Has the Note 4 compass gotten any better? - T-Mobile Galaxy Note 4 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I had the Note II and I always had trouble with the compass in gmaps. Specifically, if you are just looking at the map without having a destination entered (perhaps to review traffic), the compass would never work. The heading marker pretty much had a mind of its own. Well, I upgraded to the Note III, thinking that the problem must be fixed. Nope! Wrong! Nada! Same problem.
I started a thread a couple of years ago when I had the Note II
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=44662834#post44662834
And a lot of other folks responded, suggesting that it was some sort of bug.
I have tried the *#0*# calibration, and it seems to help at least for a few minutes, but it usually starts getting wonky again shortly. Also, the calibration almost never survives a reboot, forcing me to calibrate again.
Well, I am probably getting close to upgrading again, and I was wondering what I can expect with the Note 4. Has it been fixed?

Never had the issue with any of the note lines. Works ok for me.

Compass working great here.

Not so great with mine. Compas and GPS is only issue I've had with n4. Stark contrast to note 2 which was both fast and accurate.

10-K said:
Compass working great here.
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+1

Mine has been perfect since I calibrated it. Prior to calibration it was always 180° off. Survives reboots.

I guess it all depends different factors: user, location, service, etc. I've never had problems with GPS or compass with any of my Notes (1-4), from New York to Los Angeles, AT&T and T-mobile. If it was a thing, it was never a thing for me.

Related

Captivate's GPS is pissing me off

I take a walk everyday after lunch at the office and use RunKeeper to keep track of my progress. When I was using the Aria, I open the app, click the start button and never had trouble. With the Captivate, I have to stand on the street corner for 1 - 15 minutes before I get a GPS fix. This is unacceptable! I tried to follow the direction of the other posting and it's not helping much.
I feel like I made a bad decision to return the Aria and got the Captivate.
after reading tons of forums and post about the gps on captivate, I found out itis the google navigation software not the actual GPS, I got rid of all my problems once I switched the software to Sygic GPS, which is not free however; pm me and will hook you up!
Buy a different phone. After a year with the Captivate, no matter the tweak, GPS for navigation purposes or tracking purposes is not reliable. I used to use it with My Tracks for tracking my runs as well and it was shotty at best.
It is not Google Navigation either as Google Navigation on my Galaxy Tab 10.1 is freaking flawless.
The GPS on the Captivate sucks. Period. /endThread
After I got a refurb mine has worked and locks on quickly, but my previous Captivate did the same thing. It would take forever or sometimes not work at all.
Sent from my Captivate
The gps is spotty.. You can try turning on the control plane (hardware) also i noticed increase by removing case.. (hardware) other than that we have crappy chip with insufficient antenna..
sent from an alternate reality
The Captivate GPS is broken. Period. It doesn't work. Never has, never will. Anyone telling you anything else has low standards, poor testing, or is a liar.
With stock settings GPS is clearly broken.
That said changing the to the google SUPL server and occasionally running the "GPSRestore" app by samsung if I can't get a fix are pretty much the only GPS fixes I've ever needed.
I think my phone is a 1007.
But based on the majority of posts here my experience is not the norm.
What's the build date on your phone? I got mine recently with a Feb 2011 build date and the thing locked in seconds out of the box. I've used Co-Pilot to take me from Vancouver to Las Vegas with no issues. What bugs me about this phone is the battery life..
same
happens to me as well.
My stock captivate was great I'd get a 9 sat lock in 12 seconds nearly all the time.
I got hooked on flashing and my gps was usually crap on other roms.
Now I'm running apex 9 with a talon kernal and I'm getting a 9 sat lock in 10 to 12 again. So go figure
same here i think i got a bad phone so i send it back and a new one and everything works fine now.
Anyone telling you that the Cappy's GPS is broken is running Stock or doesn't know what they are talking about. It's not bad hardware, it's bad drivers. Use any ROM other than stock and they use updated drivers from other devices. I get a solid lock with 6-10 sats in less than 15 seconds as long as I can see the sky. the only time my GPS loses accuracy (it's usually at less than 5 meters, i.e. no circle in Google Nav) is when I go under a thick grove of trees or under a bridge.
asrrin29 said:
Anyone telling you that the Cappy's GPS is broken is running Stock or doesn't know what they are talking about. It's not bad hardware, it's bad drivers. Use any ROM other than stock and they use updated drivers from other devices. I get a solid lock with 6-10 sats in less than 15 seconds as long as I can see the sky. the only time my GPS loses accuracy (it's usually at less than 5 meters, i.e. no circle in Google Nav) is when I go under a thick grove of trees or under a bridge.
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Congrats on your fortunate luck but to insinuate that your solution is a universal fix is naive.
newter55 said:
Congrats on your fortunate luck but to insinuate that your solution is a universal fix is naive.
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There was quite a lengthy breakdown of the entire process for fixing the GPS, but basically it comes down to two problems.
1. The drivers that were shipped out with the stick ROM were HORRIBLE and did not work. through using the SGSII and Nexus S ROMS, as well as some config file fixes, they were able to fix the drivers.
2. There is a hardware bug, but it only manifests itself when the screen is oriented in landscape mode. While in landscape, the CPU has to do extra calculations which slows the phone down and also boggles up the GPS, since the GPS is CPU assisted. As long as you keep the phone in portrait mode with a clear view of the sky, you will get flawless locks. Even if you don't do these two things, you should still get decent locks with the new drivers, just not instantaneous and super accurate.
Anyone who has installed any of the latest gingerbread mods has noticed the huge increase in the GPS vs. Stock. Only a few people complain that it's not as accurate or fast as their (dedicated) TomTom's and Garmins. But no one I have seen has claimed that the GPS fix has not worked. I urge you to give a GB ROM a try.
asrrin29 said:
There was quite a lengthy breakdown of the entire process for fixing the GPS, but basically it comes down to two problems.
1. The drivers that were shipped out with the stick ROM were HORRIBLE and did not work. through using the SGSII and Nexus S ROMS, as well as some config file fixes, they were able to fix the drivers.
2. There is a hardware bug, but it only manifests itself when the screen is oriented in landscape mode. While in landscape, the CPU has to do extra calculations which slows the phone down and also boggles up the GPS, since the GPS is CPU assisted. As long as you keep the phone in portrait mode with a clear view of the sky, you will get flawless locks. Even if you don't do these two things, you should still get decent locks with the new drivers, just not instantaneous and super accurate.
Anyone who has installed any of the latest gingerbread mods has noticed the huge increase in the GPS vs. Stock. Only a few people complain that it's not as accurate or fast as their (dedicated) TomTom's and Garmins. But no one I have seen has claimed that the GPS fix has not worked. I urge you to give a GB ROM a try.
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Wrong! You can argue your point all you want but you are incorrect. I ran GB ROMS, Froyo ROMs, all of the numerous GPS fixes throughout the forums and nothing worked. GPS on my Captivate doesn't work, it is broken, I know what I am doing, I have been flashing custom ROMS for a year on it, it is inaccurate, can't hold a lock and just sucks. After dumping the Captivate for an HTC Sensation I now know what a working GPS is, it works out of the box, no need for patches or fixes, it just works. I am happy with my new device, I get over a day on battery with 5 hours of screen time without turning the brightness all the way down, 4 hours of calls all on one charge. I don't regret my decision to get rid of a broken device, Samsung makes great tv's but I doubt I will buy another Samsung phones again.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Tapatalk
The gps on the captivate is either hit or a miss. For some it works other it doesn't. Its all in experience and opinion. You can make an excuse and try to get a captivate replacement with a better gps.
Other than the gps and a pentile screen the cappy is a pretty great phone
Gps On Mine is worthless as wel..
I find gps to be better on KF1 KH3 Roms rather than jvr, cm7, etc
Might be better but the fact is the older Captivate's have faulty gps. Newer builds have better gps performance.
I agree it's a phone issue.. had my 07/2010 Captivate for 11mos, 2 weeks.. tried everything.. one day it would lock great the next 5 days nothing.. with 2 weeks left on my warranty I went to an ATT warranty center, luckily one close to my work, and they reflashed it with brand new software from Samsung as of last week and that did nothing, they gave me a refurb( looks brand new) and running Stock Froyo I got a 9 second lock 3 times in a row, you can even tell the GPS anntenae is different than my previous phone. GPS is awesome on this new phone, old one was defective..period. Running Fasty II Gingerbread did not affect the GPS on either phone.. if anyone is under warranty, work ATT warranty support and see if they can get you to send it back for an exchange.. my wife's worked great out of the box, mine did not but the replacement is awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rhiannon224 said:
Wrong! You can argue your point all you want but you are incorrect. I ran GB ROMS, Froyo ROMs, all of the numerous GPS fixes throughout the forums and nothing worked. GPS on my Captivate doesn't work, it is broken, I know what I am doing, I have been flashing custom ROMS for a year on it, it is inaccurate, can't hold a lock and just sucks.
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I agree with you. I've been posting on the FastyII Q&A forum about this. I bought my Captivate last August and have been flashing ROMs ever since. The only ROM that came close to nailing a GPS lock was Serendipity. I'm using FastyII now which is awesome, but, as usual, can't get GPS. BTW, how long are these things warrantied?

[Q] GPS - Will it ever be useable?

Hello There,
Apologies for what is another thread on GPS issues, but I need to vent!
I picked up a UK Galaxy S from ebay the other week and think all in all its a great phone (coming from a 3gs and HD7).
HOWEVER, the GPS is as good as worthless.
I have tried numerous guides I have found in line (altering settings in hidden menus and the like) and nothing seems to improve the accuracy of the device.
When using Google Navigation I often find that I have the blue sphere around the cursor, which will grow rather large at almost every junction or turn I come to. Tracking also seems to lag and jitter down roads. Going in a straight line is not so much of an issue, but when my speed or direction changes, the cursor will lag, at which point my location will usually be plotted way off.
Im on firmware 2.2, baseband 19000XXJPP and build number FROYO.XXJPO.
Is there anything I can do or should I just accept that the GPS is broken and forget about it? What puzzles me is that some people seem to have no issues what so ever. Whats the latest thinking on this issue?
Such a shame for a premium device.
Thanks
I've always just set mine to cold start and it's worked perfectly for me. It even better in JPX as it seems to get a lock much quicker when driving at speed.
There is a lot of interesting information in this thread regarding the GPS.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=860148
According to what's been said on this page, there may be a possibility of rewriting the GPS daemon:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=860148&page=10
You may also want to check out this thread in the Vibrant forum
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=878970
probably the cause for people that can't get a lock to any or very little satellite. Obviously ignore all the parts about the firmware, etc. since they do not apply to our phone but the hardware should be similar.
i could only get a lock when i am cycling or jogging or even in my house. But never in a car why is that. Sometimes in the car i could see up to 8 satellites but cant get a lock
Running JPX with JK4 modem on my I9000M and it seems pretty decent. Got 5m or 10m lock consiatently within 15sec while driving in a city environment. I have been on firmwares in the past where it was totally broken. So right sw is important.
However my Aria can get 2m no problen even faster so still room for improvement. But I think Samsung is makingvit gradually better.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
chambo622 said:
Running JPX with JK4 modem on my I9000M and it seems pretty decent. Got 5m or 10m lock consiatently within 15sec while driving in a city environment. I have been on firmwares in the past where it was totally broken. So right sw is important.
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This has been my experience on JPX as well. Locking is very fast outdoors (including in the car), best accuracy I have managed is 5m. I can live with that I guess, since I don't really use the GPS all that much.
In the off chance that Samsung reads XDA, it is still not good enough. They have shown some improvement and they should, hopefully can, and hopefully will show more. Until Samsung stops SGS dev I have hope. From what I can see they are working harder than ever.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Just tilt the phone to landscape and make sure your phone is mounted as far under the windshield as possible. The sgs has a small antenna so where you mount it makes a big difference. Also for car navigation try using something like Sygic Mobile Maps instead of google nav and see if that works better.
I haven't had issues with the gps for months now.
Thanks for all the input and information guys. Some very good stuff here.
From reading some of the threads posted I can definitely see how my problems echo those of others.
Interestingly, for me, the issue seems far worse when in built up areas with lots of buildings. Someone in another thread noticed the same issue and suggested that perhaps the software could not deal with the GPS signal reflections.
Literally I will be driving down the country road near to my house with almost acceptable levels of accuracy and as soon as I turn into my village the signal will vanish almost completely.
I guess the biggest mystery to me is why some people have no issues at all, whilst others do. Having just got the phone I am not familiar with firmware revisions and the like. What is the JPX build and how does it differ from mine? What version is mine exactly (JPO)?
I had terrible GPS issues and was waiting for the update, but my co-worker also had a SGS and got the 2.2 update, it only made a slight difference to the accuracy.
I would recommend you get it fixed by Samsung, I'm convinced they have changed something in the hardware to make the GPS work. It just doens; make sense that some people have the issues and some people don't who are running exactly the same firmware.
Although if you got if from Ebay, it'll probably be out of warranty. It might not though, in which case I would class this kind of problem as a manufacturing defect, they might fix it for free.
Logicalstep
menu > settings > about phone. Under baseband and build number you will see what firmware you are on.
Just plug the phone into kies and see if you have an update, if all else fails take the phone back for a replacement or have the gps antenna replaced by samsung.
Already posted FW version (2.2 JPO).
I havent read any stories of samsung replacing GPS antennas as I understand this is a pretty common problem.
Don't think its still working in the UK...trying all the possible solutions. I am currently running JPK
LeeBear said:
You may also want to check out this thread in the Vibrant forum
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=878970
probably the cause for people that can't get a lock to any or very little satellite. Obviously ignore all the parts about the firmware, etc. since they do not apply to our phone but the hardware should be similar.
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This is interesting. FYI, the thread says that Vibrants made prior to October 2010 had a poor contact with the GPS antenna. There is a recommended physical fix.
I did a quick search and haven't seen any similar news for the international galaxy S. Is the Vibrant made by Samsung directly or through a subsidiary or OEM? There is no manufacture date on my phone or box though.
excuse me, i don't understand if there are a hardware change for galaxy s...
Can they confirm this?
Still can't believe I'm saying this but my gps went from zero to hero with jk4 froyo.
Initial lock can be slow, but is very accurate. One thing that I noticed last week that was odd, I typically use My Tracks, Nav, GPS Essentials and Gas Buddy, they all work great. Well last week I tried maps right after starting the gps radio, Maps could not get a lock. After starting one of the other apps and watching it get a lock, I went back into Maps and Maps could then find me no problem. It seems very weird to me that My Tracks can get a lock without a kickstart but Maps cannot when you would think the underlying software should be pretty near the same.
I have thoroughly tested my gps on journeys from fifty to one hundred miles and the tracks are fantastic, I've monitored my sats with gps essentials and I'm typically seeing 9-11 sats all locked on with one sat dropping intermittently.
I wish I could help the others but I can't cause I've done nothing to this phone, all stock, never modded, only updated using official methods and firmware.
Neil
My GPS was perfect initially, then poor on JPK, now perfect again on JPU. Seems more like a firmware/software issue, rather than hardware...
neil85ae86 said:
Still can't believe I'm saying this but my gps went from zero to hero with jk4 froyo.
Initial lock can be slow, but is very accurate. One thing that I noticed last week that was odd, I typically use My Tracks, Nav, GPS Essentials and Gas Buddy, they all work great. Well last week I tried maps right after starting the gps radio, Maps could not get a lock. After starting one of the other apps and watching it get a lock, I went back into Maps and Maps could then find me no problem. It seems very weird to me that My Tracks can get a lock without a kickstart but Maps cannot when you would think the underlying software should be pretty near the same.
I have thoroughly tested my gps on journeys from fifty to one hundred miles and the tracks are fantastic, I've monitored my sats with gps essentials and I'm typically seeing 9-11 sats all locked on with one sat dropping intermittently.
I wish I could help the others but I can't cause I've done nothing to this phone, all stock, never modded, only updated using official methods and firmware.
Neil
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Interesting. Do you happen to know where I stand in the firmware order with JPO?
There is a sea of information regarding firmwares and such like and it can be difficult to figure exactly where one particular firmware stands in relation to the others.
Is yours newer?
your is newer
I would think, however I'm betting their are many little variations with hardware so not necessarily is the latest the best for all devices.
I'm quite confident that general performance is affecting the gps too and a lagfix might help. This is based on observations I made with my old 2.1 when the phone was busy and hot the gps would wander all over the place.
I hope you can get it resolved.
Neil

Droid 3 GPS Issues

I have had continuous issues with the Droid 3. One of my biggest issues is that the GPS seems completely unstable. I have tried turning on/off GPS options, etc...
Weather I try to use Google Maps or another application such as Endomondo, it cant maintain a lock. It seems to be able to locate me within 12 - 30 feet and then within a mile!!!
Using an application like Endomondo (running, cycling, etc), is completely useless. It can't track my location at all and when it does lock on, it only holds for a few seconds and then gone again.
I took the phone in to Verizon with a complaint about the GPs and screen issues (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1239980) and the rep said both were normal for this phone...
Has anyone figured out a way to resolve this problem?
I, too, have the same issue with GPS. I use SportyPal Pro, and cannot use my Droid 3 when running/walking. I can go for a 5 mile run, and SportyPal will show I had ran 6 miles. I can run north to south in a straight line, and when finished, SportyPal will show that I went east and west as much as 400-500 feet off of that straight line and because of that can add anywhere from .1 miles to .5 miles to that 1 mile run.
It is so unreliable that I will use my older decommisioned Droid2 to run with. It works perfectly with the same software.
If anybody has any suggestions, I'm all ears.
bishop0114 said:
I have had continuous issues with the Droid 3. One of my biggest issues is that the GPS seems completely unstable. I have tried turning on/off GPS options, etc...
Weather I try to use Google Maps or another application such as Endomondo, it cant maintain a lock. It seems to be able to locate me within 12 - 30 feet and then within a mile!!!
Using an application like Endomondo (running, cycling, etc), is completely useless. It can't track my location at all and when it does lock on, it only holds for a few seconds and then gone again.
I took the phone in to Verizon with a complaint about the GPs and screen issues (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1239980) and the rep said both were normal for this phone...
Has anyone figured out a way to resolve this problem?
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Sadly, I have the same issues.
Well with only 3 people chiming in, maybe it is bad hardware?
bishop0114 said:
Well with only 3 people chiming in, maybe it is bad hardware?
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God, I hope not. I have enough problems with this phone as it is.
No problems with GPS for me
Sent from my DROID3 using xda premium
kshen1 said:
No problems with GPS for me
Sent from my DROID3 using xda premium
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Are you using it for navigation only? Or a similar application for running/walking?
The reason I ask is because I do not notice a problem during navigation. It works great for that without any problems. Until I get to downtown Chicago. I almost expect problems there. Even with my Droid2.
i've only had issues with my gps in areas with lte. when im at college im in a city with lte support and my gps doesn't work (my friend who has an X also has issues with his gps when in areas with lte). when im home where there isnt lte support my gps works fine.
No it's not hardware mine works flawlessly and almost instantly fixes position, tho i have modded the gps.conf found in the etc folder. Details for tweaking this for your region can be found here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=13537801&postcount=1
Many thanx to 75markus for this.
Since we don't have a recovery yet to flash a zip you will need to edit the gps.conf file manually.
Oceanic region can be found in my sig below apart of my camera mod.
-smc
The problem I was having with the GPS from Day 1 is that I would occasionally notice that it would not start up at all when openning a GPS-dependant app (such as Maps or Weatherbug, etc). Whenever that happened, I would have to restart the phone, and then the GPS would be able to initialize again... at least, for a while.
Eventually, I was digging around in the setting and found the "VZW location services" option under "Location & security settings". I unchecked that option and, ever since, I've had no problem with the GPS. It seems that th VZW-based location services were causing the problem. Of course, since then, I've rooted and frozen all of the VZW bloat, so I might be able to turn that option back on with no ill effect. Still, it was as simple enough fix.
My issue might not sound exactly the same as yours, but you could give this a try and see if it helps.
-SR-
I'm not having any GPS issues on my phone. Perhaps it's based on the area your in?
I know it's satellite but.. just a guess.
WarER4X said:
The problem I was having with the GPS from Day 1 is that I would occasionally notice that it would not start up at all when openning a GPS-dependant app (such as Maps or Weatherbug, etc). Whenever that happened, I would have to restart the phone, and then the GPS would be able to initialize again... at least, for a while.
Eventually, I was digging around in the setting and found the "VZW location services" option under "Location & security settings". I unchecked that option and, ever since, I've had no problem with the GPS. It seems that th VZW-based location services were causing the problem. Of course, since then, I've rooted and frozen all of the VZW bloat, so I might be able to turn that option back on with no ill effect. Still, it was as simple enough fix.
My issue might not sound exactly the same as yours, but you could give this a try and see if it helps.
-SR-
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I have been experiencing the exact same problem and temporary solution (restarting) since day 1, on both my first and second droid 3's. Difference is, I've had VZW location services unchecked since around the time I first got the phones, and I am still experiencing the problem... even as recently as last night. I just double-checked the setting, and indeed, VZW location services is stil unchecked.
Once I have lock I usually have no problem continuously using GPS. Last night, I tracked a two and a half hour walk using the My Tracks app, including a 45 minute stop for dinner indoors. For the first 10 minutes, it couldnt find a signal, so I restarted. It got a lock almost instantly following the restart and never lost it after that. I had the app running for the whole excursion. As expected, it got a little confused while I was inside, but automatically picked the signal right back up when I got back outside and tracked my entire walk back home.
a_lazy_dude said:
I have been experiencing the exact same problem and temporary solution (restarting) since day 1, on both my first and second droid 3's. Difference is, I've had VZW location services unchecked since around the time I first got the phones, and I am still experiencing the problem... even as recently as last night. I just double-checked the setting, and indeed, VZW location services is stil unchecked.
Once I have lock I usually have no problem continuously using GPS. Last night, I tracked a two and a half hour walk using the My Tracks app, including a 45 minute stop for dinner indoors. For the first 10 minutes, it couldnt find a signal, so I restarted. It got a lock almost instantly following the restart and never lost it after that. I had the app running for the whole excursion. As expected, it got a little confused while I was inside, but automatically picked the signal right back up when I got back outside and tracked my entire walk back home.
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When you look at your walk on the map, is it true to where you actually walked? If I do that same walk on my phone, it will show me deviating off course as much as a 1/2 block and then back. I can tolerate that deviation once and maybe twice during my runs/walks. However, mine does it the majority of the time, adding bogus mileage to my walks/runs. In an hour's time, it will deviate approximately 20-30 times.
eallison978 said:
When you look at your walk on the map, is it true to where you actually walked? If I do that same walk on my phone, it will show me deviating off course as much as a 1/2 block and then back. I can tolerate that deviation once and maybe twice during my runs/walks. However, mine does it the majority of the time, adding bogus mileage to my walks/runs. In an hour's time, it will deviate approximately 20-30 times.
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Just took a closer look at the track it recorded. I definitely do see these kinds of deviations, but they seem to only be in areas where I think it'd be reasonable to expect them. I live in a suburb, so I don't have any tall building to mess with the GPS reception, instead, I have somewhat steep hillsides. It seems I get a fair amount of deviation in the (significantly) hilly areas (it looks like I was walking down people's driveways, then across their front yards, when in reality I was just walking more or less straight down the sidewalk), but in the flat areas the line has almost no significant deviations, just some minor noise. Next time, at the risk of my fiance calling me a geek, I'll take my Droid 1 along for the trip, and see how the two records compare.
a_lazy_dude said:
Just took a closer look at the track it recorded. I definitely do see these kinds of deviations, but they seem to only be in areas where I think it'd be reasonable to expect them. I live in a suburb, so I don't have any tall building to mess with the GPS reception, instead, I have somewhat steep hillsides. It seems I get a fair amount of deviation in the (significantly) hilly areas (it looks like I was walking down people's driveways, then across their front yards, when in reality I was just walking more or less straight down the sidewalk), but in the flat areas the line has almost no significant deviations, just some minor noise. Next time, at the risk of my fiance calling me a geek, I'll take my Droid 1 along for the trip, and see how the two records compare.
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I've attached screenshots from two runs. D2 is this morning's run with my Droid 2. It's flawless. D3 is the last run I did with my Droid 3. Looking at it you can understand my disgust with it. Ignore the big missing section from both shots. I wouldn't want anyone knowing the exact location of where I live. Someone might come steal my Droid 3.
eallison978 said:
I've attached screenshots from two runs. D2 is this morning's run with my Droid 2. It's flawless. D3 is the last run I did with my Droid 3. Looking at it you can understand my disgust with it. Ignore the big missing section from both shots. I wouldn't want anyone knowing the exact location of where I live. Someone might come steal my Droid 3.
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WOW... That is awful but a great example of the concern with this phone. You are actually doing much better than me. Mine is only able to triangulate down to about 20 feet and then it bounces between 20 and 300 feet!!!
I am going to call VZW today and see about a replacement phone but I doubt it will resolve the problem.
I just called VZW and once again, they said the accuracy was normal... They said none of their phones can lock on with the accuracy I described and if it has, I have been lucky. He said their phones are only accurate within 500 feet!
I explained to him that with that accuracy, it would be totally useless to use as a navigation device...
He looked through their documentation and said he has no record of other people having issues with the GPS... He also said he has no record of the blue tint when taking pictures.....
Oh well. I hope the replacement fixes it...
bishop0114 said:
WOW... That is awful but a great example of the concern with this phone. You are actually doing much better than me. Mine is only able to triangulate down to about 20 feet and then it bounces between 20 and 300 feet!!!
I am going to call VZW today and see about a replacement phone but I doubt it will resolve the problem.
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Click to collapse
With that kind of change in accuracy, it seems like it isn't using the GPS as all, but just the cell towers. Is the GPS logo showing in the notification bar when that is happening? If it's there, is it blinking or solid?
-SR-
bishop0114 said:
I just called VZW and once again, they said the accuracy was normal... They said none of their phones can lock on with the accuracy I described and if it has, I have been lucky. He said their phones are only accurate within 500 feet!
I explained to him that with that accuracy, it would be totally useless to use as a navigation device...
He looked through their documentation and said he has no record of other people having issues with the GPS... He also said he has no record of the blue tint when taking pictures.....
Oh well. I hope the replacement fixes it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My humble opinion of VZW representatives...they're all full of BS. They're going to tell you what they need to tell you to get your out of the store or off of the phone if you're not buying anything. A representative's main concern is sales. Sell him another phone, renew his contract, add a line, add a feature.
This issue may be better addressed to Motorola directly. I may make that phone call today.
I just got off the phone with Motorola tech support. Same story as VZW gives. There are NO known issues with the Droid 3. I asked about the GPS, the bluish pics the cam takes and battery life. The only thing the tech would say is the phone "needs to be evaluated"

Compass issues

I picked up the nexus 6 from AT&T a couple days ago and love it but I have one issue. The compass is off by 90 to 180 degrees. If I spin it around enough it usually calibrated itself but only lasts until the next time I start maps.
I've seen a couple of comments indicating similar issues but I'm not sure if it is a hardware issue and should be replaced.
Does the compass work correctly for everyone else?
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
Same issue here
I have the same issue with my Nexus 6 64Gb blue, bought in Germany from Amazon.de.
Calibration helps but it decalibrates soon, and then the compass is off by 90° or 180°.
DontHaveACLue said:
I picked up the nexus 6 from AT&T a couple days ago and love it but I have one issue. The compass is off by 90 to 180 degrees. If I spin it around enough it usually calibrated itself but only lasts until the next time I start maps.
I've seen a couple of comments indicating similar issues but I'm not sure if it is a hardware issue and should be replaced.
Does the compass work correctly for everyone else?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would NOT be a hardware issue. That is entirely software.
doitright said:
That would NOT be a hardware issue. That is entirely software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?
max.shirshin said:
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
heres one way to calibrate a compass in android.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzQSsUsOWJc
simms22 said:
heres one way to calibrate a compass in android..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
If you own a Nexus 6 as well, and do NOT have this issue, please let us know where you bought the device and which exact model it was (white or blue? memory size?)
Thank you very much in advance!
ingdir said:
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
If you own a Nexus 6 as well, and do NOT have this issue, please let us know where you bought the device and which exact model it was (white or blue? memory size?)
Thank you very much in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
bought mine through tmobile. black(blue) 32gb version
max.shirshin said:
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Calibration *IS* a software function. You feed corrections into the compass driver to compensate for the magnetic fields generated by the phone itself. If it is losing calibration, it CAN ONLY be a software issue. The data generated by the compass HARDWARE is not affected by calibration. The calibration adjustments are applied to values after they have been received from the hardware by the driver, and before being passed on to userland.
---------- Post added at 08:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:50 PM ----------
ingdir said:
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you totally certain that this is a function of losing calibration and not of needing a NEW calibration? The problem is that a compass reads magnetic fields. Nearly EVERYTHING generates magnetic fields, ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING that uses electricity will generate magnetic fields. Everything with IRON in it will generate magnetic fields, typically in line with earth's magnetic field so it won't interfere (much), but if that thing with iron in it is MOVED, it will DEFINITELY interfere for quite a long time until it resets.
What the calibration does, is it tries to sort out all the competing magnetic fields in order to lock in to the true earth magnetic field. If you keep switching the compass on at different locations, then absolutely YES, it will spit out various incorrect values. In fact, if you go get yourself a regular old fashioned magnetic compass (with a needle on a pin in an oil bath) and you move it around, it WILL react to all the different things that produce a magnetic field.
Maybe try going into a forest, calibrating it, sitting around for a few hours (maybe a camp fire?), and then checking if it keeps its calibration.
doitright said:
Calibration *IS* a software function. You feed corrections into the compass driver to compensate for the magnetic fields generated by the phone itself. If it is losing calibration, it CAN ONLY be a software issue.
Are you totally certain that this is a function of losing calibration and not of needing a NEW calibration?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I'm not. Well, here are some possibilities to consider:
1. External magnetic fields affecting the phone in a way the compass goes nuts.
Before Nexus 6, I had Nexus 5 for 1 year and its compass worked perfectly in the same locations where Nexus 6 compass fails: same apartment, same office, same places around the city. Moreover, I don't even remember calibrating my Nexus 5, the compass just worked. Now I have Moto G as a temporary phone as I've sent my N6 back to Amazon, and Moto G compass works excellently as well -- again, no calibration required. So we have at least two devices with compasses working fine in the same environment.
2. Software bug that causes calibration data to be dropped.
I had the compass problem both on stock Lollipop and on CM. I also have a friend who did NOT have any compass issues while running exactly the same setup (first stock, then the same builds of CM) on the same Nexus 6 model. In Android, apps typically can't work with drivers on such a low level that could affect the calibration, and I don't run any special apps (except Google Maps) that do something with the compass. So it CAN be a software bug, but then it has to be very picky. Running a phone on pure CM without Google Maps for several days could be a good test as Maps is the only app that had something to do with a compass on my phone.
3. Some magnetic interference inside the device itself, or the sensor being too sensitive and/or having a hardware problem of its own.
This one seems the most likely to me, as it fits a pattern: the problem happens consistently on one device while never happening on other devices with identical configuration, several users have this problem (there are threads on reddit and other places, too) while the majority seems to be unaffected, and other devices with a compass work just fine in same locations.
Anyway, there obviously ARE devices around which can have a compass working just fine, and be it either a software or a hardware issue with Nexus 6, it's good if more people report a similar issue (or a lack thereof).
I have the same issue. I have calibrated from home and on the road in several states. I does not hold calibration.
I'm road warrior, and this is a real problem when traveling.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app

A number of issues with Nexus 6

Hello all,
Had my Nexus 6 since launch day in the UK, and I started out really liking it, but it's getting more and more in my bad books as I live with it. Wonder if anyone who has one could look over this and tell me if these issues are standard with this device, or whether I need to get onto the network (Vodafone - what a pain)
Reboots - I'm getting a number of reboots. I know this can be app caused, and I'm working through. The main problem is that it requires a pin or swipe to start it booting up, so overnight if it happens, you've got yourself a dead phone till you physically get it going again in the morning
slowdown - I've got a couple of games, one is sky force, that worked well on my note 3, but suffers some terrible slowdown on the Nexus. No idea why this would happen with a better processor
not connecting to 5g on the router - my router has a 2 and 5 g aerial. It works fine on the 2 g, and every other device works on the 5g, but the nexus just will not connect.
slowness of starting up the camera - starting the camera can be 30 seconds.
Upside down display camera pics on some apps - KIK for eg? I know others with Lollipop who don't have this issue on their Sammys.
very bad battery - In use, heavy use, it'll be 3 hours. Average use, bit of messaging, a game, internet, could be 4 hours.
lack of focus on camcorder - it won't stay on a fixed
Slowness of booting up - Can be literally 5 minutes to boot to the main screen. Reminds me a bit of Windows at its worse!
I've had smartphones for many years, and I'm used to their foibles, like battery life and apps that cause reboots, but this is probably the most difficult phone I've had to live with!
I love the screen, the hugeness of it is just what I want, and the sound is great.
I'm getting the crashes, primarily when using the camera, doesn't reboot just stops, 3 times in a few minutes on more than one occasion. Sometimes won't connect to home WiFi without a restart. Start up is very slow. Don't suffer from the other issues. I'm on O2 4G.
mozza1976 said:
Hello all,
Had my Nexus 6 since launch day in the UK, and I started out really liking it, but it's getting more and more in my bad books as I live with it. Wonder if anyone who has one could look over this and tell me if these issues are standard with this device, or whether I need to get onto the network (Vodafone - what a pain)
Reboots - I'm getting a number of reboots. I know this can be app caused, and I'm working through. The main problem is that it requires a pin or swipe to start it booting up, so overnight if it happens, you've got yourself a dead phone till you physically get it going again in the morning
slowdown - I've got a couple of games, one is sky force, that worked well on my note 3, but suffers some terrible slowdown on the Nexus. No idea why this would happen with a better processor
not connecting to 5g on the router - my router has a 2 and 5 g aerial. It works fine on the 2 g, and every other device works on the 5g, but the nexus just will not connect.
slowness of starting up the camera - starting the camera can be 30 seconds.
Upside down display camera pics on some apps - KIK for eg? I know others with Lollipop who don't have this issue on their Sammys.
very bad battery - In use, heavy use, it'll be 3 hours. Average use, bit of messaging, a game, internet, could be 4 hours.
lack of focus on camcorder - it won't stay on a fixed
Slowness of booting up - Can be literally 5 minutes to boot to the main screen. Reminds me a bit of Windows at its worse!
I've had smartphones for many years, and I'm used to their foibles, like battery life and apps that cause reboots, but this is probably the most difficult phone I've had to live with!
I love the screen, the hugeness of it is just what I want, and the sound is great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
could be a faulty phone or rom ... I've had mine for a month now and no problems so far and great battery life
mozza1976 said:
Hello all,
Had my Nexus 6 since launch day in the UK, and I started out really liking it, but it's getting more and more in my bad books as I live with it. Wonder if anyone who has one could look over this and tell me if these issues are standard with this device, or whether I need to get onto the network (Vodafone - what a pain)
[*]Reboots - I'm getting a number of reboots. I know this can be app caused, and I'm working through. The main problem is that it requires a pin or swipe to start it booting up, so overnight if it happens, you've got yourself a dead phone till you physically get it going again in the morning
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is actually looking a lot like it may be a software defect. For now, the best solution (i.e. temporary, until 5.1 comes out later this month) is to run the phone withOUT encryption. There are lots of threads around about the minor boot partition change needed to accomplish this.
[*]slowdown - I've got a couple of games, one is sky force, that worked well on my note 3, but suffers some terrible slowdown on the Nexus. No idea why this would happen with a better processor
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Two reasons;
1) is that despite the better processor, anything I/O heavy will take a lot of CPU power to just handle the crypto. Hopefully, this is something that will be solved (hwcrypto) with 5.1.
2) android 5.0 has some major changes in the runtime -- ART vs Dalvik. If the application developer broke rules in building the software you are running, then it is possible that it won't work optimally on ART. Hopefully, the application developer can adapt.
[*]not connecting to 5g on the router - my router has a 2 and 5 g aerial. It works fine on the 2 g, and every other device works on the 5g, but the nexus just will not connect.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Works for me....?
Try a router with OpenWRT.
If I remember correctly, some of the OLDER 5G 802.11AC chips used in a lot of routers, like TPLINK Archer C7v1, which has a Qualcomm Atheros QCA9880-AR1A had hardware that was a bit rushed to market and failed to meet a number of the AC specifications. So if your router is such an AC, then the hardware that is working with it may be using 802.11N (older tech), whereas this phone is trying to negotiate an 802.11AC link with it, and failing. So there is a good chance that the problem is actually on the ROUTER's side, rather than the phone.
[*]slowness of starting up the camera - starting the camera can be 30 seconds.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Something not right there. Mine takes 2 seconds from pressing the camera button.
[*]Upside down display camera pics on some apps - KIK for eg? I know others with Lollipop who don't have this issue on their Sammys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are *two* ways to deal with orientation in jpg images; one is to write the image to the file "upright", the other is to write it to the image file as it comes from the buffer, and just give it an orientation flip flag. The software you are using *may not respect* the orientation flag.
[*]very bad battery - In use, heavy use, it'll be 3 hours. Average use, bit of messaging, a game, internet, could be 4 hours.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm actually finding the battery to be quite phenomenal on this device. With low-moderate usage, it will actually go for TWO ENTIRE DAYS on a charge. Usually to get that kind of battery life, I have to apply very invasive controls against google services to prevent them from setting alarms and holding wakelocks.
However, if you have the screen on high brightness and actually turned on a lot, do remember, the screen is ENORMOUS. It takes power to light it up.
[*]lack of focus on camcorder - it won't stay on a fixed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had to check that to verify, and confirm it. That appears to be a bug in the camera application. Try a different camera program for now, and hope that 5.1 fixes it.
[*]Slowness of booting up - Can be literally 5 minutes to boot to the main screen. Reminds me a bit of Windows at its worse!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Might be software crypto, mine isn't encrypted, and literally boots right up to the unlock screen in about 10 seconds.
I've had smartphones for many years, and I'm used to their foibles, like battery life and apps that cause reboots, but this is probably the most difficult phone I've had to live with!
I love the screen, the hugeness of it is just what I want, and the sound is great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, the SIZE is almost certainly what is causing you battery life issues. The rest of it is basically because you are running an early version of a MASSIVE system update and simultaneously riding on new hardware that brings in its own batch of *software* bugs. There are some bugs in it that need to be worked out, and hopefully, the majority get worked out with 5.1. There *are* google-private 5.1 builds for Nexus 6 already, so it is just a matter of waiting for them to complete QA and ship it out.
Thanks for this, really appreciate the time, I'll have a good look through later!
Found a fix for the 5ghz router issues on the Google forum.
Apparebtly the nexus favours the American 5g channels... So I've set it to 36 and 40 and its working well! Yey.
Tomorrow I'll try a cache wipe to see what else I can correct before the update.

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