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Help Galaxy compass broken, or just bad sw?

In my case compass is showing in right direction. Dont know about showing compass in maps though becouse I haven't used it yet.
About barcode scanner...yeah I got simmilar problem, it's really hard to get a capture. But later I instaled one other barcode scanner (can't remmember name, sorry) and it scanned barcode in a moment. So here is probably problem in application (only supporting htc cameras or somehing).
 
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The compass issues seem to be fixed in H8. Also, with the "Barcode Scanner" application, it seems to do a white level calibration when it starts, but never again. Point the phone at what you want to scan (or something else bright), *then* start the barcode scanner application.

Also, I don't know if this is meant for people to just feel better, to look silly in a large open space, or both, but you can try it

Ichimusai’s Place
 
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compass is good because?
man theres maps and sat nav lol
If for nothing else: I paid well enough for it, so it had better work! :D
Seriously though, maps and sat nav are for moving around. When you're standing still, you need a compass. Also, the Sky Map and Street View apps rely on a compass reading.

The compass issues seem to be fixed in H8.
Also, I don't know if this is meant for people to just feel better, to look silly in a large open space, or both, but you can try it
Ichimusai
 
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i just think its one of those things that is just a gimic and should not be taken seriously as an app at all
i mean, if you are in a situation where you really need to use a compass then the likeliness is that you need to use a real compas and put the phone away. you maybe lost, wasting your batteries on a phone with no area to charge it for a compass when you can use a real one that costs next to nothing is a bit silly is it not?


if i were samsung i would never of included it as its just a cause for people to moan about a pointless app that doesnt work

how does street view rely on compass reading. its not accurate anyway as if you are away from wifi signal streetview is slow and pretty pointless.

skymap is a cool thing but seriously, they are gimics, i dont buy a phone for gimics. if i did i would have bought an iphone
 
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My compas iss laggy and inaccurate as well. I really liekthe concept of a compass with GPS, it makes turn by turn routing much mroe accurate, makes google streetview really useful by moving the image with the device. It'll improve Augmented reality apps like Layar as well.

Plus, as eper all othersmartphones on the market that include compasses, this is far from a gimick inclusion and has real world use so should work as advertised.

(IMHO)
 
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My compas iss laggy and inaccurate as well. I really liekthe concept of a compass with GPS, it makes turn by turn routing much mroe accurate, makes google streetview really useful by moving the image with the device. It'll improve Augmented reality apps like Layar as well.

Plus, as eper all othersmartphones on the market that include compasses, this is far from a gimick inclusion and has real world use so should work as advertised.

(IMHO)
alot of compasses on smartphones are diar
if the htc works and this doesnt then one would assume its because the memory making the software laggy and unresponsive (128meg max ram)

as much as you can say its not a gimic i really dont understand why you would use a compass in street view to rotate an image for a street you are in when you could just turn your head. if your not in the street just use your thumb its quicker
sat nav systems tell you when you are needing to turn in yards etc. if you are focusing on compass along with the sat nav while driving then i would not like to be in a car with you are you are not focusing on the road.

yeah it should work, granted but i think its the least of the problems with the phone thats all.
 
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wasting your batteries on a phone with no area to charge it for a compass when you can use a real one that costs next to nothing is a bit silly is it not?
Yes, you're right -- but I bought this so I wouldn't need my (better) pda and (ancient) phone as two separate devices. Think of this as a swiss army knife. How practical is it really to stuff your pockets full of things you might need?

skymap is a cool thing but seriously, they are gimics, i dont buy a phone for gimics. if i did i would have bought an iphone
True, but alas it seems all modern phones are gimmicky. The Android-based ones seem to be the most useful gimmicks though.

i really dont understand why you would use a compass in street view to rotate an image for a street you are in when you could just turn your head.
Okay, so maybe Street View is not the best example; let's consider augmented reality applications then. There really is practicality in knowing how your device is oriented.

I think a lot of what is considered gimmicks now is really merely immature. I'm sure the first mobile phones were seen as terribly gimmicky as well. After all, everyone has a phone at home and there are (well, were) pay phones all around, right? Well, there are (or have since arisen) good uses for them anyhow.


... aaaanyway, this thread was not about the use(ful|less)ness of compasses per se, but whether or not they are error-prone and/or broken in this particular model.
 
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ok just installed this app as i realised it wasnt a default app.

looks as if it uses gps to pinpoint the poles then uses the accelerometer to pin point direction.
I would imagine this fails because the samsung have not put much effort into the accelerometer due to it only being used for screentilts as its not very sensitive.
also ive found its very depended on how you hold the device
its more accurate when laid completely flat on a table as apposed to standing up with device at a normal 70% angle

if you tilt it from normal holding to completely flat youll see what i mean

that last point isnt a device issue. that would affect any device with accelerometer that uses this app making the compass pretty inaccurate regardless.

1st point is samsung probably didnt think about accelerometer accuracy for compass use probably to similar points i made above
 
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Compass doesn't rely on accelerometers, it has a magneto-something sensor
of its own. A simple principle basically: you put electric current through a coil
and you get magnetic field which tries to align itself just like a magnetic
needle would.

In my opinion the Compass should be tested only outdoors as computers and
other indoor electric equipment seem to desorient it.

I agree with KlaymenDK in demanding the thing to work properly. I don't care
whether it's the main focus of the phone. It's there, it's not that complicated
and it should work.
 
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Compass doesn't rely on accelerometers, it has a magneto-something sensor
of its own. A simple principle basically: you put electric current through a coil
and you get magnetic field which tries to align itself just like a magnetic
needle would.

In my opinion the Compass should be tested only outdoors as computers and
other indoor electric equipment seem to desorient it.

I agree with KlaymenDK in demanding the thing to work properly. I don't care
whether it's the main focus of the phone. It's there, it's not that complicated
and it should work.

its not a default app for samsung tho. not everything works well with every device. the physical components of each device are different.
if its not accellerometer based can you explain why holding it vertical makes it inacurate as it would be the same magnet and the same current regardless of vertical and horizontal orientation


edit have you seen this?

http://www.mobilizy.com/enupdate-samsung-galaxy
 
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if its not accellerometer based can you explain why holding it vertical makes it inacurate as it would be the same magnet and the same current regardless of vertical and horizontal orientation
You just answered your own question: what happens when you turn a regular (needle-based) compass on its side? Its plane of measurement is all wrong in relation to the plane of the magnetic field, and it will do its (poor) best.

Hey, thank you so much for linking that article! It's good to know that the issue has officially been recognized by Samsung, even if we're still struggling with it. I've just downloaded that "SensorTest" app to play with it, and I might even write to Mobilizy to ask what the latest official status is. If I do, and I hear from them, you'll be sure to hear from me.
 
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Don't know what to say. With H8, my compass always points north with the phone flat, vertical portrait, vertical landscape, 45 degree portrait, 45 degree landscape. Tested with "GPS Status" by reading digital heading indicator. If I get near a large metal object (such as a filing cabinet) or near a computer, it deviates.

I have not confirmed, but I imagine because every similar device has it, that the Galaxy has a 3 axis accelerometer and a 3 axis compass. This allows the device to determine which way is down, and which way the magnetic field lines point. Combining your GPS position allows for a true north correction.
 
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