Hi Guys,
I'm making an article about SGS II and I've found out, that there is again issue with the accuracy of GPS position (like Galaxy S had).
First clue was the article on GSM arena:
The LG Optimus 2X got hold of between 7 and 9 satellites and used 7 of them most of the time. The reported accuracy settled at 5m and mostly stayed there with the occasional jump to 10m.
The HTC Sensation spotted 9 satellites and used them all (more satellites potentially lead to a better lock). Accuracy started at around 8m but quickly reached 3-4m and held steady. Note that this is reported accuracy, but actual accuracy should be proportional to these readings.
The Samsung Galaxy S II performed worst in this test, using all of the 6 satellites that it managed to detect. Reported accuracy went between 18m and 20m but varied quite a bit during the test (even though the phone was completely stationary).
I've used the same application and compare it with Xperia Arc. We were standing outside on one place. Finally I got about 30-40 feet on Galaxy SII (still changing). Xperia Arc started at 10 feet and quickly settled down to stable 3-4.
Does anyone has SGS II and some other Android phone to compare it? I'm curious, if this is problem in general or just few bad pieces on market.
Thanks for help...
I tried GPS + Wireless Netwok assist, GPS test says 10 sats in view my location is not even accurate to 1Km
My GPS is great, never had an issue with accuracy. although I had to find out that my gps.conf says "north-america" as the default nntp pool instead of "europe" on a german (DBT) SGS2 is really strange, still my phone get's a cold lock with 10-20 seconds (10s standing still, 20s while driving).
Mine is very fast and precise - I would say its 1 minute to locate me when im outside with wifi switched on.
Original firmware GPS test was May 2011 .
Lock cold boot never used GPS before
no Wifi No network no AGPS .
GPS only
4 min 8 sats locked on . Accuracy 13 metres ..
Subsequent lock on faster as expected and 5/10 m accuracy .
No further tests as it just works .
jje
I use Navigon three times a week and i never got problems with my sgs2. The gps signal is like my iphone 4, i only navigate with the voice!
Real world driving accuracy : 20-30 meters (can go down to 5-10m, but only in truly wide, open areas)
Lock Speed : few minutes
Barely usable as a navigator, at least in urban areas. The above are under KE7 and KF3. Really disappointed by the GPS performance on mine.
my gps works fine often i use wifi
Changed my NTP server to asia, I can now even get a lock inside the house, sweet!
Guys, thanks for replies.
Anyway I think this issue won't appear that much on driving navigation, as this software "sticks" to the nearest road and use the speed to make the position as accurate as possible.
Bigger problem I see in terrain while searching for way home, or while playing with Geocaching.
Only positive thing is that from digging in ground at area 20-40 feet wide you will surely obtain big muscles
did you guys already look thru this thread? all the good info is in there too.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1062225&highlight=gps+solved
upps, I was trying to find simillar topic. Than maybe I would like to ask somebody to lock and delete this one.
Thanks...
Related
it takes a while sometimes to get a lock (other times very quick) but once it gets a lock, it takes a lot to get rid of it.
my question is, why can't it get a lock at say 4 sats after turning on gps ? there's enough data there, it would just be inacurate
i'd also like to know if there's a way to force a lock asap as opposed to waiting for a decent level of accuracy
lock does not happen merely because your device can "see" 4 sats. for example, while in a plane at 10k meters, i can see sometimes even 11 sats but there is no chance to get a lock. so i guess there are a lot of factors that influence getting a lock.
andrej.marinic said:
lock does not happen merely because your device can "see" 4 sats. for example, while in a plane at 10k meters, i can see sometimes even 11 sats but there is no chance to get a lock. so i guess there are a lot of factors that influence getting a lock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, attached are two screenshots made with my ex-HTC Desire I made on my flight to Hannover...
How/where can you see the number of sats your GPS has locked on? I never found the option on my phone...
yea, and my desire got a lock on flights to cuba and canada.
afaik, it should be able to get a lock based on seeing a few sats. gps is based around the time it takes for a signal from a sat to reach your phone and comparing the difference between the connection time of each sat the phone can see right?
even with 4 sats, there should be "some" data. it would be ranging to a few hundred meters but should still have something.
jerome.d said:
How/where can you see the number of sats your GPS has locked on? I never found the option on my phone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what app do you use? pretty much everything i've seen/used tells you.
Your question is not about SGS2 but about the GPS-system.
In order to calculate position the receiver needs certain information, and it takes some time to send out this data. The data rate from a satellite is only 50 bit/s!! (yes, I mean only fifty single bits per second...).
And when you only see 3 or 4 satellites, then it is often satellites that are visible in the same area of the sky, and that makes it difficult to calculate the position.
Here are some information how this works:
http://gpsinformation.net/main/slowlock.htm
http://gpsinformation.net/main/whynoloc.htm
http://gpsinformation.net/main/gpslock.htm
http://www.gpsinformation.org/dale/theory.htm
http://www.trimble.com/gps/index.shtml
And you have tons of more information from the main page:
http://gpsinformation.net/
thanks for the info
tommo123 said:
what app do you use? pretty much everything i've seen/used tells you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only apps I use which require positionning are Google Maps, and Dolphin HS browser (some websites, such as google, give you informations adapted to your position). I did not find, in Google Maps, any info on the number of sattelites.
GPS Status from the market for satellites view .
jje
^
gps test and a ton of others too
jerome.d said:
How/where can you see the number of sats your GPS has locked on? I never found the option on my phone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EDIT: I'm soo slow today
Look for GPS test or GPS status in market, they are both good.
tommo123 said:
it takes a while sometimes to get a lock (other times very quick) but once it gets a lock, it takes a lot to get rid of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That´s the way GPS-positioning works.
Your device measures the time the signal takes from the satellite to the GPS-reciever.
The time it takes for the signal is dependent on the distance between you and the satellite.
But calculate the distance and make something useful from it the device needs some information. First it needs to know the actual GPS-time. This must be very accurate, as the signal travels with the speed of light a very small error makes a big difference. Therefore it can´t simply use the internal clock.
It also must know the exact position from the satellite, so the distance can actually be used to calculate your position.
So the satellites constantly send a signal consisting of their ID, the time the signal was sent (all GPS-satellites are synchronized) and the current position of all GPS-satellites in the air. GPS-satellites aren´t geostationary, they are constantly moving around the world. Therefore on the same position on the earth you can experience very different GPS signal-strengths and different numbers of satellites you can receive, depending how the positions of the satellites are when you are using your GPS-receiver.
But GPS is very old and the signal is very weak, the data-rate is very very low. It is so low, if you had a GPS-antenna in your body, you could nearly count the bits yourself.
So it takes a lot of time to get the whole position-data transmitted and until the necessary position-data from the satellites is not on your device it is impossibly to calculate your position.
There is no backward-channel, so you can´t tell the satellite "please send me this", you simply have to wait until the satellite sends what you need. And if the signal was interrupted for a short period you can´t tell the satellite to resend the necessary information, you have to wait for the next round.
This is also what assisted-GPS can speed up. With A-GPS the satellite-positions are sent over the data-connection to your device, so it can speed-up the lock quite a bit, because your phone can almost immediately begin to calculate the position and does not have to wait for the satellites to send their position-data.
In the end you have a system of equations with 4 variables. The variables are the 3 space-coordinates, and what many people forget in first sight, the time.
To solve a system with 4 variables you need 3 equations -> 4 satellites.
More satellites can be used to increase accuracy, but they usually won´t speed up the initial lock a lot.
After the initial lock your device can interpolate the travel of the satellites, as well as the time, so 3 satellites are enough to recalculate the current position.
This is also the reason why the initial time for the initial lock depends highly when you last used the GPS. The satellite-positions can be interpolated with reasonable accuracy for a few hours. So if you use the GPS once every hour, lock usually will be quite fast. If you didn´t use the GPS for several days, the lock will take longer.
my question is, why can't it get a lock at say 4 sats after turning on gps ? there's enough data there, it would just be inacurate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Read above, there isn´t enough data there, as long as the device doesn´t know the position of this 4 satellites.
Also it doesn´t really matter how many satellites you have to get the lock, actually 4 strong signals would be better then 10 very weak signals.
You also shouldn´t move around until you get the lock. Getting a lock in a driving car can take a very long time. First of all, the car blocks much of the satellites signals, the windows are the only chance to get some of the signals into the car, and if you drive around you will constantly lose one satellite and get to the next one. So much of the position-data will have to be sent several times, until your device gets all the necessary information.
i'd also like to know if there's a way to force a lock asap as opposed to waiting for a decent level of accuracy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, not with GPS, you can use Cell-tower information, which allows positioning with very low to medium accuracy. WLANs could also be used, but aren´t always available.
thanks
so, do you think galileo will be a better alternative once finished?
more probs with this today.
stood still for about 5 mins and no lock. tried different roms, data on, no diff
gps just sucks
Get GPSTest app .. have data active (wifi works too) .. go to gps test app settings, select clear agps, then update agps .. then you should get fix in few seconds.
got em. a few of them actually. did that. doesn't work at times. it's annoying.
thankfully i don't use gps properly all that often but if i ever really needed it (for work or soemthing) i'd get something standalone. can't rely on a mobile phones gps at all
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions Thanks
Moving to Q&A
I am currently in Hong Kong, using Google Maps on my phone. On my old Blackberries, the GPS is accurate, the arrow sits right on the building I live in.
However, with the S2, it is either off by an entire block, or takes 2-3 tries, and finally narrows it down to within 200 feet of me. I am sitting right next to the window with GPS turned on, and the arrow is sitting on a building across the street from me.
Anyone else have this problem? Is there a fix? Maps is sort of useless to me when I need it the most.
Thanks!
Always been accurate for me outdoors of course less reliable indoors as it cannot see the sky .
Possibly try the latest KG6 modem .
Faster fix from the market and GPS Status may help .
jje
Thank you for the input!
I tried faster fix, the arrow finally landed right on my building, but a couple seconds later, it jumped to a located two blocks away. The other times, the arrow was at least 200+ feet away. I will flash 2.3.4 sometime soon, even though I've rooted my phone, flash custom kernel and all, I am still waiting for that update firmware to 2.3.4 to show up in Kies...
From my remote village, the Google Latitude location is never accurate. It jumps around as you described (I'm still using 2.33 firmware).
However, if I turn on WIFI (even though there's no wifi around...or home wifi is turned off), it becomes more accurate and less jumpy.
When I'm riding around my tuktuk, Latitude is very accurate (not jumpy) if I turn on both WIFI and GPS.
In case you didn't know, the Note can use GLONASS instead of GPS (Click on the words to read more).
People use GPS like "Xerox", "Coke", or "Kleenex"... but nevermind that.
What is your GPS/GLONASS lock time with A.GPS (Assisted GPS (network location)) and sensor aid on??
Please describe whether you are outside or inside. I am also particularly interested the lock time from a fresh boot or if you're using GPS from a new location.
IMPORTANT: Please note (excuse the pun) down, when you launch Maps or Nav and the arrow shows up almost instantaneously, I would like to know IF *sometimes* the GPS reticle on the status bar continues to flash/blink for a while.
Why do I ask? My Note takes anywhere from 3-12 seconds to lock when GPS is "hot" and takes 10-25 seconds to lock from a reboot in doors while stationary.
Compared to my Sprint Evo 3D, GSM Galaxy Nexus, or the iPhone4s that I never use, that is slow. When I powered up the Galaxy Nexus for the first time, it locked under 5 seconds! My Evo 3D would lock from a boot in under 5 seconds. The 4s is super fast also. The Note, with GLONASS, is supposed to be faster and more accurate...
Thanks.
Edit: Interesting discovery today--the slow lock and low precision in my car may be because of my car--but it may also be revealing limitations in GLONASS:
Every piece of glass on my car is double-paned (twice as thick as the typical car glass), sandwiched with a polymer layer, along with an IR rejecting coating. This is designed to keep the interior very quiet, makes the glass theft resistant, and the IR coating reduces the heat that enters the cabin (heat travels in the form of infrared). The IR coating, unfortunately, also rejects other radio frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum. That, along with metallic particularized tint, causes a reduced radio performance for any device that is in the interior of the vehicle.
I usually don't have any problems with the GSM/UMTS or CDMA phones, and GPS has no problems either (although I notice a reduced s/n ratio). As I indicated before, other GPS-based phones lock fine, and the GPS+GLONASS iPhone works fine also.
As I was driving home today, I tried opening the window. I noticed that every time I opened, the phone would get a quick and solid lock. Every time I closed, the uncertainty circle appears.
Is it possible that GLONASS, operating at 1.6Ghz, using FDMA is less able to penetrate certain objects than GPS operating at 1.57Ghz using CDMA? I presume civilians are still only using the coarse channels so that doesn't help. It is interesting to see that GPS have no problems in my car while GLONASS does. I will drive another car tomorrow and see if there is a difference.
My Note locked within 2 seconds this morning, on my way to work. I was outside in my car.
When opening google maps, I get a lock before the app is fully open, ie. I'm already locked by the time I can do anything in the app even. Compared to my Captivate and Infuse, the lock times on my Note are godly.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk
I lock before apps load that can use it such as maps/nav. I came from a Vibrant that even after numerous "fixes" it still could take a couple minutes to lock.
Wow... That is what I expected from my phone. Are you guys all using the stock ROM? If not, what ROM are you using and who is your carrier?
Thanks.
welchertc said:
When opening google maps, I get a lock before the app is fully open, ie. I'm already locked by the time I can do anything in the app even. Compared to my Captivate and Infuse, the lock times on my Note are godly.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same experience here,running stock
No, not stock. I'm highly modified. I installed a screen protector that I suspect is giving me increased GPS/glonass capabilities.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk
Chief Geek said:
No, not stock. I'm highly modified. I installed a screen protector that I suspect is giving me increased GPS/glonass capabilities.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... maybe it's *my* screen protector that is killing the GPS...
A follow up to those who responded:
Please note (excuse the pun) down, when you launch Maps or Nav and the arrow shows up almost instantaneously, I would like to know IF *sometimes* the GPS reticle on the status bar continues to flash/blink for a while.
Thanks for the information.
I was excited for the GPS capabilities in this phone before I bought it, but my experiences have been far worse than everyone elses. Google Maps is loaded for about 5 seconds before it even STARTS trying to acquire a position. And even then, while indoors it takes a good 20 seconds to lock on. My iPhone 4 locks on indoors in about 3-5 seconds.
With the note, many apps think I'm 10-15 miles away while indoors. Especially with weather apps that just want a quick location fix but don't leave the GPS on during use. At first glance everything thinks I'm far away. Chat apps that only use GPS when sending a message have the same problem. Navigation apps that leave the GPS on during use are accurate. It's annoying. Never had an issue like that on my old phone.
Outside though, the Note seems to lock on nice and quick, within about 2-3 seconds upon starting acquisition, and my accuracy is generally at 3 meters or less. Even my $650 handheld GPSr doesn't have that level of accuracy.
EDIT: The notification bar icon DOES continue to blink for several seconds after achieving a lock.
johnus said:
I was excited for the GPS capabilities in this phone before I bought it, but my experiences have been far worse than everyone elses. Google Maps is loaded for about 5 seconds before it even STARTS trying to acquire a position. And even then, while indoors it takes a good 20 seconds to lock on. My iPhone 4 locks on indoors in about 3-5 seconds.
With the note, many apps think I'm 10-15 miles away while indoors. Especially with weather apps that just want a quick location fix but don't leave the GPS on during use. At first glance everything thinks I'm far away. Chat apps that only use GPS when sending a message have the same problem. Navigation apps that leave the GPS on during use are accurate. It's annoying. Never had an issue like that on my old phone.
Outside though, the Note seems to lock on nice and quick, within about 2-3 seconds upon starting acquisition, and my accuracy is generally at 3 meters or less. Even my $650 handheld GPSr doesn't have that level of accuracy.
EDIT: The notification bar icon DOES continue to blink for several seconds after achieving a lock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As for accuracy, this is a function of the number of satilites that you have locked onto. I believe all you need are 2, possibly 3 for accurate elevation, however the more you lock onto the more acurate you are. This is why "quick" on and off checks are rarely very accurate. however, with weather, the phone grabs your location and then queries the closest whether center, which is very rarely in your neighborhood. Typically it's your closest airport or military base, so this will atleast be 20-30 miles away, but often in same or neighboring zip codes.
For the indoor, thing, I never expect (nor really use) reliable GPS signal indoords. Just because you get a lock doesn't mean it'll be enough locks to do much. I rarely get lost going from my kitchen to the latrine anyways, but I suppose with enough beer it could happen. I would suggest (and you probably already have) check to make sure you make use of "use sensor aiding" option.
If all else fails, I will loan you my vibrant and you can experience a man-tantrum in your car when the fking thing wont lock after 5 minutes and your lost as **** and late as hell and google maps keeps freezing and FCing. That'll make you want to wine and dine your other devices for treating you so well.
Chief Geek said:
As for accuracy, this is a function of the number of satilites that you have locked onto. I believe all you need are 2, possibly 3 for accurate elevation,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe you need at least 3 for triangulation (location) and 4th to give elevation.
Another interesting thing I noticed about my Note--even if it locks quickly while I am stationary, it looses lock when I am moving (driving). I had my Sprint Evo 3D, Verizon Galaxy Nexus, Sprint Galaxy S Epic 4G, GSM Galaxy Nexus, and the Note side-by-side on the dash. The only phone that keeps losing and reacquiring the lock the the Note (especially while traveling at freeway speeds).
my note locks on really fast
under 10 seconds for sure.
If im out side its within 5 seconds.
My Skyrocket usually locked in around 10-15 seconds
my inspire....30 seconds.
my nav in the car....30 sec
this may be useful to you to get a little more info on what your gadget is doing with its unearthly beacons
https://play.google.com/store/apps/...wsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5lY2xpcHNpbS5ncHNzdGF0dXMyIl0.
Chief Geek said:
this may be useful to you to get a little more info on what your gadget is doing with its unearthly beacons
https://play.google.com/store/apps/...wsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5lY2xpcHNpbS5ncHNzdGF0dXMyIl0.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very useful tool. In addition to that one, I also use GPS Test, GPS Essentials, and GPS Status. Each brings something different to the party.
snovvman said:
Very useful tool. In addition to that one, I also use GPS Test, GPS Essentials, and GPS Status. Each brings something different to the party.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like you need "Kick GPS - The 12 Step Program"
Really? Your complaining about 12 seconds to a gps lock? (regarding the OP)
Give me a break...
My DEDICATED GPS Tomtom unit takes over 2 minutes to get a lock, I consider it a blessing that my phone locks faster than a dedicated gps.
Good Lord...
My guess is you are one of those that complain about your browser taking more than 2 seconds to load as well.
Regarding gps stability, there are a couple of different things to try, namely one of the more rare things is calibrating the compass. There are many videos on Youtube, just search 'smart phone calibrate compass'. You'll find 3-4 different methods, any will likely work. And yes, the compass does affect the gps keeping a lock in speeds higher than 20 mph.
Another thing to try is downloading the latest gps satellite data. There are several apps available on the market that can do this (GPS Test, GPS Essentials, and GPS Status all do this).
littlewierdo said:
Really? Your complaining about 12 seconds to a gps lock? (regarding the OP)
Give me a break...
My DEDICATED GPS Tomtom unit takes over 2 minutes to get a lock, I consider it a blessing that my phone locks faster than a dedicated gps.
Good Lord...
My guess is you are one of those that complain about your browser taking more than 2 seconds to load as well.
Regarding gps stability, there are a couple of different things to try, namely one of the more rare things is calibrating the compass. There are many videos on Youtube, just search 'smart phone calibrate compass'. You'll find 3-4 different methods, any will likely work. And yes, the compass does affect the gps keeping a lock in speeds higher than 20 mph.
Another thing to try is downloading the latest gps satellite data. There are several apps available on the market that can do this (GPS Test, GPS Essentials, and GPS Status all do this).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why so excitable and quick to judge? "Give me a break..."? "Good Lord..."? Really?
Your TomTom uses GPS, not GLONASS and does not have Assisted GPS. GLONASS and A.GPS should allow a faster fix. With these new and additional technologies, the phone SHOULD get a much faster fix than your TomTom. You're comparing apples and oranges.
My Evo 3D, Galaxy Nexus, and other phones I metioned, with GPS (no GLONASS) and A.GPS will almost ALWAYS get a fix in 2-5 seconds. If enough research is done here at XDA, you will find that many newer devices, if working properly, *should* get a lock in under ten seconds. Your "DEDICATED GPS Tomtom" [sic] is a different and arguably less advanced animal.
Another example--the built-in GPS in my two vehicles lock IMMEDIATELY when the car is on. Why? Because they remember the last location, use brake sensors, steering angle sensors, and accelerometers to determine location. If they do not lock immediately, something is wrong.
If you re-read my original post--I am trying to figure out if others have the same problem, and attempting to understand what others are experiencing. At the same time, I provided information on GLONASS, in case other owners didn't know they had it.
For a just-released, $650 device, I expected mine to perform on-par with other phones. Perhaps mine is defective? I wanted to find out if I need a replacement. Last checked, this forum is about people asking questions, sharing information, and learning something. To that end, I am puzzled at your comments--it seems like *you're* the one who is complaining...
So yes, really!
littlewierdo said:
My guess is you are one of those that complain about your browser taking more than 2 seconds to load as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? Really?!
Chief Geek said:
Sounds like you need "Kick GPS - The 12 Step Program"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I suppose...
While I'm her--there is also F GPS (fake GPS, provides coordinate of your choice to the location manager), GPS to MMS (allows you to send a text/MMS with your current coordinates), and GPS Speedo (a nice GPS-based speedometer).
See the edited OP. I made an interesting observation today. It seems like GLONASS signals are less able to penetrate objects...
My Note's GPS performance is flawless and is my most loved feature of the device. Superquick and very accurate.
I use the GPS all the time for backpacking, motorcycling, running and of course general finding all the stores my wife makes me take her shopping on the weekend.
Even better than my previous iPhone 4 and 3g.
My Samsung Infuse's GPS was a disaster taking forever getting a lock, loosing it, placing on the next road over, and not performing if sitting in the middle of my car...constant frustration so I REALLY am happy with my stock Notes GPS.
Sent from my Samsung Note via Tapatalk.
All, what is gps like on the s3? Doors it get a strong lock quickly and stay locked? How does it compare to the s2? Really interested in this add I use navigation a lot
Sent via TCP/IP
I've not used the GPS at all when out and about, however I just turned it on in google maps while sitting in my bedroom; the phone got a lock to 10 metres within 6 seconds.
I was impressed!
Used mine a few times now when driving, it locked very fast and had no issues.
The combinaion of GPE/GLONASS is awsam. it works inside the building, locks for seconds, find at least 13-17 sattelites inside... perfect.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Same here GPS fix is almost instantaneous, accuracy very good. Now if we get TomTom soon I will be very happy, Google nav just doesn't do it for me.
when I think how poor my SGS 1 was for GPS
MadBob said:
Same here GPS fix is almost instantaneous, accuracy very good. Now if we get TomTom soon I will be very happy, Google nav just doesn't do it for me.
when I think how poor my SGS 1 was for GPS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats great news, using sgs1 now and gps is driving me nuts!
Sent via TCP/IP
Yes, the GPS fixes very fast, like some of our friends mentioned above, partly because this GPS system is in hybrid with the former Russian Glonass system, hence catches more satellites. However, I am disappointed that the accuracy is not different than my older traditional GPS system on older phones. The best accuracy that I got is 5 meters under clear sky conditions so far
Hi,
How is the GPS performance of this device. Is it comparable with tomtom standalone GPS devices.
Thing is I broke my tomtom today and wondering if I really need to buy new one again or my s3 will do the job. GPS is on sale for next two days and my phone will come after 27th so I cannot wait for testing. SO I am relying on your advise.
My last phone Samsung Vibrant had ****ed up GPS so I do not really trust samsung for GPS.
And I do have Sygic license for offline maps.
One of the fastest fixes i've seen after iphone 4. My LG O3D (sic) phone took about 3 mins to fix in open area and SIII takes 10 secs to lock inside my car without having data on.
~3 seconds with wifi, GPS and all sensors on.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Flawless. Locks very quickly both indoors and out. Had the S1 and S2 but both were pretty crap compared. Both had a ship load of threads after release about poor GPS. Haven't seen many, if any for the S3.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Beats any stand alone GPS device hands down- and I've had a few.
If you're a lover of Tom Tom they are about to release an android version.
My preference is Sygic though.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Especially in cities you'll see huge improvement over other mobile phones or standalone devices since it uses GPS (USA) and GLONASS (Russia) at the same time, meaning it can calculate it's position based on roughly the double count of satellites.
Usually in cities you're hard-pressed to get the required 3-4 satellites for a fix and often drop to the minimum of 2 (or even loose the fix) while turning around corners. I have yet to see a single fix being dropped on the S3, it usually sees 5-6 satellites in cities and 16-17 in open country.
The only device I own that really could compete to the S3's GPS is a bluetooth Sirf3 GPS-receiver I used on my S1 which had the worst GPS I've ever used.