GPS accuracy iOS 13 and/or 11 Pro Max

IOS 14 is out, and the gps problem remains...

it´s so frustrating try to use maps ou google map and the blue arrow freezes or go 500m to the side...

better buy a cheap android just for the GPS...

Hi I have an 11pro and have noticed my running app is not registering true distance at all. Especially since the latest updates 14.00.00 and 14.00.01. I am registering 1km for every 1.75km run.

Do Community Specialists actually read the posts? I know Apple wants us all to use Maps rather than GoogleMaps despite its bugs even after all these years. But the problem the original poster had is with is with GPS generally, not with Maps.

I just got a new iPhone 11 Pro, and the GPS is ridiculously buggy, showing me continue down roads after I've turned, freezing for long periods while driving fast, roads disappearing, etc. A real downgrade from my old phone! Which thankfully I still have.

Please, tell your bosses at Apple to focus on improving basic functionality, or at least not ruining basic functionality, before adding more unwanted features or untested tech.

I'm willing to bet a LOT of people would love a product that "just works," like Apple prided itself on back in the old days.

Hi guys

I have exactly the same problem. I’m on 11 pro max and the last iOS 13.3 and I noticed exactly when it does that issue of being not accurate.

In fact, when your iPhone is just in cellular data (3/4G) the accuracy is really bad (10/20km) and that is not normal it is probably an iOS bug (I hope so). To solve it, just activate the WiFi without connecting to any WiFi router, the accuracy will be back to normal.

i don’t know why this solution works but it is convenient cuz the WiFi uses battery even when you don’t use it ...

i hope  developers will fix it soon

redmonk78 wrote:

I have got two iPhone 11 Pro and both have the same problem. I guess most users will not recognize it until you will be routed wrong during navigation. I personally have no problem with navigation using google maps, but my GPS tracking (hiking) is horrible - but only compared to older iPhones (before the X series) or other manufacturers. I guess most of the users will not recognize the problem during normal use until you have explained it to them. Therefore it is good to have such a board and to discuss it officially.

GPS is working so far, yes, but the accuracy is bad. It was better with my iPhone 6s.

I don't disagree with anything you've said here. I do disagree poor75 above in his methods. Threatening, speculating.. etc.

All of my employees have 11 Pro Max' - the screen size is required for the work we do. We've been delivering cell phones to in-need and critical infrastructure staff for two weeks and we haven't had a single GPS issue.

The blanket statements and disruptive behaviour by our good buddy do nothing but make people turn away from this problem. Catch more bees with honey than a pile of rich.

+ - 214 feet is with no satellites. I get at best + - 50 feet with 4+ satellites which is not great anyhow.

Nathan do you work for Apple by any chance? What is the GPS hardware of iPhone 11 Max Pro? Is there any GNSS chip at all?

Hi. That’s not the end of the story. Because I have tried several apps with the same result. Maybe the GPS is accurate if you stand still without movement. But if you start turning around slowly, without leaving your current position, the signal goes wild.

A behavior which I could determine in all my GPS apps. Even within apple maps.

Also there are some aberration in GPS tracking compared to the GPS tracking with my 6s (using the same App under the same iOS version). You see: it‘s not that easy.

I have tested it now outside as well. Accuracy is still 16 feet. But if I turn myself around slowly 45° to the left and 45° to the right, iPhone located next to my body, feet are standing still, the attitude and longitude numbers are changing more than they should. But it’s an behavior which my previous 11 Pro did as well.

My Komoot hiking app does not track such small movements, that’s the reason why the hike tracking was more accurate compared to my Polar App which is tracking everything

Filtering is the same as ignoring some small deviations! For example, ignore points with less than 50 feet difference. And if you get a hiking app that does the right thing you will not even notice these things. With GPS you will not achieve perfection. I do a loop walk and the return track is never exactly over the outbound track. But it is close.

Yes, Google maps, Apple Maps and Waze all the same with the map open/ visible. The problem occurs as highway speed and low speed driving. Sometimes it works well sometimes not. None of my previous phones were this way.

GPS is only claimed to be accurate to within 16 feet:

US Government GPS Information: GPS Accuracy

For more resolution like that, other location services are used like the stored location of nearby Wi-Fi hot spots.

Of course I am complaining. Because my iPhone 6S is performing much better. Same accuracy - different behavior.

Normally I would expect an improvement when upgrading to a newer model. Even an equal result would be okay. But a degradation?

Then sell your phone and purchase a used iPhone 6S if you believe it was more accurate.

Straight GPS cannot be more accurate than specified by the US Government.

Location accuracy is improved when there is more than one WiFi access point your phone can see that has registered their actual locations in a database, typically a service like Skyhook:

Skyhook: Submit a Wi-Fi Access Point

That is the only way to get location accuracy greater than that provided by GPS itself.

Note if your location appears to move, it may simply because the phone is being more accurate about its location calculations; for example a phone that only changes the location on a map once it has moved more than fifty feet will seem to be more "stable" than one that updates its position each time it recalculates it.

same issue on my iphone 11 pro max that i got less than a month ago. the gps and maps show me running around my neighborhood when im literally just sitting in my house. On both Wifi and cellular, it has helped me with pokemon go tho since i can usually reach all pokestops without leaving my house haha.

but its annoying when i need it to work, which is majority of the time. my iphone 7 plus had zero issues with gps.

Based on what I’ve observed, it seems there is some kind of issue with the handoff to cellular from WiFi. I’ve noticed that when using several apps (including Runkeeper, Pokémon Go, Wizards Unite, etc... ), my GPS accuracy significantly improves when I turn off WiFi. I’ve been in contact with Apple and showed them the association with WiFi. They confirmed that it was an issue and said it would be fixed in a subsequent update. However, there have been two updates since then and still no fix. ☹️ For now, I’m turning off WiFi any time I need accurate GPS as a workaround, but it’s super annoying to have a brand new iPhone 11 Pro and having to do that just to get usable GPS.