Database Info

How confident are folks that we will get an actual FIX to the GPS issue?

Wanted to get a read from folks as to what their Gut feel is. Are you confident that Sammy will really fix this? Any by fix, I mean the following. This comes from experiences with 2 HTC smartphones (Aria, and the Pure):
1. GPS locks in under 5 seconds in clear sky conditions
2. Usable navigation; IOW, 30-50m accuracy, again under ideal conditions.
3. Usable navigation such that it stays locked while driving at highway speeds.
TIA.

I have not experienced any of the above issues (post update) except for the 5 second lock, and even my garmin can't do that. The cog2.2 had my gps jacked up so I reverted back and it works great again.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I did My Tracks for the first time today and was surprised by the results - highway for 15 miles, 15 miles off (obtained the lock at highway speeds as well) But it lost me in this one dead area about a mile from my house - I drop most calls through this one area as well too.. must be a whole in the ozone
However! (Always a however, right?) Tonight while walking the dog around the neighborhood, the phone could see up to 12 satellites.. yet it didn't get a lock for over 5 minutes. <--- This is the biggest problem I have with the GPS on this phone. INCONSISTENT AS HELL.
What causes the inconsistency?? So since I've owned the phone (release day) and it's been this long and inconsistent from the beginning, I am beginning to lose my confidence in a real fix (at least Samsung can make some kind of formal announcement you know?)

My GPS has always worked. Stock JF6. Cognition 2, 2.1, 2.2.1-5. Anything I throw at it, it just works. Freeway, walking, indoors, etc. I think it is partly a hardware issue.

Mine is fixed
I ordered my Captivate from AT&T's online store. GPS did not work, no matter what kind of settings I played with (lbstestmode, etc.). Got the update, no help. Took it back to the AT&T store and replaced it. Got the update and it works fantastically. If yours is still in the 30 day warranty period get it switched out.

Considering that many people had the gps issue fixed with the ota update or with the newly released froyo, yet many still have problems, I think there are some bad phones. I'll try to get mine replaced even though it's outside the 30 days.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I'm on my second Captivate. I have no faith that GPS will be reliable enough to use for navigation purposes or apps like My Tracks or even Layar. The OTA update definitely helped, but turns and changes in direction throw it off by quite a bit.
About all it is good for is telling your weather app what city you are in.

For me, the GPS didn't work from the first day I bought the phone. It got a lot better after the OTA update. However, it's getting mess up again in the last few days. I've heard other people from this forum said the GPS will go bad after a few weeks, I guess that's happening to me now. Moreover, the lag seems to be getting worse too.

I'm running Cognition 2.2 FroYo and for the first time ever I got 11/11 sattelites locked. My ride home it stayed more or less dead on the street i was on, occassionally wavered onto the sidewalk a bit or whatnot in My Tracks. That's using the stock settings (spirent-lcs.com and Standalone, with Use Wireless Networks off). If this does not degrade over time, I'd call it fixed for sure.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Keep it coming folks; seems like for the most part people's gut feel is about in line with mine. Im going to return my Captivate to Amazon and have them replace it to see if I can see any improvement. Not holding my breath though.

waiting4gingerbread said:
My GPS has always worked. Stock JF6. Cognition 2, 2.1, 2.2.1-5. Anything I throw at it, it just works. Freeway, walking, indoors, etc. I think it is partly a hardware issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine has always worked on both of captivates. It's in no way perfect but it gets the job done.

I just ordered a replacement Captivate from Amazon. I will then update the software to JH7 in the un-mollested state to see what kind of improvements I see, if any.
Crossed fingers............Bottom line, im not too confident.

So I got my replacement Captivate from Amazon. The second I got it, I stepped outside to see if I can get a GPS lock. I stood there for 5 minute, and no lock.
So I did the software update; which worked. It didnt work on my "molested" captivate.
I then went outside for a drive. Locked very quickly I think 5 seconds. Accuracy was very good; certainly on par with the two HTC smart phones Ive owned.
Maybe its dumb luck that I got a good unit; but it seems not overly molesting your captivate is a good idea until people really understand the consequences.
EDIT: The above drive I mentioned was in neighborhood roads, at relatively low speeds. On my way to work it was definitely NOT as accurate as my HTC Pure. It showed me about 1 exit behind; was about a half or three quarters of a mile.

I just want to say that I called Samsung support directly yesterday and the guy told me that "he hasn't heard anyone else who's applied the JH7 update that said their GPS wasn't fixed."
SO CALL SAMSUNG SUPPORT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. Don't stop calling. They need to know the update didn't fix it!

brandonb81 said:
I just want to say that I called Samsung support directly yesterday and the guy told me that "he hasn't heard anyone else who's applied the JH7 update that said their GPS wasn't fixed."
SO CALL SAMSUNG SUPPORT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. Don't stop calling. They need to know the update didn't fix it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They already know. I can guarantee you that some of their dev team consistently troll these forums.

My GPS works pretty well, especially considering its a phone, since JH7 OTA update.
The problem you're talking about with locks under 5 seconds, isnt always going to happen. It depends on how long its been since the last time gps was used, and how close you are currently to where you last used it.
If you use it and then turn it off, and in a few hours turn it back on, at roughly the last location it was used, it'll get a very quick lock. If you wait days, it wont. If you use it at location A last, then are long ways away from that location when turning it back on, it wont get a quick lock, it has to calculate where its at based on new data from the satellites. Thats the nature of the beast with GPS. My Garmin in my car is the exact same way. If it has to do a cold start it sometimes takes up to 2 mins to get a lock. But once its got it, if I go in a store for a few mins and come right back out, it picks up location almost immediately.
Since JH7 I'd say my GPS performance more than meets my expectations for a mobile phone GPS.

Started out very confident.
Less confident every day.

Tinyboss said:
Started out very confident.
Less confident every day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I'm with you here.
When it came to the HTC video driver fiasco on many of their phones it was sickening that HTC wouldn't do anything about it, or even tackle the issue on future releases. But at least slower video performance than the hardware was capable of wasn't really a deal breaker when it was still working good. So I could understand why a company wouldn't invest a ton to fix it for already purchased phones.
This however is outright broken. It's not a phone with good video performance that COULD perform better with an update. It's a phone with a broken technology that can hopefully be FIXED with an update.
I don't know how Samsung will avoid lawsuits etc etc by manufacturing a blatantly broken piece of technology unless they can rectify the situation... quickly. I think their window is slowly closing on this type of scenario.
As for myself, the GPS problem just isn't an issue since I don't use the GPS anyhow. So I'm not a consumer frothing at the mouth, but the idea that I spent money on a fancy, but broken, phone leaves a bitter taste in that unfrothy mouth of mine.

I'm very confident. I put the leaked froyo from designgears on one of my phones and the lock was fast, and gps accurate. Drove from Chicago to Kohler, WI the other day (~130 miles) and ran gps on the phone along with my dedicated gps unit to check accuracy. Had no issues at all.
I think once 2.2 is released, all of the gps issues will be resolved if the leaked version is any indication.

I'm guessing it's the sum of several issues causing problems.
1. Basic hardware configuration that results in worse signal-to-noise than other handsets.
2. Non-optimized settings that sporadically contribute to slow or poor locks
3. Some kind of software buffering or other issues that cause freeze-ups where the position doesn't update.
When my phone is working well I don't experience problems 2 and 3, and I can live with problem 1. When that's the case I get consistent tracking 95% of my trip. Sometime 2 and 3 seem to creep into the picture for no apparent reason. I hope and expect they will get those problems solved.

AT&T Store Experience

Today as the first time I've seen a captivate turned on. It looks like an awesome phone. I talked to the sales guy for a while and he said it was the only worthwhile Android phone AT&T has.
I asked about the Bravo coming out and he didn't seem to stoked on it (plus, I've heard you can't get rid of MOTOBLUR).
Anyways, everything was great until the GPS. The sky was clear but we were indoors and it couldn't get a lock. We updated to the newest firmware (without a hitch, probably because it hadn't been modded) but the GPS did not improve.
I need with the phone because Apps rely on location services and having GPS on a bus or walking is really nice. I'm hoping this gets fixed
Has 2.2 improved the GPS at all? Is the consensus that this is a hardware issue? Is there a difference between newly manufactured phones and older ones?
I want this phone sooo bad and the AT&T lineup for Android phones is garbage (sans this one).
JOe K.

It's a great phone. GPS seems to be hit and miss. If yours is a miss switch it out for a new one. You will love this phone.

I must say, when I was using froyo the GPS worked perfectly. I switched back to stock recently but still have had a great experience with the GPS, its just that it takes about a minute to get a good fix on me instead of the 5 seconds froyo did. For me, it was either this phone or a blackberry torch. Then I remembered that I was considering choosing a RIM product over an android phone, and quickly bought the captivate.
I love it.
And if you have a problem with the phone, well, there's probably an app that fixes it. That's why I love this little monster!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using AT&T's awful network.

JOe K. said:
The sky was clear but we were indoors and it couldn't get a lock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol GPS is not designed to work indoors. Most phones and standalone GPS units will not get a lock indoors. Next time you're at the store, go into settings and enable use wireless networks in location settings. Then you will get your indoor lock.

If you get your location by using wifi it is hardly a gps lock, is it now?

I returned my first Captivate because I wasn't 100% satisfied with the perfomance of the GPS. After flashing Froyo it worked better but not as good as to wait for a new fix.
Yesterday I received a new captivate, I flashed Cognition's 2.2 Beta 5.5 and the GPS is perfect. I did a test drive today and I am very glad I got it replaced. Now I am 100% happy with my Captivate!! It's an awesome phone!!!

pilot_xphile said:
I returned my first Captivate because I wasn't 100% satisfied with the perfomance of the GPS. After flashing Froyo it worked better but not as good as to wait for a new fix.
Yesterday I received a new captivate, I flashed Cognition's 2.2 Beta 5.5 and the GPS is perfect. I did a test drive today and I am very glad I got it replaced. Now I am 100% happy with my Captivate!! It's an awesome phone!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
waiting for my 3rd one to come in myself and i have to say its funny. ive had different issues that have caused me to have to return the phone but..somehow...i still think this phone is great! and im starting to think that maybe the best solution for people is to keep trading in their phone till you get one from "the perfect batch" so to say. maybe on this next one the gps will be just perfect as the first was terrible. my current one requires me to stick my arm out the window to navigate *but can lock instantly from standstill*...crossing my fingers and toes when i get the new one

gtg465x said:
lol GPS is not designed to work indoors. Most phones and standalone GPS units will not get a lock indoors. Next time you're at the store, go into settings and enable use wireless networks in location settings. Then you will get your indoor lock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GPS does work indoors, without wireless turned on. My stand alone unit does too. And I must be one of the lucky ones, bought my phone in July never had a problem with it.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

JOe K. said:
Today as the first time I've seen a captivate turned on. It looks like an awesome phone. I talked to the sales guy for a while and he said it was the only worthwhile Android phone AT&T has.
I asked about the Bravo coming out and he didn't seem to stoked on it (plus, I've heard you can't get rid of MOTOBLUR).
Anyways, everything was great until the GPS. The sky was clear but we were indoors and it couldn't get a lock. We updated to the newest firmware (without a hitch, probably because it hadn't been modded) but the GPS did not improve.
I need with the phone because Apps rely on location services and having GPS on a bus or walking is really nice. I'm hoping this gets fixed
Has 2.2 improved the GPS at all? Is the consensus that this is a hardware issue? Is there a difference between newly manufactured phones and older ones?
I want this phone sooo bad and the AT&T lineup for Android phones is garbage (sans this one).
JOe K.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a Bravo (been testing it) and it is a decent phone, but it is not in the same league as the captivate. GPS is better, but that is the only thing better. It is more a midrange phone - slower, smaller, more plastic, etc.
As for MotoBlur - if you don't use it, it doesn't really bother you - so don't base to much on that.
If GPS is the number one thing you need in a phone - then wait for it to get sorted out or get a different phone. For me, the GPS works well enough. For walking, I can't imagine the GPS not working well enough - and you can generally see 100' in all directions to find what you are looking for anyway - even google maps is not that accurate as they always put stuff on the wrong side of the street or the wrong block.

cappysw10 said:
GPS does work indoors, without wireless turned on. My stand alone unit does too. And I must be one of the lucky ones, bought my phone in July never had a problem with it.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Poster said GPS was not DESIGNED to work indoors and he/she is correct. In most buildings it won't work indoors - especially commercial buildings.
If GPS were designed to work indoors it would use a different radio frequency. If it works indoors for you, it is because your house poses little interference - this is more an exception then the norm. In most houses, even standalone units don't work.

Im just wondering if anyone of you who said the gps works perfectly have tried the gps on captivate for several times. To me, the first time using gps whenever I upgrade new firmware or flash back to stock is very good. But after that it is very bad. I dont know if it is just bad using with google navigation, havent tried with offline gps yet. Maybe I should look for an offline gps apps.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

bamonkey said:
waiting for my 3rd one to come in myself and i have to say its funny. ive had different issues that have caused me to have to return the phone but..somehow...i still think this phone is great! and im starting to think that maybe the best solution for people is to keep trading in their phone till you get one from "the perfect batch" so to say. maybe on this next one the gps will be just perfect as the first was terrible. my current one requires me to stick my arm out the window to navigate *but can lock instantly from standstill*...crossing my fingers and toes when i get the new one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How are you waiting for your third one? Are you still within the 30 days? Does the 30 days restart when you bring it in for a defect? Are you getting it from Samsung or swapping at an AT&T store? I can't afford to go without a phone for a day (which is sad).
Has there been a correlation between phone manufacturing date and GPS reliability?
Thanks,
JOe K.

GPS was never meant to work indoors. So don't bother to try and get a fix if you're sitting on your couch, that's just dumb.
I just drove to Morgantown, WV to go to WVU to see my friend. I used my GPS on the phone the entire trip. I did not use it as my sole resource for directions, I printed them out. But the entire trip (round trip 400+ miles from Baltimore) the GPS was pretty spot on. A few times it would go off onto the side roads that we're next to I-70 but it fixed itself pretty fast.
I don't believe there is any correlation between when the phone was made and it's reliability. Update to FroYo, and go for a long drive with Google Nav, you'll see a vast improvment.

How does AT&T's 30 day defect warranty return work?
If you get a new phone Does the 30 days restart when you bring it in for a defect? I've seen people get 3 and 4 phones.

JOe K. said:
How does AT&T's 30 day defect warranty return work?
If you get a new phone Does the 30 days restart when you bring it in for a defect? I've seen people get 3 and 4 phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its actually very painless. I am actually OUT of my 30 day warranty but the phone is covered for a year *i dont have the insurance btw...if you do just trade in store*
anyways call ATT and get to their tech support.. they will do some stuff that is required at the first level and then get you to warranty support. they will make sure your phone is still covered by the one year warranty..make you agree that your phone hasnt been put in a toaster or the like and then tell you a new one will be shipped and to send the defective one back in a prepaid RMA...oh this assumes you are in the states so they can send one out from a distribution center. so really no gap since they send you a new one first..just make sure you send the old one back in time or they charge you for a brand new phone
edit: i also wanted to note i bought mine USED off a random stranger..they still honored the one year warranty the very first time i had an issue

Did you have your phone rooted (with diff ROM's such as COG)? If so, did you restore it before sending it back (odin to stock, master clear)?
I'm wondering if Best Buy would have a better warranty policy. I'm gonna get a cap by the end of the week!
Thanks,
JOe K.

I've been messing with mine a bit and I've tried both the suggested settings as well as the stock ones and it hasn't been that great. Now I am running the stock rom right now. I'm going to update with the OTA one and see if it helps at all tomorrow. If not then I'll likely go ahead and exchange it at AT&T for another unit citing GPS issues while moving. It does get a lock while standing still. Usually once it sees 10 sats it decides to lock on half of them and hold that. It never really got a lock moving though. I had someone else drive while I kept it close to a window and nothing even with wireless assist.

JOe K. said:
Did you have your phone rooted (with diff ROM's such as COG)? If so, did you restore it before sending it back (odin to stock, master clear)?
I'm wondering if Best Buy would have a better warranty policy. I'm gonna get a cap by the end of the week!
Thanks,
JOe K.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The first one couldnt even power on after a failed flash so i couldnt do anything. on the second i just odin one click to stock and master clear. its possible best buy 'might' have a better policy but being they are still selling through ATT i imagine there is still the 30 day in store policy like most..
just ask about the instore before you buy. i went into this knowing how i would be covered before hand id say do the same here too

GPS is a quality control problem

Hey guys,
I got in my 3rd "refurbished" Captivate last Friday and I have been collecting some data. For the record, I am using Cognition BETA5.5 FROYO on it without any lagfixes or modified GPS settings.
My first two Captivates -- the GPS sucked. I tried every fix in the book: Jupiter.xml fixes, Epic 4G fixes, LbsTestMode settings, different firmwares etc... some things helped a bit, but the GPS was still unreliable.
My 3rd Captivate's GPS works great from day 1. I've been testing it daily since I got it. I had a long trip to the New York Comic Con, which I used my 3rd Captivate to navigate. In areas that I previously had problems with, my new Captivate handles them with ease. I attached a screen shot of "My Tracks" on a turn that the GPS always overshot previously (now which works fine).
Anyway, I believe JH7 was the software fix for the GPS. The software problem was keeping locks from satellites <20dbHz and using >8 satellites. The rest of the problem is hardware due to poor quality control. This would also explain why so many people have so many different experiences. I say, if you want a reliable GPS in a Captivate, keep warranty swapping it until you get one that works.
/this also explains why some Captivates shutdown randomly, while others don't: poor quality control.

I disagree with this. I bought mine a few days before the JH7 update and didn't have a ton of time to play with the GPS. Using GPS test I was finding 8 satellites and locking onto ~6 of them in a minute or so. With the JH7 update I was finding and locking onto 11 satellites in 15 seconds or less consistently. My accuracy would stand at 16.4 feet (I don't think anyone has achieved better than this with this device). Starting this past Friday (10/8) however my phone won't lock at all. I'm only seeing 4 satellites and no matter how long I leave it, or what settings I touch there is no lock. This is a problem many people have. The GPS works for a while then suddenly stops. This to me suggests a software issue.

I think it is partially hardware related as well. My GPS on stock didn't work so well with the factory settings but worked perfectly with the supl.google.com. Every update since then up to Cognition 2.1.6 has worked perfectly every time for me. If this was a software or firmware issue we would all be having similar problems.

If someone proposed the theory that maybe supple.google.com isn't the best source I must have missed it. So I propose it. Spirent obviously is not, that's a test site.
I wonder if there is supple1.google.com supple2.google.com tzpst.supple.google.com etc.

phr00t said:
/this also explains why some Captivates shutdown randomly, while others don't: poor quality control.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree that Samsung has poor quality control problem, or lack there of from my past experience with various Samsung products. However, I believe the GPS issue is a bad hardware design in Samsung's part. Based on my own observation, it is the poor GPS antenna design that causes poor GPS signal reception. In compensation for this poor design, Samsung tries to boost the GPS chip amplification power which in turn causes interference from all the difference radio sources and bad S/N ratio. Since this is purely an analog signaling issue, different phones show different results and even the same phone could show different results in different environment. I particularly noticed that whenever I pass by those noise isolating walls around the highways I travel daily, my GPS starts to jump all over the place. This indicates to me that the GPS receiver is very suspectible to signal reflections from those walls, may it be cell tower signals or else.
The problem with warranty replacement is that it is really a crap shot. You typically get a refurbished phones unless AT&T runs out of refurbs. Guess where those refurbished phones come from: (1) returns due to GPS issue. (2) returns due to shutdown issue. Since neither issue can be resolved or easily identified (the later is not even acknowleged as a problem AFAIK by AT&T), Samsuung/AT&T will simply refurbish those phones and send out as warranty replacements.

bwolmarans said:
If someone proposed the theory that maybe supple.google.com isn't the best source I must have missed it. So I propose it. Spirent obviously is not, that's a test site.
I wonder if there is supple1.google.com supple2.google.com tzpst.supple.google.com etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's BS. spirent is not the problem. The original theory has been proved wrong long time ago. Change to supl.google.com does not solve the problem. Period. And getting a lock is only 1/3 of the GPS trouble you get into.

1) I am using spirent (or whatever the stock SUPL server settings are) and my GPS is working great. The problem is not the SUPL server (although changing it might have helped some).
2) If it were purely a software / firmware issue, we would all be experiencing the same GPS problems, which we are not. In addition, I would see the same problems with my new Captivate (which is running the same software), which I am not.
3) I do not have poor S/N ratios on my phone. I get 25-40 (sometimes better) S/N ratios, which is a bit better than my wife's Aria. I did notice poor S/N ratios on my second phone (15-30), which had the worst GPS performance. If it was poor hardware design, we would all have the same poor S/N ratios (and performance), which we do not.
4) Yes, getting a warranty replacement is a crapshoot. But hey, your current phone sucks and your next refurbished phone might not. So, swap it out -- you might get lucky. Samsung owes you a good phone anyway.
The problem is really chaotic, and people cannot reproduce the same problems (and resolutions) across different devices. This can only explained by people not getting the same devices... some are just more broke than others. Poor quality control.
/personally, I'm sick of digging through the Captivate GPS problem.. now that I have one that works, I want to just enjoy my phone.

phr00t said:
3) I do not have poor S/N ratios on my phone. I get 25-40 (sometimes better) S/N ratios, which is a bit better than my wife's Aria. I did notice poor S/N ratios on my second phone (15-30), which had the worst GPS performance. If it was poor hardware design, we would all have the same poor S/N ratios (and performance), which we do not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are confusing digital circuitary with analog circuitary.
An analog hardware issue hardly will cause uniformly the same results. What you will see the S/N varies a lot between phones that's why some works, some doesn't. The antenna and satellite signal processing are still analog circuitary and prone to variations even with the same design. That's why SOME iPhone4s work just fine but others will drop calls when touched But no one is calling Apple lack of quality control.
Mine is 20 to 35 which is borderline.
The BroadCOM BCM 4751 is supposedly better at dealing with weak signals. I think Samsung is still experimenting different ways to get better locks in those marginal signal levels without causing the noise interference that in turn destroys the stable locks.

What is the general consensus of the % of owners actually having perceived GPS issues?

Someone please make a DIY on how to fix the damn thing myself... (hardware fix that is)

*Deep breath*
I know my 2cents really wont change this debate at all but ill go ahead and post my experiences with this issue K?
Cappy 1: Gps was just ok. it still worked but on navigation would try to "predict" where i was, jump off the roads and i would say on average i would be 20-50m off roof overhead and 10-20m if i put it directly on my dash where i couldnt see it.. This on average also took about 5 minutes to get a lock from standstill. Replaced for brick issue *incorrect flash being a newb*
cappy 2: Gps seemed to get worse everyday with this phone. mind you change the supl and jupiter tweaks seemed to help just a bit but honestly this one was just not usable. I could get a a lock in 5-10 seconds from a standstill and it would always be 10m accuracy.. so ok, it could help me know where i am immediatly but i cant see me standing in the woods going *deeerp where am i??* This was was replaced for random poweroff issue.
cappy 3: i literally just got this thing 2 hours ago picking up my mail so its fresh as can be guys.. jf6 stock right now. pulled my sim and battery into the phone at the mailbox and immediatly out of curiousity descided to test GPS. in no more than 20 seconds it got a lock of 50m..and then just a few seconds later im 5...5!!!!meters off. My eyes pop out of my head its in my hands at this time so i get ballsy and decide to put it in the lower tray in my car and take a drive. Wow...it just works now. It knew where i was and even told me and showed me a streetview of my destination before i got there...i should note this has NEVER happened i didnt even know it could/would do that :eek.
So my verdict is this. there are sofware tweaks to improve the quality and for some i dont doubt flashing firmware or applying changes has helped...BUT... overall this 3rd cappy is ...it just FEELS like the gps hardware is working right WITH the software. Things could always change with froyo and the the great devs here and if im proved wrong then wow count me impressed. Just dont hold your breath guys
EDIT: just to note exchanging your device is like playing the lottery. although these latest devices seem to have a higher success ratio im noticing. Ill also note i have NEVER exchanged instore but have always used mai to get my new cappy.

Based on the two comments here it sounds like I should try for a 3rd Captivate. Seems like 3rd times the charm. My 1st one GPS didn't work, I didn't run GPS Test or anything. Just know it never locked on me without the AGPS or whatever on. 2nd one same story. I have ran GPS Test on it and I'm lucky if I can get a view of 3 satellites outside in clear sky. It's usually 0 or 1. I've never had a satellite locked on.

Gps broken forever? Hardware or software.

I really need to know because I drive an ambulance for a living is the GPS actually fixable? I love the phone but hate the GPS that locks up and is inaccurate, or just doesnt lock on.The tweaks I've tired. No luck. I called Samsung and asked and they have no clue and think the Sept patch worked. I think its a cover up and the first run is just plain defective. What's the probability its hardware and not fixable.
Thanks Travis

Call att and get it replaced. I got a replacement phone and so far the GPS has worked when I needed it. It locks pretty quickly most of the time. Sometimes it takes 20 to 30 seconds but always locks reguardless
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I'm pretty certain it is a hardware problem and Samsung is trying very hard to see if they can fix it, or 'optimize' it, in software to avoid a mass recall of millions of these phones.

Smallsmx - a quick lock is very different from reliable navigation. Driving around using Google Nav as well as analyzing using something like MyTracks is the way to go to see if the GPS is actually accurate.
Here's a track I just created with MyTracks. If you zoom in, you can see that the track jumps between the north-bound & south-bound lanes of the highway several times, as well as veers off of the road several times. These may seem insignificant, but they're the kind of things that play havoc with navigation software (constant re-routing, etc). Also note that I'm in a rural area; i.e. no interference from tall buildings to blame this on...

I'm pretty convinced it is a hardware problem.. I've been through 4 Captivates, and only 1 has worked. The Captivate that has the working GPS works on all ROMs, but works best after JH7 (or the froyo builds). The other 3 Captivates, the GPS doesn't work anywhere.
I wouldn't want to trust my life to the Captivate's GPS navigation! If I found out my ambulance was being navigated by a Captivate, I'd wait for the next one

tblindt said:
I really need to know because I drive an ambulance for a living is the GPS actually fixable? I love the phone but hate the GPS that locks up and is inaccurate, or just doesnt lock on.The tweaks I've tired. No luck. I called Samsung and asked and they have no clue and think the Sept patch worked. I think its a cover up and the first run is just plain defective. What's the probability its hardware and not fixable.
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Please don't use the C(r)appy GPS for anything like that! It's just not up to it! Even if the GPS does work from time to time, you'll spend too much time second guessing it. Get a dedicated GPS that you KNOW works so you can concentrate on doing the important stuff like not hitting other cars and saving lives!
foxbat121 said:
I'm pretty certain it is a hardware problem and Samsung is trying very hard to see if they can fix it, or 'optimize' it, in software to avoid a mass recall of millions of these phones.
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Agreed 100%. If it was a simple software bug, it would have been fixed in JH7. They initially claimed JH7 fixed it... And then they contradicted themselves and said there was no GPS fix in JH7.
So Sammy is confusing us with smoke and mirrors and hoping they can still circumvent what is likely to be a recall only fix. Imagine the impact of a recall. Cost would be huge. PR would be a nightmare. Impact on future Galaxy S sales would be massive. See how cleverly and deviously Apple avoided an iPhone 4 recall with what was clearly a major hardware defect.
And for those of you that say your Cappy's GPS works perfectly, there is one of two conditions that apply:
1. You got a lock while stationary from > x satellites and assume from that alone that GPS works. A better criteria would be GPS tracking while driving in an urban environment with accuracy < 5m.
OR
2. The hardware defect is an intermittent assembly or fabrication issue that shows up in the majority but not all handsets.
So here's to hoping I am wrong and the official Froyo build is being held up while they correct the GPS problem once and for all. If not, here's to class action. In the meantime, Sammy and AT&T product managers, if you are reading this (doubtful) give us the source for 2.2 (kernel, hardware drivers and all) and let the XDA community have a crack at fixing it (and enable HSUPA, FM radio, native etx4, etc while their at it).

Before i flashed to the JPM and the reorinted 2.1 my gps would not get a lock after 10 mins after I flashed to the i9000 rom and shanged the gps settings to ms based I get a lock after 15-25 sec at 15m. its software related and att's reps are just dumb as dog **** and full of it too

tjsooley said:
Before i flashed to the JPM and the reorinted 2.1 my gps would not get a lock after 10 mins after I flashed to the i9000 rom and shanged the gps settings to ms based I get a lock after 15-25 sec at 15m. its software related and att's reps are just dumb as dog **** and full of it too
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Share a GPS track with us then.....

Tonite I will take screen shots of my gps settings and post them

tjsooley said:
Tonite I will take screen shots of my gps settings and post them
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No need. We have millions of threads for just that. We need the evidence that you actually use it for navigation while driving. That's where it all falls apart (for majority of the Captivate anyway).
I can get a lock no problem as well with no tweeks in settings. But that doesn't mean the GPS is anywhere near usable.

foxbat121 said:
No need. We have millions of threads for just that. We need the evidence that you actually use it for navigation while driving. That's where it all falls apart (for majority of the Captivate anyway).
I can get a lock no problem as well with no tweeks in settings. But that doesn't mean the GPS is anywhere near usable.
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Misread the forum. I have not used it for a gps on the road for navigation yet.
I have watched it on the way home from work and it was prittyy accurate.
funny thing.
I dont get a lock from my cup holder but i get a lock no problem and the gps works on the dash board.
maby
if it is any differance all the sgs varriants are having a bunch of gps issues.
and there are people that have had no problems.

ianwood said:
Agreed 100%. If it was a simple software bug, it would have been fixed in JH7. They initially claimed JH7 fixed it... And then they contradicted themselves and said there was no GPS fix in JH7.
So Sammy is confusing us with smoke and mirrors and hoping they can still circumvent what is likely to be a recall only fix. Imagine the impact of a recall. Cost would be huge. PR would be a nightmare. Impact on future Galaxy S sales would be massive. See how cleverly and deviously Apple avoided an iPhone 4 recall with what was clearly a major hardware defect.
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I'm sure the loss of future sales will cost Samsung more than a recall. My last 3 phones were Samsung and I sure as hell know if they don't fix the GPS issue, whether it be through firmware or a recall, Samsung will never see another dime from me ever again and I'm sure there's plenty of others feeling the same way.
There would probably also be about no PR. Samsung is no Apple. The media and general public really don't give a damn about them. The issue is not so controversial that the news will pick up on it, like the Toyota recalls. At most there would be a couple sentences on the news about it that most people will just ignore because they don't have the phone. Apple got worse PR by ignoring the issue than if they simply would have addressed it with a recall. They got away with it because they're Apple. 90% of the population worships them.

I was just thinking the same thing. My GPS does not work.
I don't understand people who think it's no big deal. It's a major feature and an Advertised feature...not some hack.
I would not have bought the device without GPS. What if you bought a new car that said it had air conditioning...but after you bought it...you realized it didn't work....no big deal or recall?
CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

yea its a cover up
My whole plan and philosophy was that hey Google maps is great and so is Linux so this should, be better than those goofy slow interfaced GPS units.... which always give you the wrong location....
Anyhow I ordered one more..to see if its a dud too.
1ST SAMSUNG AND MY LAST YOU HEAR THAT SAMSUNK.. BTW your customer service is so poor girl who knows nothing about phones and thought the update was "real".

Jupiter fix w/vibrant ROM. Seems like I tried everything. Plenty of sats and locks while stationary. Can't get this thing to maintain lock or be accurate while moving in navigation for the life of me.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I'm hoping for a software fix, but I'm doubtful that we'll ever see one. This is the same GPS chip as used in at least one blackberry where it has no problem. Combine that with the fact that there's 5 different Galaxy S phones that have these issues, each with slightly different layouts of where the chips are on the board, it's more likely a software issue.
If it is a hardware issue, or if it's a software issue that they never get around to fixing, I could see a very nasty class action lawsuit pop up. Personally, I hate class action lawsuits, as the only people who usually benefit from them are the lawyers, but one can always hope for the best.
One interesting thing I did notice was that when in my vehicle (a Jeep Wrangler with a fiberglass hardtop) or on my motorcycle, the tracks are just about spot on... as long as there aren't any tall buildings right next to me. It stops when I stop, it turns when I turn... You know, pretty much what you expect out of a GPS.
On the other hand, when I'm in a friends vehicle (metal roof, no sunroof), my position wanders all over the place. We stop, but the icon keeps on going. We turn, it doesn't. And, of course, there's always fun times when it thinks your a block or two over from where you are. Oh, and can't forget the lag... sometimes it's as much as 5 seconds behind me.
That makes me suspect the filters Samsung has in place for when the signal is weak. Either that, or the antenna design they use might win the distinction of being the most craptastic one of the decade. Hell, maybe both might be the case.

This whole thing with the GPS has me baffled..after reading a bunch of threads...posts..and personal experience, I believe the problem with the Captivate's GPS is the delay in getting a lock. Once it's locked, the accuracy is excellent. Maybe the agps is not functioning properly...these devices really need agps to get a rapid lock. Is the supl server that is built into the device reliable? I believe this is the crux. Anybody having any inaccuracies is the exception to the rule once the device is locked. But a 3-4 minute lock time is fairly unacceptable

Same results as others. If I have the captivate high up in the windshield so it has a larger uninterrupted view of the sky, it will track almost as well as my Blackberry sitting on the center console. Seems the captivate is not nearly as sensitive as other GPS devices.
As for PR, a recall would not be in your nightly news but it would be all over the trade news. The Galaxy S brand has been in the trade news almost daily for the past few months. A recall would put a serious dent in all that positive momentum. That would have a serious effect on future deals with carriers, retailers, etc. Not to mention investors. And finally disaffected consumers.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Mine works with no view of the sky
My GPS is working good after COG Froyo version6. This track is from a mountain bike ride, phone was inside my camelback.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=e...16556845834261.00049360088f52c5ed399&t=h&z=16

nice looking track.. is your navigation app good too???
itsjustaphone said:
My GPS is working good after COG Froyo version6. This track is from a mountain bike ride, phone was inside my camelback.
[/url]
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Questions for ya if ya don't mind.
1. Did you have problems before with same phone?
2. Phone new or refurbished?
3. When was it made give or take? (maybe import in terms of factory runs???)
Hmm thats it far as identifying maybe some know how to timestamp/get ingo from imei or serial.
I'll post a track from mine in a little bit I Think that would be a great idea for this thread.. POST YOUR TRACKS RESULTS AND BASIC SPECS.
Believe program is called "mytracks"

GPS story

So I spent 3 hours on the phone with AT&T last week while their warranty department did everything they could to not just honor the warranty (I can go into detail of anyone cares). But after the long grueling battle I was finally able to get my 1008 replaced with a 1009. Now the gps on my 1008 was shotty at best. I received the new phone, fired up Srendipity 6.3 and installed the free TeleNav GPS program and received instant results. Before, I was getting 3-4 sats after 30 seconds and it would barely hold. Now, I instantly get 7 or more sats and was able to lock up to 11 and hold them. My gps works spot on and I couldn't be happier. Morale of the story.. if you have spotty GPS at best, try exchanging the phone.. but be for warned about AT&T honoring the Gps capability for the Captivate with out a lot of legwork.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I was having a GPS problem and the warranty people sent out a replacement with a 15 min phone call. got one that works ok, but with the right modem it gets 10-11 sats in under 5 seconds.
might be who you get and how willing they are to try and figure out your problem without just jumping to it being a hardware problem.

The captivate gps is way to random to guarantee a replacement will fix anything as no one knows all the details of the problem. Part of it is obviously software as several tweaks work wonders for most people. No one knows what the combination is for sure.
A standing lock shows nothing for actual driving navigation performance.
Your results will vary but do we really need a new thread from everyone who warranty replaces their phone for bad gps performance
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Remember too, almost all "new" Captivates' GPS work great for a few weeks. Post back in about a month and let us know how your new Captivate is working. Also, it seems as though the GPS will work great for a few weeks after loading a new ROM, then it goes bad again. Tells me there is s file the GPS must process avery time you turn it on. As the file grows in size, the GPS program can't process the file in a timely manner resulting in the interpretation of the GPS data being slow and off-course.

I'll do that. I like using my GPS for looking things up (don't use navigation that much since I don't do much traveling) but I'll definitely keep an eye on it and see how it handles aftera week or so and then after that.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

just got a 1007 replacement for the 1007 i have. The GPS works out of the box for stock froyo. it actually trasks every single turn and is able to catch up when i am driving 75-80 on the freeway. So ya... if anyone fail to get their gps working by software tweaks, you should go ahead and use the random shut down execuse to get a replacement phone. the 1007/8/9/... thing doesnt really matter i guess. The one I got works like a charm beside the sticker behind the battery look crappy without a SN number and the samsung logo.( oh well probably a refurb , but at least it works~)
It's like a gamble, but hey at least exchange it while u still can with warranty is better than hoping for a software fix that we are still not sure about if it's the real issue. Honestly it could be software for some people, but after u tried couple Roms and fixes, a bad gps is a bad gps.

The "batch number" on my phone is 1008. The phone came with Eclair, of course. The GPS was poor at best. I updated the phone to Froyo. The GPS was not perceptibly different; still darn poor. I remember one miserable night where I was forced to find my destination using the Biblical System. The GPS never did lock during my one-hour ordeal.
For a totally unrelated reason, I ending up doing a master clear and reset. After I got everything reloaded I "tested" the GPS. Wow! It locked, well, instantly, or so it seemed.
An app available in the Market called GPS Status has two nice features. You can set it to automatically download the A-GPS file at start up. And, it reports on screen how long it takes to get it's first lock. With GPS Test (and others) you can see when the phone locks but GPS Status reports the time-to-lock information in seconds, no stopwatch or counting required.
Fascinated at the new-found capability of my Captivate, I have repeatedly checked how long it takes to get a lock. I would say, under widely varying conditions, the lock time is almost always less than 20 - 25 seconds.
YMMV but you might try a master clear and reset if you have a phone you undated from 2.1 to 2.2. Except for the time it takes to rebuild your phone, you have little to loose and you might find, as I did, the Captivate's GPS is excellent. Had I not "discovered" this "solution" I would have abandoned my Captivate--even though I think it's great phone overall--as I routinely depend upon my PDA's GPS capability.
FWIW, I do a lot of Geocaching so I have an understanding of how a GPS should perform. I had an AT&T Tilt which I'd made usable with a Sakajati HyperDragon IV ROM. The GPS in that phone was excellent. The first few days with the Captivate was a real downer. But, the now-functioning GPS makes the Capitvate a keeper.

For those not wanting to try getting a replacement. Plumbobs gps fix worked great for me. Check it out.
Sent from my SGH-I897 Captivate cog 4.3 using Xda app

My Xoom locks on in 4 seconds, indoors, straight out of the box. This whole thing is stupid.

So I've been using my gps for a few days now and it's still working just as well when I got the replacement. IMO there may be 3 types of phones out there which is why we all get different results..
Captivate with working GPS right out of the box
Captivate with 'meh' GPS that is fixable with software tweaks
Captivate with GPS so bad that it doesn't work at all.
This could all be hardware related in just how the manufacturing process worked. Some could have just been bad apples.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

10 meter lock inless than 20 seconds. Running JVE modem on Continuum v4, and I have a 1008 build number.
Sent from a place my wife doesn't know about