[Galaxy Note 4 General] Chefproll:
Hello there ! ;)

Just have a look at this:

Top left: Note 4. Bottom left: S4. Right hand side: Z2 Tablet.

All devices are configured to use the built-in GPS receiver only.

The photo was taken after waiting for more than 5 minutes.

Z2 Tablet and S4 receive 23 satellites, S4 using 18, Z2 Tablet using 16 (after a couple of seconds). But Note 4 receives 11 satellites, uses 0 (ZERO) - even after 5 minutes.

Here's a quick and shaky video: http://youtu.be/nVOF2n8AYDk

Software: I used "GPS Test" by "Chartcross". Other apps show the same results.

I tried countless comparisons, using A-GPS data and without, tried resetting the radios via the service menu - nothing helps: Note 4 GPS receiver does "see" some satellites (but always less than other devices), but just doesn't get a fix, at least not indoors.

It DOES work outdoors, but the results are similar and very poor: Note 4 takes a lot of time for the fix, uses less satellites, provides a less precise position and/or permanently loses the fix again. Even with using A-GPS data, a fix takes ages if the Note succeeds with a sat fix at all, situation becoming even worse if moving in a car. Z2 Tablet and S4 provide an almost instant fix, don't drop the fix again.

Of course I searched the net (and XDA) for that issue, found just some posts claiming the same.

Problem: Most users just see it does work outdoors, but don't realize the poor, close to subzero performance. So they believe it's all ok.

It is not.

I really hope it's just a software bug. If not, our Note 4 GPS becomes close to unusable if used in forests, under heavy rain, indoors or under other adverse conditions.

Please do a comparison yourself, check against any other GPS-enabled device - let's see if your results differ or are similar.

Please note: It does not help if your GPS just works outside. It does. But it's far, far worse than other devices - just see the photo above.

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I found two videos showing a part of the problem (without being noticed by the "reviewer"):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHDVZEKBD8M

GPS test starting at 3:41. Note that the Note 3 retains it's satellites after the fix (8/21), while the number of the satellites used by the Note 4 wildly changes.

At 4:17, it drops to 4, causing losing the fix for a moment - note that the colors of the satellite signals momentarily change from green to yellow/grey.

Similar with the other video of the same reviewer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X3Ucqnu9_g

GPS test starting at 3:57. Note that the Note 3 retains it's satellites after the fix (14 to 15 of 22), while the number of the satellites used by the Note 4 again constantly changes.

At 4:34, it drops to 2, causing losing the fix for a moment - note that the colors of the satellite signals momentarily change from green to yellow/grey.

That's what I observe with my Note 4, too.

And that's what causes that expanding and shrinking of the blue "GPS accuracy" circle around your position in Google Maps, that's what causes showing a momentarily wrong position while driving.

I am not sure if this is a real fault or just the results of a different approach by Samsung - MAYBE they try to use a kind of diversity algorithm causing that short "dropouts".

In any case - it's a bad thing. And an issue wreaking havoc in the background, broadly unnoticed by the majority of Note 4 owners (which regard the GPS as working perfectly just because the sat fix doesn't take long), I fear.

But it might be model or firmware specific.

So please check if your Note 4 shows the same behavior.

The speed of a GPS fix does not say anything as there are too many different factors of influence involved; sorry. ;)

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I had been asked why indoor reception is important at all. Here's the answers:

1) Indoor reception is an indicator of the sensitivity of a GPS receiver. Under the open sky, just every GPS receiver delivers a sound performance - so you cannot see differences.

But if you've got a good indoor reception, you'll also get a high sensitive under problematic conditions - e. g. under bad weather conditions, in cities where you are surrounded by tall buildings, or in regions like forests or even underwater. Performance in locations like forests is highly important for outdoor enthusiasts or people doing geocaching.

And you'll be quite happy if your navigation software leads you to your destination even if it's raining cats and dogs - instead of being forced to leave your car to ask for directions.

So if your device performs well indoors, it is very likely to also perform well in every demanding outdoor situations.

Practical, personal example: Every year, I leave for a months vacation to Asia. I usually don't follow the beaten tourist tracks, I prefer the secluded, more unknown places. That often leads me into jungle regions, tall trees everywhere. If I can't rely on a solid GPS fix, I can get lost in no time.

If I know that my Note 4's indoor reception is pretty good, I can be assured it won't leave me if I'm out in the middle of nowhere.

2) Most of the time, you use for mobile phone indoors. At your home, at shopping malls, you name it.

Of course you know where you are, so it might sound needless to know your GPS position.

But just have a look at your power options, at the information about your battery drain: Settings > Power Saving, tap the chart.

Then have a look at the "Location on" graph.

You'll notice that your GPS receiver is active pretty often - even if you don't use it actively and knowingly.

That's because many apps use the GPS in the background - like Google does; GPS is used every time you utilize e. g. Google Now, or use your browser (remember the question if you wish to allow the browser know your location ? - If you agreed, it will use GPS, even if you aren't aware of that).

If you've got good GPS reception, GPS will be used just for a very short time. But if the reception is bad (e. g. caused by bad indoor reception), the GPS receiver will be on for a long time; could be for hours.

That drains your battery significantly.

So good indoor reception is also one of the keys to good battery life.

You see, it's not just over nothing. It SEEMS like that at first sight - but be rest assured: I am a very practical person (e. g. I don't care at all about benchmarks - if a device just fulfills my needs, I don't need any more information). I don't care if e. g. the front camera distorts my pretty face.

But I care if a malfunction shortens battery life or leads to vital features becoming unusable if external conditions aren't optimal.

And please don't forget about the most important impact of such discussions: This way, Samsung gets aware of a problem. So there's a chance that the problems will be solved by an update - for the benefit of ALL users, even if they weren't aware about the problem at all.

If you report the problem to the Samsung "support", you can be sure nobody will care about it. I checked that myself (for Germany, to be precise): I reported a problem more than seven times. Always the same problem, always using a different name. The staff always assured me that the issue was stored in the system and forwarded to the technicians. Guess what ? - At every next call (or chat), I was told that I was the only one reporting it, nobody else had that problem.

But threads at XDA are likely to be noticed by Samsung - and the media.

That's one of the reasons why I raise that problem.

As said: If your GPS receiver works well, it WILL navigate you safely from A to B. But if it's sensibility is weak, it will do so under bright sunshine, but will fail if there's heavy weather, as such conditions attenuate the GPS signal strength significantly. Result: Under heavy rain, your device will be unable to navigate you safely from A to B.

If you search the net a bit, you'll also find a lot of similar threads where people ran into exactly that situation with the Note 4: On the road, the GPS lost position, leading them nowhere, showing their location 100 m away from the street, and so on.

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Here's three COMPARISON (!) videos I just took.

Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - indoors, good conditions (near window)

Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - indoors, worse conditions

Note 4 GPS vs. Z2 Tablet GPS - outdoors

Identical device settings (internal GPS use only, A-GPS data loaded).

If you wonder why the Note 4 performs worse outdoors: It's because the device is flat on the ground. Reception is better with the Note 4 slightly angled.

We got a GPS fix in all three cases; in two cases, the Note 4 achieved a real quick GPS fix.

That's what's making most of you cry out in ecstasy: "Oh ! I've got a fix ! And so fast ! It's such a great device !"

But: Note 4's GPS sensitivity proved far worse than the Z2 Tablet's GPS in all three cases.

THAT'S THE PROBLEM, GUYS.