Database Info

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Started out very confident.
Less confident every day.

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

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

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

AT&T Store Experience

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

GPS is a quality control problem

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Amazing GPS performance

Went on a 180 mile trip today through SoCal and I was stunned at how good my GPS is now working. I'd done some tests locally, but never far enough of a drive to consider the results of any significance. Today, I headed east from the San Fernando Valley, through Pasadena, out to San Bernardino, then north through the Pacheco Pass into Hesperia in the high desert. From city to boonies and from about 350 feet elevation to over 3,500. My Cappy got a lock within seconds while sitting in my driveway and never once dropped lock the whole way there and back. Watching the screen the position marker remained steady on the road and did not wander at all. GPS is important to me and I finally have the performance I was getting on my Tilt 2. Yes, I had to go to a custom ROM to get it (Andromeda 1.2), but it runs so well on so many levels that I'm OK with that. Screw stock Froyo (which I tried along with Cog 4.x and GPS was mediocre at best on both).

I drove about 175 miles today using it, and never lost a lock also... I was using my girlfriends phone with stock 2.2. Was accurate to 10 meters whole trip... Had never had anything close to that before upgrade
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App

Mine is horable.. just don't know What rom to go to
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Mine works good on any rom as long as I don't put the phone in my lap. Seems that the antenna gets a weak signal if placed back down and gets the dreaded large blue circle and looses accuracy. If I hold the phone up though it is balls on accurate.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Stock, I could lose GPS by just flipping the visor down. Today, I had the phone in my car mount, I put it on the seat at one point, put it to my head to answer a call...didn't lose lock once. All while playing MP3s via BT through the radio.

Im on stock 2.1 and my GPS has always worked fine in my car. I have trouble getting a lock indoors. I went on a 7 hour drive Thursday and didn't lose a lock once.
I wonder if some peoples GPS's are just junk and its the luck of the draw.

Mr_Ditters said:
I wonder if some peoples GPS's are just junk and its the luck of the draw.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That may be for some, but I've had stock Froyo and Cog 4.1 on this same phone and neither had the GPS work as well as it does on Andromeda.

Miami_Son said:
put it to my head to answer a call
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Not the best habit in California, pretty steep fines for that.

Gerle said:
Not the best habit in California, pretty steep fines for that.
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I was offroad at the time.

Mine works pretty well most of the time.. seems to have a slight 'drifing' issue when stopped tho.. say at a stop light.. kinda strange..

hate to poop on the whiner party, but stock 2.1 and now stock 2.2 have worked as expected. totally. this is a gnarly phone.

FireFly is by far the best results I have ever had with GPS...locks super quick and stays!

It seems a lot of the Captivates' GPS, like mine, worked great when the new phone was used for the first 2 to 3 weeks, then it would degrade. Load a new rom on the phone and again it would work fine for 2 to 3 weeks then deteriorate again. I'm always interested in knowing how long the current rom has been installed and how much the GPS has been utilized. The fact that it worked good when new, makes me think the hardware is not the problem. I'm no programmer but I always wondered if the deterioration was the result of some "file" that grew in size as the GPS was utilized. And, as the "file" grew, time/power requirements increased causing the GPS to deteriorate. How could it ever work correctly if it is a hardware issue?
retnuh

hbgregg said:
hate to poop on the whiner party, but stock 2.1 and now stock 2.2 have worked as expected. totally. this is a gnarly phone.
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Oh, well, then I guess your singular experience negates that of the many other users whose GPS has been total crap. It must be all their fault and not the device.
At one point I had 3 Captivates in my possession and all had stock Eclair, Froyo, Cog 4.x and Andromeda on them at various times. This was typical of their GPS performance (the phone with Andromeda is on the left).

I've had fairly good gps performance but I'm not picky. However, in the last couple days it won't get a lock no matter what..just flashes. I'm not that picky, but I don't like that it doesn't even get a lock

My first captivate, bought in September, was exchanged at Best Buy on day 30. The GPS on stock eclair never was very stable from day 1, slow to lock, very unreliable on the move much of the time, although not always.
My second captivate had very good GPS on stock eclair. Not perfect, but fast lock and rarely wandered, for three months. Then one day, out of the blue, it turned into my first captivate. I factory reset it. No joy. I exchanged it at ATT warranty center, told them the GPS wasn't working.
The third captivate GPS on stock eclair was an order of magnitude better than the second one ever was. Locks instantly, indoors or out, always good to 5 meters no matter the conditions, it's just unreal. Still is with Froyo.
So, I can say I have had wildly varying experiences with the same software. That tells me there is hardware variance. I haven't tried software fixes, ever, so I can at least be a reference point from that perspective.
Bob

retnuh said:
It seems a lot of the Captivates' GPS, like mine, worked great when the new phone was used for the first 2 to 3 weeks, then it would degrade. Load a new rom on the phone and again it would work fine for 2 to 3 weeks then deteriorate again. I'm always interested in knowing how long the current rom has been installed and how much the GPS has been utilized. The fact that it worked good when new, makes me think the hardware is not the problem. I'm no programmer but I always wondered if the deterioration was the result of some "file" that grew in size as the GPS was utilized. And, as the "file" grew, time/power requirements increased causing the GPS to deteriorate. How could it ever work correctly if it is a hardware issue?
retnuh
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't noticed that before, but I've had the current ROM (Paragon) for a couple weeks, and now I can't get a lock - worked great at the start, after a master clear. Maybe the old Samsung GPS reset app would work here.
What you have proposed is something we should all keep in the back of our minds...

My 1008 build had mediocre (at best) GPS. The I sent it in for repair and when I got it back (and installed Andromeda) the GPS worked so well I was beside myself with joy. The GPS remained fabulous for almost 2 month then, while running Cog 4.1 with Adam's GPS fix (and still working great--I got 10 sats while sitting on my toilet!), nirvana ended. I'm lucky to get 4 sats and locking is painfully slow.
It's been this way for about a week. I'm going to complain to Samsung and see if I can send it back for repair again.

Soccer_Dad said:
I haven't noticed that before, but I've had the current ROM (Paragon) for a couple weeks, and now I can't get a lock - worked great at the start, after a master clear. Maybe the old Samsung GPS reset app would work here.
What you have proposed is something we should all keep in the back of our minds...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Isn't paragon a kernel?

I'm not as lucky as you with Andromeda 1.2. I live in the SF bay area and can barely get a lock. Any suggestions?

GPS story

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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