GPS stands for Global Positioning System which is a consortium of satellites that help detect user’s location anywhere using a smartphone as a receiver. But that also introduce GPS problem wherein the phone is unable to either connect to GPS or establish a connection to accurately detect the location. A lot could possibly go wrong and that is why we decided to tackle the issue using the methods that would rectify the issue right away thereby correcting any kind of irregularities, inaccuracies, and other shortfalls. Here is a detailed outlook on how to fix the Panasonic GPS Problem.

Toggle the GPS on your phone

What’s the easiest thing you could do to fix a problem? It’s probably toggling the switch several times waiting for the service to commence working. It is possible that a software bug or glitch might have occurred whilst you were tapping on the GPS icon preventing it from starting. Here, toggling the GPS switch from within the notification panel would fix these minor bugs and allow the GPS to work properly.

Turn On/Off airplane mode

Another workaround to fix a temporary network or software issue is to toggle the airplane mode. You can access the option simply by pulling down the notification tray wherein you need to jack up the feature and turn it off and repeat the same several times. This must resolve any network-related issue that your device is facing right at the moment and bingo, the GPS must start working now.

A swift reboot

Well, a lot of times it happens that a minor technical glitch or bug causes problems when using a particular app or service on your device. It is possible that the phone discovered a minor glitch when starting up the GPS on your phone. But hey, it is as easy to resolve as it sounds. Simply long press power button and select ‘Power Off’ from the dialog box. Wait for some time before rebooting the device and check if the GPS is working properly or not.

Get rid of phone case/cover

Do you know how GPS on your device works? It takes the radio signals from both cell towers and GPS satellites and interprets it by showing the location on the map. But radio signals are susceptible to attenuation and disturbance due to obstacles and it could cause the phone to obtain inaccurate or even incorrect location-related results. Well, a phone case or cover can make a lot of difference since there are few materials that can become an obstacle to the phone’s capability to access GPS. Simply remove it, take the phone near a window and that’s it.

What if the GPS receiver is incompetent/damaged

As aforementioned, obstacles could cause the GPS to show inaccurate or incorrect location. Now, although it could be a network-related issue, it is quite possible that the GPS receiver mounted on your device is damaged or incompetent or any other ‘xyz’ reasons. Although it is not rocket science to dismantle the GPS receiver, it is however recommended that you shouldn’t dismantle the device thus nullifying the warranty. So, if the GPS receiver is not working properly, you can install an external GPS receiver that will do the job of a new and strengthened receiver although the option may or may not work everywhere.

Toggle Power saving mode

Power saving mode or battery saver tool on your phone actually restricts few processes to reduce battery usage and extends its standby duration. If you are facing GPS problem on your device, you need to check if the power saving mode is enabled or not. It is possible that your device is obtaining inaccurate results or it is performance unexpectedly because it is squeezed by the power saving mode since it requires a lot of power to make things happen on a map. Thus, turn off the power saving mode and wait for a minute before enabling GPS on your device for location-based results. This must resolve the issue but if not, check out the other methods listed below.

Change GPS Settings

You might have a disabled high-accuracy mode that takes a little larger chunk of battery and other resources but renders accurate results. For that, you need to navigate to the Settings » Location » Mode and toggle On the ‘High Accuracy Mode’. You can also turn on features like user cell towers and others to improve the efficiency of GPS on your device and this must help.

Refresh GPS Data

In most Android smartphones like Panasonic, you can stop A-GPS on your device listing under ‘Settings » Apps » All’. This is where you need to refresh the feature by clearing its cache ‘Clear Cache’ and data aka ‘Clear Data’. But if you can’t find the same, you can install GPS Status and Toolbox to refresh GPS data and hopefully, it will commence working right away.

Update Google Maps/alternatives

Since Google Maps is the most popular map tool on Android smartphones while iPhones use it heavily too, you need to update the app as soon as an update is available skipping which, problems such as incorrect or inaccurate and non-so-precise location-based results could show up. Also, the outdated app can introduce a slew of problems and thus, it is ideal to take a moment from your day and simply update the Google Maps and all other apps installed to steer away from potential issues.

Update the firmware

Outdated software could open up backdoors for hackers and exploiters to exploit the data from your device and more. When developers roll out an update, it is attuned to get strengthened security and bug fixes that make the system a little more impenetrable. And when speaking about the firmware which is the backbone of a smartphone, you must take care of it and update/upgrade whenever it is available. But if you haven’t received any update yet, you can also move to a custom ROM to get updated features and more.

Calibrate compass on your device

If you have been getting inaccurate results that are slightly distant from your action location, a lot of factors could be involved of which, a compass could be a problem too. Thus, you need to calibrate the compass on your device to detect location sensitively. This can be done using an app like GPS Essentials or GPS Status and Toolbox that allow the user to calibrate the compass using on-screen instructions and hopefully, the problem is sorted out in some cases.

Clear Cache files

To summarize, when you access an app, the phone creates cache files to reduce the overheads and process the app faster the next time when you try it. But cache files are vulnerable and are easily corrupted and therefore, causes performance issues and more and must be fixed up. You can navigate to the Settings » Apps and tap on all the apps one-by-one to clear the app cache. Further, the second method revolves around Settings » Storage » Cache Memory wherein you need to clear it and you’ll notice a quick change in performance as well.

Use GPS Status & Toolbox for diagnostic

There are a number of components involved in making a GPS feature work on your smartphone. Now, the GPS Status & Toolbox app allows the user to check if the GPS problem is because of hardware or software. For that, you need to install it and tap on ‘Satellites’. This will showcase a screen where satellites will appear on it. If the GPS receiver is working properly, there should be at least four satellites displayed on the screen which are required to trilateration. But if there are no satellites visible on-screen, it could be a hardware issue or else a software issue. Since a hardware issue would take physical work, it is recommended to visit a service center while a software issue can be resolved by doing a factory reset in most cases.

Restore factory

I know that this is a major step and you must know that it is irreversible. This is where all the data ever stored on your device will get wiped out and thus, you must obtain a backup of the same before attempting it.

  • To commence with, tap on the power button and turn off the device.
  • Now, use the power button and press volume up+down button together and hold it right there for a few seconds.
  • The phone will vibrate and show an Android logo in a moment which is where you need to release the keys.
  • Moving further, use the volume rocker (up/down) to move around the items on the menu while the power button acts as a confirmation key.
  • Tap on ‘clear data/factory reset’ and then select ‘yes — delete all user data’ when asked to confirm.
  • Finally, return to the menu and tap on ‘reboot the phone’ and its done!

The permanent resolution

This is a permanent solution to the GPS problem that you are facing right now. Well, GetDroidTips recommends users to report the problem to an authorized service center and get it jazzed and fixed up. GPS is one of the important features on a smartphone that makes it imperative to resolve on priority. Since you cannot open up a phone to check what’s wrong and neither a third-party service center could because it will void the warranty. You should definitely walk to an authorized center for help.