yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
That is what we were always taught, but since you mentioned that it is closer to 60-70% I went and looked. I guess that old "common knowledge" was before we had the ability to test using flowing afterglow mass spectrometry or bioelectrical impedance analysis to find out exactly what the makeup was. It seems it is actually about 60% in adult males and 55% in adult females.

Still a mass of water is almost as bad as an equal mass of lead when it comes to blocking RF. Both act as a good shunt.

If you decide to fix this just prepare yourself, the contacts are smaller than you think, even if you think you know how small they are - it will surprise you. So anything you tuck under there is going to take some fine motor skills. I prefer the idea of tucking a small amount of trimmed foam under the contact and looking for a ever so slight deflection to the risk of trying to pry the contacts up.
[Vibrant General] landrian18:
Guy's anyone can send me the link on how tol fix my GPS?
[Vibrant General] ZX3ZX4:
You just need to read this thread you're posting in from the beginning...
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
WTF?!?! :eek: You CAN NOT be serious!
[Vibrant General] Tankrat:
LMAO
[Vibrant General] nomadrider123:
Here you go google is your friend

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=878970
[Vibrant General] Tankrat:
That was good
[Vibrant General] baderfgt:
so, i broke the small thing after moving it past the 90* point. Of course i didn't know that I made it into 2 pieces till after i opened the phone to the 2nd time after i saw that i didnt get any more locks. any way, I placed a small pies of heavy-duty aluminium foil between the 2 coper pieces (like a sandwich). no glue or anything. left everything on top of each other and closed the phone while it is on its face.

Result: Before, lock in 3-5 min, After lock 20- 40 seconds.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
So somebody did not read all the way through even the first two posts. If you have even fully read all the way through the OP itself and nothing else you would have known:

Not to bend it up anywhere near that much

The proper way to fix it

I almost feel sorry for you so I am going to throw you a bone. OPEN IT BACK UP RIGHT NOW AND GET THAT FOIL OUT OF THERE BEFORE IT SHORTS SOMETHING OUT. Little wads of foil and the broken piece of the contact are not going to stay put, and when they move they will short out and destroy your phone.

Your mistake can be fixed, it has happened top others that did not bend the contact near as much. In fact there is a proper fix for this and many have done it, some just because it likely give better results than bending alone.

So if you want your phone to continue to work, go back and actually read the first two posts - ALL OF IT. Make sure you understand what you have read, then do a proper repair.
[Vibrant General] baderfgt:
I did actually read the whole thing for a week before i did what i did. I chose to fix it this way. I'm not trying to ask for help, I'm just posting what i chose to do just like all the other people that suggested what they did. I'm sorry if my way doesn't follow your methods. it is not a cheap follow but rather a personal fix and a choice considering my personal circumstances :)

now if you excuse me, I have to go to class.

good day :)
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
If you read it then how did you possibly miss the multiple times it said to only bend it slightly, that they break easy, and that if it does there is a procedure to fix it with a solder mound?

Since you missed all of those important points, you most likely also missed that I am the one that answers a majority of the technical questions and compiled the Q&A post. However, if you don't wish to listen to me and you think it is fine to leave pieces of foil and a broken contact in there be my guest. Just know we don't want to read your whining when your $500 phone burns up.
[Vibrant General] coasterman927:
So I ended up finding my lost power button that fell out in the process of doing this. Basically, I opened up my phone right in my car because I'm a huge idiot, bent the contact, replaced everything (didn't even lose the tiny screws!), and realized my power button was gone. I looked everywhere and was sure it was gone. Sure enough, it turns up in a little plastic baggy that was sitting under my feet that I was sure I had checked before. Of course, I only happened to find it AFTER I had already bought 5 sets (the minimum order) of small parts off of GlobalDirectParts.com.

So my friend is putting them up on eBay for me, and I figured I'd post in this thread because it's probably most relevant here. I know I can't be the only one who lost a part in the process of doing this! The set includes a power button, volume rocker, and USB slider (also a home button for the i9000, not really applicable).

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140514631189#ht_500wt_949

So yeah, don't worry about having to pay $45 like I did if any of your parts happen to sprout legs and run away!
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
I know for a fact you are not the only one. Weeks back someone in another thread posted that they had lost either the power button or the volume rocker, I can't remember which.

I told them to PM you and gave them a link to your profile. I don't know if they ever followed through and actually contacted you.

That was once of two times I told someone you had extras, but I don't remember the details on the other one.
[Vibrant General] coasterman927:
I appreciate the help! But yeah, I was never PM'd. Hopefully they still lurk this thread and will see this?
[Vibrant General] kunjar:
Greetings...

I encourage you to give GPS Aids a try...

Regards
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
At first I thought that this post might be a bit spammy. However, I checked it out and the poster is not the developer, the app is free, and it gives the ability to control some things I have not seen elsewhere.

I would say that the application assumes an advanced user with a good understanding of how the GPS system works and that it might be possible to mess things up if you don't. An example is that the app allows for changes to the NTP server and the ability to inject NTP data. It does not however explain that NTP is Network Time Protocol, and that is a method to automatically set and synchronize time. Timing is critical in GPS. I have heard of people using GPS time to setup a NTPd server instead of using the atomic clock, but I would imagine it would be a very bad thing to use NTP time instead of GPS Sat Time and Sync in a GPS device.
[Vibrant General] theratdude64:
Yeah I'm a lil confused about GPS Aids. I just want the stupid vibrant to get a lock :( Last night I had 4 Android phones on my desk, and the vibrant is the only one giving me crap.
[Vibrant General] nwstamps:
Thanks!

Works like a charm.
[Vibrant General] candyman123:
turning off wifi does help for me!

hi there, just wanted to mention turning off wifi does help a lot with keeping a stable GPS fix for my Vibrant.

I notice when the wifi is on and connected to my wireless network, the GPS signal would be trailing around on the map when im not even moving (in the house). When I turn it off, the GPS signal fix is stable!

I have not tried it with wifi on while not connected to any network yet..
[Vibrant General] jkruijff:
That goes for me too. That's why i usually use navigation in Aeroplane mode. Less RFI?
[Vibrant General] Ram1500:
Hey thanks alot for this post, I didn't open it up n fix hardware I just erased the cache and did the testing and it's locking, theirs time were I have to turn gps on and off then it's gets it. Thanks again this really help
[Vibrant General] Sanfam:
I did this a few months back but have not had the opportunity to check in. This definitely fixed the problem hands-down for mine (running nero 4), with locks occurring in under ten seconds in nearly any reasonable environment. To confirm this, the girlfriend's unmodified phone (also running nero 4 at the time) was consistently unable to achieve a lock and unwilling to hold one for all that long.

I feel this case clearly supports the hardware contact issue as the root cause in my phone, at least.

Great work, OP!
[Vibrant General] reddragon72:
I have not read through the whole 58 or so pages, but I have a quick Q anyways. Has anyone tried making the antenna bigger? I know that antenna's are supposed to be a certain ohm(resistance/impedance) but I was just kinda wondering if someone had attempted it and if so did they get a better signal/lock.

Right now my phone will lock in 5-20 sec, but then still wonders off and never gets better than 25feet. My old N1 locks in 3 sec every time and stays right on target and within 12 feet, most of the time 9 feet. I can't help but to wonder if the antenna on the GS's is really subpar and the primary issue.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
It is only 19 pages, but I accept your sarcasm. If you had read it all you would not only know that your idea would not work, but why it would not work.

Changing the impedance would create reflective power, and that would be bad, but not nearly as bad as changing the length of the antenna. The length of the antenna elements directly correlates to the frequency of the antenna. To make it bigger/longer would be to re-tune it for a lower frequency and it would no longer listening to satellites. There are two elements one each for the L1 & L2 frequencies, and they must remain as they are.
[Vibrant General] reddragon72:
19?? says 58 in the post page count, but that is neither here or there.

I think it is worth shot. And the solder that is mentioned in the first post can change the impedance if not done correctly. So all in all I think just shooting for a slightly larger, say 1.5 time the size might work as it should change the impedance to a tolerable range. Once I get my new phone (LG 2X) I might just try it for S&G.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
I have had the Samsung 4G for a few days now and the GPS on this one is not working either. I know there is a 4G forum now but I am posting in case anybody had hopes of the 4G solving these issues. The differences are not much at all. I took it apart and took pictures of them both side by side. I will be uploading them tonight. I rather stay with the Vibrant, this 4G is not worth the "upgrade".
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
I really doubted that they would reengineer the whole phone, but rather just replace the single chipset for the modems and add a FFC. In fact I vaguely remember reading something somewhere that that is exactly all they did, and really nothing more.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
You are right I wasn't expecting much of a change either but I was hoping the GPS would work well. There are some other minor changes as well at least from a hardware perspective that really don't change anything but they are there. The headset connector is different, some antenna was rearranged, the back housing underside is also slightly changed (contacts) to match the new placement of the antenna/connector, the phone uses a bit more amperes (1000ma vs 800ma) than the vibrant and I don't know if it is the charger or the phone but it overheats ALOT and actually shutdown several times due to the overheating. I will be uploading pictures in the 4G forum. The charging situation seems to get worse with time. I am starting to think I received a defective unit.

Oops almost forgot to mention it has about 1/4 the amount of System Memory that the Vibrant has.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Hey guys,

Did I do this solder blob correctly? If you suggest a fix or solution please explain the steps as I have not soldered anything in a very long time.

The case closed pretty good so I know I didn't overdo it. The GPS apps actually start now but it is still not seeing any satellites. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
I would redo this. It is not ideal in many ways.

Remove the remainder of the clip and solder directly to the pad the clip was soldered on

This looks crazed and blobish go for a round dome that is shiny

Make it a little high and file a flat spot on the top with an emery board

More details on what you are looking for should be in post #2

Remember that the sanding will create small conductive filing you don't want in there, so try it upside down so they fall away from the board and use compressed air to make sure you leave no filings behind.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Thanks, especially for the sanding advice. I kept adding blobs to it thats why it looks like that. I'll try one big blob next time. I think if I make it as high as the speaker it will be real good. I will try it tomorrow and if it works I will post a pic of the blob, if not, I will keep trying.

Thanks!
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Looking forward to the update, but let's try to find a better word than blob. It conjures up images of . . . well basically those photos you posted. Ideally what you want will look like half a steel ball. Upon this perfect hemisphere you will create a nice flat landing to provide a good contact with the pad on the secondary board. In a perfect world the flat spot would be a hairs breath above where the secondary board sits and the flat spot would be a near perfect circle (because it is a cross section of a near perfect half sphere). You don't have to get too anal about it, but it does help to have visualized exactly what you are shooting for before you start.

It is super tiny, i know, but use patients and control your breathing (it will steady your hand). Also, if you think you can do better there is no dishonor is desoldering and giving it another shot. Just don't apply too much heat and burn up the pad.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Thanks - since I am limited, I will thank you tomorrow

>>> Sorry, you are limited to five thanks per day
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Ok I tried this again last night but I failed 3 times in a row! Oh man :( Here are the pictures of the last attempt. I am determined to get this fixed. I went on Amazon and ordered a desoldering pump to make sure I remove as much as possible, a multimeter to measure continuity so I don't waste my time sanding for nothing. I went to radio shack today to buy some resistors so I can break them and use the wire to use it as a frame inside the solder to help conduct somehow. :confused:

The sanding takes a real long time plus I don't like accidentally scratching other surfaces.

I am thinking perhaps even though that it might look good that it might still be a "cold solder" that is why I want to use the multimeter to make sure. If the multimeter does not help I will have to assume that the GPS chip itself or something on my phone is defective completely.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
That looks like a large flat landing rather than a half ball. Since the solder will only stick to hot metal, not the board itself or anything cold, and that looks much larger than the solder pad underneath, I am boggled at what you are doing.

How are you getting an area of solder larger that the copper pad? Is this a single heat and cool of a large amount of solder, or did you go back and add more in layers? It looks like there is far too much solder there, like you are adding it too quickly. What size are you using?

It looks like it may be filed a little to low to touch the top, but it is hard to tell from the photos.

Finally, continuity is not the goal. Simple continuity is fine for DC, but we are working in Radio Frequencies in the Gigahertz and shape and size matter here.

If all else fails get a piece of 12 gauge solid copper wire and cut off a piece about 3/16th of an inch long (bare wire, no jacket). File the ends smooth and flat, perpendicular to the sides of the wire. Then put it on the pad sticking strait up and carefully solder it to the pad. Solder only the bottom, do not cover it - you want the wire sticking up creating a nice flat "nub" to touch the top pad. At 3/16th inch it should have been tall enough to make it easy for you to not totally cover it with solder, but short enough that it won't take weeks to file down to the proper height. Finish by filing it down (keeping the flat on top parallel to the board - no angle here please) until it barely puts noticeable pressure on the top board when you test fit. You will need to file and test fit back and forth several times until you get the height just right.

I would offer to do this for you if you paid round trip postage, but since I tore off my little finger on my right hand in November (and stripped all the skin from the bottoms of the other three), I am afraid I am no longer as good at soldering as I once was.

EDIT: I just noticed something on your second photo. Right about center, where the cable from the speaker hits the board. It is very hard to see but it kind of looks like a six lead chip (3 left and 3 right) that looks like it has burned up. Did you try to over-volt or over-clock you phone at some point? I am not sure if it is a chip, but it does look bad in the photo. This could be THE issue, or at lease AN issue.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Good Evening Tel,

Yes I could barely close the case but because it is so flat maybe it still is not making any contact. I am not sure which chip you mean but if its on the secondary board (the one on top that only reads the memory card, sim card, and somehow functions with the loudspeaker) then that could have burned when I was swapping around with the 4G just testing compatibility (the 4G I have is a toaster it burns everything). If it is on the secondary board it should not affect the GPS anyway. I have not even rooted the phone, just trying get the GPS fixed. Thanks I will try and return the multimeter and whatever else I can then. Also I appreciate the offer but I just cannot believe how bad I am doing this. I have to figure this out. If worse comes to worst, I might take you up on the offer but I would like to attempt to figure it out. Now to do some hunting on Amazon to see if I find the wire you recommend. Thanks :)
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Don't bother with Amazon, you need a fraction of an inch of it. I would bet any decent electrician would just give you a scrap chunk of wire too short for them to use. The stuff buildings are wired with is typically three strands of 12 gauge solid copper, and you can cut it out of the jacket. Also, any hardware store should sell the stuff by the foot rather cheap.
[Vibrant General] traicer:
so i tried something today and it worked. since i didnt want to open up my phone all i did was stick a little piece of metal right next to my simcard so it pushes the down on that connection you when you put the lid on. snr went up to 41 from high teens to low 20s and lock is almost instant. worth a try if your not sure this might be the fix for you. like everything in here, im not responsible for bricks or anything that might happen to your phone. try at your own risk.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Hey, if not too much trouble for you, can you post a picture please? :)
[Vibrant General] traicer:
here you go, not the best. they were taken with an hd2 running on android. my be worth the time to try if you dont feel like opening up your phone, im glad i did.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
I think you forgot to attach the picture. I am in way too deep, there is no going back for me! :D I have opened it, broken off the clip, have a mountain of solder on it. Next up is the copper wire trick. Sounds like your method will help me after I get a pulse out of my GPS, it is completely dead.
[Vibrant General] traicer:
for me it was just a way of finding out if it would help at all, i might open it up later on and do the fix in the op or i might just stay this way since its work perfectly.
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Oh okay thanks. That is much simpler than what I was imagining. I am a visual learner so thanks for the picture. It makes sense too, putting some pressure from the outside. :)
[Vibrant General] AEguyNYC5:
Play it safe man. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, cuz then you might really break it! :D
[Vibrant General] spectre85:
looked for that, installed the only one called "GPS monitor" in the market that I could find but wasn't the same one unless i'm missing an option in the program......
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
How to find manufacture date

It is on the box. If you no longer have the box, then look under the battery. The middle line has the serial number marked with a S/N. To the right of that will be a set of numbers with a period in the middle. It is month and year in European format, so 10.09 would be September of 2010.
[Vibrant General] SykesAT:
OK, so although I think this fix helps, I can't dispute my earlier tests link, our GPS is still subpar. This fix makes our GPS the best we can hope for but... I will be jumping on a dual core phone asap because of this defect.

Below are some screen shots of a trip I just took. It's a clear sunny day here in ATL but my GPS got my location wrong several times.

Red dot = my true location.
[Vibrant General] marsupial99:
I tried to take my phone apart an failed. Got the 7 screws out but couldn't get the plastic off - there is just no space anywhere to pry this thing open even using a thin knife. I didn't want to break it so I put the thing back together and called TMO and got a replacement coming. We'll see if that one is any better although I'm not holding my breath.

Thanks for posting these instructions OP - looks like they helped at least some people. :)
[Vibrant General] samnada:
Were you driving when you took this capture? Just curious why the speed is 36-38.
[Vibrant General] mrxela:
GPS Test and GPS monitor are the apps I used. And yes I was driving on second pic. I have to mention that the weather for last few days has been pretty bad, raining and heavy clouds, yet gps performs really well post fix.
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
*tried the fix doesn't seem to work :(

Hey everyone, I've tried the fix, I do admit the signal is stronger, but I still can only connect to 2 satellites.

In maps, my location is about 1km away than where I actually am...

:(

UPDATE:

I tried to continually tweak with my settings. As stated before, I would only be able to pick up 2 satellites with a strength around 28-33.

After the h/w tweak I was able to pick up 2 satellites with a strength around 38-41.

Afterward I went to LbsTestMode and changed

Application Settings/Operation Mode/SkyHook/ON

Rebooted.

Tried it out again, I immediately locked 2 satellites within 3 seconds. Then became locking a total of 3-4.

Tested it in googlemaps, it wasn't perfect, but I was within 100m or so of my actual location!

I'm not getting amazing results, but it's a HUGE improvement from what I had before.

Thanks to everyone who helped contribute to this find :)
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Have you cleared GPS data and done a cold start?
[Vibrant General] Mannymal:
Damn, I should have taken pictures when I did it. To be honest, opening the phone has got to be the most unpleasant experience of the weekend and I am not sure if I'm willing to try it again just to take pictures:-/ Let me think about it tomorrow because I've been drinking tonight. I just dont have the right tools for prying it open, and no nails like the guy in the instruction video, so i had to use a butter knife which scratched the chrome trim a little and left me cringing a few times hoping nothing would snap.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
What does tonight taste like?
[Vibrant General] Mannymal:
LOL

Alright, I made up my mind to take one for the team and take those pictures, and then I realized that my only digital camera is... the phone itself :rolleyes: My digital camera broke a few months ago and I've forgotten to get a replacement. I'll see if I can borrow one tomorrow.
[Vibrant General] KWKSLVR:
The original post has been updated with some information from T313C0mun1s7 to help with determining your date of manufacture.

Our GPS definitely isn't perfect. I do lean more towards it being a hardware and firmware issue. But if you apply this fix and see improvements, you've at least eliminated one half of the variables.