Samsung Galaxy S20 Series Facing GPS Issues, Users Report

Samsung Galaxy S20 smartphones that were launched in February seem to have landed in trouble. Several users on social media have recently pointed out that their Samsung Galaxy S20 smartphones are facing GPS-related issues especially while using Google Maps. Samsung has not officially addressed the problem however, some have claimed that the retail showrooms are replacing the units after they reported the issue. The problem also seems to be present in the Galaxy S20 units which used the Snapdragon-powered SoC instead of Samsung's own Exynos SoC. Previously some users also pointed out an issue with the camera of the new smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy S20-series users living in America and Canada have pointed out on social media that while using apps such as Google Maps and Waze, the GPS in the phone was unable to freeze the detected location. A user on Twitter pointed out that despite restarting the phone, the apparent bug did not get fixed. Similarly, other users on Samsung Forums raised the same issues while using Google Maps. A user further claimed that despite turning off and then turning on the GPS, the problem still lingered. "When using Google Maps or Waze I am getting a searching for GPS message on the screen. I have tried turning location off and back on and rebooting the phone. Not sure what else I can do to fix this issue," the user said.

After more users addressed the alleged problem on the forum, some further claimed that their Samsung Galaxy S20 units were replaced. At the moment it is unclear whether this is a software bug that is causing the problem or a hardware issue with the handset.

Since most of the users who reported the issue are living countries like the US and Canada, we are assuming the alleged bug is present in the Snapdragon-powered units. To recall, Samsung released the Galaxy S20 lineup, which includes the Galaxy S20, the Galaxy S20+ and Galaxy S20 Ultra with either Samsung Exynos 990 SoC or Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC. The Samsung Galaxy S20 phones that are sold in India use an Exynos-powered processor, unlike the US units which use the Snapdragon processors. This is possibly why we have not come across users complaining about GPS-related issues in the country.

Earlier this week, Samsung also tried fixing an auto-focus camera issue that was pointed out by several users. However, it is not fully resolved yet and an update from Samsung is expected in the coming weeks.

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