iPhone and its GPS

Rouxenator

Rouxenator

Dank meme lord
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From what I have read the new iPhone has A-GPS (Assisted GPS). While assisted GPS is usually used to assist (hence the name) a real GPS receiver in terms of startup time it seems the iPhone is using A-GPS alone as its sole method of determining position.

My question is - how accurate is the iPhone as GPS when it relies on cell towers and wifi hotspots for its position? Can you for example use it to do Geocaching or other things that involve pin pointing things to within a meter? I currently use a Nokia N82 (GPS receiver with A-GPS) that has Garmin Mobile XT installed on it and this is a very accurate solution.

I have seen Google Mobile Maps with its "My Location" feature running on non-GPS smartphones (N73 / E65) but this typically gives your position within anything from 2km to a few 100m. Is the A-GPS found in the iPhone also on this level of accuracy ?
 
The iPhone 3G has a true GPS receiver and can locate you to an accuracy of 3m which is the best available for any commercial GPS receiver.
 
the old iphone has AGPS, the new one has full gps
 
dhez said:
the old iphone has AGPS, the new one has full gps
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No, not according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iphone_3g

"A software update allowed the first generation iPhone to use cell towers and Wi-Fi networks to locate itself despite lacking a hardware GPS. The iPhone 3G includes A-GPS but also uses cell towers and Wi-Fi for location finding."

So as you can see - the iPhone 3G is using A-GPS - and I want to know good it is ?
 
6210 has a-gps, it sucks compared to the 6110 nav...
 
I am pretty sure that A-GPS means that the device has a GPS receiver assisted by the GSM cells for faster lock times.
 
Ivan... said:
:facepalm:
Click to expand...

Thanks for setting them straight :D

Now lets get back to the topic at hand.... how good is it as positioning ?

Is it in the range of non-GPS smartphones running Google Mobile Maps with the My Location feature (accuracy anything from 2km to a few 100m) or is it closer to real GPS performance with accuracy to the meter like you get on the Nokia N82 for example ?
 
Assisted-GPS, as implemented in the iPhone, is merely the use of cellphone towers and Wi-Fi signals to feed auxiliary location data to the phone, thus greatly reducing the time it takes for the phone's actual GPS receiver to get a positive location fix from orbiting GPS satellites. There are alternative ways to implement A-GPS, but in the way it's used in the iPhone it's actually *better* than a pure GPS solution, not worse.

Incidentally, it should have been clear to anybody who bothered to read Apple's GPS info page for the iPhone:
In addition to A-GPS, iPhone 3G uses signals from GPS satellites, Wi-Fi hot spots, and cellular towers to get the most accurate location fast. If GPS is available, iPhone displays a blue GPS indicator. But if you’re inside — without a clear line of sight to a GPS satellite — iPhone finds you via Wi-Fi. If you’re not in range of a Wi-Fi hot spot, iPhone finds you using cellular towers. And the size of a location circle tells you how accurately iPhone is able to calculate that location: The smaller the circle, the more accurate the location.
Click to expand...

For the record, the iPhone uses Infineon's Hammerhead II GPS chip, which is an all-in-one solution with an integrated GPS antenna and A-GPS processing hardware.

In most situations, positioning accuracy will be down to around 3m, which is pretty much the industry standard. You don't have to worry about the device's accuracy.
 
Mokopa said:
Assisted-GPS, as implemented in the iPhone, is merely the use of cellphone towers and Wi-Fi signals to feed auxiliary location data to the phone, thus greatly reducing the time it takes for the phone's actual GPS receiver to get a positive location fix from orbiting GPS satellites. There are alternative ways to implement A-GPS, but in the way it's used in the iPhone it's actually *better* than a pure GPS solution, not worse.

Incidentally, it should have been clear to anybody who bothered to read Apple's GPS info page for the iPhone:


For the record, the iPhone uses Infineon's Hammerhead II GPS chip, which is an all-in-one solution with an integrated GPS antenna and A-GPS processing hardware.

In most situations, positioning accuracy will be down to around 3m, which is pretty much the industry standard. You don't have to worry about the device's accuracy.
Click to expand...

Thanks - yeah I went over to GSMarena and checked the review of the iPhone 3G (again) and it does indeed have a hardware GPS with A-GPS. So I guess once you have installed proper GPS software on it (Like Garmin Mobile XT) then it should be pretty decent.
 
Rouxenator - why so interested in the iPhone? IIRC you hated the damn thing?
 
Keeper said:
Rouxenator - why so interested in the iPhone? IIRC you hated the damn thing?
Click to expand...
Of course I hate any fruit product. Actually anything proprietary beyond reasonable limits, over priced, over hyped, made4morons and smug-loaded.

But that is all personal - and while the iPhone has many shortcomings I know it does a few things right (very right) and I was just curious about one of them. Turns out it has the right hardware - all they need now is the right sotfware (for the GPS that is).
 
Keeper said:
Rouxenator - why so interested in the iPhone? IIRC you hated the damn thing?
Click to expand...

He can't afford one. Hence negging it so much.

He is also a cocky dimwit who thinks he knows everything.

No point in arguing with this moron.

He wants everybody to hear his opinion and then force it down their throats.

Clearly his mother didn't give him enough attention so now he is seeking for it here.

(WATCH THIS SPACE FOR HIS SMARTASS COMEBACK)
 
Anyone with an iPhone who can actually comment on how good the Maps feature is in South Africa? (Accuracy, uptodate, etc)
 
The iPhone does not come with any navigation software (like Garmin XT or Tom-Tom or Route66 or even Nokia Maps).

It uses Google Maps so if you have a look on Google Earth and check out the roads in SA you will get the picture. It is not good at all unfortunately. In fact you can try it out if you have Google Mobile Maps on your phone (www.google.com/gmm) they have this My Location feature that can either use your phones internal GPS or if you have a newish Java MIDP edition it can use cell tower data to place you.

Bottom line is that Apple did not bother with navigation software. Companies like Nokia invest millions into developing their own navigation software and maps that should compete with top market players like Garmin.

P.S. This is not a wise-ass comeback, this is just the facts. I do not get personal and start throwing around insults to others in online forums, thats just a little bit below my level.
 
It's just a matter of time before a 3rd party GPS application is available for the iPhone.
 
Vlad_M said:
It's just a matter of time before a 3rd party GPS application is available for the iPhone.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately that is the story of the iPhone - you always need a 3rd party application before you can do anything.

Have a look around in the iPhone tips and tricks thread or just ask Freeman or that fxit guy - you'll be surprised how many fixes and tricks you need to apply on the iPhone to get it on the same level as, say, an out of the box Nokia N82.
 
Rouxenator said:
Unfortunately that is the story of the iPhone - you always need a 3rd party application before you can do anything.

Have a look around in the iPhone tips and tricks thread or just ask Freeman or that fxit guy - you'll be surprised how many fixes and tricks you need to apply on the iPhone to get it on the same level as, say, an out of the box Nokia N82.
Click to expand...
I disagree - the 3rd party applications are what makes a product successful - it shows that the OEM has developed a strong and useful SDK.
 
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