GPS allows tracking user’s location and other related services that makes it a must-have. But what if you having Tecno GPS Problem? What if the GPS on your phone isn’t showing the right location or if it is slightly skewed or totally false? What if the GPS is not working at all or you can’t get the direction on the GPS to calibrate properly? As said, there are tons of problems when it comes to GPS which is a combination of system software, cache, drivers, and hardware components that make it work and there are a lot of factors that can render it useless or work incorrectly. This is why we have to suggest a few ways you can solve the Tecno GPS problem on your device right now.

Restart the device

The quickest way to get something to work is to restart the phone to fix the error at the earliest. You can tap on the power button, select ‘power off’ button and there it goes. Wait for few seconds before rebooting the device. This is because restarting the device frees up all the memory, storage, and other resources whilst killing all apps and processes at once. This gives the system a chance to fix any temporary glitch that might have occurred.

Turn on/off GPS

Can’t get the GPS enabled or working? Simply toggle the GPS or Location icon on the notification tray and it must turn on in no time. This is because you are actually jump-starting this feature that might have observed some kind of error whilst turning on which set off a ricochet of errors causing the GPS to not start or if it starts, it won’t work. This is why you need to toggle the GPS icon several times to turn it on.

Enable airplane mode

Doing so will restrict phone’s ability to intercept cellular network temporarily. Although there is no clear explanation as to how it works toggling airplane mode might jump-start the GPS feature on your device similar to a kick start on a bike instead of self-start. Toggle several times and check if the feature works or not or move to other methods.

Check if the power saving mode is causing trouble

When enabled, power saving mode restricts various features and services on a smartphone thus controlling the energy being consumed. This is exceptionally important since we tend to have greater usage but limited battery life. But here, since we are trying to fix the GPS problem on your Tecno phone, the power mode could have impacted the feature suppressing it to track your location or even turn on at the first place. In case the power mode is enabled, you need to turn it off and check whether it makes any difference or not.

Enable high-accuracy mode

Power saving mode restricts phone’s ability to perform optimally to save power but could restrict its GPS services as you have learned about it earlier. Now, you need to know that there is a high-accuracy mode on your phone available within ‘Settings » Location » Mode » Turn on high-accuracy mode’. What this feature does is enables a high-accuracy mode which although consumes a higher battery life but provide precise location-based results to the users. Since this feature is tangible and can be enabled or disabled easily, you can expect high-accuracy results without losing much battery.

Are there any interferences?

A lot of time, it happens that the GPS when enabled isn’t able to accurately detect your location or it is slightly or greatly offsite. This could happen if there are too many interferences between the sender and the receiver i.e. the cell towers/satellites and the phone. Note that this includes the phone case or cover that might be blocking the GPS receiver to some extent. If this is the case, try using GPS with the case or cover off. Also, walk towards the window where there are fewer interferences for better reception and hopefully, you’ll get improved results right away.

Check if the compass is calibrated accurately or not

If the location that you are able to track on your phone isn’t precise or if it is slightly inaccurate or off-centered, it is quite possible that the compass embedded on your device has gone haywire and requires calibration. Although most smartphones have ‘8’ type calibration feature, you can always install apps like GPS Essentials or GPS Status and Tools to calibrate the compass accurately and obtain precise location.

Clear GPS cache files

Cache files save essential data that enables the phone to startup apps faster and reduce overheads. But since cache files are easily corruptible, it is recommended to clear it as soon as possible. Since clearing cache files have no impact on an app’ performance, it is simply easy to delete it. As we are talking about a possible GPS problem, you need to swipe off GPS cache files i.e. for both Google Maps cache and A-GPS cache that you’ll find within ‘Settings → Apps → All → Google Maps / A-GPS (these are two apps) → Clear Cache.

Update the Google Maps app

Google Maps is the most used map tool on Android smartphones and thus, we took an example of it although this applies for all other map tools. You need to keep these apps updated to ensure that you get latest features that are rolled out with each update while you also receive bug fixes, optimizations, etc. The GPS problem that we are talking about could be a byproduct of an outdated Google Maps app which makes it imperative to stick to updating apps as and when available.

Verify whether the GPS receiver is working properly

The GPS receiver mounted on a smartphone intercepts signals from both cell towers and satellites to project its location on Earth. Although this process is seamless since satellites and cell towers are active 24/7, it is possible that the receiver on your device is blocked or if it is damaged due to drops or water damaged, etc. I would recommend you to go through the next method to verify the issue and act accordingly.

Use GPS Status & Toolbox for scrutiny

This particular app works by determining if the Tecno GPS problem that you are facing is due to a hardware issue or is it due to software issue where the latter is easily solvable. You need to install the app on your device and tap on ‘Satellites’ from the menu. Here, you’ll see satellites on the screen which denotes that the hardware components are pretty much perfectly working which translates into the fact that the software is the fault.

On the contrary, if you cannot see satellites or just fewer satellites than required, the hardware is the problem and requires repair or replacement. Based on your observation, you can move towards restoring the phone to put an end to a software-borne issue or visit a nearby service center or get an external receiver to fix a hardware issue.

Install an external GPS receiver

An external GPS receiver works by connecting itself to the host device via Bluetooth providing ease of intercepting signals from satellites and project user’s location on a map. You can get a second opinion from a technician before buying it though.

Restore the phone

Putting the phone in a factory reset mode will remove all the data saved on your phone permanently without any chances to restore the lost data*. Now, you need to take a backup before proceeding with the procedure mentioned below to steer clear of any unwanted data loss.

  • Firstly, you need to turn off your Tecno smartphone.
  • The second step is to press the power button and volume up buttons together and hold it for some time until an Android logo isn’t displayed on the screen.
  • Now, release the keys and follow the navigational instructions mentioned on the top of the screen.
  • You need to tap on the menu item called ‘Clear data/factory reset’ from amidst the menu and finally, confirm the same by hitting on ‘Yes — delete all user data’.
  • This will put the phone in restore mode and then, you can reboot the phone to set it up possibly without any signs of any GPS problem.

Turn towards a service center

Can’t get the GPS on your phone in working state? Turn for help from a technician and possibly visit an authorized service center instead of third-party shops to get the resolution it may cost you the warranty of the product which could drive down resell value as well.