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Another gps thread but with a twist-ish

Right Ive had my O2 XDA Serra for 3 days now..what can I say but amazing when it works but when it doesn't GOD I want to throw it at somthing. but anyway my issue is with the gps.
It finds the salitlite things and I see the red bars going up and down but I dont get a fix! Its found 12 satilites and nothing!!!! Im using com4 on braodrate 4800 ive tried the other settings but they dont work either.
Ive spoken with O2 and quried them with this fault and they have never herd of it!!!!! Im like WAT! its plastered all over the web!
Anyway is there anyone who can help a guy out?
THanks Andi

How long are you waiting? Having used GPS' now for approx 15 years a unit may have identified a sattelite but it may still take some time for it to lock on. It is not unusual for a unit to see all the sattelites available but still take some time to lock on. Sadly it appears that in the Touch Pro they are using some of the older tech GPS chips/antennas (probably to keep the price down) because on modern setups (used by the likes of Garmin etc), a brand new cold lock can be achieved in a minute or two. Once you have locked on you should find re-aquiring the satellites much quicker unless you leave it for a day or two between 'fixes.'
Although having used GPS for 15 odd years, I am certainly no expert in how they work etc so I could be way off the mark but this is based on my experience.

1) It will lock on faster if you're outside with a clear view of the sky
2) Updating QuickGPS might help some
3) You can expect it to take 1-15 minutes to get the first lock (usually 2-3 for me)
Which app are you using? I like VisualGPSCe to view the sats, HTC GPS Tool is another popular one.

hi thanks for the info, Ive left the phone for ages (well over 25mins) and nothing ill try and get a screen shot posted when i get home of this, the software im using is that htc gps one im just prober scratching my head over this one......

Andi-2005 said:
hi thanks for the info, Ive left the phone for ages (well over 25mins) and nothing ill try and get a screen shot posted when i get home of this, the software im using is that htc gps one im just prober scratching my head over this one......
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I had my Touch pro for a few weeks and have always had the gps working well (though I think it's less sensitive than the Diamond).
after a brief period of losing the signal every couple of seconds (which was already locked and navigating me fine!) it stopped fixing altogether. Satellites shown but no signal bars in TomTom or any lock in Google maps.
Hard reset didn't help and it's being replaced tomorrow.....
I'd take it back to the shop once you rule everything else out....

GPS Time to lock on

When I first got the phone it seemed like I could lock on in about a minute. Tried to use the GPS the other day and after it searched for a few minutes in the car I just turned it off. Very frustrating... What are you guys experiencing?
I am on stock rom, rooted, gorilla v05 OC kernel.

Are you moving when you were trying to get a lock? When your moving it takes much longer to get a lock, this is true even with dedicated GPS units. Having said that my MT4G takes about 10-15secs to lock outside not moving, very nice coming from a Galaxy S which couldn't lock or track to save it's life. To many variables if moving to make a good comparison in GPS performance.

mine locks in seconds... love it after the vibrant lol

Yes, I have tried while walking and while in the car. Just tried to put the phone up to the window of my apartment for several minutes with no luck. I will try to stand still outside tomorrow.

larryg2k3 said:
Yes, I have tried while walking and while in the car. Just tried to put the phone up to the window of my apartment for several minutes with no luck. I will try to stand still outside tomorrow.
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I had the same issue! It wasn't like that in the beginning but the other day I was trying to get directions while driving and it was such a pain in the ass that after 4 minutes, it still said "searching for GPS". Garbage...
i wonder what was wrong. I was outside and the weather was pretty decent but nighttime.

Same thing here, although I was blaming it on CM rom....

borodin1 said:
Same thing here, although I was blaming it on CM rom....
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I didn't root mine but I have the same problem. When I first got the phone it used to lock on GPS very fast, now I use Igo or Copilot and both take like ever to find lock on GPS . I use GPS test app and it shows like 6 GPS Sats but the programs still can't get the gps reading.

I have just tried it after uninstalling copilot just to keep one navigation application and I disabled wireless network location assistance and I think gps worked fine,i have to try it tomorrow again.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

Gps is not stable, today I tried it by holding the phone in street and standing . Gps test apo got about 6 or 8 but no location locking on google maps or igo . I went to my room, placed the phone on the window I got sometimes 3 and then 8or 9 .it worked eventually and started to become fast (i turned the gps on and off) it seems like a software problem!i am not sure
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

I had a lot better luck trying to lock on while standing still. I have also since switched to Iced Glacier 1.1.1 and now 1.1.2, but I think that being stationary with a good view to get initial lock is key.

My brand new Mytouch 4G (stock rom, not rooted) has the same issue. It tries to get a GPS lock using google nav for minutes without ever getting a lock. I can disable GPS and enable it to sometimes speed up the lock process, but it never locks in less than 30 seconds. From the previous posts, it sounds like the GPS hardware is sub par on this phone and there may be no quick fix. Fortunately, mine is still new and can swap it out for another and see if that helps.

My gps works fine, although once it would not lock on, and a simple reboot took care of that...
I often use GPS test or navigation just because I love seeing how well it works...
...coming from a Vibrant

I experience the same problems with the mytouch before and after rooting and installing custom roms, I think its the phone itself, I never had this problem with the nexus one

I too have noticed it is sometimes really really slow.
Much much slower than my old E-71 sometimes.
I wonder if cases/how you hold it can affect it.
- Frank

[Q] should i swap my g2x because of GPS, is it worth the risk

i have been unable to get the gps on my g2x to achieve a lock in under 10 minutes, and i have tried krylon's tweak , and some other mods/tweaks i found here on XDA. Do you guys think it is worth sending the phone in to t-mobile/LG? I have seen a lot of threads about some people having problems with their replacements and having to wait weeks for a new phone? Has anyone had a good experience getting a replacement? any feedback would be appreciated

Go ahead and exchange it. The vast majority of phones don't have GPS issues. At least not on the stock ROM.

Today is my last day, and i'm debating returning it as well because of the GPS not being able to get a lock on a stock rom.

bighulk666 said:
Today is my last day, and i'm debating returning it as well because of the GPS not being able to get a lock on a stock rom.
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Id exchange it, I get a lock in seconds...

Lol go ahead and swap it I bet you the next one will have same gps issues. Use a different way rom or wait for lg to release a baseband fix
Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk

Every rom I run can't get a lock
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA Premium App

Suprah said:
Lol go ahead and swap it I bet you the next one will have same gps issues. Use a different way rom or wait for lg to release a baseband fix
Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk
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Stock rom gps is the best man... If he can't get a lock on stock its probably hardware.the gps in this phone is top notch on stock...

This is surprising. First major great impression walking out of the Tmo store this week with this phone was how fast my GPS lock was. 2-3 seconds. Of course, I came from a year of tweaking my Captivate to finally get it to a satisfactory 100 meter lock in 15 secs.
Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk

Mine sometimes locks in seconds and sometimes takes a bit of time to lock, or I may have to retry sometimes shutting down navigation and opening again... I think its because navigation is in beta, otherwise not much of a problem
Sent from my LG-P999 using XDA App

I think there must be a bug in the hardware driver for the GPS.. sometimes it works instantly for me, and other times I never get a lock.

There's clearly something funky about the integration of the GPS with the software on this phone. If you look at GPSTest, for example, all the signal-to-noise values are off the scale, running into the text above the graphical area; in GPS Status, the area of the circles representing the satellite positions is supposed to be proportional to the S/N ratio, and they're all huge, much larger than the (presumably normal) sizes in the screenshot in the market. To me, that indicates a units error, where the GPS is reporting in a smaller unit than the software is expecting. That suggests that other facets of the interface between the GPS and the software may be out of kilter and responsible for the erratic behavior.
There may be other factors in play, also. I often get a pretty quick lock, 10-15 seconds. Last week I opened Google navigation and waited for 20 minutes (5 stationary, 15 driving) to get a lock without success. I power-cycled the phone, and when it came back it got a lock essentially as soon as I opened the application. (Which is not dissimilar to other things on this phone -- I find it runs much more smoothly and reliably if I reboot it every couple of days. I'm thinking there's probably some bug in the memory management with fragmentation or leaks.)
I'm running stock everything, BTW.

I get a decent 3G, 4G and GPS signal at my house.
Right down the street I get a GREAT signal.
It's odd cause I can launch Maps or Navigation while driving, and it will take a few minutes to "lock on".
But if I set my destination at the house before leaving, it is almost instant.

wmm said:
There's clearly something funky about the integration of the GPS with the software on this phone. If you look at GPSTest, for example, all the signal-to-noise values are off the scale, running into the text above the graphical area; in GPS Status, the area of the circles representing the satellite positions is supposed to be proportional to the S/N ratio, and they're all huge, much larger than the (presumably normal) sizes in the screenshot in the market
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Click to collapse
I've seen this issue too. It's a bug in the GPS firmware.

well i took the plunge, my new g2x is on the way. I really hope it isn't a bleeder/rebooter.

GPS.. GPS

Ok so coming from an hd2 the GPS wasn't that fast but the sensations is equally as slow. I've use it with GPS status but still slowwwww. And I'm not sure if this is normal but the GPS turns off everytime the screen does. I remember my hd2 didn't do that. Sooo is there a setting that I have messed up or should I exchange it? Or are they all like this.
And one last thing. When I'm using Google navigation the voice navi is really low when playing music.
Would a hard reset be good right now? And is there anyway to sync phone data and apps to a computer so I don't have to download everything again?
Yep lots of questions.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA App

gps for me is supa fast , locks in 5 sec or less , unless im inside a metal building and its still locks in under 30 sec, i did do a hard reset on the phone the second day i had it though

Mine is also fast, typically under 10 seconds, often under 5. That's inside my house.
GPS Test does lose the lock when the screen blanks, but it has a setting to keep the screen on. When I'm driving with Google Nav the screen stays on.

Yep hard reset did the trick. GPS under 10 seconds now. Too happy. And the phone feels a lot faster. Probably just placebo but I don't care
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA App

I am coming from a G2X and that looked pretty quick, usually within 10 seconds but the Sensation is locking instantly. This is when I'm using Google Maps as I have not used my GPS for anything else.

chrisizzle492 said:
Yep hard reset did the trick. GPS under 10 seconds now. Too happy. And the phone feels a lot faster. Probably just placebo but I don't care
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA App
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That worked for me too. But then it happened again. Did a regular restart, fixed it. Next trip, same day-No lock, clear day. Restart, worked. I dont have time to do a restart every time i need gps. A lot of the time i 'm entering destinations while driving, restarts are unacceptable. I'm seeing some strange patterns developing with this phone. It seems to degrade quickly for a lot of people. Factory restore doesnt help much. I hope HTC has an update soon.

I don't have any issues. GPS gets locked within 5 to 10 secs. I travel a lot so I have 3rd party Navi, Sygic Aura. Works well on Sensation. I also have HTC's Location that comes with the phone bundle when I purchased. Location is very smooth although addresses and pois are not as updated as Sygic. You can also consider Co-Pilot if you are planning to have Navi system in Sensation.
I bought Sensation during the first day launch and I would say it is a remarkable piece of smartphone. Though I will always rate HD2 being the best phone I have used, Sensation comes in second.

My GPS is back to sucking ass. Idk what it is.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA App

Update!!!!! I think the problem is Google maps. I downloaded GPS essentials and it locked almost immediately. It could be the recent update. But either way I'm now looking for an alternative.
Update 2 nvm I have no idea anymore its working fast again. Lol I give up its sooo inconsistent.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using XDA App

Hi,
has anyone here tried to compare the HTC Sensation with a "real" GPS device (like a Garmin)? GPS lock times are not very important for me but the focus is on real accuracy. (not the displayed accuracy which might be different).
Geocaching experience with the Sensation would be ideal
I did not see much "serious" GPS reviews for the Sensation so far and an acceptable GPS would be important for the buying decision - besides S-OFF

LunaNoctis said:
Hi,
has anyone here tried to compare the HTC Sensation with a "real" GPS device (like a Garmin)? GPS lock times are not very important for me but the focus is on real accuracy. (not the displayed accuracy which might be different).
Geocaching experience with the Sensation would be ideal
I did not see much "serious" GPS reviews for the Sensation so far and an acceptable GPS would be important for the buying decision - besides S-OFF
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, here's a video testing the GPS. I think it performs pretty well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mivpOyvNU30

@aNYthing24
I already know this video. Unfortunately it is more a demo of the maps application.
I do not even need the maps, but the longitude and latitude numbers need to be as exact as possible and I had bad experiences with my current phone and try to avoid another GPS "deaf" device
Probably a GPS in a mobile devices never beats a dedicated GPS unit, but it would be nice when the position is "good enough" without connecting an external GPS receiver

Ok. Sometimes GPS sucks because:
1) Biggest reason: The location server is down. Without aGPS, you are relying on pure GPS. This is slow as hell when you are indoors or in a large city. You can wait like 5 minutes for a lock. You should lock in like 1 minute easily with aGPS indoors, and probably 10-15 seconds tops outdoors.
2) Cloudy days, buildings, etc in the way.
But almost always #1 will be the reason why people say it sucks. It's like night and day difference between a good GPS and bad GPS.
Then when we talk about lock times, so many things comes in the way. You can easily get a 5 second lock time on plenty of devices, but it doesn't mean the GPS is good. The Galaxy S and Nexus S with their GPS in working condition will lock in 5 seconds, but it's not anywhere as accurate as the Motorola Droid series or the Nexus One.

Still having GPS issues?

I'm just wondering if anyone else with a MT4GS is still having GPS sync issues. Mine still takes forever, and I've tried every trick in the book. I even tried my own gps.conf file with pure GPS without any A-GPS and everything in between.
I'm starting to think it's a hardware problem at this point and was going to see about doing an exchange, but if it's just a "feature" of this device to have a garbage GPS lock then I guess I'll have to sit on it.
I get jealous of my tablet and my GF's phone which have near instant lock of the GPS; even cold it's within 20 seconds. It seems like my phone and the one before it took being plugged into power sitting still in an open field in order to achieve lock.
Thanks for your feedback!

Is this across ROMs?
Hastily spouted for your befuddlement

Been here?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=16822068

Blue6IX said:
Been here?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=16822068
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Click to collapse
Yep, tried that. And yes across ROMs
I just remember people saying they were having problems when our device first came out. Just wondering if that's still the case.

WangChung81 said:
Yep, tried that. And yes across ROMs
I just remember people saying they were having problems when our device first came out. Just wondering if that's still the case.
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Click to collapse
I get a lock in 30 seconds or less on either doubleshot from a cold start unless it's really overcast or stormy, then may take a bit longer.
I am always outside and with a clear view of 50% or more sky when I activate it.

Blue6IX said:
I get a lock in 30 seconds or less on either doubleshot from a cold start unless it's really overcast or stormy, then may take a bit longer.
I am always outside and with a clear view of 50% or more sky when I activate it.
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Click to collapse
Wow.
I stand outside perfectly still for 5 minutes on a sunny clear sky day and sometimes it just doesn't lock period. I'm going to try 1 more ROM then I'm doing an exchange.

Yea, movement definitely adds extra communication with the satellites, and that cripples you by 6-18 seconds each time.
If you are pretty stationary with a clear view of a clear sky, and sometimes don't lock at all, there is a problem there.
Try gps status on a fresh install of a rom. Go through the normal rom stuff, let it settle and then reboot, connect to your network and reboot, then install the app and inject current agps data.
Even if it takes a while for first lock - all subsequent locks will be shorter. The only true cold locks are on fresh installs, removing yourself from the geographic area of last lock and/or after a long time of no agps data.
Use it for a day or two and use the gps to death.
If still no joy i'd start looking into hardware issues.
One last thought - battery strength may play a factor here as well. Try to do all your testing on 80% or better or while charging and over 20%.

WangChung81 said:
I'm just wondering if anyone else with a MT4GS is still having GPS sync issues. Mine still takes forever, and I've tried every trick in the book. I even tried my own gps.conf file with pure GPS without any A-GPS and everything in between.
I'm starting to think it's a hardware problem at this point and was going to see about doing an exchange, but if it's just a "feature" of this device to have a garbage GPS lock then I guess I'll have to sit on it.
I get jealous of my tablet and my GF's phone which have near instant lock of the GPS; even cold it's within 20 seconds. It seems like my phone and the one before it took being plugged into power sitting still in an open field in order to achieve lock.
Thanks for your feedback!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As I noted in your other post about the Miktouch ROM, Miktouch is based on the much newer 1.63.531.2 codebase. One of the things HTC improved in that release is the GPS code. It gets a lock very quickly for me, I have no GPS issues. Even when I was in China, I got GPS lock very fast, and Google Maps was spot-on accurate.

Fuzi0719 said:
As I noted in your other post about the Miktouch ROM, Miktouch is based on the much newer 1.63.531.2 codebase. One of the things HTC improved in that release is the GPS code. It gets a lock very quickly for me, I have no GPS issues. Even when I was in China, I got GPS lock very fast, and Google Maps was spot-on accurate.
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Click to collapse
I'll try it out for sure then. Thanks!