GPS woes & new ICS update - Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime

Well, damn it ASUS! I had a vague GPS thing going on when I first got ICS. Since I got the update for GPS it's killed it
I left the prime in the window bay for 25 mins and this is what I got
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Nothing. I presume this has nothing to do with root etc? Would a system erase make any difference? Is it even worth a try?
It's not like I use it often, but it used to lock from here fine and now it doesn't.
Meh!

No difference for me, no satellites before or after the update. But...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1459356
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using XDA Premium.

jonboyuk said:
Well, damn it ASUS! I had a vague GPS thing going on when I first got ICS. Since I got the update for GPS it's killed it
I left the prime in the window bay for 25 mins and this is what I got
Nothing. I presume this has nothing to do with root etc? Would a system erase make any difference? Is it even worth a try?
It's not like I use it often, but it used to lock from here fine and now it doesn't.
Meh!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should get some satellites if you turn the device around. Right now the metal back possibly blocks all potential signals. Aluminum back cuts down about 50% of GPS signal performance compared to smartphone like Galaxy Nexus (which also does not have ideal GPS, though does work).

kristovaher said:
You should get some satellites if you turn the device around. Right now the metal back possibly blocks all potential signals. Aluminum back cuts down about 50% of GPS signal performance compared to smartphone like Galaxy Nexus (which also does not have ideal GPS, though does work).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good idea and thanks - I tried this, flat, next to a window and left for an hour. Still nothing How can an OTA update that claims to fix GPS break it?! Lol!

Yeah, I got the same - absolutely nothing despite over an hour face up completely flat.
My phone (Dell Streak) gets locks immediately in the same place.
The only way I've managed to "see" a single satellite on my Prime is after BT tethering to my Streak!
Very disappointing, not that it's crucial to have GPS, but there's a principle involved here.

jonboyuk said:
Good idea and thanks - I tried this, flat, next to a window and left for an hour. Still nothing How can an OTA update that claims to fix GPS break it?! Lol!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do yourself a favor change the power modes while in the GPS app!
See that little circle notification if it is not flashing it is not trying to lock so all you gotta do to get it to start locking is expand than minimize the notification bar!
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

green750one said:
Yeah, I got the same - absolutely nothing despite over an hour face up completely flat.
My phone (Dell Streak) gets locks immediately in the same place.
The only way I've managed to "see" a single satellite on my Prime is after BT tethering to my Streak!
Very disappointing, not that it's crucial to have GPS, but there's a principle involved here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Couldn't agree more. I had mine picking up sats in my car with Honeycomb...then ICS came along (second ICS OTA) and decided to take it away from me. Disappointed. Now, where's that Mr.Gary Key? Ha!

Ditto - this last update killed my previously acceptable GPS performance. Mine will see as many as 8 birds with decent SNR, but will not lock on any of them.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

Wordlywisewiz said:
Do yourself a favor change the power modes while in the GPS app!
See that little circle notification if it is not flashing it is not trying to lock so all you gotta do to get it to start locking is expand than minimize the notification bar!
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I knew that trick!! It was the first thing I tried before running a full reset :/ Thanks though

slybarman said:
Ditto - this last update killed my previously acceptable GPS performance. Mine will see as many as 8 birds with decent SNR, but will not lock on any of them.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ooops I should have multiquoted! Anyway, clearly it's happened quite a lot....gutted.....

Wow guys, this sounds really bad. I thought that the flaw is simply that the signal is weaker by half (as it is on my tests), but apparently it doesn't get any locks at all for some of you.
This is definitely not a metal casing problem, GPS antennae seems messed up. GPS, by design, should get some locks after just a few minutes, no more than 10 or 15 minutes.
All of my tests show the flaw of metal casing weakening the GPS signal, but it still finds satellites (though cannot be used for navi as a result) without WiFi.
Try going to some open space and hold the tablet skyward and see if there's any change. Indoors is not an ideal testing condition (depends on where you live), because it still might be the metal-back issue.

It not purely a hardware issue though as my GPS was on par with my cellphone before this last update.

I am also getting no gps lock in gps test since the last update. I got my prime to lock onto about 15 satellites prior to the update driving in my car(its a convertible) Now I can't get it to see a single one, let alone get a lock. I love my prime, but this is a real bummer.

I agree....if this was a pure hardware related issue, then it wouldn't have worked before then suddenly stopped working post drivers/software update. This clearly highlights that there is a software related issue going on. Obviously the aluminium backplate still reduces from the overall signal quality but it don't completely prevent it from working. If this was the case, no one would get a lock ever, on any unit!
Your move Asus...

Likewise. Signal before update. No sats found following update.

Same problem here. I did not originally have an advanced GPS app or anything, but services were able to locate me in GPS (when Wifi and location via Wifi turned off). Since the update, I get nothing. I download several apps to test GPS and all are the same: No Sats.
I don't really use GPS all that much, but I tested this before installing the update and the update did definitely break it for me.

Seems like the update was 50/50. Either it makes everything brilliant or just takes it away!! How do we approach this best? We can all contact ASUS individually but that never seems to work. I wonder if Gary Key accepts PM's?

Asus meet NASA, NASA meet Asus...
How Do Global Positioning Systems, or GPS, Work?

HAHAHAHA!! JoTeC that cracked me up!

jonboyuk said:
HAHAHAHA!! JoTeC that cracked me up!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL, I couldn't resist.

Related

GPS working with wifi off

I posted this in a different forum as well, thought I post here to see if others get the same result.
Not sure if its coincidence or not but i accidentally turned wifi off with out knowing, before doing a GPS test. An after a few minutes my prime had a GPS lock. Needles to say I never could get one in my house before. Just wondering if anyone else can check to see if GPS works better with wifi off? Also I had Bluetooth off as well. I attached a screenshots below.
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Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
"GPS works better with wifi off?"
no sir
Many of us can get signals inside and with no wifi.. but is it "better" with wifi off.. not
I have posted many screenshots with wifi off and many signals... but it is no "better" this way as I think you think it is
MY Prime gets excellent GPS signal in my space shuttle and on the moon kinda sucks here know earth.
Mine still hasn't been able to grab a signal but then again I haven't really tested it any suggestions on how to test/?
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
put it in the car, drive and try and navigate somewhere
corban227 said:
Mine still hasn't been able to grab a signal but then again I haven't really tested it any suggestions on how to test/?
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Software I used was GPS Test, and basically had Bluetooth and WiFi off. Before I ran the software. It took a minute or two before I saw any GPS satellites in view in the beginning. With WiFi on before I wouldn't even see one satellites, waiting 15 minutes or more. Now I'm able to get a GPS lock, whatever the case may be I'm a little bit happier.
stephen44 said:
put it in the car, drive and try and navigate somewhere
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will be heading out shortly and will give it a shot. Last time I tried it in the car I kept getting Lost GPS message quite frequently, will see what happens this time with WiFi off.
Mine had no problems too after I took it outside..
I almost never get more then one Sat... The first few times I used it I had a lock in my living room with wifi on. After about the first week all I was getting was one Sat flickering off and on with no lock. I have just given up for the moment. Maybe there will be some sort of fix in the future, but for now if I want to use gps just going to attach a seperate unit or use my phone...
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
Gps on the prime truly is a downfall for the device..thankfully my galaxy nexus has fully function gps so its not much of an issue but for those needing gps in a tab it really bites that u need a bt gps device to use with the prime
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
LMAO I turned off wifi and turned on the GPS... before when I opened GPS Test it showed absolutely nothing...
Now i get this!! WTF I guess the bluetooth messes with wifi; wifi messes with GPS? damn why cant they all work at the same time....
NEVERMIND. Just tried turning WIFI back on with GPS on and both work! GPS signal is pretty low but the navigation is working
I have yet to have my Prime even show a single satellite. Tried home (live in a condo), work and on the commuter train. Was even running GPS Test on the Prime and my Galaxy S glide beside each other. My phone picked up 7 sats and my prime still read 0.
I was getting two sat's outside and nothing inside and no sign of a lock, now I can get 4 inside and I even got lock inside lol. Wifi off and channel 1 on my router works. Thanks.
Hey guys just got back from Costco trip. Tested the GPS with no wifi. Check out the video I made! All I can say is that I'm happy with my GPS!
Edit: One thing I did do differently was replace the GPS.Config with the one from my Galaxy tab 10.1 It seems to be getting better locks and more sats. I'll test it out more tonight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPQFB1dN1CE&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
What you are all failing to notice is that your signal strength on those GPS Tests are extremely low, borderline non-existent. What may work one hour/day might be zero the next. That's the way it works with signals. It's affected heavily by your environment, and not just what you can see either. There is even varying levels of interference in the atmospshere!
The best the engineers at any company can do is make it so normally you get great reception so that during the times when the signal is bad you are still able to get enough signal to achieve a lock.
All these, "omg lawls it workz!!" threads just mean you were able to find the moment when the stars aligned just right and the crap worked the way it should ALL, or at least - most of the time.
Thanks for the video. Did you, or can you do one with the Galaxy 10.1 for comparison?
tdp252 said:
What you are all failing to notice is that your signal strength on those GPS Tests are extremely low, borderline non-existent. What may work one hour/day might be zero the next. That's the way it works with signals. It's affected heavily by your environment, and not just what you can see either. There is even varying levels of interference in the atmospshere!
The best the engineers at any company can do is make it so normally you get great reception so that during the times when the signal is bad you are still able to get enough signal to achieve a lock.
All these, "omg lawls it workz!!" threads just mean you were able to find the moment when the stars aligned just right and the crap worked the way it should ALL, or at least - most of the time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone who has a phone would use the phone as a GPS and not the tablet. If you have a $500 tablet, but can't afford a smartphone, then your money management is off.
All these "omgz the Prime suxz it haz nO gPs" posts are getting annoying. If we took a poll on how many people would actually use a tablet gps. It would be
90% yes
10% no
Looking at a tablet while driving is ridiculously unsafe and would probably cause car crashes anyways.
To wrap up my counter-rant, go troll another device's forums Mr. December 2011.
xAnimal5 said:
Anyone who has a phone would use the phone as a GPS and not the tablet. If you have a $500 tablet, but can't afford a smartphone, then your money management is off.
All these "omgz the Prime suxz it haz nO gPs" posts are getting annoying. If we took a poll on how many people would actually use a tablet gps. It would be
Looking at a tablet while driving is ridiculously unsafe and would probably cause car crashes anyways.
To wrap up my counter-rant, go troll another device's forums Mr. December 2011.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You mean:
90% no
10% yes
right?
I'm sorry you are having an allergic reaction to facts. Asus has already said the metal is causing poor reception, the gps tests only confirm that..
GPS now working out of nowhere
Have an early replaced GS gray prime GPS never worked on either. Got the ICS update still no satellites visible for weeks now. Tonight saw 10 sats locked on 7 without wifi on what the hell. I`d keep trying it maybe you will see something soon too. I got a perfect one
thomslik said:
Thanks for the video. Did you, or can you do one with the Galaxy 10.1 for comparison?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure. I'll figure out a way to do it this time in a safer manner.
xAnimal5 said:
Looking at a tablet while driving is ridiculously unsafe and would probably cause car crashes anyways.
To wrap up my counter-rant, go troll another device's forums Mr. December 2011.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah one I won't repeat. I'll plan it out better next time so I can just focus on driving.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk

WiFi/GPS can't JUST be a "metal case" issue -- interesting photo

I know that there's plenty of evidence that the metal caseback may be (most likely is) a cause of poor GPS and WiFi reception. However, it cannot be the only cause, and I think there's a good chance that even with the metal case, the proper software could make this tablet run pretty well. Check out this photo:
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That photo was taken at the end of January, in my house, after about two minutes of satellite acquisition. Two 32 Gb Primes, both BCOK# series, .11 firmware. Since the WiFi on both was about the same and the GPS on the left one was great, I sent back the one on the right (I got the HHGregg $399 mistake deal on the left one).
Fast-forward to yesterday. Since the .13 firmware didn't change the GPS build number, I hadn't even bothered to test GPS since updating. On a whim, I tested it yesterday. Zero satellites. Even after five minutes of scanning. Zero. The only thing that changed was the firmware -- same hardware as before. In my car, outside on a clear day, I managed to pick up 3-4 birds sporadically but never for long and I never got a single location lock, in ten minutes.
I know it's easy to blame hardware and I know that there are a number of design choices that might have been made differently, but I guarantee you that software is playing a huge part in this as well.
I made this same argument when the .11 firmware completely borked the GPS on my prime - it had been working reasonably well before that. I ended up returning that one to best buy. The replacement I got works much better.
slybarman said:
I made this same argument when the .11 firmware completely borked the GPS on my prime - it had been working reasonably well before that. I ended up returning that one to best buy. The replacement I got works much better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oddly enough my GPS was working before (6-9 birds 5-6 locks) albeit weakly with the .11 update but I just retested it yesterday since the .13 update and 1-3 birds but no lock.
slybarman said:
I made this same argument when the .11 firmware completely borked the GPS on my prime - it had been working reasonably well before that. I ended up returning that one to best buy. The replacement I got works much better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I wish we could get a consensus of users who have had similar results. I feel like most of the discussion is just a knee-jerk regurgitation of the "metal caseback" or "damn pogopins" talking points and nobody is really looking into what these firmware updates may be effecting. I'm somewhat hopeful on the one hand -- if firmware can completely screw up GPS that was working as well as this one was, then perhaps the next update could fix it and improve it if they really get a bead on the problem.
It is the hardware, can't you guys just accept this.. please..
JoeyLe said:
It is the hardware, can't you guys just accept this.. please..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can only assume you're being ironic and wanted to post your neat Picard picture. There is absolutely NO WAY that this could be blamed completely on hardware. I tested the exact same device in the exact same spot in the exact same house under basically the exact same environmental conditions (clear night, around the same time). The picture shows my GPS before the update, and I can assure you that last night I got no satellites at all. That's after soft resets, cold reboots, and two factory resets. Software was the variable in this equation.
I was surprised to note the same with my 32GB Gray Prime as well. Prior to .13, I was able to get as many as 8/10 birds locked indoors, and 12/14 locked outdoors--both WITHOUT wifi turned on. I didn't test it while driving because that's not a concern of mine, but I was happy to know that the Prime could serve as at least a stationary GPS device.
I tried it yesterday, however, on a whim, and I got the same results as the OP. Took FOREVER to lock outdoors, and never got more than 7/10 for a second or two. Indoors, I get nothing. And that was with wifi turned on. This was the first time I'd tested it since installing .13.
Clearly, this has something to do with software. I have no idea if the Prime will ever serve as a navigational device, but I can absolutely testify that GPS on my Prime was MUCH better prior to .13.
dcAndroidFan said:
I can only assume you're being ironic and wanted to post your neat Picard picture. There is absolutely NO WAY that this could be blamed completely on hardware. I tested the exact same device in the exact same spot in the exact same house under basically the exact same environmental conditions (clear night, around the same time). The picture shows my GPS before the update, and I can assure you that last night I got no satellites at all. That's after soft resets, cold reboots, and two factory resets. Software was the variable in this equation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After having owned many android devices, sometimes it can be software. the Prime could be a combo of both...
I remember when I had the HTC Mogul and people were saying it didn't have GPS.. they even opened it up and one guy swore up and down that it doesn't even have an antenna for GPS. A few months later, a firmware comes out and it enables GPS and it worked pretty well
http://gizmodo.com/365925/confirmed-sprint-mogul-gets-rev-a-and-gps+enabling-rom-update
Not saying this is the same case as the Mogul's shell was plastic, but there could be some software that's hindering the operation of it as there are folks that seem to have had a weak but working GPS.
(God I miss my Mogul)
Its probably not all software, its probably not all hardware. It's 99% likely to be a combo of both. Erusman's thread shows there obvious hardware flaws including PCB boards and pogo pins, RF signals ect. I think it'll be at least another 2 months before this gets sorted out totally, unfortunately by then I may have jumped boat completely. I'm trying to have faith but staples has stopped stocking the prime yet again, due to complaints, and if I cant continue returning for the product I'll have to just get a refund and wait to see what MWC brings. Mostly because I have $300 staples rewardS
jyan_osu said:
... there could be some software that's hindering the operation of it as there are folks that seem to have had a weak but working GPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly -- I was one of those people, only mine wasn't "weak". I think 12 birds with 7 locks inside a house is pretty good. In my car, I got 11+ locks and accuracy to 20 feet sometimes. For a WiFi tablet that's pretty good. I'm trying to figure out how many more of us there are out there. If there's a substantial group, I'd like to see if we can get a dedicated effort from the fix-it guys like the random reboot, unknown serial #, and BT dropout issues got.
slybarman said:
I made this same argument when the .11 firmware completely borked the GPS on my prime - it had been working reasonably well before that. I ended up returning that one to best buy. The replacement I got works much better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I concur.
I went from 13 sats in view and 9 locked on .11 to 0/1 in view and 0 locked on .13.
JoeyLe said:
It is the hardware, can't you guys just accept this.. please..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is the hardware, on SOME Primes, it is the software on most Primes however, can't you guys just accept this.. please..
It's not hardware! How can it just break then fix its self! I have told you guys before it has something to do with the tegra 2 power saving feature or something along the lines of AGC or something else! Hardware is not an issue!
Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk
dcAndroidFan said:
I can only assume you're being ironic and wanted to post your neat Picard picture. There is absolutely NO WAY that this could be blamed completely on hardware. I tested the exact same device in the exact same spot in the exact same house under basically the exact same environmental conditions (clear night, around the same time). The picture shows my GPS before the update, and I can assure you that last night I got no satellites at all. That's after soft resets, cold reboots, and two factory resets. Software was the variable in this equation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah sure, explain why people suddenly get a better signal by just pushing hard on the side of the tablet (yes, this also is hardware). It is just a combination of the backplate, pogopinns and other hardware. Accept it.
JoeyLe said:
It is the hardware, can't you guys just accept this.. please..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Give it up. Too many of us have the same hardware and NO issues!
I bought mine knowing there were GPS issues, and my box doesn't say GPS at all. It came with Honeycomb and I didn't bother testing GPS at the time, and have since upgraded to ICS (.11) and I get no satellites, even outside.
I let it sit for about 20 minutes and from time to time it'd have one or two satellites in view, but they quickly disappear.
I tried the "squeeze the bezel" trick with no luck at all as well.
The .13 update is not yet available to me OTA, and reading about other's issues with it I'm reluctant to update, especially considering my prime has been utterly amazing on .11. If an update comes along that no one is having issues with I'll give it a whirl and test GPS again to see.
JoeyLe said:
Yeah sure, explain why people suddenly get a better signal by just pushing hard on the side of the tablet (yes, this also is hardware). It is just a combination of the backplate, pogopinns and other hardware. Accept it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because like I've said, sometimes it can be chalked up to hardware. Yes, like the pogopins. But I've made sure my pins connect, and after doing so on one s/w version I had almost decent GPS, and on another s/w version have no GPS.
Did my chip suddenly just die or something? My backplate somehow assimilated another layer of aluminum?
I doubt it...
BTrack said:
Give it up. Too many of us have the same hardware and NO issues!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't have any idea what hardware you or anyone else has.
JoeyLe said:
Yeah sure, explain why people suddenly get a better signal by just pushing hard on the side of the tablet (yes, this also is hardware). It is just a combination of the backplate, pogopinns and other hardware. Accept it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Instead of challenging me to explain your question about the magic nerve pinch, please focus on the point of THIS thread. The GPs on my Prime, and apparently many others, actually worked pretty well. Without pinching it, or taking it apart and attaching foil, and without running wires through the HDMI port, and without clipping external GPS receivers on it. And it had the metal caseback, and the pogopins of death. And the GPS worked. Pretty darn well, in fact.
Then the SOFTWARE got updated. Now the GPS doesn't work, and no amount of shaking, pinching, or coddling will fix it. Address THAT TOPIC instead of making ridiculous assertions about how hardware is the problem with all of them.
clackity said:
You don't have any idea what hardware you or anyone else has.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know what aluminum feels like. And I know what plastic feels like. And I can assure you that my hardware has an aluminum caseback. As to what's INSIDE there, yes -- there may be some variation and I'm not going to open mine up to find out -- but I can assure you it worked a lot better on GPS and Wifi before the .13 update. And the caseback didn't change.
Prior to the .11 update on 1/17, mine saw about 15-16 birds driving in my car (its a soft top). After that update, I get nothing. Same exact thing happened to my Dad's too.
BTW. I know this because since my GPS was weak to begin with, I tested it before and after that update, since that update was to fix the GPS. I did not move the table during the tests or the update.

Recieved a RMA replacement prime, gps is still not working and other problems

Sent 1st Prime for problems:
Serial Number is: BCOKAS******
1. Weak wifi
2. No GPS on Wifi OFF (outdoor/indoor)
3. No GPS on Wifi ON (outdoor/indoor)
4. Sound on Video is no clear, no normalization, loud
Recieved 2nd Asus Prime as replacement, and opened Prime by Asus
Serial Number is: C10KAS*****
1. It was worse than the first one
2. it's auto reboot randomly, new problem
3. Wifi is acceptable
4. No GPS on Wifi OFF (outdoor/indoor)
5. No GPS on Wifi ON (outdoor/indoor)
6. *** new problem, if it stands by, sometimes, it just shut off...I have to turn on and reboot again
7. *** asus tech was not perfectly re-assemble it, the glass is way on top of the frame :-(
This 2nd prime looked like it was opened by asus tech. I saw the opened mark. I took 2 weeks to get a replacement, but this one is no better then the first one. I am so disappointed in ASUS...Maybe it's last product that I will ever buy from them...bad experience...:-(
No GPS on the RMA Prime:
http://www.box.com/s/3zekdoum0v6xor291dyy
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This may be a matter of introducing too many variables... My two C1 Primes had great GPS on the .11 firmware, quickly locking 12/14 satellites outside with wifi turned off, and 7/10 indoors. After the .13 update, mine now won't lock outside with wifi off (or at least, I've not waited long enough), and won't maintain a consistent lock on wifi.
So, it's possible that you have good enough GPS (by the Prime's standards), but that yours was affected by the .13 update. There's another thread on this somewhere, where other people have had this happen as well.
wynand32 said:
This may be a matter of introducing too many variables... My two C1 Primes had great GPS on the .11 firmware, quickly locking 12/14 satellites outside with wifi turned off, and 7/10 indoors. After the .13 update, mine now won't lock outside with wifi off (or at least, I've not waited long enough), and won't maintain a consistent lock on wifi.
So, it's possible that you have good enough GPS (by the Prime's standards), but that yours was affected by the .13 update. There's another thread on this somewhere, where other people have had this happen as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if it is true like what you said. I was already giving up on send them back for RMA (again) :-(
I still don't understand how come the GPS still won't LOCK on WIFI data?...for example, if you use dedicaded Google Map, or the weather widget, it is still not able to find gps locations
It is consistently inconsistent
mnlmnv said:
if it is true like what you said. I was already giving up on send them back for RMA (again) :-(
I still don't understand how come the GPS still won't LOCK on WIFI data?...for example, if you use dedicaded Google Map, or the weather widget, it is still not able to find gps locations
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got my C1 replacement back at a while ago (almost 2 weeks) and when I got not GPS satellites at first, I was majorly disappointed. Wifi was quite decent, even though throughput at the far ends of my range are slow (2.6-3 Mbps) when it gets 16-17 Mbps close to router, however, it streams video perfectly with Bluetooth attached and streaming, so thats the ultimate test for me, not what the numbers are (even if that irks me )
As for GPS, I saw not a single satellite as I said, until day 3 after replacement arrived. Then, sitting in the car, no Wifi to speak of, I suddenly get LOTS of satellites... HOORAY! Sort of... Still not gona cut it for navigation, but you know what? It's the way it is. I really would love to see Asus fix GPS, but it does not look good in that department. Major bummer. As for the rest, all is good. I am MOSTLY HAPPY (which is NOT like being a little pregnant, as some will try saying) I am happy for the good, and still pissed about GPS. Thats my take on it, and yes, I am keeping the Prime (Until and if they offer me another replacement to try, LOL!)
Sorry bout the link, Still can't post attachments from Stock Browser for some reason:
http://db.tt/2kk39Rjc
SmartAs$Phone said:
I really would love to see Asus fix GPS, but it does not look good in that department.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt ASUS is going to so anything to fix the GPS in any transformer prime because....
It is not a feature any more. They have removed it from the feature list. Just like Sony did with the PS3. It used to have PS2 backwards compatibility and Other OS support, but they removed it and stopped supporting it.
You need to pm Gary Key. My prime (sn bkcu) had poor wifi and NO gps. I sent it in and they didn't touch I'd for 3 Weeks despite my constant calling. I PMd Gary and they over nighted me a completely new unit (sn c10kas) everything works great. I found 12 says and locked 10 in my house! I am finally happy!
Thanks again Gary!
Sent from my DROID RAZR using XDA App

GPS Software/Firmware not Hardware

I believe 100% that GPS is a Software/Firmware issue. I also know that there have been threads about this before.
That being said I had GPS working fine on my tablet when I got it and performance has gone down with every update. I am now on .14 and I have no GPS at all. Inside, outside, vertical, horizontal, with a phone, without, clear skys, rain, etc. The only 2 things that I haven't tried is taking off the back of the tablet and using gps tether, reason being that it worked before and now it doesn't and tethering has nothing to do with the internal GPS.
I'm almost thinking that they disabled the GPS in one of the last updates 13 and 14 for sure.
EDIT: What do you know it must be like going to the doctor. It hurts until you go there then everything is fine again.
My Prime is seeing 4 satellites in view right now however the gps has not "locked" yet.
The weirdest thing is that I left GPS on for a couple of hours with the screen sleep turned off and got nothing and now in the time that it took to edit this I got some satellites in view. I'm at a loss.
Has anyone else had similar experiences?
@Gary Key any input on this? Other than GPS my tablet is 100% functional, I haven't experienced any of the other problems wifi, reboots, etc.
it is hardware, it's been proven. the GPS and wi-fi antennas are connected via pogo pins and in some primes te pogo pins are touching, giving you great performance and in others they are not touching giving you no GPS.
GPS works on mine with .14, but doesn't lock to as many satellites as with .11, nor does it maintain as consistent a signal.
Personally, I believe the GPS issues are a combination of hardware and software.
cordell507 said:
it is hardware, it's been proven. the GPS and wi-fi antennas are connected via pogo pins and in some primes te pogo pins are touching, giving you great performance and in others they are not touching giving you no GPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't buy the pogo pin theory. However the aluminum back might have something to do with it.
And how exactly has this been proven? Not to start a flame war but nobody has replaced the pogo pins with solder and put the prime back together. They have only added antennas to the device and/or removed the back plate. Lets get with the scientific method here. Change one variable at a time.
In my case the only thing that has changed is the version of the software on the tablet. The newer the software/firmware the worse the performance.
l33tlinuxh4x0r said:
I believe 100% that GPS is a Software/Firmware issue. I also know that there have been threads about this before.
That being said I had GPS working fine on my tablet when I got it and performance has gone down with every update. I am now on .14 and I have no GPS at all. Inside, outside, vertical, horizontal, with a phone, without, clear skys, rain, etc. The only 2 things that I haven't tried is taking off the back of the tablet and using gps tether, reason being that it worked before and now it doesn't and tethering has nothing to do with the internal GPS.
I'm almost thinking that they disabled the GPS in one of the last updates 13 and 14 for sure.
EDIT: What do you know it must be like going to the doctor. It hurts until you go there then everything is fine again.
My Prime is seeing 4 satellites in view right now however the gps has not "locked" yet.
The weirdest thing is that I left GPS on for a couple of hours with the screen sleep turned off and got nothing and now in the time that it took to edit this I got some satellites in view. I'm at a loss.
Has anyone else had similar experiences?
@Gary Key any input on this? Other than GPS my tablet is 100% functional, I haven't experienced any of the other problems wifi, reboots, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's a multipage thread about this already (GPS performance acceptable, then degrades after .13 or .14 updates). Here's what's going to happen: You'll probably get flamed, a bunch of people will insinuate that you're an idiot for even SUGGESTING that it's not completely a hardware issue, and a few will mock your methods as unscientific. Debate may or may not go back and forth for a while, and then the thread will slowly die. And one day, .15 or .16 will come out, and maybe your GPS reception will magically improve again. Who knows?
I don't think that GPS will ever be GREAT (lots of birds with green-bar signal strength) but I do think that software updates are effecting the ACCEPTABLE GPS that a number of these units seem capable of achieving.
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10charsnow
l33tlinuxh4x0r said:
I don't buy the pogo pin theory. However the aluminum back might have something to do with it.
And how exactly has this been proven? Not to start a flame war but nobody has replaced the pogo pins with solder and put the prime back together. They have only added antennas to the device and/or removed the back plate. Lets get with the scientific method here. Change one variable at a time.
In my case the only thing that has changed is the version of the software on the tablet. The newer the software/firmware the worse the performance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This has been pretty extensively discussed in this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1474391
The aluminum case is definitely a major problem for GPS and Erusman "solved" that problem by attaching external antennae to his Prime so that the GPS can get a relatively clear signal. He experimented with several different types of internal antennae, hard wired the GPS antennae to replace the Pogo Pins, etc all with very poor GPS results until he ran an antennae out the back of his Prime.
To me (and most people who followed Erusman's testing), this indicates that the GPS's main problem is a hardware one, that hardware being the aluminum backplate of the Prime.
I have had varying GPS performance with the different firmware updates, which indicates that software can be a factor. However since I have also had generally poor GPS performance regardless of which formware I have been running I am pretty sure that software isn't as much of a factor as encasing the GPS antennae in what amounts to an aluminum faraday cage .
Not another one of these. I posted this on another forum. To the OP, if this is software please explain my results. Now even though it was picking satellites it wasnt really that useful as it didnt really track me on the spot when doing turn by turn.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=22657457&postcount=65
What HE said...
dcAndroidFan said:
There's a multipage thread about this already (GPS performance acceptable, then degrades after .13 or .14 updates). Here's what's going to happen: You'll probably get flamed, a bunch of people will insinuate that you're an idiot for even SUGGESTING that it's not completely a hardware issue, and a few will mock your methods as unscientific. Debate may or may not go back and forth for a while, and then the thread will slowly die. And one day, .15 or .16 will come out, and maybe your GPS reception will magically improve again. Who knows?
I don't think that GPS will ever be GREAT (lots of birds with green-bar signal strength) but I do think that software updates are effecting the ACCEPTABLE GPS that a number of these units seem capable of achieving.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I pretty much agree. I doubt it will ever be truly accptable to the level of say, a TF101 - though I was told that my replacement C1 Serial Number Prime would be "At LEAST as good as a TF101" by a tech support manager. Seems that where the Prime is concerned NOTHING is a "given" Some days I get some GPS activity, some days not so much. What is apparent with my current unit is, GPS is EXTREMELY inconsistent, and not just from session to session, I mean from minute to minute. I can have 11 sats in view, using 5, and 10 seconds later lose half of them,or ALL of them, all without even moving the Prime so much as a millimeter.
I guess I will never be able to use my Prime as a "professional GPS device" Or as an unprofessional GPS device, or as a GPS device of any type. Sucks... and will continue to irk me for as long as I have and use a Prime. Probably for a long time after as well. I suspect that any mention or thought of Asus will no doubt bring the Now you see it, Now you don't GPS screw up to mind.
Know what would be great? Not having to see ONE MORE comment like "I didn't need the GPS anyway" or the classic: "If I want GPS, that's what my phone is for." That's terrific! Then if you buy a new car and the $1800 Navigation doesn't work, and the manufacturer decides to just stop supporting navigation in that model, you will be all set with your phone.
Don't TELL me how a tablet doesn't NEED GPS, and don't TELL me that the iPAD 2 WiFi doesn't HAVE GPS. I didn't BUY an iPAD 2. I bought a device that said "GPS" on the box and on the web. My GPS doesn't even work for LOCATION, never mind navigation.
Tell me again how I can just return it if I don't like it. That's the Problem... I do LIKE IT... I FREAKING LOVE IT, all the more reason why I want it to work properly. And I don't want to return it, I want to exchange it, or fix it. If it will never work, well, then I will never be completely happy, but that doesn't mean I can go get one of the many "Comparable" devices (Like Best Buy offered me when the oversold Pre-orders. There ARE no Comparable devices.
SO I am stuck using an add-on Bluetooth GPS Tethering device. Works ok. Bug me that there is GPS hardware right here in the Prime that doesn't work. Bugs me a lot. I am an engineer. Crap that doesn't work, or works poorly bugs me.
It's like the "Real Feel" weather people. Telling me that it's 60 degrees, but "feels like" 63. Not to ME! To ME, it feels like 66. Don't TELL me how to FEEL!
No one can tell me how to feel about this either. It feels like I got ripped off. Rant over (for today)
I think its the software too.
I was sent a c model that works perfectly in every way except the gps which will not lock on to any sats. BUT using free nav usa I can lock on to sats and stay connected. IT IS NO GOOGLE MAPS BUT it does work. Sooooo is it software ?
Ok, so I'm only marginally tech savvy, but lets say i wanted to set up optimal GPS conditions for my prime (which has never seen a satellite). How would I do that and what programs do you recommend.
So far I've tried putting my prime next to a window running GPS Test and letting it sit there for uo to 10mins.
Thanks
@SmartAs$Phone:
I know exactly how you feel. My prime's box didn't have GPS listed, and I was aware of the issues going in, so to me I knew ahead of time and I was okay with that. Bestbuy, on the other hand, was still advertising GPS as a feature at the time (End of January) and last I checked on their site they're still advertising it.
But for the folks that bought thinking "Yes! Full on GPS!" and it didn't deliver I can certainly understand the frustration. Double so, considering that when it didn't work they came here and found many others with the same problem, and they realized that had the done more searching up front they would have known about the issue.
In the end, however, no software is going to fix this problem as has been proven by the various hardware mod threads. For those willing to mod, that's a fine solution. For those not willing to mod, well, I don't know what the solution is.
Well, my C1 model had relatively OK GPS with .11
At my front door I could get 11 sats and four locked and it said about 48 feet accurate. BUT, use maps and my location jumped around and was typically 200 yards or more off.
With .14, I get a lot more sats, more locked, and 36 feet accurate. And on maps is locks dead on to where I am.
Can firmware improve GPS? Clearly. Did it get better from .11 to .14? Clearly.
Now the good part. If I was lucky I got a few sats intermittently indoors (1 to 3) after a few minutes. NOW, I get 7 sats and a lock with 72 feet accurate, and the map is about 100 feet off, but on the right street.
Say what you will. I don't have anything special. Same metal back.
*grabbing popcorn*
shinzz said:
*grabbing popcorn*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dont forget the large size soda.
Clevatreva lol, all treva did was play with birds by the door. Other more tech people opened their primes and proved to themselves its Purley hardware..... Sillytreva
Sent from my GT-I9100
snakeybidder said:
Clevatreva lol, all treva did was play with birds by the door. Other more tech people opened their primes and proved to themselves its Purley hardware..... Sillytreva
Sent from my GT-I9100
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
dcAndroidFan said:
Here's what's going to happen: You'll probably get flamed, a bunch of people will insinuate that you're an idiot for even SUGGESTING that it's not completely a hardware issue, and a few will mock your methods as unscientific.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems like I pretty much called this one.
I am also thinking that gps issue is mostly software problem. When I bought tfp there was android hc. I had seen 15 sats and connected to 13. Whith .11 it dropped to max 6 visible but I was able to get a fix. Now with .14 I can see max 4 sats with no fix. I`ve got no problems with reboots nor wifi.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
l33tlinuxh4x0r said:
I believe 100% that GPS is a Software/Firmware issue. I also know that there have been threads about this before.
That being said I had GPS working fine on my tablet when I got it and performance has gone down with every update. I am now on .14 and I have no GPS at all. Inside, outside, vertical, horizontal, with a phone, without, clear skys, rain, etc. The only 2 things that I haven't tried is taking off the back of the tablet and using gps tether, reason being that it worked before and now it doesn't and tethering has nothing to do with the internal GPS.
I'm almost thinking that they disabled the GPS in one of the last updates 13 and 14 for sure.
EDIT: What do you know it must be like going to the doctor. It hurts until you go there then everything is fine again.
My Prime is seeing 4 satellites in view right now however the gps has not "locked" yet.
The weirdest thing is that I left GPS on for a couple of hours with the screen sleep turned off and got nothing and now in the time that it took to edit this I got some satellites in view. I'm at a loss.
Has anyone else had similar experiences?
@Gary Key any input on this? Other than GPS my tablet is 100% functional, I haven't experienced any of the other problems wifi, reboots, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you 100% I'm an Avionics Tech I work with GPS rx's all day. We have a GPS generator and with the unit right under the gen it shows about the right -dbm however is unable to obtain a constant lock. If I pad the signal down it gets better and locks on solid. IMO its an AGC problem which is a software setting for this chipset. I have been temped to open my prime up and solder smb connectors to the main board and hook it up to a good GPS antenna, but I know it still wont work. People here dont seem to understand RF and how antenna's are a specific length ect. I'm not bashing people but a clip lead isn't an antenna nor a valid test.
I am having the exact same problem. At times I get no love, no birds, like right now. Zippo, nada, But last time I checked, I was getting lots of satellites. Very inconsistent and I can't find any reason for it..
l33tlinuxh4x0r said:
I believe 100% that GPS is a Software/Firmware issue. I also know that there have been threads about this before.
That being said I had GPS working fine on my tablet when I got it and performance has gone down with every update. I am now on .14 and I have no GPS at all. Inside, outside, vertical, horizontal, with a phone, without, clear skys, rain, etc. The only 2 things that I haven't tried is taking off the back of the tablet and using gps tether, reason being that it worked before and now it doesn't and tethering has nothing to do with the internal GPS.
I'm almost thinking that they disabled the GPS in one of the last updates 13 and 14 for sure.
EDIT: What do you know it must be like going to the doctor. It hurts until you go there then everything is fine again.
My Prime is seeing 4 satellites in view right now however the gps has not "locked" yet.
The weirdest thing is that I left GPS on for a couple of hours with the screen sleep turned off and got nothing and now in the time that it took to edit this I got some satellites in view. I'm at a loss.
Has anyone else had similar experiences?
@Gary Key any input on this? Other than GPS my tablet is 100% functional, I haven't experienced any of the other problems wifi, reboots, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Anyone out there with *good* gps?

Simple question; Is anyone out there with a TF prime with decent GPS? And by decent I mean locks outside say within 15 seconds without losing signal?
My prime's GPS was working so-so before the .14 update. After the .14 update the GPS is non existent , but Shadowgun seems to run without any lag even with 10+ NPCs in one scene
On a similar note; my family just bought a motorola xoom and galaxy tab 10.1. The xoom has unbelievable GPS, locks even inside my basement within a few seconds. The tab has okay GPS. Poor prime can't flex its muscles in when it comes to GPS.
My GPS works fine for both .11 and .14 (updated yesterday).
It takes like 2 minutes for finding satellites and positioning me in the Aura Drive app. GPS was stable, I was walking for 30 minutes in the park and it was, as you said, decent.
Here are some screenshots I did while testing .14:
http://picbg.net/img.php?file=5af93fe3c19983b9.jpg
http://picbg.net/img.php?file=01497d3c5662d414.jpg
http://picbg.net/img.php?file=d62fe665caecf1f8.jpg
GPS only, no Wi-Fi!!! Test was done outside with good view of the sky. I admit, not the best signal, but for a device with full metal back plate, Woohoo
BC series, WW update, never rooted.
your locks are on the order of ~20m accuracy which might as well be a wifi triangulation... It is useless for navigation so it wouldn't make a difference whether or not you have wifi on.
If you really want to test your GPS:
+ turn off WIFI
+ get in your car
+ start driving
And see if it can maintain your position correctly without loosing it all the time. Ppl usually just test it stationary and yes then it might be able to get a lock on some birds after some time but the second you start moving around mine lost it.
Anyway that was the main reason i sent it back for a full refund, to be honest for a 600€ device i actually expect this to work flawless.
TEmp69 said:
If you really want to test your GPS:
+ turn off WIFI
+ get in your car
+ start driving
And see if it can maintain your position correctly without loosing it all the time. Ppl usually just test it stationary and yes then it might be able to get a lock on some birds after some time but the second you start moving around mine lost it.
Anyway that was the main reason i sent it back for a full refund, to be honest for a 600€ device i actually expect this to work flawless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried this and got pretty decent results. Only tried for 2 mins when I got my C2 the other day, and not yet upgraded to ICS. I was picking up 5 at the most with 2 locking on and off.
Gonna try it with the latest .14 update soon.
didnt work with .11 not with .13 and neither with .14 havent been able to get a gps lock even once in last 1 month..
i tried stationary, in car, with google maps, with gps status app, no luck....
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
not working, but I don't care
Not working on mine. WiFi off, GPS on, used GPS Status from the market and got nothing after more than 5 minutes outside on a clear, cloudless day. My Xoom got locks while still inside, and once outside, locked onto 9 satellites. My Verizon Galaxy Nexus locked inside and out fast.
But, I am not concerned about GPS not working. My gnex has it, and I use that when on the road. I have 6 primes (for myself and the people that work for me). We all agreed that the lack of working GPS is not an issue, they all wanted quad core!
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Turned wifi and bluetooth off, enabled performance mode. Screenshot taken on my balcony after 3 minutes of connection. However the gps is unstable, it keeps loosing sats and reconnect, but never drops completely.
WW, .14, not rooted, C10KAS...
My one was working well with .11. It worked well with Aura under 100km/h driving.
However, after upgraded to .14, no signal at all!!!
C1 series, WW, rooted.......
Nothing at all using .14. Tested against my Galaxy S2.
Someone, please shoot me in the head for clicking on this thread. I keep promising myself not to click on threads that discuss the Prime's GPS, but I keep breaking that promise like a crack addict.
I keep telling myself: "But everyone HAS TO KNOW that GPS on the Prime is not and never will be suitable for navigation, nor will the Prime ever offer GPS that's competitive with some other Android tablet offerings. They HAVE TO. And since ASUS is now offering direct returns and refunds for people unhappy with the GPS, anybody who wants their tablet to function as a navigational device should have already moved on to something else. Thus, any new thread on the GPS simply CANNOT be worth clicking on."
One day I'll learn...

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