GPS even when not connected to the Verizon network?

[karimarie]

I'm going to be heading to Rome, and I know my Droid won't work there for cell service. But will the GPS work, or is it dependent on Verizon's service?

 

[RoundMan]

I would assume that it will not in Rome. I am currently in Vietnam and have been in Thailand for the last two weeks. Not being a GSM phone I have actually had a few received calls...although I did not answer them... and texting worked. This prompted me to try out the GPS with no results. I would say that it would not work in Rome either. Quite a few of the guys I work with have GPS's that they bring overseas and they upload the information from their corresponding GPS maker's website, download into the GPS unit and it is still hit or miss whether it works or not. Unfortunately, the Droid does not do this...yet.

 

[barry99705]

The gps should work, but without a data connection you won't have any maps.

 

[Dan_Droid]

I'm pretty sure the GPS in the phone receives signals directly from the Global Positioning Satellite system (run by the US government) and has nothing to do with Verizon's cell phone network. However, like the person above me said, you probably won't be able to use any of the maps because they are downloaded from Google over Verizon's network as you need them. You could probably still use any other GPS apps you have that aren't dependent on Google Maps, though.

 

[brandini]

The gps should work, but without a data connection you won't have any maps.

+1

Put it in airplane mode, texts are going to be crazy expensive...

 

[aaron19953]

I doubt it will work sadly.. Without a data connection, it's going to have a hard time localizing.. ie knowing where in the sky to look for sats. The phone relies on assisted gps (aGps) which gets its localization data from the cell tower nearest you..

Put your phone in airplane mode, and lemme know how many gps sats your phone finds..

yeah, it sucks..
-=< aaron >=-

 

[CRPercodani]

If you will have a WiFi connection then you could download your route before leaving that area. Also you can look into CoPilot for Android, it's on the Market and I think it costs around $35. It will let you download all EU maps and stores them on the SD card so you don't need a cell signal.

 

[davidtork]

The app Anywhere GPS Text seems to work when the phone is set to "airplane mode" which cuts the network connection.

 

[nestrapez]

airplaine mode + wifi on

 

[lizm]

Put your phone in airplane mode, and lemme know how many gps sats your phone finds..

Right now mine finds 9 in airplane mode.

 

[Dark Jedi]

Right now mine finds 9 in airplane mode.

You answered a post over a year old.

 

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

Right now mine finds 9 in airplane mode.

And for the record, this is normal. It's not an inability to find GPS satellites, it's an inability to use 3G data to get maps and do anything useful with the location data.

 

[takeshi]

You answered a post over a year old.

Why does that matter? Discussion can still be active even in an old thread. Commenting on the age of the thread, however, adds nothing to the thread.

While we're adding to this thread, Navigon also offers locally stored maps.

I doubt it will work sadly.. Without a data connection, it's going to have a hard time localizing.. ie knowing where in the sky to look for sats. The phone relies on assisted gps (aGps) which gets its localization data from the cell tower nearest you..

Put your phone in airplane mode, and lemme know how many gps sats your phone finds..

...and, for the record, it will work. aGPS can fall back on standalone mode as needed.

 

[icecold]

MapDroyd is another option to use for locally stored maps...just be sure to install the maps before travel! Or else have WiFi available...

 

[christopher]

Just a curiosity question, where do you go to see how many gps sats your phone is tracking? Thanks!

 

[icecold]

Just a curiosity question, where do you go to see how many gps sats your phone is tracking? Thanks!

The app GPS Status will tell you that info...

 

[mobrienjr]

Just to correct anybody who may be misinformed....The DROID does not have aGPS, they have sGPS...which means that it is not dependent upon the verizon network.

 

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

Just a curiosity question, where do you go to see how many gps sats your phone is tracking? Thanks!

I like the app ulysse gizmos as it gives you access to the data from ALL your phone's sensors: GPS, Magnetometer, Clinometer, etc.

 

[takeshi]

Just to correct anybody who may be misinformed....The DROID does not have aGPS, they have sGPS...which means that it is not dependent upon the verizon network.

The Droid does have aGPS. Check its specs.

http://www.motorola.com/Consumers/U...ces/Mobile-Phones/ci.Motorola-DROID-US-EN.alt

GPS AND LOCATION SERVICES1
aGPS (assisted), sGPS (simultaneous)

sGPS and aGPS are not mutually exclusive. sGPS refers to antenna design only. sGPS has nothing to do with network reliance nor does aGPS. If the Droid's GPS receiver can't reach the assistance servers it will fall back on standalone mode. People seem to commonly make the incorrect assumption that aGPS is tower triangulation but it is not. GPS is GPS. It can't be called GPS if it uses tower triangulation. By definition, all GPS uses the GPS satellites to detemine location.

Now, whether your GPS apps require data or not is an entirely separate matter and aGPS and sGPS are completely irrelevant in that regard.