iPhone 8 GPS problems

Hey guys! Good news! I just installed ios 11.2 Beta and the issue seems fixed! No more 'GPS Signal not found' errors in Low Power mode for iPhone 8 Plus!

iOS 11.2 Beta is about 2.1GB for OTA update so u guys better get connected to a wifi.

For those who are not sure on how to sign up for betas, here's a link with some explanation.

https://www.igeeksblog.com/how-to-sign-up-for-the-ios-public-beta-testing-progra m/

After trying all the tricks mentioned here and in other threads to no avail, I restored iOS 11.1 on my iPhone 8+ and set up as a new device. Installed only Waze, Google maps and GPS diagnostics apps. I used it for most of the day and still experienced the erratic behavior while trying to navigate, best indicator was Waze intermittently showing the message in red font about not being able to find a GPS satellite signal. I concluded it was a hardware issue so I made a Genius Bar reservation. Diagnostics did not show anything unusual. The Genius swapped the device (yes, for a white box unit which I hope is indeed new and not refurbished) and the GPS is so far working great even after I restored all my settings and data from back up. It’s possible that some devices with marginal GPS units like mine will be fixed with different settings via software in a future iOS release but I was not willing to wait for that. So I can confirm I had a defective GPS unit in my iPhone 8+ and getting a warranty replacement was the solution.

I'm having the same problem and to be honest feel a little ripped off. It's not like it's the first iPhone and they haven't had time to address these issues. My gps lags and is always behind, I've tried everything and nothing works. When I phoned apple, the person I talked to seemed to act surprised that this was happening. Reading on how many people are having the same problem, I'm hoping they address the issue soon.

Ok so another update from me (I’m onto my third faulty iPhone 8).

I spoke to Apple support again, and I said I’ve had enough and just want a refund. I gave the (very polite) person on the phone all the case numbers from my previous contacts and she understood immediately what I was referring too - whereas previously I had to explain everything from scratch.

After asking her if Apple are aware of the problem, and to make sure I’m not the only one contacting them, she, in apple speak, said she’s confident that there is nothing I’m doing that is causing the issue, and that she believes if I swap my device over again, everything should be fine.

I suppose this is as close as we can get to an admission from Apple of a dodgy batch of phones in the early shipments hitting the stores??

I’ll post again after next Tuesday when I get my fourth iPhone 8.......

So far:

I've gone through 3 8 plus phones, with the third one ultimately being captured by Apple. I've logged data, answered every question asked of me, and been cold-called from this thread by some direct group of engineers who work on the software updates, etc.

I replaced it with an iPhone X which is showing signs of the same problem. Thus far, engineering has no solution. It's that simple. Every indication I've gotten is that they don't even know what's really the problem yet as originally it was thought to be a software problem, but capturing my device indicates they think it might equally be a hardware problem.

The new data point of it happening on a brand new X creates a whole new headache since it would appear to me as a layman that the issue is clearly hardware and some faulty design based on the glass back. That said, I know anecdotally of people who have had the issue on pre 8-series phones after upgrading to iOS 11.

Since this thread is followed by a ton of people at this point, I'd be curious to know where folks stand on what I think is the culprit, which is some combination of a very specific environmental factor and the hardware design of the phone. I say this because I cannot for the life of me recreate the issue in one of the two cars I own, while in the other I can't drive to the store and back without the issue (a Hyundai)

It would suggest to me that those of us who have been beating our head against the wall with this are in some bizarre small group of people who's cars, or something else that Apple didn't really vet, are interfering with the GPS signal. Could be a part of the car, maybe certain satellite radio antennas, maybe something you carry on your keychain like an RFID key. Whatever it is, it seems to me to be something environmentally specific that is like getting through to the device through the glass back in a way that was never intended.

Those are my thoughts after dealing with this for going on over a month and 4 phones with no real end in sight. The annoying thing about it is, for all the inconvenience and time spent on this, it would take me even more time and energy right now to spend literally moving everything over to a new OS, but that point is approaching.

Exactly what I’ve had, just sits in a spot for a tenth of a mile or even a mile or two and then poof, the arrow goes as the crow flies to catch up to your location and then freezes again.

Haven’t really encountered much “incorrect” or floating location.

FWIW, I've found the opposite where I can sometimes replicate this issue ONLY by putting the phone in landscape mode while portrait mode may be working fine. Just another interesting data point.

And I wholly agree that this is far more widespread than they are letting on. People are still being told to just replace their phones when Apple engineers 100% are aware of this and (purposely?) not filtering word down because they haven't even be able to figure out the cause of it let alone a solution.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll try the landscape mode tonight when I drive home to see if I have any luck. I did contact apple again, sent them some pics of what I see on the map app when it's happening, and they said they were opening a case with engineering and that they should have a response by Friday. I'll let everyone know here if I get any updates.

Yes, I am also in correspondence with Apple support regarding this. I think it is starting to look more and more like a hardware problem. I used Google maps on a long drive and although it remained accurate for some of it, it acted wildly erratic at a crucial motorway junction. I previously had the iPhone 5s - no problem like this. Am I correct that Apple has used a new GPS module in the 8 and X phones? If it is hardware, I can't really see how Apple can avoid recalling all 8 and Xs currently out in the wild.

I’m surprised, but I just tried using both Apple maps and google maps in landscape mode and everything worked perfectly. Maybe it is an issue with the accelerometer that is interfering with GPS functionality…

Hey everyone. I MAY have found the root of this issue, and it MAY indirectly tie into people saying if they position their phones in a specific orientation in their phone holders the GPS works.

I had the benefit of being stuck in traffic tonight while having Waze up. As usual my GPS randomly cut out for no reason. I took my phone out of its holder to inspect it, and instantly I had a GPS signal. I then returned it back into the holder and it would lose GPS after a few moments. EVERY SINGLE TIME I took it out of the holder it would get a GPS signal within one second and stay connected, and EVERY SINGLE TIME I put it back into the holder it would lose it.

My phone holder does not use magnets, it's a simple window mounted unit, that I think is nothing but plastic, but may have metal components inside (spings, etc...)

When people run into this issue, please remove your phone from your holders and LET US KNOW if you regain your GPS signal.

For me, the problem is apparently gone since two things occurred in quick succession:

1. my phone slid off a table and landed face down on a wooden floor 2 feet below (no visible damage)

2. I installed iOS 11.1

Can't say for sure which (or even if either) fixed the issue - most likely the iOS upgrade, but if there was some kind of dodgy connection internally it might explain some of the random orientation change correlations some people are seeing.

Now I'd never suggest someone go slapping their phone around to see if it would change anything, but I did used to have an iPad with a dodgy screen connection that would be re-seated by a good slap on the back...

I think there is still something to it since I still think there’s something interfering with the GPS signal, maybe like XM radio or AM signal interfering. Removing it from the proximity to the signal could solve it, temporarily obviously, but would also explain why some people still have the issue depending on the strength of the interfering signal, if that were in fact the cause.

I’m still curious if anyone is in my position where I’ve tested the same phone in different cars with different results, which would seem like an environmental cause.

OK so I just got back from my third visit to th Apple shop. Just so happened I was also sitting opposite a guy with an iPhone X with the exact same problem.

They wouldn’t swap my phone over again (that’d make it my fourth phone) and suggested I take it back to where I got it from, Telstra, for a full refund.

I guess that ends my decade of iPhone use. So, Samsung or Google?