yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
No, but I thought you said you replaced yours with some of better quality. Sorry for my faulty memory.
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
I've opened the Vibrant again and have moved the metal connector again. The GPS response is better, but in no way as great as some users have reported (maybe my Vibrant is faulty?).

What are people's setting in LBSTestMode?

While some people can lock on to 6-8 birds with 40+ connectivity, I lock on to 4-5 with 30 or less...
[Vibrant General] MV10:
Broke my tab off -- barely touching the thing. I've done a bit of electronics work here and there, basic stuff, I've never seen a contact so fragile. Tried the solder blob and what can I say but OH DAMN! This solution kicks ass, as you no doubt realize if you've already read this far.

Frankly, since the GPS issue is clearly at least partially a hardware issue, I'm amazed JI6 was able to improve it at all.

My first test was kind of half-assed and it even produced much better results. I put the phone on a windowsill where the sky is partially blocked by a 20-foot deep porch roof, then hit GPS Test.

In just over 1 minute it had spotted 12 sats (that part used to take 5 or 6 minutes from a cold start, and that's the *improved* JI6 response; before JI6 it would take up to 15 minutes if it ever saw that many).

Within about 1 minute more, it had locked on to 5 -- with JI6 alone that would take another few minutes, and pre-JI6 it would rarely ever get a lock.

Also, signal strength on several were over 40, including two at 45 and another at 47. Previously none exceeded 30 and most were down in the teens.

Amazing. I might put a smaller, thinner solder blob on the unbroken contact on my wife's phone to see what that does. More like tinning it. I guess if that doesn't help I can always snap it off and actually blob it...

Kudos to whomever figured this out. I hope somebody from TMo reads this and realizes they really owe us a hardware swap. Heck, I coughed up $500 up front for mine...
[Vibrant General] KWKSLVR:
Factory defaults. Download the Samsung GPS Restore App from the market and use that.
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
Thanks,

I've tried finding this app, but it doesn't appear to be on the Android market.

Just an FYI, I purchased this phone from someone in the US, I'm currently using it in Canada
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
Seems like it might have been removed.

Tried to get to the link through here

http://www.androidcentral.com/samsu...mpaign=Feed:+androidcentral+(Android+Central)

Says it can't be found :(
[Vibrant General] ZX3ZX4:
I went into the Market today and had no problem finding it...it's there if you type in "GPSRestore." However, exercise caution with this app. I took a look at many, many of the reviews. There were a huge number of people -- maybe the majority -- who gave it one star because it failed to improve anything with the GPS's performance, or actually made it worse. I've decided I'm not touching it.
[Vibrant General] Plato56:
In this case, those people did not understand what this tool is. They expected to be some sort of fix for the GPS, its not. What it is, is a tool to reset the GPS to factory settings. I used it myself this morning after fiddling with the LBS mode stuff. If you have done the HardwareFix Mod on your phone, run this app to reset all your settings and boot. Wait for 2-5 minutes for good locks and then you will see it lock almost instantly after that in most cases.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Well explained, thanks.
[Vibrant General] xpcomputers:
Has anyone tried this on an international GT-I9000 Galaxy S?

I'm presuming that the same antenna connection is used, and this trick would help us too.

Thanks

Mike
[Vibrant General] Mannymal:
I bet its the same thing.
[Vibrant General] kmfisher:
How fast can a person achieve a multi-satellite lock with this fix? My phone, no hw fix, stock JI6, gets a lock outdoors in about 25 seconds to 6-8 satellites. It does not get a lock inside, like in my house.

My wife got a G2 yesterday, so I ran GPS test on it. GPS had never been turned on before... The G2 locked on to 11/11 satellites in under 10 seconds w/ a 9.8 foot radius indoors. Right next to it, my phone saw 2 - 5 satellites and never locked on to any of them. Very frustrating. Outside the Vibrant is okay, although I have to keep it on my dash in my car. Putting it in the cup holder makes me lose signal more frequently.

Will this fix help that or am I already getting a decent contact since I can get a good number of satellites locked on outside?
[Vibrant General] salvador3:
I recently tried the HW fix and it did improve my GPS reception. Before I wasn't able to get locks at all even outdoors. Now I get locks but not as god as some people say here (mutli sat lock indoors within 5 seconds).

So for comparison's sake me and my coworker lay down our phones indoors (he has an HTC Desire Z on stock 2.2) to see how many locks we get. We lay our phones right by the windowsill. His phone got 6 locks on GPS Test in less than 10 seconds. My vibrant only had 2 sats in view and no locks :(

I'm wondering whether I should do the blob fix. I readjusted my antenna twice with almost same results.

I'm running Macnut 14 with Super_IO kernel btw.
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
Something must be wrong with my market.

No matter what I type.

GPS Restore

Samsung GPS Restore

GPSRestore

I can't seem to find it at all. I've changed my filter settings to no filter and still run into the same problem :(
[Vibrant General] shinobix37:
I searched "Samsung GPS" and it's the 3rd link in the market. The app has 2.5 stars and the creator is listed as "Samsung Mobile"
[Vibrant General] mattchew008:
Are there different versions of Market?

I notice a lot of the screen caps that show Samsung GPS Restore have an AT&T banner at the top.

I'm running an unlocked version of the Vibrant, and for the life of me can't find the Restore app.

I ran the same search and the 3rd result is "Marine: US East"
[Vibrant General] Ilmoran:
Tried this fix this morning; went from a completely non-functional GPS to getting 5~6 satellites with 70 feet accuracy.

Then, 15 minutes later when I checked the gps again, I get nothing.

Getting frustrated and considering either solder blob or getting a new contact and soldering it on. Anyone got a link for a good contact?
[Vibrant General] Ilmoran:
This is probably the one you're looking for. They didn't break the contacts, just decided to replace them because they're sh*t.

http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=9817034&postcount=74
[Vibrant General] hmpohjola:
I think GPSRestore isn't available from the Market for users not US T-Mobile/AT&T customers.
[Vibrant General] KWKSLVR:
That sounds like funky firmware. Even if you've already done this, try again:

*Turn GPS off

*Use the Samsung Restore App to reset GPS

*Delete GPS Data in LBSTestMode

*Reboot Twice

*Turn on GPS

*Try to connect with GPS Status
[Vibrant General] thunderteaser:
My i9000 has now the GPS it should have had out of the box. It was a real pain for my nails but that was worth it. A true THANK YOU! :)
[Vibrant General] falcaraz:
Maybe this has been covered in this thread already but has anyone tried soldering a small wire from board to antenna? Maybe an 1" to 1 1/2" wire length so it can be folded under the plastic cover. Would it provide a solid connection or is this idea flawed?

Kinda bummed that this awesome phone gets way worse gps performance than my G1. That phone locks on instantly and gets 5 meter accuracy all the time.
[Vibrant General] thunderteaser:
I don't know, but why don't you try the first method (without soldering?). I've done that today and now it locks 7 satellites in the first 8 seconds with rainy weather!

WOW! :eek: My i9000 gets an accuracy of 30/20 meters but I think that depends on configuration files. However, lower is the accuracy, faster is the lock [needs confirmation :p].
[Vibrant General] falcaraz:
I already did the clip bending method. It locked on a bit quicker but still gets 40-50 feet accuracy and wanders a bit. Forget about getting a lock in a moving car. My g1 always locked on in a moving car, just took a little bit longer.

I have my g1 on the same table and after about a minute its connected to 12/12 sats and a 9.8ft accuracy. The vibrant sees 12 but can't connect to any yet.

I figured maybe a small 1 inch shielded wire would help with the connection issues. The wire would be long enough to allow the back plate to be removed but not long enough to not fit under the back cover.
[Vibrant General] bitblaster:
Thanx, it works perfectly!!!

Now i can fix even indoors!

However, since I'm still within warranty, is it advisable i still return my phone to get a replacement? Did they do other improvements in hardware last october?

Thank you again
[Vibrant General] candyman123:
OK so after having my broken tab ghetto fix for two days, GPS works great and is functional now but since I didn't solder it down securely it rattles when the speakerphone is used. I bought some solid copper wire at home depot. Gonna cut a tiny piece smooth both ends down and see I'd it works out better
[Vibrant General] SamsungVibrant:
Hey, incase you need to flatten the copper wire, remember copper is very soft. You can just lay the copper outside on the cement, and use a hammer to flatten it out.

I put a piece of copper wire under my tab, to prevent it from going back down, but the copper wire was causing the back plate to bulge up. So I just took my tiny piece of copper and flattened it down with 2 hits with the hammer against the garage cement floor. Worked great, and no buldge.

Incase you run into that problem :)
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Read Post #2 - the FAQs
[Vibrant General] VICosPhi:
I put a piece of credit card in between, seems to be working alright.
[Vibrant General] nacron:
I'm searching for a small round spring to solder on. I originally made a kinda big bubble of solder on my first attempt but the back case wouldn't close. removed some solder and it closed but now my initial 10m indoor lock is getting worse by the day. I think the solder bubble acts as an antenna but it's not making contact with the case antenna. I remember seeing these small springs in older cell phones. I canibalized a bunch of my cell phone collection looking for that spring but I couldn't find one. I, think I saw it in one of my sony ericsson phones. I think the spring would be a great replacement for the crappy clip that broke off.
[Vibrant General] thraxage:
I have a Fascinate model from Telus that has a manufacture date of January 2011 that needed this applied to it. When I opened it up the copper was laying flat but since I bent it up I can lock onto every sat it see's within a few seconds.

Haven't tested in a vehicle yet but so far it locks when I run GPS Status.

Thanks for the guide!
[Vibrant General] SamsungVibrant:
If if may suggest a different approach.

Get a piece of wire cable, strip the plastic off. Use wire cutters to get a tiny piece of copper. You will want to install this tiny piece of copper vertically, like in a vertical pole position. Gauge how long it needs to be to make contact with the antenna on the back casing when you close your phone all up again.

Melt a small puddle of some solder on a working surface. Dip a toothpick in the solder, then dab it onto one of the ends of piece of copper you cut, or a dab onto the circuit board. Then using tweezers, place the piece of copper wire vertically where the contact use to be. Let cool, close your phone back up. Hopefully it works.

Another option, is to do what I described earlier. Get a hand held blow torch, either the ones cooks use in the kitchen or the kind you get at home depot. Melt a puddle of copper wire on a working surface, then use a toothpick to gently build up a mound of copper on your phone to act as a new contact.

I'm thinking those 2 methods should work, try the first method.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Please read post #2 - FAQs

Not going to work - the solder will not stick to the toothpick. It needs to be hot (and not wood) so it will not stick. Please read post # 2
[Vibrant General] SamsungVibrant:
Solder will not stick to toothpick? Of course it will, maybe not when it cools, but i wasn't referring to when it cool. I was saying use a toothpick as a tool to dab. Anyway, you can use another piece of copper wire to act as your dabbing tool then.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Have you EVER soldered anything before, REALLY??

It will only stick to the copper IF THE COPPER WIRE IS HOT, and it will cool to a solid within 1/2 second after you pull away the soldering iron.
[Vibrant General] SamsungVibrant:
Is there a reason you are screaming? Nobody has ever soldered here except you. You are the solder master.
[Vibrant General] T313C0mun1s7:
Well, I actually am NASA certified, but that is neither here nor there. You have 1) an obvious lack of any clue how the process works. 2) failed to read the info and watched the videos in post #2 that explains the process so you did not need to make your self look stupid by saying you could dab solder. I mean, it is post #2 not something on page 73 and the soldering section is clearly marked in oversize blue text.

Sorry, but is there is any trend in this thread I am fully tired of and peeved about it is people that jump in to give bad and sometime even possibly damaging advice without even reading the first two threads fully.
[Vibrant General] SamsungVibrant:
You are telling me, you can't create a puddle of solder, and quckly transfer a dab of it using a toothpick? Really? Thats impossible?

I don't have to watch any videos, I've been soldering for probably longer than you have.

No wonder I left this site for months and stopped posting. Only to return last week and deal with people like you again.

I was offering advice with something I KNOW IS POSSIBLE and you start screaming.

Soon this vibrant forum will be a ghost town if you keep running people away. One would think you own the site.

My imaginary solder equipment. You want me to take a picture of my blow torch too or do you think I made that up also?
[Vibrant General] mloc33:
Ga ga gue gue, my rattle is bigger than yours, the two of you are like a pair of kids, I can see all this a www.Icansolderbetterthanyou.com or www.mysolderisbiggerthanyours.com
[Vibrant General] JMUT:
Just wanted to say thanks

I just wanted to say thanks!

My GPS has been completely dead for the last three months and this mod brought it back to life. I'm getting better signal levels and lock times than ever. Even better than the first day I had my Vibrant.

Thanks

EDIT: I should specify, bending the tab did worked (kinda) but my signal levels were low and couldn't reliably get a lock. The Soldering method worked like a charm.
[Vibrant General] mloc33:
Pity you did`nt make a video while you where doing it....
[Vibrant General] no clue:
I "fixed" 4 att captivate with this method, and the gps lock within 1 min, cold start.

( doesn't matter with 2.2.1 or 2.3.3 ) All other "software reset" is basically play with cache, does not actually help if you got no data/ 3g signal.

BEST way to test this is using third-part gps WITHOUT data connection.

1. disable wifi data/3g connection.

2. start Co-pilot

3. watch how fast it able to get the gps lock

tks op!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[Vibrant General] bestwebs:
Hi,

I have read this post many times and it is very valuable for fixing gps.

I tried the bending method and it worked for a few days than the piece bent back down, lost contact and thus no gps signal at all.

Then the little copper piece broke off from the bending.

So I got out my solder iron got some thin solder from radio shack and gradually buit up the lump on the antenna square with solder.

It works perfect better than when the phone was new.

This is a real life saver because I thought my gps was broke beyond repair.

So thanks to the poster for a great post.

:)
[Vibrant General] angryattheworld:
Works wonderfully on my july 2010 model vibrant.

Sent from my MIUI powered Vibrant using the XDA app
[Vibrant General] bulsajo96:
Went to project V rom with super GPS via rom manager and didn't get much improvement so I finally decided to try the hardware fix. It was much easier to do than I expected. I used an exacto blade which i heated slightly with a candle to make the copper more pliable and lessen the danger of snapping. Great locks now (7/12) while sitting on the couch. my vibrant gps finally matches for the first time the speed and accuracy of my wife's captivate running stock 2.2.1.
[Vibrant General] peiqijiang@qq.com:
ye my gps can work now thx
[Vibrant General] jforme:
thanks a lot

I finally took the plunge and did the hardware fix (method 1) after gps performance went from bad to worse, the process was unnerving at first but got it done in 20 minutes. Right after the fix, I did not get any locks at all after reboot, then applied heathen's s.gps.2 fix and with in couple of minutes locked on to 12 birds and the connection is also much steadier than ever before, thanks a lot for posting this fix.:D
[Vibrant General] kartoffel1212:
Thx Guys for this Thread!

I have break the small spring plate and after this i have put a nice round solder on it.

Very simple... it takes 30sec.

Now i can use Google Maps Navi or Navigon in my car !

:p
[Vibrant General] Stevethegreat:
I had 12 birds in view but no locks ... ever. In fact ever since I've bought the phone not once had I seen the gps working. So I decided to do the above fix, unfortunately the situation is almost the same, now I have 14 sats, but again no lock(s), I'm started to think that the problem is in software not in hardware...

Anyhow in trying to open the phone I accidently bend the left side of the silver plastic that goes around the phone upwards. Is there any way that I may reattach it to the phone's bezel? Apart from looking ugly, the phone is practically open from the side so even a single water drop (or sth) can kill it. Please I'm kinda desperate, I started to fix the phone and now it seem to be even worse.

This (the link below) is the part of my phone that "hangs" upwards and a bit to the left.

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5088/vibrantofficial.jpg

*Any* suggestion would be appreciated. I suddenly feel my phone as being a paperweight.
[Vibrant General] madmack:
The silver bezel is supposed to clip on the phone's body. You probably pressed the silver bezel and bent that clip. Look at where the outer bezel has a dent and won't clip, there will be a little clip (a little piece of plasting sticking out) that is bent inwards, just bring it out a bit and then clip that into the corresponding place on the phone's frame. The way it clips is to have the silver bezel go under the phone's frame and in (if you have the screen facing you).

that probably wasn't too clear, but i hope you got the big picture.
[Vibrant General] Stevethegreat:
Thank you man, that was exactly my case, 3 of these plastic pieces were bended so I had to push them straight. It popped back in and now I'm back with my phone. Still the GPS issue is at large, but I guess I'll solve it by bying a bluetooth module to go with my phone...

It's too bad that Samsung marketed the phone as having GPS yet in half of us it barely worked (in my case it *never* worked). For such a luxury item it's a shame really that Samsung was not asked to pay for her negligence...

Edit: Bah! I noticed that the camera does not seem to work as well anymore either... All the pics I get ever since I got my phone back seem out of focus/fuzzy. Is there any chance that the camera can somehow be damaged merely by the act of opening the backplate? The only thing I changed was the gps contact, but somehow my camera quality seems to have been deteriorated. Any advice would be really welcomed. Thanks.
[Vibrant General] martenw:
So I just did this fix, opened up the case and carefully bent up the antenna.

Put it back together again.

Now when I start my phone everything force-closes all the time.

My keboard FC's, Zeam FC's, Titanium Backup FC's, I needed to agree to the Market agreement again.

What the h*ll happened!
[Vibrant General] supraman89:
Lemm25 seconds to lock indoors. Way better than a minute :)
[Vibrant General] sumchamp:
It worked like a charm. :)
[Vibrant General] test03:
Thanks for this guide.

I am unable to remove the back cover, after unscrewing. Could someone please share some details?

Thanks!
[Vibrant General] reuthermonkey:
Did you smudge up the lens on the backplate?

For reference, here are some tracks from before and after

Pre GPS fix:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=213796424489828135139.000490255031313f98194&msa=0

and post GPS fix:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=213796424489828135139.0004a67bbd48eceb49545&msa=0

Note: this track is along roads, but half of which are rural, and some areas in the 2nd half of my trip (along the windy roads) had 0 cellular reception through the trees.

GPS Fix is quite the improvement.
[Vibrant General] Crocodilek:
Hi,

It looks like my Galaxy S I9000 is affected by this issue. The GPS is simply unusable. Even outdoor in perfect weather conditions it usually only sees 2 satellites and I've only managed to get a fix twice but after a minute or 2 it was gone. In the same place and conditions an older Galaxy Spica I5700 sees 9-11 satellites and gets a fix within less than 10s.

The manufacturing date is right (it was bought September last year) and pressing the plastic around the antenna makes GPS work much better (sees 6-8 satellites).

I haven't followed this thread exactly but I think I did read that some people got their mobiles replaced. I wonder if someone from Europe or preferably from Poland has some experience with this. Does this flaw qualify for warranty repair?

Best regards,

Crocodil
[Vibrant General] cavinsays:
So I just tried doing this. Except that I did the wrong side to begin with. The side metal thing opposite to the correct seems well... A lot less able sturdy. It broke. I'm not blaming anyone except me and my dumbass self, but hopefully someone will see this before they do the same thing.

I just put it back where it hooks onto and put the case over it. I can't even begin to think of how badly I'd **** something up if I tried soldering it. I seem to have 3G, I'm about to check the GPS, and if it works then I'll post again but if I don't then the GPS is a permanent goner. :(

Edit: Okay, well voice works, text works, and surprisingly, GPS works. It took a good while to lock, but it seems to have maintained its lock with no problem. The accuracy was a bit less than it used to be (on my ROM; I think it's called Galaxy Extreme), but it's good enough to use. Not sure what I broke, but it seems to not be too important as far as I can tell atm. If someone knows the part I broke and its function I'd love to know.
[Vibrant General] feetishes:
This fix does work. However, instead of soldering, I used a pair of wire cutters and cut a very, very small piece of paper clip (I DO NOT RECOMMEND THAT YOU TRY THIS) and wedged it snugly inside of the copper mechanism. I put everything back together and powered up. I live in a condo, so first thing I tried was to get a lock from inside. No luck. But as soon as I went outside, it locked within 10 seconds. Ran GPS Test and it locks consistently on 8 out of 10 birds in the area. Now, I''m seeing improved gps directions when I'm traveling and no more drops. Glad this finally solves the issue for my Samsung Vibrant.
[Vibrant General] rns416:
Just want to say WOW !

I live in 4 story apartment building on ground floor, where i never had any satellites in view . After this fix i can see 13 satellites and it locks up only in 3-4 satellites with in 5 seconds.

thanks so much !
[Vibrant General] fjampa:
Very very thanks for this guide!

I did the soldering method, now my gps is unbelievable!
[Vibrant General] jkruijff:
Thanks for the awesome pictures!