Tasker not able to control GPS? - AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II SGH-I777

Hi I am currently running UnNamed rom and have Tasker installed. I was trying to setup a profile for certain apps to toggle GPS on and then off so I dont have GPS on all the time...For some reason when i go to task-misc-GPS...there is a * next to it and am unable to use this feature on my Galaxy S2...Anyone else having this issue?

anyone? bump

desiromeo719 said:
Hi I am currently running UnNamed rom and have Tasker installed. I was trying to setup a profile for certain apps to toggle GPS on and then off so I dont have GPS on all the time...For some reason when i go to task-misc-GPS...there is a * next to it and am unable to use this feature on my Galaxy S2...Anyone else having this issue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, Tasker cant do this. I think it has to do with all the recent privacy issues raised by apps that automatically monitor and report your location. I am sure due to these issues Google disabled the ability to have a 3rd party app turn on GPS. Bummer because there are a lot of things you can have Tasker do with GPS.
However, I have read that leaving GPS on all the time does not impact battery, as long as there are no apps actively using it. I need to research this more.

There is zero battery drain leaving GPS on as long as there is no app actively using it.

foxbat121 said:
There is zero battery drain leaving GPS on as long as there is no app actively using it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, i've tested my battery life with gps on and off. I dont notice any significant drain when its left on (and not in use).

GPS button in SwitchPro widget doesn't seem to work, either.

Thank you all for your repsonses

Secure Settings in the market will allow you to control the GPS but you must be rooted.

The tasker gps function will work on CM7 and MIUI, but doesnt on stock roms

Related

[Q] Phone is constantly trying to get gps fix

My Galaxy S2 is constantly trying to get gps fix. Is there any way to find out which program that is responsible for this?
long-press the home-button, start task manager and see which apps are running perhaps?
According to task manager WidgetLock is the only program running.
I need a program that monitor all programs and what they do at what time
I have your answer
That damn samsung vingo voice control App(don't know name) while driving. I guarantee that's your problem. Gad the same issue when I made a mistake and clicked it
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
intruda119 said:
I have your answer
That damn samsung vingo voice control App(don't know name) while driving. I guarantee that's your problem. Gad the same issue when I made a mistake and clicked it
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this.
You could always just turn the GPS off.
That program I mentioned auto switches GPS on.
drm111 said:
this.
You could always just turn the GPS off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
intruda119 said:
I have your answer
That damn samsung vingo voice control App(don't know name) while driving. I guarantee that's your problem. Gad the same issue when I made a mistake and clicked it
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have run it a couple of times myself, and then a couple of times to impress women, over the course of a few days - never had GPS issues with it, or excessive battery drainage.
just checked my battery useage and was kinda shocked: gps status uses most battery
i get _decent_ battery life out of my sgs2. 60% after ~24h with moderate useage. so it does not drain the battery but
i never did turn on gps since the last charge so its strange why gps status uses battery... the process is not shown as running which is also strange...
i have german sgs2 with KE2 (no updates in Kies shown for my device so far). unrooted phone.
edit: i dont want deinstall the program as i get extreme fast gps fix (< 5 seconds) so i wanted to hear if anyone else is having similar experiences with the program first...

Turn GPS On only when needed

Is there a way to have the GPS Radio only turn on if I open Waze or some other GPS Aware program? Trying to conserve power here.
TIA
CradleRob said:
Is there a way to have the GPS Radio only turn on if I open Waze or some other GPS Aware program? Trying to conserve power here.
TIA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To my knowledge, having GPS on standby barely uses any battery. Only when an app updates your location.
I'd just leave it on. Maybe Juice Defender could manage it though
That's how Android works. The GPS isn't actually on unless you see the icon in the top bar. Try it yourself - open Google Maps and you'll se the icon, then close Maps and you'll see it go away.
How is it like with bluetooth? Is it a big battery hog?
Eric-1987 said:
How is it like with bluetooth? Is it a big battery hog?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haven't tried out bluetooth yet.
But again, Juice Defender can now manage that too.
Thanks for the info...I'll be sure to play with the GPS a bit more.
Juice Defender is my new best friend.
Maroon Mushroom said:
To my knowledge, having GPS on standby barely uses any battery. Only when an app updates your location.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I wasn't aware of that, I've always turned it off because I thought that it would drain my battery.
I know for a fact that the BT will drain your battery even if you have nothing connected to it so turn it off if you don't use it.
Saelee said:
Thanks, I wasn't aware of that, I've always turned it off because I thought that it would drain my battery.
I know for a fact that the BT will drain your battery even if you have nothing connected to it so turn it off if you don't use it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it doesn't. Nor does GPS.
khaytsus said:
No, it doesn't. Nor does GPS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reason people think that I bet is because when Bluetooth was new tech and only in it's first revision it didn't have any power saving features and was constantly pinging the radio if devices were connected or not. That was fixed with Bluetooth 1.3 onwards if memory serves right.
Bluetooth will not use battery unless its connected to a device, and then only will if the phone and the device get out of range from each other. I think but don't quote me, that the connecting device is in charge of pinging and staying pared and not the phone.
Gps can actually cause battery drain of you do a ton of web browsing and are using googles locstion sharing feature...it shares your location each time you load a page in the browser...so not only uses gps but the maps app as well.
This is the only scenario where I have seen it measurably effect battery
Sent from my hand using XDA App
I use Bluetooth in my car for voice and music. As you can see by my screen grab it does not use much battery.
CradleRob said:
Is there a way to have the GPS Radio only turn on if I open Waze or some other GPS Aware program? Trying to conserve power here.
TIA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pull down status bar, toggle GPS on/off.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
CradleRob said:
Is there a way to have the GPS Radio only turn on if I open Waze or some other GPS Aware program? Trying to conserve power here.
TIA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use a program called Tasker and created a rule that turns on GPS only when I open Maps and Navigation. Tasker is a paid app but well worth it. i used it to turn on bluetooth and Nav when I get in my car in the morning, it also shuts off wifi and starts streaming Pandora. When I get to my office, it shuts off the ringer and turns on vibrate mode, shuts off the data network and stops streaming Pandora. It checks my personal email twice per day at scheduled intervals so I am not distracted.
When i plug in my headphones, a menu appears asking if I would like to launch music, pandora or phone.
Though it's a paid app, it is worth the money. Tasker is awesome.
--Mike
Sent from one of many Samsung devices.
MobileData said:
I use a program called Tasker and created a rule that turns on GPS only when I open Maps and Navigation. Tasker is a paid app but well worth it. i used it to turn on bluetooth and Nav when I get in my car in the morning, it also shuts off wifi and starts streaming Pandora. When I get to my office, it shuts off the ringer and turns on vibrate mode, shuts off the data network and stops streaming Pandora. It checks my personal email twice per day at scheduled intervals so I am not distracted.
When i plug in my headphones, a menu appears asking if I would like to launch music, pandora or phone.
Though it's a paid app, it is worth the money. Tasker is awesome.
--Mike
Sent from one of many Samsung devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just bought and paid for Tasker for the GPS one click workaround.
Tasker has a learning curve, but it's like any other macro editor.
You basically make a macro that says
IF app_being_opened = Navigation
AND gps status = off
THEN Open Location Settings
DPAD Down
DPAD Down
DPAD Enter
^-- Tasker does these for you, you sit there and watch.
OPEN Navigation
And you can do the same thing for Maps or any other apps requiring GPS.
Note that I also just made one for one click 4G, too.
Works well.
Note that I'm sure the macros can be cleaned up and made more idiot-proof, but I'm nowhere near proficient with Tasker yet. There are A LOT of options.
+1 for Tasker. I am by no means an expert with it, but it definitely has a lot of functionality.
I've used it to only turn on GPS when opening certain apps (like maps, foursquare, etc.)
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium
I don't understand the need to pay for an app to turn GPS onff. Tasked has a lot more uses but to purchase it for an answer to a nonexistent problem is so...meh.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
jamesd86 said:
I don't understand the need to pay for an app to turn GPS onff. Tasked has a lot more uses but to purchase it for an answer to a nonexistent problem is so...meh.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Troll keep on trolling.
There is obviously a problem if multiple threads have been started to address the problem and if all the GPS widgets on the Market have to have a disclaimer saying "1 click won't work on 2.3.x devices."
Have tasker, just waiting for my note to use it actually
Sent from my INFUSE powered by ZEUS
I made this tutorial for anyone having difficulty making their one-click GPS solution.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fg56IgNHA0Y
theleetbeagle said:
Troll keep on trolling.
There is obviously a problem if multiple threads have been started to address the problem and if all the GPS widgets on the Market have to have a disclaimer saying "1 click won't work on 2.3.x devices."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you read what I wrote you'd realize that I understand there's a small problem but c'mon..almost 7 bucks when all you have to do is pull the notification down and hit the GPS toggle? If that's all someone is buying tasker for...its a waste. Now if they are going to use it for more stuff that's cool.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium

Smart Action Woes

Having issues getting smart actions to come on with location settings. I am trying with leaving gps on as well. Any tips? For example I wanted to turn wifi on at home but I can't seem to get it to recognize "home" location.
I found that you must leave wifi and gps on for location based rules to work correctly.
Sent from my XT910 using xda app-developers app
therm0 said:
I found that you must leave wifi and gps on for location based rules to work correctly.
Sent from my XT910 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I will give it a try. Seems the GPS isn't very accurate as well, however I am in a heavily wooded area and low signal.
If you intend to save some juice by disabling WiFi, don't use a location-based SmartAction to do this. It will eat as much battery as leaving WiFi on, a Motorola location services will keep your WiFi on regardless of your system settings.
Sent from my XT910
bond32 said:
Having issues getting smart actions to come on with location settings. I am trying with leaving gps on as well. Any tips? For example I wanted to turn wifi on at home but I can't seem to get it to recognize "home" location.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try Llama app. It uses mobile phone towers to ascertain location so no extra battery drain. And it has many more options than smart actions.
Sent from my Razr machine

NetworkLocationLocator Wakelock

Hello all,
I am more than happy with my SIII but I'm finding a wakelock rather disturbing. It happens as soon as i turn on the "Use wireless networks" under the Location services settings.
If it's turned off, the wakelock disappears. But you know, it's hard to live with it turned off, as it greatly helps the GPS set a location way faster than it would do on its own... So using location based apps while it's off is a pain in the ass.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Alphadan said:
Hello all,
I am more than happy with my SIII but I'm finding a wakelock rather disturbing. It happens as soon as i turn on the "Use wireless networks" under the Location services settings.
If it's turned off, the wakelock disappears. But you know, it's hard to live with it turned off, as it greatly helps the GPS set a location way faster than it would do on its own... So using location based apps while it's off is a pain in the ass.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nothing can be done about it really. Applications poll location data constantly when this option is ticked. It even tells you data is collected in the background regardless of what you are doing. To be honest many can cope with the 5-10 second wait for a GPS fix. Either deal with the drain or disable it.
5-10 seconds?? Most of the time I get message saying current location is temporarily unavailable, especially when I'm indoors.
I can't believe I have to deal with this problem. Am I the only one with this problem?? I was expecting a better answer.
just deactivate it. if you use a gps-app it will tell you to activate GPS anyways and while doing that you can then activate the network location as well.
with lbe privacy guard you can Block it if you are rooted
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
So basically there's no proper fix for this. All I can do is work around the issue? Coming from an iphone I feel this is a bit frustrating.
Thing is that the option I have to disable does not use GPS. It uses mobile signal and WiFi radios, so turning off GPS is useless.
Can anybody else help?
disable Google now,I think you will find that is what is polling your location
slaphead20 said:
disable Google now,I think you will find that is what is polling your location
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's been disabled all along, as I am Spanish and the current support for that language is nonexistent.
Any other ideas guys?
Alphadan said:
So basically there's no proper fix for this. All I can do is work around the issue? Coming from an iphone I feel this is a bit frustrating.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
coming from iPhone then you should know that the 4S had a similar problem when it came out, and the workaround was about the same...how you felt back then??
edit
how do you check if you have partial wakelock on an iphone btw??
Disable location in general and use Tasker or make a profile on AOSP rom to turn on location service when you're going out. After all you don't need location indoors right?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Tokarin said:
Disable location in general and use Tasker or make a profile on AOSP rom to turn on location service when you're going out. After all you don't need location indoors right?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, in theory, your solution sounds awesome. But as i stated earlier, there's a small problem: battery drain is not caused by the GPS itself, but by the other "tricks" the phone has in order to find a location (wifi and radio).
I don't know about that problem with the 4S, but as you said, it occurred when it came out. The SIII has been out for 6 months now, and there's been several updates, yet the issue is still there.
BTW, i check the partial wakelocks with Better Battery Stats (you can find it for free here on the forums)
Just a general question... Does anyone else have this issue? If any of you guys do, then i'll learn to live with it, but being the only one would really make me feel silly.
Well, I just don't use that option, AFAIK the new cm10 build changed the GPS so that it no longer favor the North America but search for the nearest satellite instead. I notice this change already make my gps quick enough so I don't bother..
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
I have the same problem. The only solution I found was to disable networks location. Is there any app to identify clearly what is the app that it's requesting location from Google services? It is not maps because with 3g watchdog installed it reports separated (maps and Google services) the leak is on Google services.
Ps: I have found that this problem only exists when connected to a WiFi network. On 3g the requests are less intensive.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Well I've just been doing some investigating with Better Battery Stats to find out why my battery was so bad with JB compared to ICS, then googled the NetworkLocationLocator as that seems to be the problem which brought me here (I'm a member anyway).
I must say it's pretty disappointing that this problem is occurring because surely the same option was being used in ICS and it never drained my battery back then. The only thing I can think of is Google Now has something to do with this. I have Google Now disabled anyway as (although it's a brilliant feature) it doesn't really benefit me as I don't travel around much, but I get the feeling that is the root of this problem because that's the biggest change in coming from ICS to JB (other than cosmetics and UI) right?
This is not even a problem.
People tick all kind of options or fail to go to see their apps properly starting from Facebook, Google+ , Google now, weather apps... And then complain how come they get excessive polling.
Problem lies in those same people wanting those services to record their location , but don't want any battery drain... At least case with all those around me that asked.
Trust me without WiFi and network triangulation the same services when allowed waste way more power using real GPS.
Testing JKay alpha on GT-I9300
Idan73 said:
This is not even a problem.
People tick all kind of options or fail to go to see their apps properly starting from Facebook, Google+ , Google now, weather apps... And then complain how come they get excessive polling.
Problem lies in those same people wanting those services to record their location , but don't want any battery drain... At least case with all those around me that asked.
Trust me without WiFi and network triangulation the same services when allowed waste way more power using real GPS.
Testing JKay alpha on GT-I9300
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the sweeping generalisation but I had the exact same option ticked in ICS and it was never a problem. Fact is in JB it causes a problem for some reason. It may be Google Now, who knows, but one things for sure, I should be able to have that option ticked and not have it keep my phone awake all night.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Maybe I misunderstood. Sorry.
I use Google now and maps for network location as well as fancy widget polling every 2 hours. All other apps I individually where permitted set to off.
This setup does not keep my phone all night. I see where it wakes the phone in intervals and does its thing and goes back to sleep. Combined with my exchange email polling every hour overnight, I don't see any excessive battery usage compared to what I had with ICS.
Testing JKay alpha on GT-I9300
Turn of location history, leave the rest on. Wakelock is still there but less.

GPS Problem

I have a GPS problem / question. I'm on Galaxy Note fre3 Hybrid De[Odex] v2.11 but I don't believe this is a ROM issue. I have certain apps that require location services and GPS to be on, example would be the WWE app or even our SBarometer app. If I turn GPS on and enable location services, the apps do not detect that GPS is on and I have no GPS icon in my status bar. If I use GPS Status it's fine. Any ideas? It's not app settings because on my Mega when I open the same apps the GPS icon comes on immediately and the app works properly.
Have you found a fix for this? I am on stock 4.4.2 with root, and I have been having the same GPS issue for several months now. Whenever I use Waze, it's constantly looking for a GPS signal, and MapMyRun will find it and drop it several times while I run making it impossible to track my runs. One other thing I did notice, is when I'm using Waze, if I turn the screen off, it locks on to the GPS. I can tell it's locked on because the voice commands start giving me directions, but when I turn the screen back on, it looses the GPS signal again. I would really like to get this issue fixed. The only other option will be to take it back to Sprint for an exchange.
pjacobs76 said:
Have you found a fix for this? I am on stock 4.4.2 with root, and I have been having the same GPS issue for several months now. Whenever I use Waze, it's constantly looking for a GPS signal, and MapMyRun will find it and drop it several times while I run making it impossible to track my runs. One other thing I did notice, is when I'm using Waze, if I turn the screen off, it locks on to the GPS. I can tell it's locked on because the voice commands start giving me directions, but when I turn the screen back on, it looses the GPS signal again. I would really like to get this issue fixed. The only other option will be to take it back to Sprint for an exchange.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too am having a GPS problem. I'm Stock and not rooted with the most recent Sprint OTA (NK4). I've been suffering with this since NH7 came out and no ROMs, stock or otherwise have fixed my problem. Any recommendations on what I should flash? I'm considering doing an Odin Flash of NC5 just to see if that would help.
I have read through this thread, the first thing I would try is to update your PRL and profile. If GPS works on some apps and not on others I'd be willing to bet there's nothing wrong with the device or a stock rom running on it. I would try and contact customer service for the app and see if others are having the same problems with the apps., and see if there is a fix.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.androidlab.gpsfix I've heard people say this app has helped them with there GPS issues. Hope it helps
http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag261/Droid716/JONNY SIG 2_zpsrfigggpi.jpg

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