Develop Bugs

Inbuilt bearing from inbuilt compass

Hi,
I appear to have a problem in that the inbuilt compass used by Google Sky Map (excellent app) and Google Streetview does not read correctly until the phone has been waived around to calibrate the compass. This has to be done each time the apps are started otherwise the orientation is completely wrong with South reading as North.
Having tried a couple of compass apps from the market, they have the same problem with Compass (snaptic) telling me it needs recalibrating each time it is used due to a magnetic field. Is this a problem with my device, or do they all read incorrectly each time the apps are started until recalibrated?

I don't know about the other applications, but when using Compass (Snaptic, v1.1) mine loads and points north immediately. No need to wave it around or anything.

Thanks. Sounds like my Desire has a problem.

I re-calibrate mine most times as well ? I don't feel its a problem
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk

I have the same problem. It's pretty annoying to have to do it all the time. Is this really normal?

I think there are quite some things that might interfere and/or require you to do the 'calibrate swing'. Your position on this earth, just to name one
When I'm sitting at my desk at the computer, the compass always points at my synthesizer or subwoofer lol But I guess it's quite sensitive.

RaptorRVL said:
I think there are quite some things that might interfere and/or require you to do the 'calibrate swing'. Your position on this earth, just to name one
When I'm sitting at my desk at the computer, the compass always points at my synthesizer or subwoofer lol But I guess it's quite sensitive.
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Agreed - mine also points at the subwoofer when I'm by the desk. However, the problem is experienced every time I start any app which uses the inbuilt compass and happens when I'm in the garden and away from home ie it's not a localised issue.

Magnetometer or digital compass issues

Hello,
I realized a few days ago that the digital compass in my phone simply doesn't work. I tried several compass apps and Google Maps, and the readings from the compass seem completely random. The only time when it consistently shows the right direction is in Google Maps, while moving, when there's a GPS fix. As soon as I stop, the little arrow starts doing "doughnuts" - literally circling around its axis.
I did try to calibrate the magnetometer using the method of drawing 8s parallel to the floor, but it didn't work. Maybe for a few seconds, no more.
Did it happen to anyone else? Is there a solution?
Thanks to anyone who can contribute.

emonk said:
Hello,
I realized a few days ago that the digital compass in my phone simply doesn't work. I tried several compass apps and Google Maps, and the readings from the compass seem completely random. The only time when it consistently shows the right direction is in Google Maps, while moving, when there's a GPS fix. As soon as I stop, the little arrow starts doing "doughnuts" - literally circling around its axis.
I did try to calibrate the magnetometer using the method of drawing 8s parallel to the floor, but it didn't work. Maybe for a few seconds, no more.
Did it happen to anyone else? Is there a solution?
Thanks to anyone who can contribute.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Search is your friend. 37 pages of existing discussion by searching on "compass"
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1594281&highlight=compass

see above
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1594281
thead closed

[Q] Has the google maps compass gotten any better?

I had the Note II and I always had trouble with the compass in gmaps. Specifically, if you are just looking at the map without having a destination entered (perhaps to review traffic), the compass would never work. The heading marker pretty much had a mind of its own. Well, I upgraded to the Note III, thinking that the problem must be fixed. Nope! Wrong! Nada! Same problem.
Well, I am probably getting close to upgrading again, and I was wonder what I can expect with the Note 4. Has it been fixed?

i have never had an issue with my note 2 or 3 or even 4 now!

MrGibbage said:
I had the Note II and I always had trouble with the compass in gmaps. Specifically, if you are just looking at the map without having a destination entered (perhaps to review traffic), the compass would never work. The heading marker pretty much had a mind of its own. Well, I upgraded to the Note III, thinking that the problem must be fixed. Nope! Wrong! Nada! Same problem.
Well, I am probably getting close to upgrading again, and I was wonder what I can expect with the Note 4. Has it been fixed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... on my phone the compass in Google Maps is there to show which way is north on the map. Not which way I'm facing although now that you mention it I do seem to vaguely remember there used to be a mode in Google Maps which would use the compass to change what was shown on the screen based on which way the phone was pointing.
I believe that got removed from Google Maps a couple years ago. At least I haven't seen it for a long time.
If I'm right, it's a "feature" of the app rather than a limitation of the phone(s).

I'm not talking about the red and white compass in the upper left corner. I am talking about the blue arrow in the middle of the screen that represents your heading. When I drive down a street, that arrow should also point "down the street" on the map. The arrow on my screen points in pretty much any direction other than the correct one.
Here's a thread that I started a couple of years ago that still gets posted to occasionally by other people that have the same problem.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=44662834#post44662834
Additionally, google sky map is pretty much impossible to use for the same reason. The google apps have no idea what direction the phone is pointing.
*#0*# Calibration can help, but it usually reverts back to the broken state after a few minutes or after a reboot.

it shows me walking or driving the right way and google sky map works perfect as well and i dont even have GPS on high accuracy. i used sky map to see what a bright star was a couple nights ago and maps today and both are fine

MrGibbage said:
I'm not talking about the red and white compass in the upper left corner. I am talking about the blue arrow in the middle of the screen that represents your heading. When I drive down a street, that arrow should also point "down the street" on the map. The arrow on my screen points in pretty much any direction other than the correct one.
Here's a thread that I started a couple of years ago that still gets posted to occasionally by other people that have the same problem.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=44662834#post44662834
Additionally, google sky map is pretty much impossible to use for the same reason. The google apps have no idea what direction the phone is pointing.
*#0*# Calibration can help, but it usually reverts back to the broken state after a few minutes or after a reboot.
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Click to collapse
It is not based on which direction the phone is pointing, it is based on which way the phone is moving. Has to be moving for the arrow to move. GPS in maps measures movement

I believe this is an inherent issue with the magnetometer/compass in all cellphones. All you have to do is shake the phone around (or swirl the phone around in a figure 8 pattern) to calibrate the magnetometer with the maps app open. You'll find that it is accurate afterwards.

Maps and compass directions

Hello,
I am having problems with maps and navigation in my watch.
It is useless as the map is pointing wrong directions. Compass calibration does not help. Other apps user compass well but maps not
Any tip or idea?
Thank you

The Huawei Watch does not have a compass built in so it would be your phone's compass calibration that's off.
Usually when I start maps on my phone I have to do that figure 8 motion to get the compass to work properly. Maybe that's what is happening in your case? You haven't calibrated the phone yet and it is giving you the wrong direction. Or your phone might just be set up to be wrong. The OnePlus One has that problem where the compass points the opposite direction and you have to modify a file to fix it.

Gyroscope/Accelerometer Flipped?

Hey Guys,
Just wanted to see if anyone else has noticed that when viewing Google Maps on the watch, the map rotates in the opposite (incorrect) direction as you rotate? For example, if you are looking "North" and you turn left, the map should rotate clockwise to point you "West". What I'm seeing is the exact opposite. Another test I performed was to install an app called Bearing and of course it showed the same behavior as Maps. If I was looking "North" and started rotating left, the compass would spin counter-clockwise and "East" would come up. I know that the exact direction will not be correct due to a lack of a magnetometer but rotation should still be correct. Anyone else see this?
Thanks!

..

MuF123 said:
I think this is wrong assumption and that you can't really get what you want without compass.
Any app that relies on magnetic coordinates should not move at all on hwatch...
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Well, they do move smoothly and relatively accurately just in the opposite direction so they must allow for gyro/accelerometer input. Either that or I have a magic watch. Also, after reporting it, Huawei is looking into the issue. I'm just curious if others can try it on their watches and report direction of spin....
Thanks!

Same here, i think it's a bug of map due to the lack of compas.

suitengu said:
Same here, i think it's a bug of map due to the lack of compas.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for checking, suitengu! I agree with your theory. Some software locks position or refuses to install, as it should, due to the lack of a compass. Apparently not Maps or Bearing.

I've investigated a little more. At launch maps take the phone's compass as reference, after it uses watch's gyro to turns the map.
The gyro are inverced in Gmaps, don't know if it's google of huawei fault.

Interesting to see more people notice this issue, as I already reported it in January.
here
It may well be that the Maps app uses mainly magnetic compass for the rotation and the gyros are used to filter/smoothen the rotation of the map. Not having the compass inputs messes up the algorithm...
Would like to know if other AW watches that do have compass experience different behaviour.

OnnoJ said:
Interesting to see more people notice this issue, as I already reported it in January.
here
It may well be that the Maps app uses mainly magnetic compass for the rotation and the gyros are used to filter/smoothen the rotation of the map. Not having the compass inputs messes up the algorithm...
Would like to know if other AW watches that do have compass experience different behaviour.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On the LG G Watch R it's perfectly fine. Map rotating in the right direction only with the gyro sensor of the watch. I think we need to wait till Huawei fixes this.