While Verizon and Palm continue to investigate why third-party applications cannot utilize GPS, hackers have taken their solution beyond the beta.
We previously reported on the Verizon GPS Fix application that has been released to the Palm Beta Catalog. The application uses VZ Navigator’s signed GPS files to wake up, and ping the GPS chip inside the Palm Pre Plus, as well as the Pixi Plus on Verizon. This unlocks GPS tracking for third-party applications, including Google Maps. It also provides non-Verizon webOS devices with more up-to-date GPS tracking.
While the application remains in the Palm Beta App Catalog, the application has hit the landmark 1.0.0, leaving customers asking why Palm has yet to acknowledge the issue, both on Verizon devices, and with the lack of GPS updates in general.
Palm nor Verizon has yet to formally acknowledge the issue, and because of that, many doubt that webOS 1.4.5 will fix this issue. While Verizon previously neutered GPS functionality to only Verizon applications (such as VZ Navigator and Family Locator), Verizon announced prior to the Pre Plus’s launch that phones would no longer have this limitation. It is unclear why Palm took the effort to digitally sign and prevent GPS from functioning on applications other than VZ Navigator.
Clearly the GPS Fix “graduating” to the non-beta App Catalog could spark a PR blunder for the new division of HP. PhoneNews.com will continue to follow up on the GPS issues on all webOS devices.
Great.
Meanwhile a year ago I had the same problem with Google Maps on my BB Tour on Sprint. There were active discussion on multiple forums that I e-mailed to Phonenews that confirmed the problem (with Sprint and Google Remaining Silent on the Issue). I asked for a little media exposure to help bring the issue to light and got no response.
Thanks for picking and choosing your GPS not-working-in-external apps, Phonenews.com
[…] 1.0, Verizon & Palm Continue Looking Into It Written by Christopher Price on August 5, 2010 Hackers take Palm GPS Fix to 1.0, Verizon & Palm Continue Looking Into It | PhoneNews.com While Verizon and Palm continue to investigate why third-party applications cannot utilize GPS, […]
Ryan, our understanding was that Sprint had acknowledged and fixed that issue as part of an OS 5 update. We didn’t cover it in large part because Sprint and RIM owned up to the issue, and demonstrated a commitment to fixing it. That has not happened here, to our knowledge.
We are not HACKERS… We are Homebrewers.. Hacking implies that we are doing things we are not allowed to do.. Palm fully supports the Homebrew community
Joseph, any long time reader of PhoneNews.com can tell that we cast no negative light on the term hacking.
As I’ve commented over on other sites where this has caused some consternation, the issue here is that the GPS Fix requires a patch for VZ Navigator, which Palm considers extending beyond what is homebrew. You must install the modification in Preware, which is a complex process for the average user looking to make their GPS work properly.
It’s homebrew, and it’s a hack. And it’s all great, I’m not sure why people are being pedantic over it.
[…] for which Palm owners on Verizon have been suffering from long-term. The GPS issues we’ve reported on in-depth previously persist, and Verizon media representatives have informed PhoneNews.com that they have absolutely no […]