Buzz Out Loud Lounge: Do cellphones have GPS
Do cellphones have GPS
by Alegoo92 - 2/18/07 5:09 PMI was having an argument with a friend--and the jist of his point was that most cell phone's have had GPS integration for the last couple years. And by GPS integration, he meant that foreign computers could access the exact location of a phone with little more than the internet.
I think he's wrong: and may be thinking of GPRS (which im pretty sure stands for General Packets Radio Service)... which is not much like GPS at all.
Do cell phones have GPS in them? And can their exact location be pinpointed (rather than find which cell tower they've 'pinged' from)?
Thanks in advance,
Alex
yes,no
by kellenjb - 2/18/07 7:53 PM In reply to: Do cellphones have GPS by Alegoo92Yes, many cell phones have GPS in them and have had them for awhile. They can be used for 911 calls, but have not been activated to use much else.
GPS is not tower triangulation
by russiancatfood - 2/18/07 9:15 PM In reply to: Do cellphones have GPS by Alegoo92He might be confusing GPS with tower triangulation. You have been able to track a cell phone for years using GSM signal triangulated between three towers. It's like GPS, but without satellites.
Hope this helps.
Cell information
by crashproof - 2/19/07 3:12 AM In reply to: GPS is not tower triangulation by russiancatfoodI also think that he might be confusing GPS, GPRS and triangualtion.
If not using triangulation even the cell info (e.g. which cell you are currently in) could be used for approximate localization. For some scenarios this is accurate enough, especially with UMTS cells shrinking in size compared to those "old" GSM ones.
there is a theory
by jonah jones
- 2/19/07 3:47 AM
In reply to: Do cellphones have GPS by Alegoo92
that says that the majority of cell phones sold in the last 2-3 years have GPS technology 'built in', but to keep them cheap, it hasn't been utilised in all models
GPS in your phone
jonah
,.
But that is just the GPS transimision.
by Dirty Pirate - 2/19/07 5:21 AM In reply to: there is a theory by jonah jones
It is only a transmitter, not a receiver. The new phones come with both.
some more thought
by crashproof - 2/19/07 5:26 AM In reply to: there is a theory by jonah jones
Intersting article and I totaly agree that the carriers have a history of disabling functions and holding back innovation that could hurt their profits. On the other hand if I think a little more about it I still don't think that this GPS functionality is build into most phones.
First of the carriers would probably order the phones without the GPS functionality installed because this would decrease their cost per device. So essentially your phone won't physically have GPS but from the manufacturer side it could have it. This happenes a lot or why do you think aren't there many phones with WLAN functionality.
Second the GPS functionallity would draw constant power if always on - in times where many phones are ranked by their standy time I guess that's something a manufacturer wants to disable if it can't be used.
If the functionality is disabled by default and only switched on when needed it would take quite a substantial amount of time for the device to find enough satellites to be able to properly localize itself - I don't know if this would be fast enough for the usual 911 call.
Third an last I don't think that a carrier would install GPS just for the sake of fulfiling FCC E911 requirements like described in the article. With the GPS technology no carrier could gurantee, that the localization information can be aquired. I myself constantly use 3 different consumer GPS devices and all of them have the same flaws: no sattelite connection in the downtown cannyons of todays cities streets, yes sometimes I even have trouble getting a connection when I am running in the woods beneath some tall trees. I belive that my GPS devices would have the better antennas build in than they could even dream of for a on-chip cell phone GPS. So I really do not believe that the carriers could fullfill FCCs requirements with this technology.
I guess, that it would be easier, cheaper and more reliable for them to use triangulation by updating their soft- and hardware. I know from a GSM guy that I talked to a while ago that all of their new GSM/UMTS base stations that they installed in Austria (I live there) are capable of triangualting a certain cellphone if the right software is set upon this hardware layer. I don't know if this is true for the US but I can imagine.
To wrap it up I just wanted to say that I'm sure that GPS functionality could be in all of our todays phones but I don't think it ist there.
I used to work for Nextel ...
by cyndymcc - 2/20/07 11:13 AM In reply to: there is a theory by jonah jones
...all phones sold after 2003 are GPS-capable. As we know from last year's whole cellphones-with-Bluetooth hubbub, 'enabled' is not the same thing as 'activated'.
so you pay for GPS hardware even if u dont want it?
by robstak - 2/20/07 12:40 PM In reply to: I used to work for Nextel ... by cyndymccAlso, I have a Verizon xv7600, that im pretty sure DOESNT have gps. ive found no way to activate it.
Fighting city hall?
by R. Proffitt - 2/20/07 12:42 PM
In reply to: so you pay for GPS hardware even if u dont want it? by robstak
If I recall, such location technology may be mandated by the country you are in. Go figure.
I didn't mean to imply ALL phones shipped with GPS...
by cyndymcc - 2/20/07 3:35 PM In reply to: so you pay for GPS hardware even if u dont want it? by robstak...just all phones sold by Nextel. I can't comment on what's up with Verizon.
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