Anybody else's gps connectivity generally crap? Seems to take for ever to connect then struggles to keep a connection.
Any known software conflicts? Running stock 2.35 rom.
No trees, walls, flying saucers in the way and Tried various gps info and fixer appear but to no avail.
Starting to really p*ss me off now.
Ta!
Sent from my HTC Desire S using XDA App
Yes, happens to me too. expecially when i go for walks. It takes reaally long time to load. Use Gpsfix ( Google it, Not able to post link because of post count) . It makes to process a lot faster.
khamoshpathak said:
Yes, happens to me too. expecially when i go for walks. It takes reaally long time to load. Use Gpsfix ( Google it, Not able to post link because of post count) . It makes to process a lot faster.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Be warned that gpsfix adds air push adverts to your phone. You may want to also instal add-on detector to find and remove them.
OP: Are you using a case? You may find that without root, you can't change the agps server location (mine was set to Asia by default) so it takes a while to lock pulling satellite info via 3g from the other side of the planet!
GPS Status and toolbox (which doesn't need root) forces an AGPS data download on startup and might help. Make sure 3g is on.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.eclipsim.gpsstatus2
Sent from my HTC Desire S using xda premium
Have observed that the GPS fix times are ROM dependent during my journey through many many excellent ROM's available for Desire S. I have even tried the AGPS fix which is recommended in the Dev section which was indeed helping to get a faster fix but the fix wasnt stable afterwards, especially while using apps like endomondo sports tracker..
The first ROM I saw that the GPS was excellent was in MIUI (GB) - without any AGPS or any other market apps or hacks I began to see a fix within 20 secs. Now, I'm presently on Reaper 2.2 (without AGPS fix) and the GPS continues to be excellent (<20 sec fixes).
I'm using ice cold sandwich with GPS+agps fix and find satellites in 3 seconds
Sent by my fingers to your head.
GPS fix issues can be as simple and HW-related as bad contact between the phone cover that includes GPS antenna (I guess it's the lower cover, but it might be an upper cover too), and the golden connector pin on the board. If you test all possible SW workarounds and they don't help - try to locate the antenna and make sure the connection is firm. Look for Vibrant GPS problems, they had such problem in the early batches.
For me the thread AGPS Patch Desire S 3.1 & 2.2 | GET BACK TO RAPID GPS LOCK, CAN LOCK ONTO MORE SATS helped a lot to get rapid GPS lock. Though, I'm not sure if root is needed for all installation methods. Good luck!
P.S.: The described patch is allready included in some custom roms like Endymion.
Jack_R1 said:
GPS fix issues can be as simple and HW-related as bad contact between the phone cover that includes GPS antenna (I guess it's the lower cover, but it might be an upper cover too), and the golden connector pin on the board. If you test all possible SW workarounds and they don't help - try to locate the antenna and make sure the connection is firm. Look for Vibrant GPS problems, they had such problem in the early batches.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The GPS and WiFi antennas are in the upper (camera lens) plastic cover, and, yes they use sprung pins to (hopefully) make connection. The phone antennas are in the lower (battery) cover.
I have found that many types of case massively deteriorate GPS reception of my phone. What puzzles me is why some users seem to be entirely unaffected; it's almost as if individual phones vary; even as an experienced engineer I cannot expalin it.
Since cases create mechanical pressure on the phone body and the contacts are very sensitive to their cover bending (they usually have a very light touch), it might be one of the reasons for reception deterioration. Sometimes even a hit of a falling phone can either destroy reception or improve it - saw it happening live on friend's Desire HD, it was very funny to see how the GPS that wouldn't lock properly for weeks, after the phone fell, started locking in 5 sec all of a sudden. Pure plastic cases shouldn't matter for reception otherwise, or at least I can't think of how can they possibly interfere.
By the way, Desire S' GPS is a bit on a weaker side - I compared it side-by-side to my MT4G, and it's always several lock seconds and a couple of locked satellites below. It should be plenty powerful for a good fast lock, though, and that's why I suspect disturbance on the HW side, rather than SW misconfiguration.
now that you guys are talking about cases, I was using a case mate barely there case before... long time ago gps fix was on the slow side (around a min).. but somewhere down the line of moving across ROM's I moved to MIUI GB (with the case still present) and the fix improved (without any AGPS patches or GPS fix apps).. now I dont use the case and have moved to Reaper CM7 based ROM and the GPS fixes are brilliant... looking at the build of Desire S I dont think that the contacts for GPS, wifi or phone antennas are at fault or can change with just a fall.. I can't pin the problem but I definitely feel removing the case has helped the gps fixes.
Jack_R1 said:
GPS fix issues can be as simple and HW-related as bad contact between the phone cover that includes GPS antenna (I guess it's the lower cover, but it might be an upper cover too), and the golden connector pin on the board. If you test all possible SW workarounds and they don't help - try to locate the antenna and make sure the connection is firm. Look for Vibrant GPS problems, they had such problem in the early batches.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems legit. By so far I am experiencing also constant GPS problem. It really might be the problem. I will make a try and let here know how it goes.
Forwox said:
Seems legit. By so far I am experiencing also constant GPS problem. It really might be the problem. I will make a try and let here know how it goes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Clining contact did not help..
adding some wires to the antena (made some improvement)..
Than i orderd "new antena" for 8 eur form "Taiwan".
no may fix quick and with 12-18m an i does not lose fix anymore..
(and now i have working gps.. after 1 year of trying roms and waiting for better radio firmwares)
---------- Post added at 08:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:38 PM ----------
fasty said:
What puzzles me is why some users seem to be entirely unaffected; it's almost as if individual phones vary; even as an experienced engineer I cannot expalin it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have first version of gps antenna which has been silently improved..
I bougt new antena (upper cover) and wifi antena is printed the sesame number, but gps antena has an number increased by 10. (which by my means, mean new version)
And with "new antena" i have reliably working gps now.
(htc service (here in SLO) wanted th have the phone one service for 14 day-s thats teh reason i didnt apply for warranty repair)
on stock rom gps is really slow..i have that experience before,actually one of the reason i rooted mine...now,got gps locked in less than 15 minutes...(my gps always turn off,on when want to use navigation only)
oTeMpLo said:
Clining contact did not help..
adding some wires to the antena (made some improvement)..
Than i orderd "new antena" for 8 eur form "Taiwan".
no may fix quick and with 12-18m an i does not lose fix anymore..
(and now i have working gps.. after 1 year of trying roms and waiting for better radio firmwares)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's awesome! Could you please share a link to that item, please? I am really interested in that. I am still fighting with GPS. Sometimes it works, sometimes it don't...
Related
Hey guys,
Wanted to know if anyone has tried this:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=878970
I was trying to do the same thing on the Captivate realizing that the connector is readily accessible just by opening the battery door. Mine is a 1008 (number below S/N) telling its an August 2010 build so I tried. I am not sure about the results (improvements) and this may be because I am missing something. Want to know if anyone who has 1010 or earlier tried this successfully?!
Also, if that is a true fix which we are hoping, then does that mean the GPS antennae is on the battery door? Is that solid chip looking thing pasted a gps receiver? Experts please comment. And if that is a real antennae on the door, then without the battery cover the GPS should not work at all (with network thing off), but mine did. And if that is NOT the antennae, is it below the screwed down panel below the battery (like the vibrant)?
Just trying help myself and possibly others. Maybe I am going in completely wrong path, but it never hurts trying .
Feedback and comments please.
Thanks!
This would be awesome if it worked but I wanna make one comment. My GPS before the latest Dary 7 roms (The Darky 7/7.5/7.6 and now 7.7 ROMs) has been complete and utter crap. It never could maintain a lock if it ever got one in the first place, but now it is WAY better and even gets a lock when I'm under cover sometimes. Even when I'm driving it is totally usable and feels almost as good as my Nexus One did. I know my phone was manufactured before oct, but try out one of those ROMs before you go modifying your phone physically.
A thread for this fix is located here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=876179
I have done both, bending the contact up a bit and scraping the film of the other contact off. It definately made an improvement. Now, will that improvement sustain throughout ROM's is a different story. But I definately got locks in 2 different places within 30 seconds. Very accurate locks I might add.
I think that the GPS problem is a hardware issue and not software. Sure, software can make it a little better. I had to replace my phone due to shutdown problem and the GPS on the new phone is absolutely perfect, no matter what ROM I use. That's my 2 cents though.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
just wanted to add this to the GPS saga-
my Father In-law has the Sprint Intercept - this just got the 2.2.1 update - I know this is a different phone than the Captivate and the hardware is probably not laid out the same, but I wanted to compare GPS side by side.. before the 2.2.1 update the phone took FOREVER to get a lock and accurate reading.
So his Intercept in my right hand, and my Captivate with JPY ROM (and with the Google GPS files floating around here as well) in the left hand.
Tapped on Google Maps at the same time, and the Intercept phone got to 2meter Accuracy before the Captivate got to 10M accuracy.
This has already been covered 3 or 4 times on this forum. search before posting please.
You guys should try Doc's 6.2.1 Rom. I am getting instant gps lock and it follows quite well.
Thread moved to General.
I've searched google and xda and there seem to be a lot of problem with gps issues. i am on coredroid 7 with:
s-off
hboot 0.85.0019
micop-0438
radio 26.09.04.11_m2
emmc boot
Pretty much like a lot of people's navigation issue, it is stuck on "searching for GPS". a few times before my flash it thinks I'm 600 miles (NY vs VA) away consistently.
Here is what I've done:
* Tried toggling GPS on and off
* I've flashed cleared cache for maps a few times
* I've uninstalled/installed maps a few times
* I've re-flashed the CoreDroid 7 ROM a few times
* I've reflashed the radio/RIL a few times
* There was a release a few days ago for Gingerbread releases of gps library. Flashed that and it didnt work.
* There was a gps fix a few months ago by region on xda, flashed it to both north america (version 1.0) and my region (1.2). Didnt work.
* Tried things like "GPS Status" from the Market - people say loading other gps apps followed by Navigation will fix the issue - no go.
* Used GPS Status tool to reset gps cache and download GPS assistance from internet (requires data connection) - no go.
GPS is kind of important to me... does anyone have any ideas how to fix this?
Is it time for a new radio? If so which one of the three listed on Coredroid thread is best (obviously not the 3rd pair?)
NOTE: before i first rooted and flash to coredroid, i believe gps was working and it was working decently well
edit: another question... are we suppose to have gps.conf? a brand new flash of coredroid does not have this file. where is it suppose to be located?
edit2: tried both http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=953630 and http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1100114
my gps now works. the problem was probably compared to my hero, the inspire needs more open space to lock on to the gps. last gps question:
is there a way to boost its ability to acquire signal? the hero which is 2 years old seem to have a better gps?
mshen11 said:
my gps now works. the problem was probably compared to my hero, the inspire needs more open space to lock on to the gps. last gps question:
is there a way to boost its ability to acquire signal? the hero which is 2 years old seem to have a better gps?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
are you using case ? get it out. alot of people have weak signal with new case.(otter defender)
nismax said:
are you using case ? get it out. alot of people have weak signal with new case.(otter defender)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Cases inhibit the gps performance on this phone, in my experience, and the experiences of many others.
I literally watch all sorts of satellites mysteriously appear the instant I take my case off.
i AM using the otterbox defender...
sigh. what's a good equivalent to protect the phone then?
thats a lot of money down the drain
mshen11 said:
i AM using the otterbox defender...
sigh. what's a good equivalent to protect the phone then?
thats a lot of money down the drain
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check out the Otterbox Commuter. It's the case I use and its GPS interference is minimal. It still protects your phone quite well. There are 2 layers - your phone goes into a soft rubber case, and then a hard case shell goes around that. $20 on Amazon.
Defender-best protection in my opinion i have one
htc desire hd in love with
mshen11 said:
i AM using the otterbox defender...
sigh. what's a good equivalent to protect the phone then?
thats a lot of money down the drain
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think there is a case that doesn't interfere, at least to some degree, with this phone.
However, if you visit the accessories section and look at some of the case threads, you'll see all sorts of experiences. Some claim a particular case kills their gps, others with the same case will say it has no detrimental effect, etc.
So it goes with gps, cases, radios/data speeds, etc... All things that are subject to a variety of other factors and are at the mercy of personal opinion and experience.
My solution? When I need to use gps and I want to assure myself the case won't be doing anything goofy, I take it out.
It's unlikely that I'll be engaging in an activity that would need the phone to be physically protected *while at the same time* utilizing the gps functionality.
**** happens, I know, when you least expect it, but I'd rather pay more attention to the well-being of my temporarily un-cased phone than a bunch of money for 100 cases trying to find one that inhibits gps the least.
Hi all,
I found out that Captivate has GPS chip problem when it is COLD.
If you can warm it up it will work fine.
You can try it in warm environment.
While it is working, try to turn on AC in your car to cool it down and you will see it say GPS signal lost.
Turn off the AC and turn on the Heater to warm it up, GPS signal will be OK.
Good luck.
Interesting. Thanks for the tip. Will try it out in my friends cappy. He has issues with his GPS but mine has always been fine. Never had a problem even once.
I installed effingps.zip and went from no signal to 7-9 satelite locks in 10 seconds INDOORS.
great fix
knighted4
knighted4 said:
I installed effingps.zip and went from no signal to 7-9 satelite locks in 10 seconds INDOORS.
great fix
knighted4
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you post a link to the file or post the zip file.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
It's in Trusselo's EFFIN EH ROM thread #140
A simple search for effinGPS.zip found it.
ctrclckws said:
It's in Trusselo's EFFIN EH ROM thread #140
A simple search for effinGPS.zip found it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will that work on CM based roms? I'm guessing no, but I haven't been able to find an answer anywhere.
And here's a link, for those who want it
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=19631418&postcount=140
Good luck. I haven't flashed this yet, but will soon.
Well....i get a lock now!!!
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S Captivate on Blue Apex
Temperature doesn't seem to affect mine. And no 'fix' has ever worked for me.
I don't care how long it takes to lock as long as it doesn't drift.
I did notice though, that the time is off by 24 hours when I do get a lock (according to GPS Test and GPS Status).
When I connect to my external Bluetooth receiver it is spot on.
Has anyone else had this experience? My guess is that the firmware is returning the wrong time, and that is making the positioning calculations impossible.
can someone explain why temperature would effect the GPS in any way? thanks..
zinkoxyde said:
When I connect to my external Bluetooth receiver it is spot on.
Has anyone else had this experience?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure if you mean time, or GPS being spot on. I haven't paid any attention to time when using GPS. But I have an external one, and it works MUCH BETTER, pretty much what I would call spot on.
However, the last couple times I"ve used it my phone has locked up. I am thinking it is the BT program I am using in order to use the external GPS. What blue tooth program are you using?
Will this work for my Captivate running mosaic 9?
Sent from my Captivate running Gingerbread
ewingr said:
Not sure if you mean time, or GPS being spot on. I haven't paid any attention to time when using GPS. But I have an external one, and it works MUCH BETTER, pretty much what I would call spot on.
However, the last couple times I"ve used it my phone has locked up. I am thinking it is the BT program I am using in order to use the external GPS. What blue tooth program are you using?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Both the time and the GPS location are correct when I use an external BT receiver (Delorme BT-20), but the time is exactly 24 hours off. That could definitely cause drift after initial lock (not to mention cause problems locking in the first place).
I use "Bluetooth GPS Mouse" by Argotronic. There is also a problem with the Captivate's Bluetooth implementation from what I've read. My bluetooth headphones, gps and obd-ii car scanner tool tend to lock up my handset from time to time. It seems to have a problem with sustained serial data communications over bluetooth.
Bluetooth GPS Mouse seems to be pretty stable as opposed to the other BT programs I've used, I guess you get what you pay for. It's a real hassle to drag around two devices on the off chance of needing directions.
I seem to remember stock AT&T Eclair being pretty good with GPS.
---------- Post added at 08:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:48 PM ----------
grndnl said:
can someone explain why temperature would effect the GPS in any way? thanks..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some electronic components are sensitive to temperature. Temperature changes conductive properties, among other things (for example, metal expands when heated). Heat dissipation could also be a factor. Electronic boards can warp, components can separate from the board or the solder can crack. More likely in this case, it just looks like it's working. I've seen tons of people claiming different things have fixed the GPS. Until I can get a lock in standalone mode, and keep it, I'm not calling it fixed.
---------- Post added at 09:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:57 PM ----------
Seems I wasn't crazy about the time thing, but apparently it has only manifested since 2012 rolled around:
code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail? id=24000
This article is about the Tab, but it looks like it is across the board.
Hm i never really thought temperature could affect the gps chip, might have to do some testing.
expansion and contraction of metals possibly fouling the antenna connection is the only real thing I can think of. Anyway, for me there never was a real fix. moving to GB really helped but not enough to make the GPS really reliable. I finally got a replacement phone moving to a build 1101 and that has a pretty good gps that is useable in most circumstances and probably as good as a phone without dedicated antenna can get. Captivates all should have been recalled due to bad gps hardware in my opinion..of course that would have cost samsung a fortune. The phone is great otherwise.
brentett said:
Hm i never really thought temperature could affect the gps chip, might have to do some testing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did think heat could affect the gps chip, might have to do some testing thanks!
Is it true?So unbelievable!
Sounds like confirmation bias to me... I have had equally crappy GPS in both warm weather and cold.
BeowulfShaeffer said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=19631418&postcount=140
Good luck. I haven't flashed this yet, but will soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did anyone else have luck installing effinGPS.zip?
crazyjerm1 said:
Did anyone else have luck installing effinGPS.zip?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Installed. Didn't help a worth a damn.
Hi everyone pretty new to the Chinese phones and apologies if this has been done before (i cant find it) but i have a JIAYU G4 youth which is running the latest custom rom off needrom.com (JY-G4 Yabe V7.0.2) this is the 3rd rom i have flashed and each one the GPS is very slow or does not work at all and you can not get a fix. The only way i can get it to pick up satalites is to use the engineer mode on mobille uncle tools which is quite long winded.
Ok so to my question "can the gps be improved by some sort of configuration?" I notice in the root of the sd card is a gps config file does this need altering somehow when used in UK?. Any help would be much appreciated as other than this it is a great phone.
The problem is rather the antenna in the back of the device when the device screen up and metallic body, the blocked antenna. GPS works well when the device display down.
But there are some guides on how to improve GPS software (according to me do not work):
http://gizbeat.com/2159/gizbeat-101-gps-not-working-on-mtk6589-mtk6577-mtk6575/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnY_425NgB0
This is more than only a hardware (antenna) problem. I've noticed that when I connect an external BT mouse that the mouse itselfs gets a "spot on" fix, but the phone is struggling to keep this fix.
By editing the build.prop and disable JIT the phone has a much better GPS fix.
GPS fix issue in Jiayu G4
Finally the issue is solved by 100%
The problem is rather the antenna in the back of the device .
The PCB has contacts for GPS antenna , the 1st & 3rd are the ground & the middle i.e 2nd is the main antenna.
I just skipped 1 & 3 contact by putting insulating tape between contact & the antenna.
Only 2nd point is touching the antenna .
just that's all.
Now my phone fixes GPS with in a minute in cold start.
I tried with most of the available ROM.
Pls note : If you are not a technical person do not open.
refer to some mobile repair person .
soon release the photos of the same.
Re:Finally the issue is solved by 100%
pankaj459 said:
Finally the issue is solved by 100%
The problem is rather the antenna in the back of the device .
The PCB has contacts for GPS antenna , the 1st & 3rd are the ground & the middle i.e 2nd is the main antenna.
I just skipped 1 & 3 contact by putting insulating tape between contact & the antenna.
Only 2nd point is touching the antenna .
just that's all.
Now my phone fixes GPS with in a minute in cold start.
I tried with most of the available ROM.
Pls note : If you are not a technical person do not open.
refer to some mobile repair person .
soon release the photos of the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Pankaj459,
I tried the software fixes, which got me a quicker fix. Unfortunately the fix is not very accurate.
Very often the GPS loses its way and I find myself about 100yards beside the road or in a nearby street.
I opened up my G4A and noticed that the 3rd pole had already been isolated with black tape. I did also isolate the left pole. Nevertheless, did not see any difference.
The fix took just as long/ short. Accuracy was just as dismal.
Is there anything else I can do? Would it actually help if I modded some copper wire to the GPS contacts, or would that not solve the issue?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Litening
for those who can speak german (like me) here's a link to my gps antenna project
h ttp://w ww.android-hilfe.de/jiayu-g4-forum/441446-jiayu-g4-gps-20.html#post7161636
litening said:
Hi Pankaj459,
I tried the software fixes, which got me a quicker fix. Unfortunately the fix is not very accurate.
Very often the GPS loses its way and I find myself about 100yards beside the road or in a nearby street.
I opened up my G4A and noticed that the 3rd pole had already been isolated with black tape. I did also isolate the left pole. Nevertheless, did not see any difference.
The fix took just as long/ short. Accuracy was just as dismal.
Is there anything else I can do? Would it actually help if I modded some copper wire to the GPS contacts, or would that not solve the issue?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Litening
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So do you think the solution has to do with putting aluminium paper in the antenna? I have seen that fix in THL and it seems to fix the accuracy, maybe it is the solution.
Would anybody share a little tutorial on how to do it?
ertioct said:
So do you think the solution has to do with putting aluminium paper in the antenna? I have seen that fix in THL and it seems to fix the accuracy, maybe it is the solution.
Would anybody share a little tutorial on how to do it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
You should try to follow this step by step tutorial about configuring GPS + antenna mod , it reaches up to two meters accuracy in motion in a Jiayu G4T :victory: :victory:
A version in Spanish is available as well --> Versión en español :highfive:
I remember somewhere somebody reported issue with compass in our Relay.
Now I found that it is somehow related with other sensors and/or modules.
So if your compass not working properly turn off wifi, data transfer and GPS and try.
Regards
Mac
Makes no difference for me. Everything on or everything off, the compass is still hopelessly miscalibrated after a reboot. Then a calibration cycle gets it approximately right until the next one.
for me also no difference, however i try, google maps with gps is usually going sometimes ok. havent got the clue behind yet
Jax184 said:
Makes no difference for me. Everything on or everything off, the compass is still hopelessly miscalibrated after a reboot. Then a calibration cycle gets it approximately right until the next one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat- if I'm driving, it will correct when it uses the GPS, but standing still, it will be off. I think the issues started after updating one of the stock roms. I think the original stock rom was just fine.
I think Nardholio posted something about going back to stock, ripping the battery out with a solid GPS lock and then upgrading.
gee one said:
I'm in the same boat- if I'm driving, it will correct when it uses the GPS, but standing still, it will be off. I think the issues started after updating one of the stock roms. I think the original stock rom was just fine.
I think Nardholio posted something about going back to stock, ripping the battery out with a solid GPS lock and then upgrading.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's only needed if your GPS is totally inoperable.
So the Relay 4G has horrible GPS? Seems to be an ongoing theme with Samsung phones.
Nah, the GPS works fine. It's the compass that's broken.
During the development of our CM rom, it was discovered that the GPS sometimes wouldn't work at all after flashing a custom ROM. This was because the stock ROM had put the GPS to sleep in a way which the custom ROM couldn't wake it from. That's why the battery pull technique was developed. It ensured the GPS was active when you installed the custom ROM.
I don't know if it's still needed or not. I don't think it is. If it is, it would only help you if your GPS doesn't work at all after flashing a custom ROM. If it's intermittent or has poor signal or something, you've got other problems.
Regarding GPS, if I understand correctly, Relay 4G uses both GPS and GLONASS signal, so is the GPS fix considerably quicker than in devices without GLONASS and is the satellite coverage better as well?
I'm particularly interested if there is a noticeable difference in this regard between Samsung Captivate Glide's GPS and Relay 4G's GPS+GLONASS.
Jax184 said:
Nah, the GPS works fine. It's the compass that's broken.
During the development of our CM rom, it was discovered that the GPS sometimes wouldn't work at all after flashing a custom ROM. This was because the stock ROM had put the GPS to sleep in a way which the custom ROM couldn't wake it from. That's why the battery pull technique was developed. It ensured the GPS was active when you installed the custom ROM.
I don't know if it's still needed or not. I don't think it is. If it is, it would only help you if your GPS doesn't work at all after flashing a custom ROM. If it's intermittent or has poor signal or something, you've got other problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I...don't know the difference between the GPS and the compass. I thought people were using the terms interchangeably, but apparently not.
Solkan said:
Regarding GPS, if I understand correctly, Relay 4G uses both GPS and GLONASS signal, so is the GPS fix considerably quicker than in devices without GLONASS and is the satellite coverage better as well?
I'm particularly interested if there is a noticeable difference in this regard between Samsung Captivate Glide's GPS and Relay 4G's GPS+GLONASS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay...this is very interesting. Differences between GPS and compass aside, this still seems like good news. At least to me, cause GPS is very important to me, and its my understanding that the Captivate Glide's GPS is very hinky. Seems like if you stick with stock you'll be fine. Now, bluetooth, I have no idea how the bluetooth is on the Relay (stock or custom ROM), but at least the GPS is good and even better with this GLONASS.
The compass is a standalone chip that detects the earths magnetic fields and tells the device which way it's oriented. But Samsung screwed something up, and every time the phone boots it's way out of calibration. You can fix it by taking it through a quick calibration cycle, and then all's right with it until the next reboot.
The compass and the GPS work together for things like maps. With the compass miscalibrated, the indicator on the map will often show that you're facing a compass direction other than what you really are. And it'll sometimes act as though you're walking backwards when moving at low speeds. But the actual GPS position and tracking are correct, it just has no idea what way you're facing. Again, a compass calibration will fix this.
Jax184 said:
The compass is a standalone chip that detects the earths magnetic fields and tells the device which way it's oriented. But Samsung screwed something up, and every time the phone boots it's way out of calibration. You can fix it by taking it through a quick calibration cycle, and then all's right with it until the next reboot.
The compass and the GPS work together for things like maps. With the compass miscalibrated, the indicator on the map will often show that you're facing a compass direction other than what you really are. And it'll sometimes act as though you're walking backwards when moving at low speeds. But the actual GPS position and tracking are correct, it just has no idea what way you're facing. Again, a compass calibration will fix this.
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Okay...I've actually been experiencing that lately with my Epic 4G on Cyanogenmod, but I blame that more on the most recent update of Google Maps which changed the entire interface than I do the ROM (I'm on the most recent stable release and before the Google Maps update GPS worked perfectly). But that's still something I'll save for that board. But what you described is exactly what I've been experiencing, the Navigation seems to work, but it takes a while for the indicator (the red arrow) to face the right direction. Since I use it to drive around my own town its not that big a deal, but if I ever go out of town, yeah it could be an issue.
Someone on one of the Relay 4G boards here opened up his Relay 4G and showed exactly where the metal components are, and how with some tweaking it may correct it without calibration...but with my luck I'd break the thing permanently.
I do wonder why the Relay 4G is like this...my only guess is that Samsung was trying to rush it out and didn't have the time to properly test it? I know it was supposed to be called something else (Blaze Q or something). But the funny thing is, even with this "error" (which from the sounds of it is easily remedied), it still seems like more of the spiritual successor to the Epic 4G than I originally thought the Captivate Glide was, or at least an Epic 4G if it was GSM. 5 rows of keys, same shape...I just don't know why this phone isn't more successful than it is. At least you can get it on eBay, new, for about $200-$300. I haven't been inside a T-mobile store in years so I don't know if they regularly keep them in stock or not. But its still available. That Captivate Glide is still available for less than $200, but with its issues with GPS and bluetooth...I don't know, seriously thinking about this phone now.
Anyway, thanks for the response. And by the way, how is the bluetooth on this phone?
EDIT: Herp derp, it was YOU who opened up their Relay 4G! My apologies, sometimes these boards blur together.
Bluetooth seems okay, but I only have one bluetooth device, so I'm hardly an expert.
The guys working on our CM ROM are trying to improve performance when both wifi and bluetooth are in use at the same time. Since they're both 2.4 GHz, they tend to step on each others toes if both are on at once.
You should try a compass calibration on the Epic to see if that helps with the pointer. First step away from large metal and electrical objects, so you're in a fairly clean magnetic environment. Then open up an app that uses the compass, like Metal Sniffer. Then, while keeping the screen on, slowly and smoothly rotate the phone 3 times around each axis. End over end 3 times, then side to side 3 times, then around and around 3 times.
At the end of it, the pointer should now point north.
On the Relay, the values of the magnetic field strength are all totally out of whack before you do this, and they suddenly drop to more rational levels after the calibration.
Jax184 said:
Bluetooth seems okay, but I only have one bluetooth device, so I'm hardly an expert.
The guys working on our CM ROM are trying to improve performance when both wifi and bluetooth are in use at the same time. Since they're both 2.4 GHz, they tend to step on each others toes if both are on at once.
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Ah okay. Though I can't remember the last time I tried to use both at once. Also, since the Relay 4G actually has a stock JB rom, what benefits would there be getting CM instead? I'm only on CM for the Epic 4G because Samsung/Sprint stopped updating it with Gingerbread.
You should try a compass calibration on the Epic to see if that helps with the pointer. First step away from large metal and electrical objects, so you're in a fairly clean magnetic environment. Then open up an app that uses the compass, like Metal Sniffer. Then, while keeping the screen on, slowly and smoothly rotate the phone 3 times around each axis. End over end 3 times, then side to side 3 times, then around and around 3 times.
At the end of it, the pointer should now point north.
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Thanks. The folks on the other board said it was an issue with the updated Google Maps app as opposed to the GPS/compass itself, and suggested a downgrade. I may try both solutions, though to be honest with you there's a huge learning curve with the most recent update to Google Maps (for instance still can't figure out how to get it to record my current location, which came in handy with the previous versions if I ever came across a place or store I wanted to visit again).
On the Relay, the values of the magnetic field strength are all totally out of whack before you do this, and they suddenly drop to more rational levels after the calibration.
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Speaking of that calibration trick, where is it described in detail around here?
EpicMikeNC said:
Speaking of that calibration trick, where is it described in detail around here?
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That was it! :laugh:
The CM ROM is faster and trimmer than the stock ROM, and fixes a couple of bugs and annoyances. No touchwiz interface, no t-mobile tethering lockout, no samsung bloatware. And while it does have a few bugs of its own, it's under active development by several people, so it's rapidly improving.
Jax184 said:
That was it! :laugh:
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Oh. lol Ok, thought what you described for the Epic 4G was different, not the same. Gotcha. :good:
The CM ROM is faster and trimmer than the stock ROM, and fixes a couple of bugs and annoyances. No touchwiz interface, no t-mobile tethering lockout, no samsung bloatware. And while it does have a few bugs of its own, it's under active development by several people, so it's rapidly improving.
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Well I know from my experience with the Epic 4G, you can remove the bloatware with Titanium backup and tether via an ap (if you mean hotspot tether). But at least there's options, stock or CM.
Still don't get why this phone isn't more successful than it is.
Compass is wacky on mine
On my Relay, the compass is off in bizarro land, and has been since I bought it. Stock ICS/unrooted, or stock JB/unrooted, same problem. It doesn't seem to hold calibration at all, and I can even notice that it very slowly spins as I drive. On those times I've tried Google Maps 7 (yuuuuck!), I've noticed that it cheerfully ignores your GPS heading and points the arrow to your alleged compass heading. Between the large amount of change-for-change's-sake UI stupidity, the compass problem, and its general crashiness, I've ditched the update and gone back to the original version.
I've just rooted it yesterday, but I seriously doubt that rooting would make any difference with the compass.
Bobby Tables said:
On my Relay, the compass is off in bizarro land, and has been since I bought it. Stock ICS/unrooted, or stock JB/unrooted, same problem. It doesn't seem to hold calibration at all, and I can even notice that it very slowly spins as I drive. On those times I've tried Google Maps 7 (yuuuuck!), I've noticed that it cheerfully ignores your GPS heading and points the arrow to your alleged compass heading. Between the large amount of change-for-change's-sake UI stupidity, the compass problem, and its general crashiness, I've ditched the update and gone back to the original version.
I've just rooted it yesterday, but I seriously doubt that rooting would make any difference with the compass.
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How did you root by the way? One-Click?
But yeah, based on what you just said, I'm convinced its the update, not the compass. I don't understand how Google went backwards in regards to this so-called update to Google maps. But the Metal Sniffer solution seems to work, 9 times out of 10 anyway.
Also, I keep looking and looking, but unless I'm still missing it, didn't the update take away to ability to save your current location?
The bootloader is unlocked, there is no reason to run a rooting script. Just flash CWM with Odin/Heimdall and then supersu
I'm having a very similar experience here on CM 10.2 nightlies. Calibrating the compass doesn't always work. When it does it doesn't always stick. And when it sticks, it will be very jumpy, skipping from one direction to the other at random. This prevents compass mode in Google Maps, so it's annoying but not such a huge deal.