GPS will not lock after 100 hours

[brochaos]

Hey all,

Since i've had my droid (early december) i've had issues with the GPS getting a solid lock. i've noticed every 4 to 5 days that it will stop working. after a while, i noticed that it seems to be right at the 100 hour up time mark, which is basically 4-5 days.

if i restart the phone, it works fine. it will get a solid lock in about 5-10 seconds.

i am not a former alltell customer.

i've always believed it had to be some kind of software conflict. i did install a lot of apps after i bought it.

i decided to do a full factory reset, and i only installed 3rd party apps that did NOT require any location access of any kind. the problem still exists.

i've done *228opt2, that doesn't help. i have 3 friends at work, none of them seem to have the same problem.

i just have a hard time believing it is an actual hardware issue. especially when the forums are full of people that seem to have issues. then again, there are a ton more people who swear they don't have any.

what do you guys think? opinions? ideas?

 

[ldimick]

Do you get any kind of a lock with just the cell towers?

 

[brochaos]

yea i get the blue halo, which gets me usually within 100 meters. i assume that is the cell tower approximation. when the GPS gets a full lock, its usually down to 10 or 6 meters.

 

[zerosignal0]

I am having this issue all of the sudden as well. Never had issues with GPS before and havent installed anything new within the last week (used gps successfully 3 days ago). I have tried using gps test and get NO gps signal after leaving the app run for over an hour. I currently show all gps sats overseas so I am wondering about trying in the next few hours to see if when they are closer to being overhead if it makes a difference.

 

[brochaos]

well i had a replement refurbished phone sent to me. manufacture date 01/10. i couldn't even get the thing to last a day without locking up on me. 4 battery pulls in 4 days. wasn't even able to get anywhere near 100 hours uptime. sent it back.

finally had a friend that kept his phone on for a few days, when i had him check the GPS at 136 hours uptime, it would not lock on. he restarted and it worked fine again.

i have another friend who is at 110 hours, and his still locks on immediately. so maybe it is more than just 100 or 110 hours. i'm going to keep an eye on his and see if it stops anytime soon.

 

[lschicky]

are you indoors a lot? What are the buildings made out of while you are in doors. GPS in general has a problem with lots of brick, concrete and metal. (try getting a GPS lock in downtown Chicago)


A bit of the science behind why GPS has a hard time with some things:
Feraday Cage
The concept of a Faraday cage is logically attributed to Michael Faraday, an 19th Century pioneer in the field of electromagnetic energy. Faraday studied the work of earlier scientists such as Benjamin Franklin and theorized that electromagnetic waves naturally flowed around the surface of conductive materials, not through them. For example, if a metal box containing a mouse were placed directly in the path of an electrical current, the electricity would flow over the box but not into the compartment with the mouse. The mouse would not be electrocuted. Such a box would be considered a Faraday cage.

The important concept to remember is that a Faraday cage acts as a shield against the effects of electromagnetic energy. When a car is struck by lightning, the metal frame becomes a Faraday cage and draws the electricity away from the passengers inside. A microwave oven's door has a screen which prevents electromagnetic energy from escaping into the room. Electronic parts which generate radio frequencies are often protected by Faraday cages called RF shields. Even a concrete building reinforced with lead or rebar can be considered a Faraday cage.

Few consumers of electronic products would ever ask the sales clerk for a Faraday cage, but designers and engineers understand the importance of electromagnetic shielding very well. Whenever sensitive electronic parts are used in machinery, some form of shielding is generally in place, whether it be the machine's metal shell, a capsule or a grounding wire. If the electronic parts generate electromagnetic energy of their own, a Faraday cage must be used to shield users from excessive exposure. This is why cell phone use is often discouraged in hospitals or other public places with electronic equipment. Unshielded equipment may be exposed to the microwave energy created by cell phones or other radio transmitters.

 

[brochaos]

we are inside a brick building, but i've tried both indoors and out, near windows, in my car etc. after ~100 hours it won't lock anywhere. before 100 hours, it locks everywhere.