[shn'g]

Yeah I keep hearing use of Wifi but doesn't work.. What I am wondering is why when I had my ipad did it get my location sleep quickly and easily? It was just on Wifi!?... I love my playbkok, to me this is a small issue. If they get this fixed up I would have the only device I would need! I hope PlayBook 2's hardware kicks a**

[FF22]

Again, there may be flaws in some of the pb's or there may be other issues.

I just opened SimpleBrowser+. I went to maps.nokia.com. I clicked on the "locate me" symbol It asked for permission to use the gps and within less than a minute it shows my current position - okay, it seems that I am in my neighbor's house but close enough. I am inside, upstairs in my wood frame home. Oh, just the normal OS 1.xxxxx.

Again, hopefully, people will be able to determine if the damn gps is working in their pb's once OS2 releases (and I will say, IF it releases).

Good luck all.

[throughtheblack]

I installed Beta OS 2 and installed the Gps Test app (Andriod). It took a while to get the fist lock but if I turn it on every day or so, it usually locks in under a minute. After several minutes it usually shows an accuracy of ~10 feet indoors and ~3 to 5 feet outdoors (with no wifi). It tracks me in car pretty well using MapDroyd app. I do find that sometimes I have to reboot to get gps working again, but if GPS Test is accurate, it can give pretty darn good results (when it works). Hopefully this is just a software bug that is fixed in official 2.0.

[Superfly_FR]

all complainers should notice that you must do some kind of first initialization of the pb prior the gps works fine. therefore go outside with no obstacle to the sky and launch any gps enabled application. wait until calibration.
This done, 90% should be happy.

[Superfly_FR]

Again, there may be flaws in some of the pb's or there may be other issues.

I just opened SimpleBrowser+. I went to maps.nokia.com. I clicked on the "locate me" symbol It asked for permission to use the gps and within less than a minute it shows my current position - okay, it seems that I am in my neighbor's house but close enough. I am inside, upstairs in my wood frame home. Oh, just the normal OS 1.xxxxx.

Again, hopefully, people will be able to determine if the damn gps is working in their pb's once OS2 releases (and I will say, IF it releases).

Good luck all.

just done the nokia maps test works perfectly, i'm on a builing 2nd floor intown.

[JeepBB]

I'd agree that the PB GPS is poor. Don't know why, but it takes ages to get that first lock. Once you've got it locked, it seems to be quicker next time... but still a tadge sluggish compared to phone, PDA, tom-tom, etc.

I got my PB GPS to "wake-up" the first time with the "What's Up" starmap app... interesting app as an added bonus.

I don't know why PB GPS should be so poor... if it's a software issue, hopefully it'll be fixed in OS2, if it's hardware then I don't know what RIM did to the GPS chipset which is practically a "buy from Radio Shack item" these days.

EDIT: I just fired-up What's Up... I can't see any stars (cloudy here ) but GPS acquired my position within 4 minutes, by comparison Tom-Tom found me in less than a minute. So... sluggish, as seems to be reflected by several posters in a few threads I've seen in here. Some of whom have asked if the PB even has a GPS given the slow initial acquire. LOL Which is probably how the myths about PB GPS needing WiFi etc have started.

[Scotter75]

I set my PB outside with a good view of the sky for 15 minutes. I installed What's Up (excellent App). The GPS located with a 1 Meter accuracy. Now it still locates me in about 30 seconds. The built in GPS is excellent.

[hpjrt]

I live in the middle of nowhere ... in SW rural Ontario, Canada. The closest village is seldom on a map yet the PB gps found me INSIDE my house in less than 30 seconds.

[Angus_CB]

The PlayBook GPS hardware performance is poor in comparison to other devices.

Comments about the data connection or app being used are red herrings.

Any fanboy defence complaints about these facts are probably * incorrect. They simply give false hope and waste peoples' time.

(* The only residual explanation left on the table is that perhaps there are variations from one manufacturing batch to another.)

I am beginning to wonder about that myself.
My and others GPS works fine yet there are so many reports of poorly working GPS that they can't all be software related.

BTW, when I explain that a GPS is a piece of hardware and not software I am in no way trying to mislead anyone (red herring). The hardware does not require a network connection to function correctly.

[iceroadman]

I've had it with my PB's GPS. I've tried several apps, and can't seem to be able to get it to lock. I'm hoping that the coming O/S update will provide more apps that use GPS, so I want to sort this out once and for all. I need a sure fire way to determine if I have a bad device or not. HELP!

let me start off by saying, I have 3 playbooks, bought them for my wife, 11 year old and myself. Ive owned mine for over 3 months and find it pretty limited compared to my nexus s, nuff said. If you want gps, get a Garmin Montana 650. No phone or tablet comes even close. Today I put mine on one of the benchmarks at the construction site I work at and it was within 1 meter of x, y and z.

[Chaddface]

Correction: Another open possibility is a bug in the OS.

And yet another possibility would be user error.
If you follow some of the tips in this thread and you still can't get the GPS to locate you correctly then call RIM.

[JimCanuck]

Read the Sticky thread for newbies and find the gps discussion. As Chaddface noted, take it outside and plan on 15-30 minutes. No trees or tall buildings very close. As I have noted several times, a gps merely returns latitude/longitude. Anything else is up to the software or apps. Either they need to get the data or they have it. Currently, the apps for the pb generally need a connection to the outside world to get maps or directions or nearby sushi joints, etc.

GPS actually returns lat/long and altitude but the latter is rarely used in consumer applications. it can also be used for time sync.

[raymond]

Here is the best way by using third party apps.

Download what's up free. Use it to "wake up" your gps (credit the first person not me)

Then use either magellan or bing - both work bridged no wifi.

Gps seems fine whole process took me 5 mind tops

[JamesDax3]

Here is the best way by using third party apps.

Download what's up free. Use it to "wake up" your gps (credit the first person not me)

Then use either magellan or bing - both work bridged no wifi.

Gps seems fine whole process took me 5 mind tops

Worked for me. Got What's Up then went outside. Took about 10 minutes to get the coordinates. Now Bing maps puts me right in front of my house.

Thanks.

[JeffyPooh]

So... Guess what. With OS2 the GPS seems to be working much better.

My PB would NEVER obtain GPS lock in this room, no matter what. Now, with OS2 it seems to working just fine. It locks about as fast as my other gadgets. The difference is striking.



Anyone else notice an improvement?

[BuzzStarField]

Worked for me. Got What's Up then went outside. Took about 10 minutes to get the coordinates. Now Bing maps puts me right in front of my house.

Thanks.

You're welcome. I have designed the GPS interface so that it patiently waits (forever if you want) to obtain a GPS fix. It doesn't give up after a few seconds like some other apps do, so it's really good for giving the hardware time to initialize properly. The paid version has an added bonus. If you want a decent magnetic compass, may I suggest that you download it for a measly buck. I'm told that it's a pretty interesting astronomy app too, but who am I to say?

[BuzzStarField]

I'd agree that the PB GPS is poor. Don't know why, but it takes ages to get that first lock. Once you've got it locked, it seems to be quicker next time... but still a tadge sluggish compared to phone, PDA, tom-tom, etc.

I got my PB GPS to "wake-up" the first time with the "What's Up" starmap app... interesting app as an added bonus.

I don't know why PB GPS should be so poor... if it's a software issue, hopefully it'll be fixed in OS2, if it's hardware then I don't know what RIM did to the GPS chipset which is practically a "buy from Radio Shack item" these days.

EDIT: I just fired-up What's Up... I can't see any stars (cloudy here ) but GPS acquired my position within 4 minutes, by comparison Tom-Tom found me in less than a minute. So... sluggish, as seems to be reflected by several posters in a few threads I've seen in here. Some of whom have asked if the PB even has a GPS given the slow initial acquire. LOL Which is probably how the myths about PB GPS needing WiFi etc have started.

There are so many threads about PlayBook's apparent lack of GPS so I really appreciate it when the truth is told. Thank you so much. On the other hannd, it really bothers me when someone writes a 2-start review perpetrating this outright lie. Here's what one person thinks about my app (written earlier today):

Title: no gps on wifi version
Created Date: Mar 9, 2012 5:40:53 PM
File Bundle: Filebundle[id=443231, name=Whatsup1.5.0]
Release: 1.5

Review Body:
I was really waiting to find this app, since google version is really good. So without the gps it really doesn't work well, glad it only cost a buck, but the other information offered in the app is outstanding

[pacoman03]

Google maps (sideloaded) definitely sees my location with no wifi connection (I tested it today, actually). Haven't tried Bing, but the PB GPS is surely NOT wifi dependent.

[pacoman03]

I just turned off the wifi on my playbook and then fired up Google maps and then Compass, and both gave me readings in about 10 seconds (ok, google maps was off by about 20 or 30 yards and I don't know about compass since all it gives are coordinates).