[Rick-TJR]

Hi everyone, I'm just wondering if you feel your GPS is good as your Q10 or Classic if you have both to compare. I'm thinking it is hardware issues, but I want to make sure before I buy another Q5.
When I run the 2 or 3 devices side by side, the Q5 only gets locked on to half or less of the satellites. For example, it usually reads 6-9/19 versus my Classic or Q10 would read more like 15-18/20+ satellites. Changing OS doesn't make a difference. It takes way longer for the Q5 to lock on as well and looses lock often. Within seconds my other phones lock on and usually stay locked but the Q5 may take a couple of minutes to lock on.
Believe it or not, I love the Q5 overall my other Blackberries, even my Passport. That is why I'm bummed about the GPS not working so good. I just don't know if that is why it is cheaper as maybe there is a cheaper GPS unit in the Q5 versus the other units. If I have a bad unit, I will gladly buy another one, but wanted to know everyone else's experience before I do.
Thanks in advance.

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[BB-JAM215]

I find that my Q5 sometimes takes longer to acquire a good signal than I think it should, but once it does I get indication of a string signal and good accuracy. But then my Garmin GPS sometimes behaves the same way. What GPS app are you using to track the number if satellites?

[Rick-TJR]

Hi Jam215, thanks for the reply. I'm using OsmAnd+ from the Play Store. It is an offline Map that works really well. I've used it many times when I'm out with no network data and needed to see where I'm at. It has great detail and lots of customizing abilities like seeing how fast you are going and seeing the number of GPS satellites that are available and the number you are locking on to, speed limit and more stuff. I normally don't pay for apps, but after trying the free one which is still awesome, I bought the paid version to help support them. Also, you can save the Maps to your SD card, so if you crash your OS by loading another autoloader to update your phone, you don't have to load all the maps you downloaded again. If you do try the free version, you will have to toggle the GPS function as it doesn't come set as a default.

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[Rick-TJR]

Oh, Jam 215, if you do try the free version, I'm curious to see how many satellites your phone actually sees and how many it locks on to. I live in California. If yours is only locking on to half or less, then maybe my phone is fine. Thanks

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[Zdravko Jesus Raves]

After update to 10.3.1 my GPS is not working at all, is anyone have this problem?

I will try with 10.3.2, maybe i will have luck (:

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[Rick-TJR]

What OS were you on before when it was working? Just remember once you load a 10.3.2, you're stuck with it whether is works well or not, which is why I'm afraid to try it. But if it works for you, I may try it.

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[BB-JAM215]

I'm using 10.3.1 and GPS has been working well with the Mireo Don't Panic offline GPS maps app. I've just downloaded the free version of OsmAnd. The first issue I had was specifying the correct path for my SD card. Then for some reason, I had to download my local maps a second time. The first time I had the maps It was only showing about 6-7 out of 19-20 satellites. Now I'm getting 11-12.

Mireo doesn't have a pedestrian mode, so I was interested to try that out. I also liked that trails and other details are shown on the OpenStreetView maps. I was impressed that it accurately showed which side of the street I was walking on. I downloaded the Trip Recording Plugin and did eventually get it to display a track of where I had been.

So much for the good news. I accidentally shut down my Q5 when I was going to try OsmAnd in my car. When it was up and running again, I started OsmAnd and was surprised at how long it was taking to load and that it had a very slow progress bar displayed. While I was waiting I started Mireo. It was up and running when the OsmAnd progress bar was at about two thirds done. One of the things I like about Mireo on my Q5 is that it is reasonably quick to start up and start tracking and I use it in place of my Garmin GPS when I just want to see what streets are coming up when I'm already driving.

My conclusion at this point is that OsmAnd has trouble running on the Q5 and seems to run out of resources, perhaps memory or processing power. It crashed a couple times, went to a full black screen and went into sleep mode a couple of times. I gave up trying to get it working properly in my car.

[Rick-TJR]

Thanks Jam215 for your assessment. It does seems like your GPS is slightly better than mine as today it was seeing 19 satellites and could only lock on to 9. I do know that even the native BlackBerry maps drops out when I use the Q5 versus my other BlackBerries. But you do have me wondering if it is even worth getting another Q5. If you were locking on to 15+ satellites, I would know for sure that my phone is just bad. Yes, yours seems better, but maybe they are all have weaker GPS units in the Q5 to make it cheaper. Did you finally get the maps to go to the SD card? It sounds like you did. The program does take a little time to open, but on the passport or Classic or Q10, it locks on to your location really quick, but for some reason the Q5 takes a minute or two. Thanks for your help. I was just about to purchase a white Q5, but now I'm wondering.

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[BB-JAM215]

I just started up OsmAnd again. It noted that it had crashed and offered to send the log file. I closed it and started again and this time it opened much quicker taking a little more than 30 seconds to show the map. I'm now seeing 10 out of 20 satellites. I also used the device monitor to check RAM usage, but thus does not seem to be an issue.

I had to change the storage path from the default /mnt/sdcard/ to /mnt/sdcard/external_sd

I try using it again tomorrow and see how it goes.

[Rick-TJR]

Thanks Jam215 for doing this. Yes, it looks like you did the external SD path correctly, but the only difference I have is '/mnt/sdcard/exxternal_sd/osmand'. I'm not sure if the last parts matters or not. Mine takes about 3 to 4 seconds to open the app then it takes the 1 to 2 min to lock on. My Classic or Q10 can lock on in 5 seconds or less. I loaded a different OS out of desperation and it seems to have helped a little. As is before it was only locking on to about a 1/4 of the satellites and now it is locking on to about 1/2. But it still loses lock from time to time and my Classic stays rock solid. It really loses lock when I come to a stop light. Once I start moving, I have to drive 30 feet or more before it detects that I'm moving, but the Classic instantly detects my movement the second the light turns green. And many times, I'm off the road till it finally re-centers me after moving some distance down the road. In doors, you can really see the difference, as it takes awhile to lock on and will constantly show your location and then disappear, while the Classic just lock on and stay locked on; my Q10 and Passport will do the same. Only my Q5 does this. This is why I think I have a bad unit. But all the other BlackBerries lock on to 3/4 or more of the satellites out of 20-24, which makes me also think that maybe the GPS unit in the Q5 is cheaper quality and not as good in order to keep cost down. So if yours lock on and stays lock, especially in doors and yours detects movement the second you start moving, then I'm going to buy another Q5. Also, what OS are you on, just maybe that might help. I doubt it, but is worth a try. Thanks again for testing this out.

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[Rick-TJR]

Oh, and mine keeps showing a halo around the pointer and lots of time when stop and especially indoors, this halo keeps expanding and shrinking giving you an approximation of where you are versus your precise spot. But all my other berries lock on and show only a solid pointer arrow.

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[BB-JAM215]

I also get the blue halo expanding and contrasting even though I'm currently showing 14/20 sats. I used it in pedestrian mode this morning. It worked well except that it seemed to timeout a couple of times and stopped tracking my location. I see there is an option to Turn Screen On (if off) when approaching a intersection, but I don't see a don't blank screen option.

[Rick-TJR]

Thanks once again Jam215. I really appreciate you taking the time to do this. It has great help me determine if my Q5 is broken or fine. Between your assessment and mine, I've concluded that both are functioning about the same. This isn't fine by me, but it does help me realize that getting another Q5 probably isn't going to change this problem for me; darn as I needed an excuse to buy a white one. I kinda wish I had a bad one knowing that getting a new one would correct this issue for me. I may still get a white one but now for different reason and that would be to just finally have a White BlackBerry for the first time and I couldn't pick a better phone to have as white.
I'm not sure if this going to help, but I'm going to load a few different 10.2.1 and 10.3.1 OS's to see if any help the GPS problem. If I do, I will be sure to report back to you on the findings.
Oh, one more thing as I remembered something from what you said. You said from the last report that you had 13 or 14 out of 20+ locked on and it still showed the halo or you lost track. From comparing it to my other berries, even if the Q10 has 6/20 or 5/9 locked on, it will stay locked on and not disappear or show that expanding and contracting halo. It will just show a solid arrow the whole time, even indoors. It is weird but there must be something with the hardware specs regarding the Q5 that is doing this. The only other conclusion is that you and I both have bad units and everyone else is working fine; I doubt that but maybe???? Thanks again for your help.

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[BB-JAM215]

I doubt that the number of satellites it is tracking is all that critical since you only need 3 to establish your position and 6 is probably more than enough. The Mireo GPS app shows the signal strength rather than number of satellites and I find that to be a more reliable indicator of the app's GPS performance.

I was using it again last night in tracking mode and was surprised how poorly it tracked my route in pedestrian mode (while showing 14/20 when I checked it), although I was under tree cover some of the time.

I noticed how warm my Q5 was when I got home. That plus the rate at which the battery runs down is a pretty good indication of how hard the Q5 processor is working. The same thing happens when I run Mireo too.

[fschmeck]

Was about to post a new thread on the same problem as Zdravko Jesus Raves, and have been looking for a solution for quite awhile. Just assumed the Q5 gps did not work properly.

Here's what I see:
- with BB maps I can get my location and set a route no problem (usually)
- the turn by turn however never works. I get an error saying "GPS location can't be found" (error code 1013)

There's a whole thread on this issue on the support forums, with no solution in sight:
Maps 1013 error: "GPS location can't be found" - BlackBerry Support Community Forums

I've tried NavFree and it does "some kind of tracking", but the location is not quite right and it does not update the position properly.
I'm on 10.3.1 but see the same issue on 10.2 on another Q5 (all official releases). FWIW, I did a full wipe before installing 10.3.1 so there should not be any leftovers.

I'm curious what might be different from those of you who managed to get turn-by-turn to work. Any thoughts on how I could hunt this down?

[BB-JAM215]

I just got the same error trying to start a route with BlackBerry Maps. Have you tried Google Maps? I haven't really used it much for navigation since I don't have much of a data plan, but I just set up a route and it gave the first instruction.

[Rick-TJR]

Thanks fschmeck, for jumping in here with your findings. I read the link you posted also. It is such a shame, but I feel BlackBerry put in a less than adequate GPS unit in the Q5 to keep the cost down. I don't believe it is software related as I tried many in hopes that it would fix this problem, but it hasn't. I've tried 5 different OS varying from 10.2.1, 10.3.0 to 10.3.1 and the GPS acted the same. What an amazing phone with a weakness I can't live with as a daily driver. I was going to get my mom and sister a Q5, but now this has changed that decision. I guess this will only be my ski phone that I have to switch the sim card immediately to another phone when I return the car. So thank you both for not only saving me money, but more so the frustrations of another Q5 mostly going to be the same. And for those you who have a Q5 that has a strong, reliable and working gps, you are lucky as you have an amazing. I'm jealous as that was my favorite BB10 device and I wish I had one fully working.

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[miguel11691]

Thanks fschmeck, for jumping in here with your findings. I read the link you posted also. It is such a shame, but I feel BlackBerry put in a less than adequate GPS unit in the Q5 to keep the cost down. I don't believe it is software related as I tried many in hopes that it would fix this problem, but it hasn't. I've tried 5 different OS varying from 10.2.1, 10.3.0 to 10.3.1 and the GPS acted the same. What an amazing phone with a weakness I can't live with as a daily driver. I was going to get my mom and sister a Q5, but now this has changed that decision. I guess this will only be my ski phone that I have to switch the sim card immediately to another phone when I return the car. So thank you both for not only saving me money, but more so the frustrations of another Q5 mostly going to be the same. And for those you who have a Q5 that has a strong, reliable and working gps, you are lucky as you have an amazing. I'm jealous as that was my favorite BB10 device and I wish I had one fully working.

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Just went to Virginia using these blackberry maps on this phone and had no issues at all... worked great and had zero issues of tracking or rerouting or having stable connection... it's was a 6 hour ride back and forth to NJ...

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[Rick-TJR]

Thanks for the info Miguel, I think I might just buy the white one as they accept returns. If the GPS is as good as all my other Blackberries, I will be so happy to have a White Q5. In my single story house, the GPS will find me but every few minutes it will lose lock and then find me again. If you zoom in on your location, mine keeps going back and forth between having a expanding and contracting halo and having a solid dot if left on a table and observing. Does yours do this or does it stay locked on with a solid dot for over 15+ minutes. If yours remains solid the whole time, I will try one last time to get the perfect Q5. Thanks Miguel.

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[miguel11691]

Thanks for the info Miguel, I think I might just buy the white one as they accept returns. If the GPS is as good as all my other Blackberries, I will be so happy to have a White Q5. In my single story house, the GPS will find me but every few minutes it will lose lock and then find me again. If you zoom in on your location, mine keeps going back and forth between having a expanding and contracting halo and having a solid dot if left on a table and observing. Does yours do this or does it stay locked on with a solid dot for over 15+ minutes. If yours remains solid the whole time, I will try one last time to get the perfect Q5. Thanks Miguel.

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I will test that out for you right now...

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[miguel11691]

Just tested it out... as far as inside the house goes... I get a solid dot and then a very tiny halo and back to solid the rest of the way... but that's inside my house... now the moment I'm outside... it's complete solid dot with no halos to speak of...

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[z10Jobe]

For what it is worth, I checked the time to locate the satellites using Sportrate Fitness tracker with my q5 vs my z10 and z30. The z10 and z30 were slightly quicker, but that may have been due to their faster cpu speeds.

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[fschmeck]

Just to clarify, on my Q5 the gps works in so far as finding me. It is only the turn by turn that does not work. That leads me to believe it is some kind of timing issue. For turn by turn to work, the gps likely has to update in close to real time. My guess is that the Q5 fails to respond within that time frame.

I only mention this so that when double-checking with other users, be sure they test turn-by-turn and not just if the maps app gets a route.

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[Rick-TJR]

Yes. I agree with that as that is when I notice it failing the most. It does locate me and it takes longer than my other phone. It will also lose me for brief seconds once or twice in 10-15 min sitting still on my kitchen table. It does fairly good when I'm on a long stretch highway going for miles and miles. But when I get into town with lights that I'm stopped at and turns is when I see the weakness of my phone. At a stop light, the Q10, Classic, Passport and 9900 know that I'm moving again in 10 feet or less and it quicker to show that I made a 90 degree turn and update this on the map. But my Q5 takes way too long to update my movement most of the times. Once it locks on, which may take awhile, it is good again (sometimes, I go 50-200 feet or more before it tracks well again). It does fairly well when I'm still in motion and then make a 90 degree turn at an intersection. Only when I'm stopped at a light is when it is not so great. Does everyone else's Q5 work better than mine? I actually hope so as I want to buy another one if mine is defected. It is my favorite BB10 device to date and I just want a perfect working one if this is possible. That is the only thing I notice wrong with my phone, but everything else about this phone is just great.

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[miguel11691]

Just to clarify, on my Q5 the gps works in so far as finding me. It is only the turn by turn that does not work. That leads me to believe it is some kind of timing issue. For turn by turn to work, the gps likely has to update in close to real time. My guess is that the Q5 fails to respond within that time frame.

I only mention this so that when double-checking with other users, be sure they test turn-by-turn and not just if the maps app gets a route.

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I used mine for turn by turn from NJ to Virginia Beach and back and had zero issues... worked perfectly on my white Q5 100-1

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