I have looked far and wide for a fix to my plagued Nexus S GPS and WiFi Signal problems. I tried GPS Test and erased all cached AGPS data. NO Towers show up. Left phone sitting there next to my window for more than 30 minutes.
Wifi Signal is always one bar while my iPod, Samsung Focus, HP Veer all get three to four bars. Including different SIM cards all recently new.
I've always tried the no battery cover trick to no end. Flashed several radios for my I9020A that i bought at best buy and nothing has helped.
I'm on 2.3.4.
Any ideas before I return this phone as a defective and give another a try?
As for the GPS, this is some sort of issue with the phone. There have been videos on YouTube explaining that it's something to do with the back cover they chose: they found that the GPS signal was stronger with the back cover removed. Not too practical.
I too have issues while using Navigation (on a bus...or even in a car sometimes...it must have a lead lines roof or something) with the Nexus S that weren't present in the Nexus One (which could lock onto satellites in a basement :what. This looks like something you can try to DRM, but it may not improve.
As for the Wifi signal, how far are you from the access point? What wireless technology are you setting up on your access point? (802.11a, b, g, or n?). If it's n? Are you trying to use the phone with a 5ghz N router? Finally, is there anything between your router and the phone that could cause interference?
- chris
Thanks for the reply chris.
I have major issues even outside. the most accurate I've seen the phone pinpoint is 2500 meters accuracy with clear skies and such.
As for my router, its a BHN SBG6580. Basically Motorola Surf Board. It's supposed to go up to N. No There isn't any kind of interference otherwise my other devices wouldn't pick up a good signal right?
Please will anyone suggest anything I really like my nexus s and it's My first real Android coming from window phones and the iPhone 4
Okay so interesting find. If I tether my nexus s to my iPod my iPod can locate itself within 20 meters where as my nexus can't locate itself with about a huge margin error where I should be. My iPod gets GPS from my Nexus S giving off wifi
Does this mean it could be an android bug causing his problem ?
That's odd. It looks like Google knows where the phone is (err..where the access point with the ESSID of your phone is) but the phone isn't picking up on it.
There's a program on market called GPS Toolkit (something like that) that has an option to refresh your AGPS cache this may help you get a fix more quickly. If this doesn't work out, it may well be worth it to get the phone replaced. Oh...and if you're not using stock firmware....give that a try as well.
If none of that works, and you're not able to resolve your wireless issues, you may want to consider taking the phone back or RMAing it. This combination of issues sounds a bit strange.
- chris
Thanks again for the reply Chris.
It looks like I'm going to bring it back to stock how I got it and return it for an exchange or just wait or for another AT&T phone that is actually decent. By the way it is on the stock ROM just rooted.
If the replacement if I do get one issued still has the problems I am at lost then. I had tried GPS test from the market and the one you mentioned without any resolve to my problem
Related
Hello,
I'm encountering some issues with my Samsung Nexus S GPS. I got the i9023 (Europe/SLCD) version of the phone, which is running default rom (stock), freshly updated to 2.3.4 (via official OTA!).
I couldn't figure why, when using Maps, my position would usually be around 1 km away from where I am. I found out later, this time using Navigation, that it is desperately searching for a GPS signal, that it can't find. Sometimes I manage to get a lock, when I keep it running for like 30 - 40 mins, but it immediately disappears. GPS Statuts keeps showing 0/5 sats.
I was convinced that my GPS chip was defective.
But today, I was hanging out in the city and tried running Navigation. I got a lock, for the first time, within a 15 sec delay. That was the first time that I managed to get live GPS tracking. I've walked a bit around, and the tracking was really, really accurate.
Back home, in my apartment, again I can't get any signal. I live in the 3rd floor, walls aren't that thick and, as for an anecdote, in the same room, my iPhone 3Gs instantly finds my position.
I've bought this phone 6 days ago and therefore still under warranty. Question is, can we say my GPS chip is defective ? Is it worth requesting a replacement ?
Thanks !
1st) You cannot expect to get gps reception inside even with professional equipment. When your iPhone gets a fast fix it's most likely WLAN triangulation. As Apple uses a different database than Google, it may work on on your iPhone and not on your Nexus for a paticular place and vice versa.
2nd) It's unlikely that your gps is broken if you can connect to GSM/UMTS/CDMA2000 networks as gps is processed using the same chipset.
3rd) That 1km-off-fix might be celltower based location, 1km sounds quite plausible.
4th) Try _NOT_ to move until you get GPS fix.
5th) Keep internet access while trying to get a fix. The Nexus S as most phones on the market use assisted gps, where your phone contacts a server that provides data which enables your phone to track its position more easily.
6th) Good luck.
Yes, well, I had 2 friends which came to my place, in my room, and just activated GPS on their iphones and it located them straight away, to our exact position. So it was definitely the GPS tracking and not triangulation.
Indeed, when MY phone locates me off 1 km, this is definitely triangulation or cell-towers.
Of course, when I try to get a fix in my apartment or on my balcony, I just put it on a table and must wait for at least 30 mins to get a lock, and it disappears quickly. Doesn't seem normal to me ...
Finally to answer your 5th point, I got 3G, so a perfect fast & smooth inet connection.
GPS testing should always be done outside, you are not supposed to use it indoors.
What is probably happening there is that the other devices are more sensitive and can still get a lock. You might be able to get a lock if you place your phone very close to the window.
I got a Nexus S recently and noticed that the GPS is quite weaker than the one on my old HTC.
Although the Nexus is faster to get a lock (if you let it use 3G) the GPS itself is less sensitive and accurate.
It looses signal easier, for instance, if i go under some trees, and it takes more time to get signal back after loosing it, for example, if you go under a bridge, the old HTC would get the lock back in 2 seconds after leaving the bridge, the Nexus took half a minute.
Having said that, i think it's good enough for driving navigation, i have done some tests and on the road it behaves well enough.
You shouldn't be surprised, this phone is very similar to the Galaxy S and that had terrible GPS issues, this nexus is better, but still weak.
Thank you for your feedback, temp9300 !
I guess the Nexus S can't compete with iphone's. But it's ok, as long as it works fine outdoors, this is what matters.
As you may know by now I've been having problems with GPS on my Nexus S (i9023, bought factory unlocked from Amazon Germany, carrier code EUR, running rooted stock 2.3.4 AKA GRJ22). A quick search of the Nexus S forums will tell you that I'm not the only one who complains about GPS issues - I always assumed that the GPS was just sub-par on the model and I'd have to live with it.
Only now a few helpful souls over in the accessories section said it was probably defective and I should exchange it. (I've already exchanged it once for this and the new unit I got performed exactly the same.) So I'm just going to tell you the current situation and I'm hoping you'll tell me if that's within the normal tolerances for the model: [All tests done outside in suburbia]
"Network location" (geolocation, wifi / cell triangulation) is fine since 2.3.4 [just to get that out of the way]
Time to First Fix (TtFF) is decent now, usually 15-30 s cold and < 15 s hot. I've seen much better (yes, on a phone), but that doesn't bother me.
Accuracy however, is still bad. GPS Status shows 20-10 m mostly, but it fluctuates wildly going from 5 to 30 in a heartbeat even when it's just stationary. Other phones don't show this behavior. This translates into real-world problems in Maps (checked via sat view): The blue circle goes from large to enormous and back and while my true position is somewhere within the circle most of the time, the center dot is way off. Most other implementations manage to guess the location correctly even when the accuracy is bad (as tested side-by-side).
Stability is my biggest concern. The lock'll be fine for a few minutes, especially if the phone was just rebooted, but then the GPS will lose it every few (say 5-10) seconds and take time to reacquire it. Additionally, it doesn't pick up movement very well. I did a few tests watching my position in Maps while on the tram (in a window seat) and basically it would register an (approximately correct) location every now and then but then just hang there for a while. Usually it wouldn't register that the tram had left a stop before it had arrived at the next one or even just left it again. All other phones trace the tracks almost perfectly and in real time. There goes any kind of usable navigation and - in concert with the compass issues - all augmented reality apps.
Again, this isn't meant as a complaint or even a request for a fix (though if you have one I'll gladly take it) - I'd only like to gauge if my particular phone's have been bad or if "that just how it is".
Thanks for listening.
I have a nexus s4g from sprint and my gps was working great and then one day it just stopped. I can never pick up a signal and if out does it takes about five minutes our more. I have a gps radar app that shows me signal strengths and stuff and our barely picks up give signals and they are always really weak I have to refresh the agps status all the time to even get a lock and like I said it still takes about gives minutes or more if it even locks at all. I am looking for a fix my epic had the same problems and then with the latest update for it, it was amazing and fast accurate locks. And help with the nexus s4g would be great
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
Get your msl, go to your dialer and dial *#*#gpsclrx#*#*, then put in msl and it will clear gps for you. It will reboot on its own
snandlal said:
Get your msl, go to your dialer and dial *#*#gpsclrx#*#*, then put in msl and it will clear gps for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's an msl and what does "clear gps" mean? Also, way to derail a thread ...
I tried that before on my epic and it messed up my gps but I will give it a shot
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
nice post. finally some oen who get it.that there are just failts in phones and thats just how it is.
thougfh.yes try returning it in the hope to get a proper nexus s xp
I did the clear gps code and it seemed to fix mine so thanks I would recommend people try it.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
whats an msl? can't find that on google so what is it? would like to try out that code...really have problems with GPS on my nexus s
floomat said:
my GPS does just not work at all, it can't get a fix for hours even if there are 10 sats.
but sometimes I'm lucky (really rare) and it gets a fix but the longest time it hold it was 5minutes, then lose GPS fix can't get one again. it's even not while i'm moving, phone lays on the table and outside to test.
really disappointing for me, second thing is my compass does not work after reboot and is really inaccurate and unstable (jumping around)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your GPS sounds even worse than that on my NSs, the compass doesn't work for anyone. Out of curiosity - where did you get yours?
for msl: http://goo.gl/x3IKR
i'd like to ask if this code is good for Nexus gsm or cdma??
freakness51 said:
for msl: http://goo.gl/x3IKR
i'd like to ask if this code is good for Nexus gsm or cdma??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
According to the article you linked: "This program reads your Master Subsidy Lock (MSL) code for your CDMA Android phone."
In other news, I'd really appreciate some on-topic replys
fallenguru said:
Your GPS sounds even worse than that on my NSs, the compass doesn't work for anyone. Out of curiosity - where did you get yours?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I even think my GPS is the worst of all the Nexus S.
Mine was bought from Ebay-UK and since it was on a repairing-tour to samsung germany i know its from CPW. Its a I9020 not I9023. BTW there was nothing repaired because they said "The discribed issue cannot be found" or something like that..
what do you mean with compass does not work for anyone?? does it really not work on any nexus? thats interesting, isn't it a little bit illegal to sell a device and say it has compass and than compass does not work at all?
freakness51 said:
for msl: http://goo.gl/x3IKR
i'd like to ask if this code is good for Nexus gsm or cdma??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mh sounds like this will not work for GSM-Nexus
the GPS on my NS behaves similar (but better) to what you describe in the first post but overall it seems to have better accuracy and stability.
Have you tried recording a track while in a car? The results should be better. At least with mine it's mostly accurate and rarely looses signal (unless you go under a bridge/tunnel)
abrcrmdl23 said:
I have a nexus s4g from sprint and my gps was working great and then one day it just stopped. I can never pick up a signal and if out does it takes about five minutes our more. I have a gps radar app that shows me signal strengths and stuff and our barely picks up give signals and they are always really weak I have to refresh the agps status all the time to even get a lock and like I said it still takes about gives minutes or more if it even locks at all. I am looking for a fix my epic had the same problems and then with the latest update for it, it was amazing and fast accurate locks. And help with the nexus s4g would be great
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
I have the same phone, NS4G from Sprint, and the same symptoms. The GPS worked fine for a week or so, and now I'm lucky to get it to work at all. Sometimes I can get a lock after 5+ minutes (while not moving), but other times it never occurs.
I just tried resetting the GPS as is described in the post above. It says "it will reboot automatically" - does that mean the phone or the radio?
In any case I just pulled my device battery after GPS reset - I'll post back with results in a few minutes. In the meantime can you explain what you did after following the reset with dialpad/MSL?
Also attempted return...had to send in for repair
I also got a bad GPS Nexus S i9020 from Amazon.com USA site. The GPS would not lock without a wifi signal. I eventually caved in trying to get it working with rom flashes, drove me nutz, but tried to return for cash and missed the date. Had to send in to Samsung then and get the repair. I have been somewhat satisfied, having gone from no GPS to finally getting it to lock, but its a poor excuse for a gps chipset. The SiRFSTAR from my old WinMo days kicks this gps in the arse.
I also get the bouncing sensitivity and wandering location circle, but accuracy hovers around 5-10m now, but the location is never fixed solid, its wobbly, even outside with clear skies above. The compass is another huge weak spot. Samsung dropped the ball on this device, I wish I could return mine and grab an HTC unit. Google should learn from this and drop them for the Nexus Prime. I think this is unacceptable as location services are whats hot now and this device fails as a flagship product.
I like the gps on my sgs2 more (it has a sirfstar IV) but, i have to say, it's not that much better.
What i gained in stability i lost in TTL. Sometimes you need one more than the other.
The SGS2 has taken me up to 10 minutes to get a lock and if conditions aren't good (cloudy sky, tall buildings) it can easily take 5 minutes. Sometimes you just want to get some signal to get you going.
I did a trip of more than 2000 miles with my Nexus S, using the GPS most of the time, and it worked ok enough for navigation for most of the time. The only times it failed me were, as i mentioned earlier, in old parts of cities with narrow streets.
You are right when you mention HTC, because usually their devices have better working GPS.
Overall i wouldn't say it's a bad device, you have to keep in mind this is not a dedicated GPS device, it's a smartphone that does a lot of things, some better than others, it's still a good developer phone, which i think was the main goal of the Nexus.
After upgrading to the SGS2, the main differences i noticed were not the GPS but the speed and extra memory! The Nexus S is not slow and has average memory (512mb but with only around 380 free) but if you have a lot of apps running (and it's easy for this to happen) it will get sluggish and begin to close the launcher when you start a heavier app. I found this had a lot more impact on usability than the GPS weakness.
I have a HTC one s and it is experiencing wifi problems. I know the one x has had some of the same issues, but the problem with my one s is that whenever i hold the device from the top, the wifi drops suddenly and it than cuts off. When i remove my hand about, 5 seconds later the wifi shoots up to 4-5 bars.
return it and get a new one
That's where the antenna is!! Your SIM cover has the antenna built in to it.
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions &
Read the Forum Rules Ref Posting
Thanks ✟
Moving to Q&A
Try to remove and reseat SIM card cover, if its still too bad have the phone replaced. A friend of mine had his One S replaced after we compared Wifi signal with Wifi analyzer and his was ~20 dBm worse than mine at same locations. New one is fine. Didn't know about the wifi antenna on sim card cover back then though, might have helped since it seems it has for some users here.
I have almost the same problems with WiFi antenna although it's not as worse as others are saying. I can confirm though that when you put your hand next to the SIM cover the WiFi signal drops 1-2 even 4 lines at some times. However I don't think it's a manufacturing defect for some phones but I think it's a general problem with all the models. I am saying this because I had the exact same problem with all my HTC devices (Diamond, Desire and One S). So I think it's a poor WiFi project and maybe cheap raw materials rather than a poor WiFi in some phones. In a way it's normal that this happens because your hand will screen the antenna. Try to do this with all antennas out there and you will see that your hand (your body) will influence the signal in all devices). So if they couldn't overcome this problem they had to put the antenna in the place where you will cover it most rare, and this place is on top of the phone. I don't like it either but that's the way it is.
amoiz said:
I have a HTC one s and it is experiencing wifi problems. I know the one x has had some of the same issues, but the problem with my one s is that whenever i hold the device from the top, the wifi drops suddenly and it than cuts off. When i remove my hand about, 5 seconds later the wifi shoots up to 4-5 bars.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just noticed the same this morning, though only happens when i try to wrap the upper part of the device with my hand. i never hold the phone in that position so it does not happen.....
Actually when you are browsing the internet, view pics one-by-one, view movies - usually you are holding the phone in the landscape mode so most people will rotate the phone counter-clockwise until it reaches landscape mode and will hold it with the left hand exactly from the upper part (if the phone is rotated clockwise then the supporting hand will accidentaly touch the lower 3 buttons so not too many people will rotate it clockwise) and with the right hand they will browse. So in these situations, which come very often, we will loose (almost all) signal. If these will not bother you/me/all of us, for sure it will bother all of us when browsing internet. I really don't know if a fix can be made for this issue. Even if I would change the SIM cover (so change the WiFi antenna), the replacement will be built exactly the same so the problems will persist. I am curios to see if SGS3 has the same problem or not. I really think it's a question of antenna position so it's a crappy board design of the phone. It shouldn't happen at a 500+ euro device.
I have the same wifi issues on the One S. There is a firmware upgrade available OTA, it may fix it. I will see.
Any chance this is fixable or not device-wide? It's somewhat of an annoying problem when holding in landscape. I'm assuming this is no more than a design "flaw"
I'm having the same issue. When holding the phone in landscape mode, the wifi signal drops to one bar.
I noticed that when I'm closer to the router, like within a 3 meters range there is no signal dropping.
It's very annoying...
Could it be fixed by improving the contact between the antenna and the back-cover?
Sent an email to htc support about it, this is their response:
The location that you describe, on the side with the Power button near the camera lens, is where the HTC One's antenna is located. Covering this location will provide less-than-optimal results with regard to cellular and WiFi signal. You may want to try holding the device slightly to the side of this location, more towards the center of the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I seem to recall a certain fruit phone with a similar problem and it was kinda a big deal lol. I'll get over it, but fokkkkkk
ThudButt said:
Sent an email to htc support about it, this is their response:
I seem to recall a certain fruit phone with a similar problem and it was kinda a big deal lol. I'll get over it, but fokkkkkk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you guys try remove and reseat SIM cover? Might help a bit even though its natural with some signal loss when holding it that way. If your phone has significantly worse signal when laying on a table or whatever compared to another phone then try to get it exchanged. Compare with https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer
Edit: Love how your quote from HTC disappeared when I quoted you
traffic stops after few minutes
Hey,
my signal is ok, but after few minutes of working the internet connection just will not go through anymore. I have tried installing 4.04 but no change. AP is still connected, full signal, but not even google comes on. Restarting wifi helps for another few minutes. Doesn´t have to do anything with sleepmode, that I am sure of - it happens even during download from Play Store i.e.. Wifi best performance ON, Keep Wifi on during sleep Always.
Any idea on what that might be? - the old HD2 (android 2.3.) works like a charm on my home network
Getting desperate , otherwise such a nice phone.
WIFI problems
Ive been trying hard to figure out the flash 1.85 thing and have had no luck. any way someone can help me with exact directions on doing it. i have downloaded 1.85 2.85 files but having issues flashing it.
please help
Friend of mine recently told me her GPS on her verizon S3 stopped working. she brought it by, i flashed the newest build of cleanrom on it today and sure enough the GPS still doesnt work. everything needed is turned on but it doesnt get a lock. i checked it with the GPS Status app and it shows like 0/20 satellites and doesnt lock to any. only way i was able to actually get somewhat of a lock on google maps was to hook it up to WiFi and let it gather from that.
any suggestions?
Somewhat common problem. I haven't found a fix as of yet. There is a gps fix somewhere in these forums though that sort of helps. my phone had the same problem. Going back to stock or to any custom rom, nothing worked, the gps was just dead. After flashing one of the fixes I finally managed to get it to get locks, but it needs like 7-8 satellites to get a fix, is highly inaccurate, and loses gps lock a few times on every trip.
Here's the gps fix page
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1880411
I use Galaxy s3 test 3 alt, it's the only one that gets any lock for me. The first time and other intermittent times can take up to 10 minutes or more though, and rebooting the phone or trying again another day does sometimes help.
I know it is definitely the phone, as my pantech marauder which has the same SoC which should be very similar for gps location, finds and locks on to 6-8 towers in like 10 seconds or less all the time, even indoors, and gets location accurate to less than 100ft with 4 satellites while the gs3 needs 7-8 satellites to get a lock to 300-600ft
If none of the software fixes work. And the stock unrooted software does not receive GPS lock.
I would highly recommend replacing the GPS antenna just in case.
I'm 90% sure the headphone jack. External speaker. WiFi antenna and GPS antenna are all in one unit.
This piece is sold for cheap on Amazon. Or eBay or whatever.
Replacing is simply a removing a couple screws and popping the old one out.
Here is a link to eBay
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=160890063224
Possibly you could find one cheaper.
Hopefully this is it for you.
Let me know how it goes.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app
I too have this problem: the GPS no longer gets a fix w/o a data connection
the phone recently did an update to jb 411 and now no gps fix w/o data.
I do NOT believe its the antenna.
does anyone else with the os in sight have any info?
palm2droid said:
I too have this problem: the GPS no longer gets a fix w/o a data connection
the phone recently did an update to jb 411 and now no gps fix w/o data.
I do NOT believe its the antenna.
does anyone else with the os in sight have any info?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too have the same problems on this rom
I am having ongoing issues with the wifi on my Nexus 5. To the point I've received my 3rd one from RMA, but still have the exact same issue. At first I thought it may have been a hardware issue with the phone, so I RMA'd it. When I got my second and had the same problem, I started to not think it was a physical defect with the phone. The odds of getting two phones with the same issues would be astronomical. Now, on my 3rd, and still have the same issue. Every time I try calling and speak to phone service reps, they really don't know anything, and based on the questions they ask, or troubleshooting steps they suggest, lead me to believe they don't even understand the issue I'm trying to explain.
The wifi on my phone seems to "freeze", or stop working, stop scanning, something throughout the day. My day starts with my phone connected to my home wifi network. I leave for work, and I can watch my phone picking up random wifi signals on my drive. I get to work, and it picks up 8 wifi networks. None of which I've connected to. When I leave work 8 hours later, my phone is no longer picking up wifi signals, and won't scan for new ones. I get home, and it still says the 8 networks from work are in range, even though I'm miles away.
This is how my wifi list should look sitting in my living room. It has my network that it is connected to, as well as it picks up 4 of my neighbors networks.
This is how it looks sitting in my living room after getting home from work. Those are the 8 work wifi networks, which are miles away. It still says they're in range. You can see the last one cut off on the bottom, is my home one that says it's out of range.
I can hit the 3 dot option button, and choose "Scan", and it won't rescan. If the only issue was that it didn't pick up my network, I could see it possibly being an issue with my home network. But the fact that it still shows 8 networks that are out of range, as well as the fact it won't detect any network, mine or my neighbors, kind of rules out that it's an issue with my network.
Turning wifi on and off won't fix it. However, power cycling the phone will, or if I toggle airplane mode. But I shouldn't have to do that every day when I come home.
With my most recent Nexus 5, when I took it out of the box I didn't do a single thing to it, aside from turn it on, and manually put in the info to connect to my home network. Not a single app was downloaded, just to rule out it wasn't something I was installing on the phone. I absolutely love the Nexus 5, it's probably the best phone I've owned. But I am at my wits end with this issue.
Its probably not an actual fix, but I was having the same problems with mine, and I hate sending stuff back and play the waiting game over and over. So I got pissed off with wifi and just left it on LTE for a week or so and went back to wifi just to check up on the issue and it was gone.
Its been almost 3 weeks now and no problem, everything is working perfectly fine. LTE draining my battery was a pain thou but it paid off in the end somehow.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
I'd be happy with just about any fix, as long as it fixes the issue. LTE draining my battery wouldn't be an issue, I'd be more worried about my data. While I have "unlimited" data from AT&T, I get throttled after 5GB. Since I stream large amounts of music, I can blow through that rather fast. So I try to keep my phone connected to wifi as much as possible. But it definitely is something to suck up and try if I don't get a better solution. I have this cross posted just about everywhere I could think of.