Database Info

GPS Fix ? or placebo

Ok well my GPS was working super good when i first got phone. I guess i was the lucky one. So great time to start getting rooted,bloat removed,,etc..
But GPS did stop working even after all the tweaks still nothing.
So i fixed it. take your metal plate "back cover" off.
On back of plate you will see 2 silver spots also on back of phone there are 2 pins "contacts" that should touch those spots. On my phone the one closest to sim was not touching after bending up "SLIGHTLY" to correct the problem and then placing cover back on everything was perfect "superfast GPS locks". placebo effect? maybe but i thought i'd share the info.

strange but maybe helpful

I noticed my contact didn't stick up very far, either. Unfortunately, after I bent it upward enough that it is surely making contact now, I don't notice any GPS (or compass) improvement. Did you happen to take your battery out or power off your phone while doing this?

yes everything was shutoff "just incase"
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

GPS Problems? Possible Hardware Solution

So I came across this (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1101066) thread in the DHD forum the other day, and had mixed feelings about it. In theory it makes sense, but in practice it seems kind of scary. Anyway, I've had GPS issues on and off since I got my Inspire, sometimes it would work excellent, sometimes it would kind of work, sometimes it wouldn't work at all. I've tried every software solution I could think of (new radios, gps script, reinstalling locations, wiping EFS partition, etc), and I figured my problem had to be hardware, but I'd never seen a hardware solution offered until I came across this thread. First off I would like to say that I have not tried this fix yet, however I'm inclined to and here's why:
After reading this, I started thinking, "OK, so it's just not getting good enough pressure on the GPS antennae contacts, wonder what would happen if I tried to apply manual pressure?" So I launched GPS Test and watched it find 2 or 3 satellites, but didn't lock after about a minute. So I applied pressure to the battery flash/GPS cover, 1 finger on the top of it 1 finger on the bottom, making sure not to cover the hole. What happened? Immediately it found 9 satellites and locked to 20ft, showing better connections to the satellites than i've EVER seen. I let off the pressure and watched as the signal strength to these satellites dropped intensely, went back to 2 or 3 satellites, and lost the lock. I again applied pressure, got a bunch of satellites back and got an immediate lock.
Before I go about taking my phone apart and trying to fix these contacts from the inside, I wanted to see if applying pressure on the back flash/GPS cover improved anything for anybody else, or if it's just my imagination. Please report back

I havn't had any problems with my gps, but if the problem you are having is what I was having I would be cracking the phone open to fix it...
I dont mind taking things apart

My GPS works, but there's some disconnect between Navigation and the GPS, I sware. If I run Navigation by itself, then I lose signal 2-3 minutes after getting a lock. If I run My Tracks in the background, then it stays locked.
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA App

3 Inspires, no GPS issues at all, but it makes sense and doesn't look difficult at all. Go for it.

Well I tried it. I can't say if it was me applying pressure or me just getting lucky with signal and clear skies...but I locked to 7 very quickly and it found my location with in 20 feet here as well.
Interesting...
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA Premium App

cwhitney24 said:
Well I tried it. I can't say if it was me applying pressure or me just getting lucky with signal and clear skies...but I locked to 7 very quickly and it found my location with in 20 feet here as well.
Interesting...
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cool deal
not bad and it didnt seem that hard to do, keep checking on it to make sure for the next few days

cwhitney24 said:
Well I tried it. I can't say if it was me applying pressure or me just getting lucky with signal and clear skies...but I locked to 7 very quickly and it found my location with in 20 feet here as well.
Interesting...
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Um, I just tried applying pressure and got 8 meter lock on inside my house. My GPS usually NEVER locks on, even outside in clear skies. Wtf.
Edit: And now it's working all the time. I love you.

It didn't hurt to apply pressure to the area where you said the gps contacts are. So I opened up gps status in my home. Let it try and find some satellites on its own. Nothing was happening for a few seconds. Then I applied pressure to where the flash is on our phones one finger above the flash and the other below the flash. It then fixes satellites on my phone. And when I let go the fixed satellites dropped and my radius grew. I tried applying again and then it went back and started to drop. So I let go and it went up so I think the contacts are contacting and now I'm just covering up the gps but it seems to work. So now when I want to use gps ill remember this trick.
Thanks
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

I pried out the flash cover and noticed that the antenna contacts on the cover were oxidized except for the part where the corner of the spring contacts landed. I scraped away the oxidation with a sharp object and bent the spring contacts up a little bit to make a firmer connection and I immediately got a boost in GPS reception. I dont' know what metal makes up the antenna in the flash cover but it sounds like oxidation builds back up again after a couple of months. I'll keep an eye on it and post an update.

This is perfect! I just did it, took about ten minutes. After reboot I just locked to under 60ft indoors during Hurricane Irene.
Thanks so much for this, now I can stop reading all these damn gps threads!
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA App

Another update: just locked to 24ft outside in less than 15 seconds.
Sent from my Inspire 4G using XDA App

GPS lock
Christ..I dont believe this.. I always have problems with Google Navigation getting satellite lock..and maps is usually like 1500-1600ft +or-... I did the pressure on the spots above and below the flash like you guys said... all of a sudden..boom! GPS lock inside my house..(never happens) and 9 satellites locked..(most I ever saw was 5 before when I was outside in a clear area.)..the GPS nav icon is almost on my house roof!

This issue puts it in perspective how bad the quality is on this device.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

Wow can't believe there are this many people confirming this. I'll be adjusting my gps contacts in a a day or two and ill report back. Definitely seems like its gonna help a few of us anyway
signatures annoy me

I have actually noticed the same issues as you were describing. I have pushed on the back and waited and then found the signal got better. Then released the pressure and it got either worse or just stayed the same. Different results every now and then. I have also taken it apart and tried the DHD fixed that your describing and it worked excellent for a little bit then nothing. I'm returning it now to have HTC fix it. Probably the easiest way. Sucks not having a phone but at least they will give me a phone that does everything its supposed to. They were really nice about it too.

eryk4381 said:
I have actually noticed the same issues as you were describing. I have pushed on the back and waited and then found the signal got better. Then released the pressure and it got either worse or just stayed the same. Different results every now and then. I have also taken it apart and tried the DHD fixed that your describing and it worked excellent for a little bit then nothing. I'm returning it now to have HTC fix it. Probably the easiest way. Sucks not having a phone but at least they will give me a phone that does everything its supposed to. They were really nice about it too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a great thread. I fortunately do not have the issue on my device to where I need to mess with it, but experience tells me living in a somewhat temperate / rainly climate the contacts may oxidize / signal degrades over time. Good to know how to address it...I had an iPhone 3G I took apart at the end of its life. I had noticed the GPS was really sucking toward the end. Sure enough, plain old brown rust was evident on the GPS antenna contacts...

****, I wish I had known about this before I exchanged my Inspire at my AT&T store. I couldn't get GPS lock at all. It was a hassle, and I had all but narrowed it down to hardware, so this really makes sense.
The thread about my particular issues: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1203133

[FIX] Dropped my S3 caused GPS to be inaccurate

I dropped my S3 on the floor. There was no damage, but GPS stopped working accurately. I tried GPS fixes, but those did not work for me. Eventually I discovered that it was a connector problem between the GPS and the antenna.
My fix was to:
remove the battery cover, battery, sim.
unscrew 10 screws and remove the back cover.
remove the speaker assembly that also holds the gps antenna
the GPS antenna is on the top left of the speaker assembly.
make sure the gps and antenna connectors are not broken and clean, and screw everything back in snug.
Hopes this helps someone.

Were there any seals to break so that your warranty could be voided? I might look into this. My gps works most of the time but should lock faster than it does sometimes. I shouldn't have to hold it to the Window in my truck.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

dirtfoot said:
Were there any seals to break so that your warranty could be voided? I might look into this. My gps works most of the time but should lock faster than it does sometimes. I shouldn't have to hold it to the Window in my truck.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No there aren't any seals that need to be broken.

Like was your GPS just very inaccurate?? Because mine is
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD

so call me crazy, but this might have fixed my gps. ive talked about having gps issues in the other threads (gps patch thread), and decided to give this a try. take apart my phone, detach the speaker assembly, and put it all back together (there is that one connector but are you sure its the gps and not the speaker?. ive had issues since release of the phone and am now getting gps lock in my house which was impossible. on the streets google nav isnt throwing me off either.
at first it didnt make much of a difference but after a while it started locking on. Id like to reiterate that ive tried lots of solutions: roms, apps, the gps patch in the development sub forum. Who knows if any of those kicked in, but it sure is coincidental of tearing the phone up lol.

joocrazy said:
I dropped my S3 on the floor. There was no damage, but GPS stopped working accurately. I tried GPS fixes, but those did not work for me. Eventually I discovered that it was a connector problem between the GPS and the antenna.
My fix was to:
remove the battery cover, battery, sim.
unscrew 10 screws and remove the back cover.
remove the speaker assembly that also holds the gps antenna
the GPS antenna is on the top left of the speaker assembly.
make sure the gps and antenna connectors are not broken and clean, and screw everything back in snug.
Hopes this helps someone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, "only" 2 months after this was posted and I was the first to reply to this, I finally found my micro screwdrivers and I tightened the screws under the back cover, and my gps is ridiculously better. Just before tightening the screws, it took about 15 seconds to get 1 or 2 satellites to lock. Immediately after, I retested and had about 18 in 5 seconds in the same seat inside. I feel like a moron for taking so long to do this. Thanks again.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

There seems to be a common issue with these phones and the loosely connected GPS antennae. Many have been using this fix as opposed to sending their device in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo93EF7rVIw
Even disassemble instruction videos floating around. Don't be scared, crack that beast open :laugh:

Lol this is awesome. I've been reading about people with gps problems tightening their screws all week and it actually working.
Now I didn't really have gps problems to begin (always instant lock outdoors. Indoors not so much) with but I thought it would be interesting to take a look at em. So I tightened them just a bit and now I get signal in my office on a rainy day. I use to never get a lock at my office. Awesome.
Still don't get a lock in my apartment but still a noticeable improvement.

joocrazy said:
I dropped my S3 on the floor. There was no damage, but GPS stopped working accurately. I tried GPS fixes, but those did not work for me. Eventually I discovered that it was a connector problem between the GPS and the antenna.
My fix was to:
remove the battery cover, battery, sim.
unscrew 10 screws and remove the back cover.
remove the speaker assembly that also holds the gps antenna
the GPS antenna is on the top left of the speaker assembly.
make sure the gps and antenna connectors are not broken and clean, and screw everything back in snug.
Hopes this helps someone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Confirmed working! I should see this earlier! For half a year I traveled across the globe, I spent countless times on my gps issue, I didn't remember it had problem due to a dropping but it just act so bad from the beginning. I tried all kinds of roms, cleaned all kinds of data/caches, tried all kinds of patches. None of them works! I thought this model is just bad at GPS.
Now I simply tighten some screws and it works fantastic than ever! I'd like to quote someone else because it also happens to me: my gps is now so powerful that I can lock gps even inside the room in a raining day!
---------- Post added at 06:47 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:33 PM ----------
we should let more people know this, maybe by changing the title. Because for me, I didn't remember about dropping, so I didn't think about to read this thread before.

ManiakalSealion said:
There seems to be a common issue with these phones and the loosely connected GPS antennae. Many have been using this fix as opposed to sending their device in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo93EF7rVIw
Even disassemble instruction videos floating around. Don't be scared, crack that beast open :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
marked. read later

[Q] Is my gps faulty?

Have had my GSIII for about 2 months now and I'm wondering if something is wrong with my gps. I have taken my phone and compared it to 2 other GSIII's using the app GPS Status & Toolbox. On my phone when the app is opened it says 'Looking for GPS Location' and will quite often never find anything. Sometimes it will lock on however. If I'm outside it locks on quicker but indoors it does not. On the other phones I compare it against they both lock on almost immediately.
The other weird thing about my phone is the compass in the GPS Status app. Mine never sits still it is always bouncing back and forth. The other 2 phones I compare against the compass locks on and never moves unless I move the phone.
Now when it comes to navigation my phone seems to work decent. The only places it does not take me directly to are houses it is usually off by about a block, but businesses it is spot on. I figured the maps app just doesnt have the exact house locations?
I am running stock 4.1.2 on Verizon. After reading many threads about gps problems I have already tried tightening the 10 screws under the back cover of my phone. I also did the whole clear cache and remove Maps updates and reinstall. Would this be enough to call Verizon and try to get a different phone while its still under the year warranty?

I have the same problem. Mine worked great for a few months and suddenly became very unreliable. I can be driving down the freeway at 70MPH and navigation will suddenly freak out and think I'm on some other side street and start giving me directions to get back to the freeway. It will do this constantly and never shut up and it will even show me driving in totally different directions down streets that are blocks away from where I actually am.
I tried the screw thing and cleared the cache and reinstalled the Maps updates but that did not help. The problem has recently become even worse. Sometimes it takes 15+ minutes to get a GPS lock while in my car and in my house where it used to work perfectly it won't lock at all.
Another problem I've had, while I don't know if it's related, is that Google Maps flickers when scrolling and randomly goes blank. Along with that, it will randomly scroll out into the middle of the Atlantic when I'm just trying to zoom in on a particular location near me.
Have you tried a factory reset? That's probably the last thing I'm going to try before going to Verizon and requesting a replacement though I really don't want to go through the hassle of setting everything up again just to do it yet again if I have to replace the phone.

I have not tried a factory reset yet but I should probably give it a try. I posted this on another GS3 forum and a former Verizon support person recommended to not get a replacement from Verizon cause they send out real crappy ones they have laying around. He said to call Samsung and get the phone fixed that way so I will probably try that if the factory reset does not work.

have read where removing battery door and tightening the body screws has fixed most gps problems. It seems that the contacts are very susceptible to the body getting loose. Daily vibration can cause them to slightly loosen and thus the problem. I would give it a try, it only a few seconds work.
Good Luck
See the Galaxy sIII shine via SynergyRom

I just tried the screw thing again. I think there is definitely something to that. Sitting here at my desk I could not get a GPS lock at all. After tightening the screws I get a lock within 1-2 seconds. Maybe I should get some Loctite to keep them from backing off? I'll have to drive around to see if it's really working but this is what fixed it before. The only thing now is the strange flickering/graphical glitches that I see when in maps/navigation.

bbolton_98 said:
have read where removing battery door and tightening the body screws has fixed most gps problems. It seems that the contacts are very susceptible to the body getting loose. Daily vibration can cause them to slightly loosen and thus the problem. I would give it a try, it only a few seconds work.
Good Luck
See the Galaxy sIII shine via SynergyRom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried this and worked for me. Thanks Mine locks on a lot quicker now

Just had to share this experience....

Well I have been a owner of a LG Nexus 5 for the past (almost) 2 years now, in fact I am coming to the end of my contract very soon and will be able to either goto another company or get a new phone.
Anyways, sometime ago I experienced a problem with my microphone and external speakers not working, or at at least some of the time... After a bit of research online I found out my problem was related to a connection inside the phone that connected the bottom assembly to the main board at the top of the phone. It required me to remove the back panel and a few screws to remove the plastic cover, but the poster suggested putting some tape on top of that connection to hold it down more firmly to the socket it connected too. So I did this. I put some black tap (electrical tape cut to fit.) on top and then assembled the phone again. Viola, It worked!
Well, a short time after I decided that I wanted to update my phone from stock kitkat (4.4.4). Always been curious about custom ROMs and gave Cyanogenmod a try. Not only that I got bold and tried the nightly releases of the new marshmellow update. After some time I started experiencing things not working, like the camera, and a lot of freezing, hang ups and random reboots (not so much the reboots as the constant freezing). Often I couldn't get anything on the screen or the phone to respond from a locked state and when I did, often the phone would lag so much, that doing anything would take a long time and proved to be impossible.
I started thinking it was the nightly releases as the source of my problem and just kind of shrugged it off and figured "they will eventually fix the problem". I kept this thinking for quite some time. But it occurred too me one day that something else was causing the issue I was facing for the simple fact that the lag started showing up in the recovery mode (also custom) and a lot of times would continue to show up after I rebooted my phone. Hence, would rule out any 'software' issues I was facing.
I began to think that my problem was hardware. Maybe it was just time for a new phone. But still months away from the end of my contract, this meant I would have to pay off the 'problematic' phone first before getting a new one. I really didn't like that idea. So while looking into this problem, in a last ditch effort, I opened my phone again. Dunno why but I also decided to get rid of the tap on the connection I tried to fix before... I popped off the connection there and had a look at it. It didn't seem damaged in any way nor did the socket. Strange as it was I put that connect back in the socket and put the cover plate back on making sure not to torque the screws and assembled everything back up....
Now the mic and ext speakers work just fine and the phone is working like I just opened the box and took it out for the first time. And I have not once seen any problems... I understand what's happening here... still just wanted to share that for it was definitely weird or what?

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0pUNVcVRCJ7MThMc0NHLUNkSEU
Sorry about the link, only way I can upload an image.
Just so there is no confusion... an image of the effected area, inside the phone. The arrow points to the connector and more importantly the area of the connector that seems damaged. If I press lightly where the arrow is pointing on this image, the assemable at the bottom (speaker/mic) will work, indicating a loose connection. Although after visual inspection, I cannot see any damage to connector or the socket. I suppose the only way to really "fix" the issue is to order a new part. As stated previously, already tried tape on the socket to help hold it down, but that seem to cause just as many issues with the phone performance. Any other suggestions?

When ordering a replacement part, you need to be careful because there was another XDA member replaced the same part with a cheap 3rd party solution and the phone would not charge until he replaced it with an oem part.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/help/to-buy-usb-charging-port-flex-cable-t3314357

Does anyone else have issues with there ext. speaker and mic not working?
An update on the phone;
back to square one. My ext speaker and mic will not work. And that socket has something to do with the LCD connection on the screen as it will black out if just the right area on the back of the phone is pressed. Only way to revive the phone is to long-press the power button for a reboot. Then will come up fine but speaker and mic still do not work.

audit13 said:
When ordering a replacement part, you need to be careful because there was another XDA member replaced the same part with a cheap 3rd party solution and the phone would not charge until he replaced it with an oem part.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/help/to-buy-usb-charging-port-flex-cable-t3314357
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, that sounds pretty low level tactics of LG... just shameful really, but not hard to believe these days...
Quite honestly, I am just going to replace the phone. Think I got a pretty good run out of it and think its pretty well time for an upgrade. Anyway, for the reason I got the phone, it wont matter the speaker and mic don't work. Just going to use it for development and it will be a good test device.

Oh an this post is related to this thread so I thought I would link it for it may help someone else facing similar problems....
https://forum.cyanogenmod.org/topic/125227-nightly-cm13-releases-make-my-nexus-5-very-slow/

I'm not sure that LG had anything to do with the low-quality replacement parts.
If I were you, look for a n5 with a smashed screen that is suitable for parts.

audit13 said:
I'm not sure that LG had anything to do with the low-quality replacement parts.
If I were you, look for a n5 with a smashed screen that is suitable for parts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good idea, except the iphone is the most popular phone around here ... find it pretty hard to find one, been looking. But thanks.

I have seen quite a few busted n5 phones in Toronto. I have managed to get working phones with a smashed screen for as little as $30 which is rare for Toronto. Average I pay is $40 to $50. For this price, I either use the phone for parts in several phones or I get third part screen from Aliexpress for around $40 CAD.

I just want to update this as well...
I am fairly certain (now thinking about causes) its not really a design flaw, but more so because I frequently sat on my phone when it was in my back pocket...

audit13 said:
When ordering a replacement part, you need to be careful because there was another XDA member replaced the same part with a cheap 3rd party solution and the phone would not charge until he replaced it with an oem part.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/help/to-buy-usb-charging-port-flex-cable-t3314357
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was not me but I had that same experience. Replaced with a cheap oem and it didn't charge after that.
I found out why. The charger usb socket was not connected to anything ! Unbelievable! It lacked the black plastic backing for that part of the cable to connect to.