be out of date now).

 

[_wigfield_]

Yes it's somehow knowing when I'm driving and switching it on, I can't see anything that's still turned on, totally scratching my head on this one.

Edit: I think i have found out why it still works and how to disable it:

Go into Settings:
Google
Settings for Google Apps
Search, Assistant and voice
Google Assistant
Hey Google and voice Match
Turn on Hey Google then turn it off, you will then get a message pop up saying it will still work in some driving apps, you can turn this off by pressing driving setting then you have the option to turn it off while driving.