iPhone 8 GPS problems

On both Google Maps and Apple Maps, the gps doesn't seem to keep up. The apps start up fine but once I start driving the GPS becomes erratic and loses me. Both navigation apps can't seem to locate me unless I re-start the app over and over again. I thought it was a buggy iPhone 8 so I took it back to Verizon (where I bought it) and it was swapped out for a new one, and the new one started acting the same way the moment I hit the road. I haven't used any icloud backups, I set up both phones as new iPhones each time I activated them. I also factory reset my day old iPhone twice before taking it to the store for replacement. The replacement (new) phone has the same issue. Help!

iPhone 8, iOS 11

Posted on Sep 23, 2017 6:01 PM

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Posted on Oct 16, 2017 5:13 PM

Just went out a few miles drive to test the replacement phone. Drove over a mile with the phone not on the magnetic mount and it worked perfectly on waze and apple maps. On the way back i put it on the magnetic mount and low and behold waze had red No GPS error and apple maps location was way off and wouldnt right itself. I dont think new phones are supposed to be bothered my magnets but thats seems to be the case for me. I know that some people on this thread have it happening when walking or on a non magnetic mount and i hope you find a solution but for others out there using these mounts, try taking it off. Im gonna buy a cradle mount, too much hassle to get phone replaced so User uploaded fileim taking the easy option.

756 replies

Dec 26, 2017 12:28 AM in response to Zeypher

Hi all. The issue I was having (I have many posts earlier in this thread) has been solved. My mobile carrier took my phone back, said they’ve had many other users return their iphone 8, and cancelled my contract. I’m now back using my iPhone 6 which works perfectly! Once I replace the battery in it to circumvent the planned obsolescence Apple has amdmitted to in the last week it’ll be better than the new buggy phones and over a Thousand dollars cheaper.


Apple is a faultering company driving users to the opposition (I’m going Samsung)

Dec 26, 2017 6:49 AM in response to damon291

This is the only real solution. I returned my iPhone X for a full refund and went back to my iPhone 7, which always worked fine.


I still am not sure why there is not more of an outcry over this - my theory is that it affects most phones, but most people don't actually use the gps enough to notice.


I'm disappointed, but I will purchase the X again if I see people here start to post that it was fixed. So far hardly anyone seems to be saying that.

Dec 27, 2017 12:09 AM in response to JRAG24

Yeah, i see the same issue with the iPhone X 256gb Unlocked version running iOS 11.2.1 (which is supposed to have fixed the gps issues). This is such a basic smart phone feature that should have been caught in their internal testing. I don't how a $1200+ phone isn't quality checked ahead of time. Thinking about exchanging my phone soon. Apple, i think its a S/W bug - please fix it ASAP.

Dec 29, 2017 7:15 AM in response to the.Jo0Lz

Update #2


My iPhone 8’s GPS works perfectly in my 2011 Sante Fe, but tried it again in my wife’s 2011 Sonata and sure enough it drifted. There were a few times it worked but most of the time it either drifted or stayed frozen on my present location. Tried WAZE but to no avail, kept getting the No GPS message. As soon as I opened the window and held the phone outside it instantly locked on and worked fine......

Went back to my Sante Fe to see if it works fine and it did. Drove the car for 2 hours with no GPS issues...


Totally strange....


Not too too sure what to do. I don’t want to go down to the iPhone 7, but I may.


Hate to think I may have to switch over to the Galaxy. Have been an Apple user for years.....

Jan 2, 2018 11:19 PM in response to StephenTen

Just when I thought it was safe to go back in the water... I had my Garmin GLO with me for my first ride to work of the New Year (and my first commute since getting the GLO). While leaving, with a clear signal to the GLO, and all indicator lights showing a good connection to the iPhone (via Bluetooth) and a strong signal lock on the GPS, it had me off by almost half a mile from where I actually was. In a Seattle dealing with traffic trying to get home, that's a big deal. Again, my iPhone was in the same place it has been for 10 years, it's just I added the GLO to the mix (which should be providing rock solid location tracking).


While I'm not convinced it's not some sort of interference on the iPhone, clearly something else is going on other then GPS interference (System level bug, either hardware or software) that is causing the pain. So, I'm starting to thing the interference is real, but it is somewhere else other then specifically in the GPS receiver circuit, otherwise I can't explain the GLO exhibiting the exact same behavior. Anybody want to buy a basically new GLO? Also I'm not ruling out that Bluetooth is the root cause of interference as some have run into the issue outside of the car.


Note: I also tried a new wireless charging cradle I got for Christmas (without the GLO), and if anything the signal was stronger then when charging over the lightening connection. Nothing about this is making any sense to me yet.

Jan 9, 2018 12:03 AM in response to JRAG24

I am also having GPS issues with my iPhone 8 Plus. Ever since I got it on release day, I noticed that I couldn't reach portals in Ingress (a location based game) any more that I could easily reach with my iPhone 6 Plus.

To me it seems that the position is not updated as often as before. Enabling flight mode sometimes helps, also using opening Compass app sometimes helps.

I also had navigation issues both with Apple Maps as well as Google Maps where the apps would recalculate my route all of a sudden because they would think that I am on a different road than I actually am. This happens both in car as well as on my bike.

Jan 12, 2018 2:10 AM in response to supriyofromirving

I found this thread since I am about to replace my iPhone 6 - (one of the reasons is that the GPS is not working) and I wanted to know whether either the 8 or the X have the same problem.


I can confirm that for my iPhone 6, none of the iOS updates the last 8 months have fixed my GPS issue.

I rarely use any GPS functionality since I commute same route every day, and don't use apps like Pokemon Go, MapMyTracks or other training apps - so I really cannot tell how long my problems have existed, but for sure they were not present when the phone was new 3 years ago.

However, I really need the GPS from time to time, navigating in cities or finding addresses, and it is so frustrating not being able to trust on this feature.


My GPS problems is behaving just like described by many others in this thread. It is not limited to use in car - but also when walking, etc.

I can have occasional "blips" of GPS satellite signals. Last week when testing, I had two "blips" of GPS signals while driving a distance of 50 km (constantly moving the phone around in the car searching for signal)

My issue is definitively that the phone doesen't receive any satellite signal regularly. I use the "GPS Diagnostic" app, which show how many satellites it receives signal from (if any), and the signal strength. The above mentioned "signal blips" coincides with when the app reports satellite signal reception.


Needless to say, I have tried every tips and trick to re-initiate the GPS functionality (except hardware "operations"), but to no avail.


SO - now I wonder if it is worth the money to go for a 8 or X - or if I should downgrade to SE...

Jan 12, 2018 10:58 AM in response to intellexi

Couldn’t tell you, haven’t encountered it. I suspect all the GPS issues are related though in some fashion. It could be interference from things no one even considered because I haven’t done that process of elimination: a wearable with a signal, RFID keychains people have for work, prox card you use to get in your building., etc.


It’s fairly obvious the glass back and chipset simply weren’t exhaustively tested or designed. And now it’s just a roll of the dice whether “you” (meaning the things that aren’t changing in your everyday life) are compatible with their phone.

Jan 19, 2018 5:07 AM in response to JRAG24


I have been trying to get to the bottom of this problem. I am not a IT Tech, programmer or anything. Using Lirum Info, in the GPS Test I get the following message come up with the accuracy fluctuating from 12 to 6 meters fault flagging up as follows. "Geocoding failed with error: the operation couldn't be completed (GPS kCLErrorDomain error 2)" Not sure if this related to the fault we have. The message seems to flag up when the accuracy fluctuates.

Jan 23, 2018 11:28 PM in response to JRAG24

They are working with at least some in the yes, small minority of people experiencing this issue because the vast majority of people are not.


For most, GPS is working properly and wonderfully.


I will ask again to make sure you have Wi-Fi enabled; without Wi-Fi location geolocation is a bit iffy as GPS signals are iffy at best in many locations.


Since MapMyRun is a third party application, why not ask them why their application is not working properly with the latest Apple devices?

Jan 25, 2018 2:13 AM in response to Sparks90

I also called and had support over the phone. I think it will help if as many people as possible with this issue contact them in this way. The representative said that if there were more people that are having similar issues, more data would be available for resolving the issue. I hope they fix it soon though, I'm creating some video evidence later, GPS diagnostic running on a 5C and iPhone 8 Plus side by side give a pretty clear view of the issue.

Jan 25, 2018 6:44 AM in response to StephenTen

I also had to go through the SIM exchange routine (it seems Apple is aware of this as they give everyone the same advice).

I switched my sim with the SIM I use on my 6S Plus and the problem was still there. On the other hand, my iPhoneX sim worked fine on my 6S Plus when I was using GPS.

I am also surprised that noone from the tech Youtubers haven't noticed that. I would expect guys like Unbox Therapy to be on top of something like this (😝).


In any case, good that at least Apple is acknowledging the issue. I am going to swap my phone next week.

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iPhone 8 GPS problems

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