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Top left: Note 4. Bottom left: S4. Right hand side: Z2 Tablet.
All devices are configured to use the built-in GPS receiver only.
The photo was taken after waiting for more than 5 minutes.
Z2 Tablet and S4 receive 23 satellites, S4 using 18, Z2 Tablet using 16 (after a couple of seconds). But Note 4 receives 11 satellites, uses 0 (ZERO) - even after 5 minutes.
Here's a quick and shaky video: http://youtu.be/nVOF2n8AYDk
Software: I used "GPS Test" by "Chartcross". Other apps show the same results.
I tried countless comparisons, using A-GPS data and without, tried resetting the radios via the service menu - nothing helps: Note 4 GPS receiver does "see" some satellites (but always less than other devices), but just doesn't get a fix, at least not indoors.
It DOES work outdoors, but the results are similar and very poor: Note 4 takes a lot of time for the fix, uses less satellites, provides a less precise position and/or permanently loses the fix again. Even with using A-GPS data, a fix takes ages if the Note succeeds with a sat fix at all, situation becoming even worse if moving in a car. Z2 Tablet and S4 provide an almost instant fix, don't drop the fix again.
Of course I searched the net (and XDA) for that issue, found just some posts claiming the same.
Problem: Most users just see it does work outdoors, but don't realize the poor, close to subzero performance. So they believe it's all ok.
It is not.
I really hope it's just a software bug. If not, our Note 4 GPS becomes close to unusable if used in forests, under heavy rain, indoors or under other adverse conditions.
Please do a comparison yourself, check against any other GPS-enabled device - let's see if your results differ or are similar.
Please note: It does not help if your GPS just works outside. It does. But it's far, far worse than other devices - just see the photo above.
----
I found two videos showing a part of the problem (without being noticed by the "reviewer"):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHDVZEKBD8M
GPS test starting at 3:41. Note that the Note 3 retains it's satellites after the fix (8/21), while the number of the satellites used by the Note 4 wildly changes.
At 4:17, it drops to 4, causing losing the fix for a moment - note that the colors of the satellite signals momentarily change from green to yellow/grey.
Similar with the other video of the same reviewer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X3Ucqnu9_g
GPS test starting at 3:57. Note that the Note 3 retains it's satellites after the fix (14 to 15 of 22), while the number of the satellites used by the Note 4 again constantly changes.
At 4:34, it drops to 2, causing losing the fix for a moment - note that the colors of the satellite signals momentarily change from green to yellow/grey.
That's what I observe with my Note 4, too.
And that's what causes that expanding and shrinking of the blue "GPS accuracy" circle around your position in Google Maps, that's what causes showing a momentarily wrong position while driving.
I am not sure if this is a real fault or just the results of a different approach by Samsung - MAYBE they try to use a kind of diversity algorithm causing that short "dropouts".
In any case - it's a bad thing. And an issue wreaking havoc in the background, broadly unnoticed by the majority of Note 4 owners (which regard the GPS as working perfectly just because the sat fix doesn't take long), I fear.
But it might be model or firmware specific.
So please check if your Note 4 shows the same behavior.
The speed of a GPS fix does not say anything as there are too many different factors of influence involved; sorry.
---
I had been asked why indoor reception is important at all. Here's the answers:
1) Indoor reception is an indicator of the sensitivity of a GPS receiver. Under the open sky, just every GPS receiver delivers a sound performance - so you cannot see differences.
But if you've got a good indoor reception, you'll also get a high sensitive under problematic conditions - e. g. under bad weather conditions, in cities where you are surrounded by tall buildings, or in regions like forests or even underwater. Performance in locations like forests is highly important for outdoor enthusiasts or people doing geocaching.
And you'll be quite happy if your navigation software leads you to your destination even if it's raining cats and dogs - instead of being forced to leave your car to ask for directions.
So if your device performs well indoors, it is very likely to also perform well in every demanding outdoor situations.
Practical, personal example: Every year, I leave for a months vacation to Asia. I usually don't follow the beaten tourist tracks, I prefer the secluded, more unknown places. That often leads me into jungle regions, tall trees everywhere. If I can't rely on a solid GPS fix, I can get lost in no time.
If I know that my Note 4's indoor reception is pretty good, I can be assured it won't leave me if I'm out in the middle of nowhere.
2) Most of the time, you use for mobile phone indoors. At your home, at shopping malls, you name it.
Of course you know where you are, so it might sound needless to know your GPS position.
But just have a look at your power options, at the information about your battery drain: Settings > Power Saving, tap the chart.
Then have a look at the "Location on" graph.
You'll notice that your GPS receiver is active pretty often - even if you don't use it actively and knowingly.
That's because many apps use the GPS in the background - like Google does; GPS is used every time you utilize e. g. Google Now, or use your browser (remember the question if you wish to allow the browser know your location ? - If you agreed, it will use GPS, even if you aren't aware of that).
If you've got good GPS reception, GPS will be used just for a very short time. But if the reception is bad (e. g. caused by bad indoor reception), the GPS receiver will be on for a long time; could be for hours.
That drains your battery significantly.
So good indoor reception is also one of the keys to good battery life.
You see, it's not just over nothing. It SEEMS like that at first sight - but be rest assured: I am a very practical person (e. g. I don't care at all about benchmarks - if a device just fulfills my needs, I don't need any more information). I don't care if e. g. the front camera distorts my pretty face.
But I care if a malfunction shortens battery life or leads to vital features becoming unusable if external conditions aren't optimal.
And please don't forget about the most important impact of such discussions: This way, Samsung gets aware of a problem. So there's a chance that the problems will be solved by an update - for the benefit of ALL users, even if they weren't aware about the problem at all.
If you report the problem to the Samsung "support", you can be sure nobody will care about it. I checked that myself (for Germany, to be precise): I reported a problem more than seven times. Always the same problem, always using a different name. The staff always assured me that the issue was stored in the system and forwarded to the technicians. Guess what ? - At every next call (or chat), I was told that I was the only one reporting it, nobody else had that problem.
But threads at XDA are likely to be noticed by Samsung - and the media.
For me, if it can get me from place A to B when I'm driving or walking in an unknown area, then it's OK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's one of the reasons why I raise that problem.
As said: If your GPS receiver works well, it WILL navigate you safely from A to B. But if it's sensibility is weak, it will do so under bright sunshine, but will fail if there's heavy weather, as such conditions attenuate the GPS signal strength significantly. Result: Under heavy rain, your device will be unable to navigate you safely from A to B.
If you search the net a bit, you'll also find a lot of similar threads where people ran into exactly that situation with the Note 4: On the road, the GPS lost position, leading them nowhere, showing their location 100 m away from the street, and so on.
---
Here's three COMPARISON (!) videos I just took.
Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - indoors, good conditions (near window)
Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - indoors, worse conditions
Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - outdoors
Identical device settings (internal GPS use only, A-GPS data loaded).
If you wonder why the Note 4 performs worse outdoors: It's because the device is flat on the ground. Reception is better with the Note 4 slightly angled.
We got a GPS fix in all three cases; in two cases, the Note 4 achieved a real quick GPS fix.
That's what's making most of you cry out in ecstasy: "Oh ! I've got a fix ! And so fast ! It's such a great device !"
But: Note 4's GPS sensitivity proved far worse than the Z2 Tablet's GPS in all three cases.
THAT'S THE PROBLEM, GUYS.
What I ended up doing once is opening the phone and pulling the springs a bit for better contact with the GPS antenna. Was good to me on the Note 3.
you have a defective phone. i just measured time to cold fix and it was 1.5 seconds indoors on my 910U.
Mine is set to GPS only, google location services OFF.
Have the same lousy gps and bad reception compared to my iPhone 6 plus. Got the phone replaced today but still bad gps and bad signal so in my house I can't even call with it when the same sim in my iPhone gives enough signal for calling. Gonna return the note, feels like they did a "Apple" antennagate with som bad antenna design
Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk
What "Location Mode" do you have on? When mine is on "high accuracy" it jumps all over. When i set it to "gps only" its pretty good. Not sure this has anything to do with you issue or not.
I just tried that software, and after about 60 seconds it was locked on 14 and accurate to 12 feet, sitting indoors.
ChickenWingSoup said:
What "Location Mode" do you have on? When mine is on "high accuracy" it jumps all over. When i set it to "gps only" its pretty good. Not sure this has anything to do with you issue or not.
I just tried that software, and after about 60 seconds it was locked on 14 and accurate to 12 feet, sitting indoors.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you open Google Maps and scroll in all the way, how far is the dot from where you're actually sitting in your house?
Like right on the money or 5', 10', 20', ?
My S4 was on the money. My Note 3 consistently has me about 30-50' from where I actually am.
It's one of the reasons I'm considering an N4 upgrade.
@Class said:
What I ended up doing once is opening the phone and pulling the springs a bit for better contact with the GPS antenna. Was good to me on the Note 3.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I saw, the GPS antenna is not in the cover; so it won't help pulling any springs. :/
ChickenWingSoup said:
What "Location Mode" do you have on?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried both modes, results are similar. Right now the Note 4 is next to me, trying to get a fix.
Number of used satellites is permanently changing second-wise: 4, 3, 2, 3, 2, 1, 3, 3, 2, 2, 3, 1, ...
I just tried that software, and after about 60 seconds it was locked on 14 and accurate to 12 feet, sitting indoors.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesn't help much as an indoor fix heavily depends on many factors like satellite positions, positions of windows and phone, wall material, and so on.
Sometimes I get a quick fix indoors, in most cases it just fails.
Different with Z2 Tablet and S4: Just ALWAYS a fast fix, S4 even fets a sat fix in the basement, where the Note 4 doesn't even see a single satellite.
We need comparisons with other devices.
Chefproll said:
Tried both modes, results are similar. Right now the Note 4 is next to me, trying to get a fix.
Number of used satellites is permanently changing second-wise: 4, 3, 2, 3, 2, 1, 3, 3, 2, 2, 3, 1, ...
Doesn't help much as an indoor fix heavily depends on many factors like satellite positions, positions of windows and phone, wall material, and so on.
Sometimes I get a quick fix indoors, in most cases it just fails.
Different with Z2 Tablet and S4: Just ALWAYS a fast fix, S4 even fets a sat fix in the basement, where the Note 4 doesn't even see a single satellite.
We need comparisons with other devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Having the almost the same fix and locked satellites on my s5, note 4 and Note 10.1 tablet indoor concrete apartment building . They lock on 12 to 15 satellites in less then 30 seconds. no problem
I had the exact same symptoms with my lg g2. When set to high accuracy, the location would jump around. Also, it would see satellites, but take forever to get a fix.
When set to GPS only, it would work fine.
Never was able to fix it.
I have a feeling that it worked fine at first and that this weird behavior started after a firmware update. Could not verify, coz I did not know how to downgrade.
Sent from my A0001 using XDA Premium HD app
marleyb said:
Having the almost the same fix and locked satellites on my s5, note 4 and Note 10.1 tablet indoor concrete apartment building . They lock on 12 to 15 satellites in less then 30 seconds. no problem
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on your location; if your room is just under the roof, you'll experience less problems.
I added a quick video to my first post; just have a look. :/
Chefproll said:
Depends on your location; if your room is just under the roof, you'll experience less problems.
I added a quick video to my first post; just have a look. :/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I understand your Note has a problem just saying mine has not. Even with 8 floors above me I still have a fix within 30 seconds
Got a GPS fix inside my living room in less than 30 sec. 4 meters presicion. Can't post a screenshot cause I don't have enough posts yet lol.
I get instant. No problem so far. Mine is Exynos 7 (5433) edition - N910C.
@Chefproll
What processor do you have in your GN4?
I had 2 different AT&T Snapdragon GN4's with very bad GPS.
I've found the GPS to be outstanding on the note 4. It will even locate in an airplane in under 45 seconds at a point over a thousand miles from where it was when it was last on. My HTC EVO 4G lte could not do this, the original Evo could. As for day to day use, it's been flawless.
Yippee. Another considered "based on my expert opinion and test sample of one" thread from an XDA member declaring all Note 4's to have an issue. These "expose" threads get tedious.
Here' what AnandTech found in their testing and what they are reporting maps to my experiences...
At this point, it really goes without saying that the GNSS solution of choice is the one built into Qualcomm's modem. This allows for fixes based upon initial location and time data that the modem has, and therefore in practice every GPS fix is a hot fix and takes around 5 seconds for a lock in good conditions. In the case of the Note 4, with airplane mode on and no assistance data I saw that it took around 50 seconds to achieve a lock, but this is strongly dependent upon environmental conditions. Once locked, I found that the Note 4 had quite a strong lock and quickly went down to 10 foot accuracy level without issue.http://www.anandtech.com/show/8613/the-samsung-galaxy-note-4-review/9
BarryH_GEG said:
Yippee. Another considered "based on my expert opinion and test sample of one" thread from an XDA member declaring all Note 4's to have an issue. These "expose" threads get tedious.
Here' what AnandTech found in their testing and what they are reporting maps to my experiences...
At this point, it really goes without saying that the GNSS solution of choice is the one built into Qualcomm's modem. This allows for fixes based upon initial location and time data that the modem has, and therefore in practice every GPS fix is a hot fix and takes around 5 seconds for a lock in good conditions. In the case of the Note 4, with airplane mode on and no assistance data I saw that it took around 50 seconds to achieve a lock, but this is strongly dependent upon environmental conditions. Once locked, I found that the Note 4 had quite a strong lock and quickly went down to 10 foot accuracy level without issue.http://www.anandtech.com/show/8613/the-samsung-galaxy-note-4-review/9
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me it works that good when under open air. In the city between high building and threes it is totally worthless. I live in single-storey house made of wood and the Note 4 cant get a fix untill I leave the house. My old SGS 5 had no problems with that and not my current iPhone 6 Plus has no problems with it either. They both get a fix instantly when inside the house. But I have tested three Note 4 and no one of them get a fix inside the house. Think that is a pretty good sign that the Note 4 has worse GPS signal than most other phones. And even the carrier reception is worse with the Notes tested compared to iphone 6 Plus, a Moto G 2013 and a HTC One M8 I have tested in my house. If it is the metall rim or if it is fixable by software I dont know but I am disapointed with my Note, thought I had a faulty one first.
osetivo said:
@Chefproll
What processor do you have in your GN4?
I had 2 different AT&T Snapdragon GN4's with very bad GPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As mention mine is Exynos 5433 edition. I found most complain is Snapdragon 805 edition. This time Exynos perform better in every aspect.
BarryH_GEG said:
Yippee. Another considered "based on my expert opinion and test sample of one" thread from an XDA member declaring all Note 4's to have an issue. These "expose" threads get tedious.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And another "MY Note 4 is ok, so all others claiming their Note doesn't work as expected are wrong. So let's say something negative things about them and don't take it for real.".
You posted a screenshot, making it impossible to see if the device was used outdoors or indoors.
I also get a quite good reception if I am outdoors - but:
a) There's just no fix although the signal strength is sufficient. Here's a screenshot, taken OUTDOORS:
Note the time of the last GPS fix in the lower right corner. Note 4 had been on all the time, with all Google services active, so there had been a constant check for GPS positional data - with NO success all night long.
b) Indoors, reception is a horror - COMPARED WITH OTHER devices.
It's of no further use if you post a screenshot without comparing the reception with other devices.
Just be happy about YOUR device working - but this does not necessarily mean it's the same with other devices.
Starting a new thread since I could not find any existing thread on this and it is quite surprising since this is a widespread issue and for the same reason Samsung service here in Melbourne even refused to acknowledge this is an issue! There logic seemingly being if the issue is present in the demo unit in the store as well, it is not an issue! Vodafone has also refused to honor the warranty, even though it is in the first month of my contract and they should be replacing the handset and dealing with Samsung, and have instead told me to provide them with an acknowledgement from Samsung stating it is an issue! Talk about deadlocks!
Now coming to the issue, I have found out that there are sensitivity issues when using the S-Pen on the bottom right and left corners of the screen. There are issue on the top part of the screen as well but they arent as serious. I would also request you to check the same on your device and report back if you are also facing the same.
To check, first get into diagnostics mode by dialing *#0*# and then go to the S-Pen tab.
1. As you can see in the video, the bottom right and left corners have definite and serious issues with S-Pen sensitivity. I found this out, and it is also a use case and one of the major reasons that I went for Galaxy Note 5, while taking a screen grab from the middle of the screen right until the bottom right corner. I just could not do it. As soon as the S Pen reaches near the corner, the sensitivity issue makes sure that input isn't recognized. Not only this, even when it manages to identify the touch, the tracking is random with the S-Pen having a mind of its own.
2. The second issue is while drawing on the top part of the screen with the S-Pen but this one is not as serious as the first one. You can see in the video that S-Pen loses sensitivity in one particular area of the screen. This is easily corrected though, by pressing the S-Pen harder on the screen.
This is apart from the lag and slowness issues that rear their ugly head every once in a while and in a phone which runs an Octa Core CPU with a whopping 4GB of RAM. This is my first Samsung in a long long time and it has left me disappointed again exactly like it did in the past whenever I bought a Samsung phone. To me the level of polish of the hardware on a device costing as much as this is simply not acceptable. What are your thought? Please report in this thread if you are facing the same issue as I am with the S-Pen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN41nE1lWGI
I have multiple stand-alone S Pens and don't experience what you're describing with them or the one included with the device.
BarryH_GEG said:
I have multiple stand-alone S Pens and don't experience what you're describing with them or the one included with the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Strange because I could replicate it on all the demo devices in the store. That is their reasoning for refusing the warranty as well.
I'll say this, the included pen is more responsive on the display than pens that are pre-Note 5 so something in the pen and/or display has changed.
Does it mean mine has a problem then? I am wondering if anyone else can also confirm the same?
I can confirm the bottom left and right corner of my note 5 behave just like OP's does... but wouldn't have found out if he didn't mention it
alexcarterkarsus said:
I can confirm the bottom left and right corner of my note 5 behave just like OP's does... but wouldn't have found out if he didn't mention it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Alex. I found the issue because I could not take a screenshot which finished near the bottom corner of the screen. Now smart select is a headline feature of the phone and this hadrware oversight to be is just not acceptable. The Samsung service would not acknowledge it as an issue let alone do something about it. May be it is only on the first batch of phone. Who knows?
I checked my phone (SM-N9208 TW, mfg: will add later) and the bottom corners have poor tracking with the hover point flying off the screen when held above.
Overall this issue shouldn't affect the usability of the phone if you rarely use these areas since it's still possible though difficult to use the s-pen there.
Edit: I re-tested with my phone flat and s-pen vertical*. The s-pen can be used on the very bottom corners with precise movements, so I don't think will affect usability for most people most of the time.
*Having the s-pen on an angle can affect the tracking significantly as seen in your video. I think the only solution would be to modify the s-pen to track at the very tip. This would probably make the tip non-replaceable and/or more complex and expensive. If someone has time, try using the s-pen without a tip and see if/how it tracks.
Update: I tested a SM-N920W8 in store and it had the same corner issue.
I complained to Vodafone again and they decided to take the phone back. Back to trusty properly working iPhone 6s Plus 64GB. My last Samsung device no matter what the specs. I wouldn't be interested in one even if it will have a gazillion core CPU and few petabytes of RAM.
I have the same issue. Can anyone else, note 5 users confirm about this issue. (Bottom right hover issue)
I dont't face that problem
Edit: here is a screenshot
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5LZ1p_SFZ3faTFJNzBzZGlnbzA/view?usp=docslist_api
Mine does it a little bit.
It still passes the test so I believe it's within spec. I honestly don't see it being a warranty issue.
Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk
Sometimes, it is the Cover magnet.
Sometimes, it is the Cover magnet. . Try to remove you phone from it and try the s pen in the touch area in question. It worked for me with in a leather flip cover. The same for the s note stopping error message.
same here
SM-N920C cihazımdan Tapatalk kullanılarak gönderildi
if you have magnetic casing will get such problems ....
or fake s-pen need to replace with original or better fake quality
My stylus is overly sensitive; so much that I can't write properly. All text is in continuation even when I lift the stylus off for whitespace. I even followed the article on adjusting the sensitivity of the S Pen by removing the click-button cover and adjusting the Potentiometer. However, the note 4 s pen is entierly different as it doesn't have any Potentiometer under the click button. Link to article:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2191333
What annoys me most is that I never had this issue before I flew overseas last month. I started experiencing this issue after I came back and it has rendered my s pen useless. Has anyone found a way to adjust Potentiometer on the new S spen yet (it might be located under top cap but i'm not sure how to open it).
espionage said:
My stylus is overly sensitive; so much that I can't write properly. All text is in continuation even when I lift the stylus off for whitespace. I even followed the article on adjusting the sensitivity of the S Pen by removing the click-button cover and adjusting the Potentiometer. However, the note 4 s pen is entierly different as it doesn't have any Potentiometer under the click button. Link to article:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2191333
What annoys me most is that I never had this issue before I flew overseas last month. I started experiencing this issue after I came back and it has rendered my s pen useless. Has anyone found a way to adjust Potentiometer on the new S spen yet (it might be located under top cap but i'm not sure how to open it).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am having this same problem. Did you ever find a fix for it? Thank you!
Yes confirmation of problem
I found the same problem. If you try to draw a square in the S pen test mode you cannot draw a square in the bottom left or right corner. The square will turn into some kind of strange wiggle shape.
I live in Malaysia and went to the official Samsung head office service center and they confirmed this is a problem with all Note 5 models and the lady showed me her own personal Note 5 which had the same problem (actually worse than mine).
The service technicians said they do not know the reason for this problem. But as an electrical engineer I suspect there is some sensors in those areas which cause interference with the S Pen.