[ypvs]

Recently got a used 64mb Playbook from Ebay so no warranty. When I use it with apps like Navigator and What's Up the heading is 180 deg out ie looking South and the PB heading is North. Its also v slow getting a GPS fix. Is this a fixable hardware fault or something I'll have to live with
Thanks in advance

[FF22]

I am not sure if there's a setting in those apps to change the orientation but there is no access to the gps to "fine tune" it. (I may be mistaken but I thought What's Up had an issue way back when but was tweaked or I may be mis-remembering)

The gps can be slow on initial acquisition of signals if it has been moved a "great" distance or not used for a week or so. It also will not do well indoors or if it does not have a good view of the sky.

How are things otherwise.

[BuzzStarField]

Hi, I am the person responsible for What's up. The app uses the built-in magnetometer (not GPS) to get the "heading".There is extensive on-board help for using "point-and-view" that can be found by swiping down from the top of the screen. I strongly recommend that you read this information. As noted in the help screens, calibrating the sensor is supposed to be automatic - the more you scan the sky, the more accurate it becomes. However, in practice, there are tricks to speed up the calibration process.. Usually all that is required is to tilt and flip the device in a variety of orientations (including upside-down) until it finally points in the right direction. The app uses the GPS chip to determine your geographic location (latitude and longitude). Again, patience might be required and assistance is available in the help section

[rmpb]

Is this happening when you are staying in one spot? Most GPS won't always accurately figure out your heading if you don't move. If it's showing south when you're moving north there's an issue somewhere. If it shows south when you're facing north but not moving it may be that due to signal drift the GPS thinks you've "moved" a little bit south from where you were so changes to the heading it thinks you are now facing (i.e. it thinks you are facing south because it assumes you are facing the direction you last moved).

[ypvs]

Thanks for the quick replies. Just checked Whats Up and Planets and the orientation is now correct!!! However I cannot seem to get a GPS signal either through Navigator or the free GPS Tests, I have to use the Whats Up Set position.

I've had a 16GB Playbook for about 6 months which seemed to locate and postion quite quickly so I'm puzzled why the 64gb is struggling. I got the 64 for more storage and a working HDMI

[FF22]

You could try restarting/rebooting:

To fix an issue, try these in order:

Restart using the Battery Icon and press Restart

Press and hold the Power button for 10-15 seconds. Then leave it for 20-30 seconds and see if it restarts.

To REBOOT:
Press and HOLD all three keys for about 10 - 20 seconds: PowerOn, VolUp and VolDown. Start with the PowerButton. Keep holding past the 3-choice options screen. If you hear a shutter type sound, you've taken a Screen Shot and probably missed the PowerButton.

[cmdr_dan]

Buzz, you are providing your usual helpful support. I have appreciated reading your posts over the years, and didn't want to let this opportunity pass by without saying "thank you."

[ypvs]

Forgot to say thanks for the great app. I was using it as an example and not blaming it in any way. I didn't realise there was also a magnetometer inside the PB. Must remember to RTFM. The PB does get switched off via software frequently as I don't use it every day, I will have to try hardware method

[Herve5]

+1.
What'sUp is potentially the one app where Playbooks still clearly stand out in front of any other systems -and this since the very beginning.

[Malicye]

Why is it that the first pearl with GPS worked better than this? And I may be mistaken but despite the following press release wasn't that in like 2001?

San Antonio, Texas, April 23, 2008

Waterloo, Ontario � Workers and consumers on the go can now put away their maps but still easily navigate the fast lane.

"AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today announced the launch of the BlackBerry� Pearl� 8110 smartphone, which includes built-in global positioning system (GPS) support for location-based applications and services. Combined with navigation and mapping applications such as AT&T Navigator, the handset provides turn-by-turn voice and on-screen directions with colorful 3-D moving maps that can be used in vehicles or while walking. AT&T Navigator also alerts users through voice and on-screen prompts to traffic slowdowns and incidents along their programmed travel route, and it provides customers with the option to choose an alternative route."

[BuzzStarField]

Why is it that the first pearl with GPS worked better than this? And I may be mistaken but despite the following press release wasn't that in like 2001?:

It's just cruel to beat a dying horse let alone a dead one. If you want some fun, I suggest that you just go on over to to the BB10 forums and flog the horses there. You'll likely get some push-back there because BBRY has done some things right on the other platform. The GPS hardware on the PB is only as good as the software that utilizes it. In retrospect, my PlayBook never had a chance to thrive in this area. And I seriously doubt that complaining about it is going to improve the situation.

I implemented GPS in What's up as "perfectly" as I could and it works fine for its intended purpose. My skills sure aren't helping sales though! My efforts were largely a waste of time on this device - the rewards just didn't match the effort that I put into the PB app and they never will.. If you really think about it, this fact goes a long way to explain all of the perceived software deficiencies on the first "professional" tablet. It's time to stop complaining, I think, and just move on.

[LondonVisitor]

As a developer BuzzStarField is correct. The magnetometer in Playbook is too sensitive and goes off tangent very frequently. It needs frequent calibration. I used Compass App, which is great for calibrating the magnetometer. After using Compass App to calibrate the magnetometer, the Whats Up App works correctly. Of course, you can use Whats Up to calibrate magnetometer but the Compass App is easy and automatic.

[LondonVisitor]

Whats Up is one of the best Apps to activate GPS in PB, the other best App being GPS Data Master. Make sure PB is facing open sky for initial logging with GPS. It never gets GPS signal inside my home. Standing from my balcony, it instantaneously gets GPS signal.

Thanks for the quick replies. Just checked Whats Up and Planets and the orientation is now correct!!! However I cannot seem to get a GPS signal either through Navigator or the free GPS Tests, I have to use the Whats Up Set position.

I've had a 16GB Playbook for about 6 months which seemed to locate and postion quite quickly so I'm puzzled why the 64gb is struggling. I got the 64 for more storage and a working HDMI

[Blackman91]

I get a gps fix inside my house under a minute with the sideloaded google maps.