Bad Weather and GPS readings??

Osito2199 · May 30, 2009

inconsistent readings on smart phone

I downloaded the trial version of TeeDroid onto my iPhone and decided to give it a try yesterday. The weather wasnt too great. It had rained during the morning hours with chances of thunder showers all through out the day, and for the most part it was cloudy. On some holes, the GPS matched up pretty well with the sprinkler heads and on some they were way off. But the biggest problem I had was the GPS constantly changing yardages while i was standing in one spot. For example, I was on the tee waiting for the next group to move. According to the scorcard, the hole measured 353yds. I had first gotten 352yds on the GPS. Then all of a sudden it jumped up to 360yds, then it dropped down to 246yds. This happened on several other holes as well. Why would this happen if the device is in a stationary position? Could it have been the bad weather, or are these programs for smart phones generally inconsistent? I hope it was the bad weather because it really is a nice feature to have on a phone.

thanks,
jr

mkrolewski · May 30, 2009

Depending on the quality of the GPS chips, the GPS is sensitive to anything that can block the signals from the the satellites.

My first generation handheld GPS did not work indoors or under many obstructions like trees.

My auto GPS (2nd or 3rd generation) is sensitive to long tunnels, and tree lined roads ( 150+ foot trees). I have never noticed lose signal during rain.

My golf gps (golf guru) has only lost a signal once -- standing at the trunk of a large maple tree. Moving 2 or 3 feet from the center caused the signal to return. I have played in a driving rain -- with no loss of signal.

Some gps have a "drift" when you are standing still -- most have a mechanism to reduce or eliminate this effect.

I do not know what the quality of the gps chips or the antenna or the sampling rates in your phone. All of these could effect the quality of responses. Simiarly, for mobile situations, the mapping software is trying to place you onto a road. So minor changes or outlandish jumps may be ignored. The golf gps mode is most likely taking raw readings for position.