Faulty compass

[fergusstrachan]

Does anyone else get the following:

1. GMaps not recognising the compass and not turning its compass as you turn round;

2. Compass app goes mental when you test by spinning round (mine spins the wrong way then back randomly)

?

Looks like my Note3 is proper fkd. At the moment it's just peeing me off.

 

[PeteFinn]

Does anyone else get the following:

1. GMaps not recognising the compass and not turning its compass as you turn round;

2. Compass app goes mental when you test by spinning round (mine spins the wrong way then back randomly)

?

Looks like my Note3 is proper fkd. At the moment it's just peeing me off.

Sounds like the Note 3 is suffering from the same compass issue as the S4. The compass just needs to be calibrated. Download GPS Status & Toolbox (excellent app!) from Google Play Store and go to Tools/Compass calibration. That should fix it. Calibrate the compass outdoors away from metal structures for best accuracy. Factory reset resets also the compass calibration data, but luckily the calibration takes only about 10 seconds or so. Hope this helps!

 

[fergusstrachan]

Sounds like the Note 3 is suffering from the same compass issue as the S4. The compass just needs to be calibrated. Download GPS Status & Toolbox (excellent app!) from Google Play Store and go to Tools/Compass calibration. That should fix it. Calibrate the compass outdoors away from metal structures for best accuracy. Factory reset resets also the compass calibration data, but luckily the calibration takes only about 10 seconds or so. Hope this helps!

Cheers Pete.
I did try that but it's still flying all over the place.
Sending it back as faulty. There's too much I dislike about this phone to make it worth £620.

 

[nicholaschum]

I tried with mine and a few demo units from the stores.

After a thorough test, they all essentially have this problem. My one, when you go to *#0*# it would just either not spin or spin sporadically, same with the demo units.

I guess it's a software problem, 4.3 problem essentially, my AOSP'd Note 2 also has this problem

 

[fergusstrachan]

I tried with mine and a few demo units from the stores.

After a thorough test, they all essentially have this problem. My one, when you go to *#0*# it would just either not spin or spin sporadically, same with the demo units.

I guess it's a software problem, 4.3 problem essentially, my AOSP'd Note 2 also has this problem

Wow, so perhaps all of them come with a feature that just doesn't work? Weird.

 

[nicholaschum]

Wow, so perhaps all of them come with a feature that just doesn't work? Weird.

Well, probably just the batch that first came out. Do you have this problem?

 

[fergusstrachan]

Well, probably just the batch that first came out. Do you have this problem?

I did, but sent it back.

 

[nicholaschum]

I did, but sent it back.

Does your replacement have the same issue?

 

[fergusstrachan]

Does your replacement have the same issue?

Ah, I see what you're getting at.
No, I didn't get a replacement. Sammy's seem to be all about the gimmick now, and I'm waiting for the N5 or a 32GB G2 to hit these shores.

Besides, £620 for a phone that does the pen-hover thing that my 2003 Windows tablet PC did? Nah.

 

[nicholaschum]

Ah, I see what you're getting at.
No, I didn't get a replacement. Sammy's seem to be all about the gimmick now, and I'm waiting for the N5 or a 32GB G2 to hit these shores.

Besides, £620 for a phone that does the pen-hover thing that my 2003 Windows tablet PC did? Nah.

Oh right okay, so you yourself had the same problem, but probably some external reason not mainly because of this, you sent it back and issued a refund?

I have a feeling that when I leave my house, there is a lot of magnetic interference because my compass always works in my house :/

 

[fergusstrachan]

Oh right okay, so you yourself had the same problem, but probably some external reason not mainly because of this, you sent it back and issued a refund?

I have a feeling that when I leave my house, there is a lot of magnetic interference because my compass always works in my house :/

?

I had the problem, per my original post, so I sent it back as faulty. There are other reasons I was happy to send it back though, as I wrote above.

 

[nicholaschum]

?

I had the problem, per my original post, so I sent it back as faulty. There are other reasons I was happy to send it back though, as I wrote above.

Yeah, I noticed I was speaking to the OP like a min ago, I thought the OP got a replacement and never responded back, but alright! I hope a software update could fix this :/

 

[fergusstrachan]

Yeah, I noticed I was speaking to the OP like a min ago, I thought the OP got a replacement and never responded back, but alright! I hope a software update could fix this :/

Heh. I hope they sort it out for you.

 

[nicholaschum]

I'll be sending this device back and getting a replacement, since Rogers has a 15 days return policy if under 30 mins talk time, I'm gonna exchange for a brand new one and see whether that helps

Sent from my fingers to your face using my Samsung Galaxy Note 3!

 

[nicholaschum]

Got a brand new one! If it still doesn't work, well then screw it, I guess a software update would fix it.

 

[Kaderoid]

Got a brand new one! If it still doesn't work, well then screw it, I guess a software update would fix it.

so you have found a solution for your compass problem?

 

[sophocles65]

Following up...

Anyone have any luck getting the compass fixed? Just got my Note 3 (T Mobile US) and I am having the same problem. Makes orienteering and geocaching all but impossible...

 

[nicholaschum]

Anyone have any luck getting the compass fixed? Just got my Note 3 (T Mobile US) and I am having the same problem. Makes orienteering and geocaching all but impossible...

My new device still has this bug, but calibrates faster than my first one. It's a widely known bug, maybe Samsung needs to fix it.

 

[knightnz]

FWIW mine has the same problem. I did manage to get it work work correctly for a little while by using a "metal detector" app which vibrated when it detected something. It suddenly started behaving correctly for a short while.

Calibrating it with the GPS Tools app also fixes it for a little while.

 

[noteworthy]

Having the same issue with my Note 3 as well.The GPS Status app using the compass calibration fixes the problem but once you restart the phone the compass no longer works again and you need to calibrate once more.

It seems like a software bug issue rather than a faulty compass.It's annoying but at least there is a solution.