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
Related
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
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
I have an inspire running coredroid v8.1 and I cannot get a gps lock at all, even if I let it sit outside for 10 minutes...
I have reflashed the rom several times, and even tried the newest versions of virtuosity and cm
I have followed the video to pull the phone apart and I'm positive the gold pins are making connection
I have tried angel death's patch
I have ran gps status and cleared and re-downloaded in a-gps settings, ran gps test, and ran faster fix
I have tried the trick where you pull the sim out and get a lock (I still get no lock even with no sim)
I've looked everywhere and tried to do all the research before posting a new thread, but I just can't find anything else and I don't know what my problem is...
any insight would be greatly appreciated
EDIT: Also thought I should include that I have flashed radios 12.41.60.19_26.06.04.14_M, 12.54.60.25_26.09.04.11_M2, and 12.62.60.27_26.13.04.19_M with none making a difference
Sorry to tell you but you might just have a bad thing piece of harware. I started a thread a little while ago called "GPS Last Resort". I tried everything... And I mean Everything! I was told that there were "known" hardware issues with the Inspire. So I un-rooted and returned to a "stock" state and went through the PITA process of getting a replacement.
Once I got my replacement, it was a night and day difference. My new one locks in less than 15 seconds with 5-4 meters accuracy.
Don't drive yourself crazy. If it is still under warranty, get it replaced.
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium
did your phone have any other signs of being defective or was it just the gps? I mean, the phone is great except for this! No boot loops, force closes, glitches, or anything...
Also, if it's just the antenna, could I buy an inspire with like a broke screen or something off ebay and just switch them out? Do you think that's a viable option?
Sorry it took so long to get back to you on this...
You may not even need to replace the antenna at all. When you pop off the cover for the LED camera flash (this is also your gps antenna) there are two little spring like clips that are the contacts for the antenna. If those contacts are not making a good connection - your phone will just keep searching for signal. If you are brave enough - you can pop out the antenna and carefully bend out those contact clips in order to make a better connection.
I was hesitant to do this myself - and sense the phone was still under warranty, I got a replacement.
Sorry again for the delay - hope that helps if you have not already found an answer.
dschreiber69 said:
Sorry it took so long to get back to you on this...
You may not even need to replace the antenna at all. When you pop off the cover for the LED camera flash (this is also your gps antenna) there are two little spring like clips that are the contacts for the antenna. If those contacts are not making a good connection - your phone will just keep searching for signal. If you are brave enough - you can pop out the antenna and carefully bend out those contact clips in order to make a better connection.
I was hesitant to do this myself - and sense the phone was still under warranty, I got a replacement.
Sorry again for the delay - hope that helps if you have not already found an answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea be careful with this. I decided I'd go ahead and pop off the camera cover to readjust my gps antennae contacts and ended up breaking the cover. ~2cm crack just under the flash, which raises up the cover enough that the contacts won't make contact at all unless I'm applying pressure that only Thor could exert on the cover.
side note - 2 weeks after I did this my screen shattered.
Haven't been having much luck lately..
homeslice976 said:
Yea be careful with this. I decided I'd go ahead and pop off the camera cover to readjust my gps antennae contacts and ended up breaking the cover. ~2cm crack just under the flash, which raises up the cover enough that the contacts won't make contact at all unless I'm applying pressure that only Thor could exert on the cover.
side note - 2 weeks after I did this my screen shattered.
Haven't been having much luck lately..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ouch!
That is pretty much why I decided to go for doing the warranty replacement
I did the warranty after trying to remove the gps antenna because it still didnt work after i did that. The sent it back working !!!
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...
I have early batch with bad GPS.
I could improve the signal strength and it's accuracy by slipping a piece of paper underneath the gps sensor as shown by many videos instructions on YouTube.
But after sometime, it would be bad again and need readjustment.
So, I am thinking to replace the back cover to fix this issue permanently.
Would this be the solution?
Anyone has done this before?
Thanks
I am currently having this issue as well. The folded paper underneath the pins did not help so I am wondering as well if changing the back cover will help.
Thanks
gogol said:
I have early batch with bad GPS.
I could improve the signal strength and it's accuracy by slipping a piece of paper underneath the gps sensor as shown by many videos instructions on YouTube.
But after sometime, it would be bad again and need readjustment.
So, I am thinking to replace the back cover to fix this issue permanently.
Would this be the solution?
Anyone has done this before?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try putting electrical tape like shown in one of the videos?
darkgoon3r96 said:
Did you try putting electrical tape like shown in one of the videos?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Electrical tape? No. I have never seen that kind of specific.
I only put a piece of paper underneath the GPS sensor.
By the way, I bought the back cover replacement, it doesn't help. So don't bother.
provider maybe
i have a first day nexus gps (tmobile) is excellent. had 3 phones with sprint gps previously,sprint gps sucked donkey ****.
My N5 had a bad GPS. It was incredibly frustrating tyring to navigate anywhere. I called Google customer service. They went through some trouble shooting formalities and my phone was found to be defective. They had me put my N5 in safe mode and activate 'GPS only'. I wasn't surprised that my phone never found a signal. The replacement phone works perfectly. Signal locks are fast and navigation is spot on. Basically it's how you'd want your GPS to work. So if i were you. I'd get it replaced.
kresk said:
My N5 had a bad GPS. It was incredibly frustrating tyring to navigate anywhere. I called Google customer service. They went through some trouble shooting formalities and my phone was found to be defective. They had me put my N5 in safe mode and activate 'GPS only'. I wasn't surprised that my phone never found a signal. The replacement phone works perfectly. Signal locks are fast and navigation is spot on. Basically it's how you'd want your GPS to work. So if i were you. I'd get it replaced.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that's true. This is only related to first batch. I should exchange it, but it's to late now for warranty. But I am going to buy nexus 6 ?