3GS JB & unlocked... now no GPS

*bbq* · 29-10-2009, 5:38 PM

Hmmm

Not sure where I went wrong - if in fact I did

I have a 3GS that I jailbreaked with the custom firmware, and unlocked to run on VF ... all works fine, calls don't drop, the 3G quality is pretty good (certainly as good as it was at 3.01)

However, in Maps (only thing I have tried so far) the Location Service places me in the middle of London (weirdly old house address) however since I am now in the Cotswolds this is wrong by 125miles.

I've searched and found nobody else suffering

Any suggestions I can try?

I have rebooted
I have turned location services off - on - off - on (you get the idea)

Any help would be great
Cheers

psychopomp1 · 29-10-2009, 7:12 PM

Hey bud

Like you i've also upgraded (whilst keeping JB and unlock) my 3GS from 3.0.1 to custom fw 3.1.2 on Vodafone and everything inc. the GPS works fine. HOWEVER so far i've only been using the GPS for sat nav, not to view Google maps. I'm going to go out in a bit and see if my 3GS gives me the correct location in Google maps..will get back to you soon

psychopomp1 · 29-10-2009, 8:23 PM

OK just been out and Maps works fine on my 3GS. Best thing to do is use another GPS app (free?) and see if that works properly with your GPS. I'm fairly certain that upgrading your firmware has/should not have affected your GPS. If your GPS still doesn't work correctly then its possible that the receiver/antenna chip inside has gone tits up and will need to be repaired or replaced.

*bbq* · 30-10-2009, 9:19 AM

Thanks for checking ...

sounds like I need to take the system back to "normal" --- e.g. un-jailbreak it
and test it au naturel under O2 PAYG.

Hmmm ... how do I un-JB it, such that I don't prevent myself from re-unlocking

I don't really want a replacement, since it is much more likely it will arrive as 3.1.2

Cheers

*UEF* · 30-10-2009, 10:02 AM

Are you tapping the blue circle in the bottom left of Maps?

*bbq* · 30-10-2009, 10:09 AM

hehe
yes
And if I hit it a second time, it correctly shows the orientation (e.g. compass perspective)

So it appears to be functioning - just 120 miles from where it should be.

any ideas how I revert to a 3.0.1 un-JB iphone, that can still be unlocked after it has been "checked"

*UEF* · 30-10-2009, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbq

hehe
yes
And if I hit it a second time, it correctly shows the orientation (e.g. compass perspective)

So it appears to be functioning - just 120 miles from where it should be.

any ideas how I revert to a 3.0.1 un-JB iphone, that can still be unlocked after it has been "checked"

Use pwnagetool to make a firmware without Cydia

*bbq* · 30-10-2009, 12:30 PM

You make it sound simple

Duh - I guess I hadn't thought through the fact I could use pawnagetool with a 3.01 base - of course I need to go find where I put it.

cheers

gdbagley · 03-11-2009, 9:43 AM

Hmmm.....i appear to be having the same issue with google maps. Its positioning me in (possibly) the last place i used it!

Anyway to restore the data in the maps app to default. I know its remembering my last route, so surely i could reset it?

*bbq* · 03-11-2009, 9:46 AM

Hi there ... in the end - very late last night - I rebuilt my custom firmware, and re jailbroke & unlocked my phone

GPS locator now seems ok... so, not really sure what went wrong, but google maps now works ok +/- 500yds

Cheers

gdbagley · 03-11-2009, 9:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbq

Hi there ... in the end - very late last night - I rebuilt my custom firmware, and re jailbroke & unlocked my phone

GPS locator now seems ok... so, not really sure what went wrong, but google maps now works ok +/- 500yds

Cheers

Just getting my phone to how i like it

are you sure a rebuilding is a must? Did you set-up the phone 'as new' or restore the backup?

I've got some games and things that need the app data, so dont fancy loosing all that - but apps like aroundme etc need to work also....this is very annoying

*bbq* · 03-11-2009, 10:03 AM

Initially, I used aptbackup and appbackup to save my settings & apps (both from cydia)

I used pawnagetool - so built a new firmware, and then restored (alt/option) the firmware

all went well, if slightly time consuming. And of course the layout isn't saved by either of those

cheers

jerryjal · 03-11-2009, 10:27 AM

I can't recommend PkgBackup on Cydia highly enough, it's a paid for app but only around $4, maybe less (can't remember) but when i have had to re jailbreak and then restore using this then everything is back to how it was.

Saves a lot of time!

gdbagley · 03-11-2009, 10:30 AM

How accurate is it now?

I've just disabled 3g, loaded it and it showed me bit further away than where I am. Enabled 3G and loaded it and it shows me closer - but doesn't feel as accurate as it was - it thinks I'm clear down the street!

Its as though the maps are reading where the masts (or whatever) are and not the actual phone....

*UEF* · 03-11-2009, 10:35 AM

Pkgbackup worked a lot better than aptbackup for me

*bbq* · 03-11-2009, 11:04 AM

pkgbackup - cool, definitely sounds worth it.

THANKS

*bbq* · 03-11-2009, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gdbagley

How accurate is it now?

I've just disabled 3g, loaded it and it showed me bit further away than where I am. Enabled 3G and loaded it and it shows me closer - but doesn't feel as accurate as it was - it thinks I'm clear down the street!

Its as though the maps are reading where the masts (or whatever) are and not the actual phone....

Interesting ... this is quite different to what I had... which placed me some 120miles away

As I understand it, the iPhones GPS-A (Assisted GPS) uses Cell tower locations to get a v. quick approximate location, as then (much more slowly) locks on to the satellites

have you tried it with the iphone having line of sight of the sky? again I believe this will improve the quality and speed of GPS satellite fix.

EDIT: the reason it moves location with 3G on/off is because the range of a 3G cell is much lower than the 2G/2.5G infrastructure... so in theory if you were using 3G cell towers, you'd get a more accurate (approximate) view

cheers

gdbagley · 03-11-2009, 11:25 AM

Yeah, when I first loaded it, it located me in the city centre - a good few miles away lol. Toggling settings improved the location.

I've done a few things - removed SBSettings (a couple of threads pointed to that) and installed xGPS and used that, also allowed it to reset settings.

The good news is, it seemed to pick me up again

Now i just need to add SBSettings back and pray it wasn't that causing it, but it could've been line of sight issue or the xGPS that fixed it!