Xiaomi smartphones today are equipped with powerful navigation modules, but users often face a situation where the cursor on the map “floats” or the location is determined with a large margin of error. This can occur for a variety of reasons: from a banal failure of software settings to physical interference in the room. Geolocation on Android devices works on the basis of a complex of data obtained from satellites, cell towers and Wi-Fi routers.
If your navigator is showing you the wrong direction or the taxi app can't find the landing point, you can't ignore the problem. In most cases, you can fix the situation yourself without using a service center, you just need to be alert and have access to the system settings of the MIUI or HyperOS operating system.
In this article, we will discuss all the effective methods to get GPS accuracy back to the right level. We will look at both standard system tools and specialized tools for calibrating sensors.
Basic location settings and operating modes
The first step to solving navigation problems is to check the basic parameters of the system. Often users inadvertently turn off the necessary data sources or choose a low-power mode that sacrifices accuracy for the sake of battery power. Android offers several options for determining coordinates, and for maximum accuracy you need to choose the right one.
Go to Settings → Location (or Additional settings → Privacy → Location in new versions of the shell). Here you need to make sure that the switch is active. Next, pay attention to the mode of operation. For full navigation in the car or when walking, it is critical to use the High Accuracy mode.
This mode forces the smartphone to use simultaneously GPS-If you select Charge Saving mode, you'll only rely on the network, which gives you a huge margin of error of several hundred meters. It’s also worth checking if the “Improving Accuracy” feature, which uses Wi-Fi scanning even when the wireless module is off, is enabled.
- 📍 Enable High Accuracy mode to use all available sensors.
- 📡 Activate Wi-Fi scanning in the additional location settings section.
- 🔋 Turn off the power saving mode if it blocks work GPS-module.
- 🔄 Restart the device after changing the settings to apply the settings.
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Before calibration, be sure to go out into the open space, as in the room the satellite signal is significantly weakened by walls and ceilings.
It's worth noting that some global firmware versions may have different menus than Chinese ones, so if you can't find the right item, search by settings by typing in "GPS" or "Location," which is the fastest way to get to the right submenu.
Calibration of sensors and use of engineering menu
If the software settings didn't help, physical or software calibration of the sensors may be required.The magnetic compass, which is responsible for the orientation of the direction arrow, often gets knocked down after a phone drops or a prolonged stay near magnetic field sources, such as speakers or magnets in car holders.
To start, try a standard calibration using Google Maps. Open the app, click on the blue dot of your location and select Calibrate. Follow the instructions on the screen, rotating the phone as eight, which helps the system re-detect magnetic north and correct the accelerator readings.
More advanced users of Xiaomi devices have access to the engineering menu to check the status of the antenna. Enter the code # # #6484## in the Phone app to enter CIT mode (Customer Inspection Test). Here you can find a GPS test that will show the number of satellites visible and the signal level in real time.
Secret code for checking GPS
It is important to understand the difference between a software failure and physical damage: If the signal level in an engineering test is permanently low or zero in a clear sky, the problem may lie in the departed antenna plume or damage to the module itself after a fall.
- 🧲 Calibrate with eight in Google Maps to reset a magnetic compass.
- 🛠 Use the engineering menu CIT for diagnosing satellite signal levels.
- 📱 Check if the cover covers the area. GPS-antennae.
Managing permissions and application background
MIUI is known for its aggressive energy saving policy, which often kills the background processes of navigators, which leads to the fact that when the phone screen is turned off, navigation can be interrupted and geo-position ceases to update, and to avoid this, you need to manually adjust the permissions for each application used.
Go to Settings → Applications → All apps and find your navigator (Yandex.Navigator, Google Maps, 2GIS). Go to the “Permissions” section and make sure that access to the location is set to “Always” or “Always Allow”.
Next, you need to prevent the system from limiting the application from running in the background. From the Charge Savings menu, select the option “No restrictions” – a critical step for Xiaomi, as standard settings can block GPS data from being received when the smartphone screen is out.
⚠️ Note: Setting “No Limits” will increase battery consumption when using the navigator, but will ensure stable routing without interruptions.
Also check if the app is enabled with Flight mode or data restriction if the navigator requires online traffic to route, and in some cases, resetting permissions helps: uninstall the app and reinstall it, carefully reading the requests for geodata on the first run.
☑️ Setting up rights for the navigator
Resetting AGPS cache data and auxiliary files
Navigation systems use A-GPS (Assisted GPS) data stored in the device’s cache, which contains information about satellite orbits and allows the smartphone to determine its location more quickly (a “cold start”), and over time, this data can become outdated or corrupted, leading to a long search for satellites.
To clean up this data, you can use specialized tools like GPS Status & Toolbox or GPS Test, which not only allow you to see technical information about satellites, but also reset the AGPS cache. Once reset, the phone will download fresh satellite almanacs from the network.
The procedure is done as follows: open the GPS app, find the status control menu (usually three dots or menus in the corner), and select Reset GPS data or Reset A-GPS. After that, you are advised to go out to the open area and wait a few minutes until the device reloads the current data.
| Parameter | Description | Impact on work |
|---|---|---|
| Cold start | First GPS launch after switching off or resetting | It takes 30 seconds to 2 minutes. |
| Warm start | Launch in the presence of current almanac data | It happens in 5-15 seconds. |
| A-GPS data | Supporting information on satellites | Accelerates the definition of coordinates |
| Cash ephemeris | Satellite position data | Increases the accuracy of positioning |
Cleaning this data regularly, for example, once a month or after long trips to other regions, helps keep the navigation module in good shape, especially if you notice that the phone has become longer to think before you start navigation.
Influence of protective covers and external factors
Don't underestimate the impact of physical accessories on signal reception. Many Xiaomi owners use metal bumpers or metal plate covers for magnetic holders in the car. Metal shields the signal, significantly reducing the sensitivity of the built-in antenna.
The antenna module in smartphones is usually located at the top or bottom of the case. If your case covers this area or is made of a thick layer of metal, the signal will be reflected or absorbed, in which case there is a sharp drop in the number of visible satellites and an increase in error.
In addition, the signal can be influenced by weather conditions (thunderclouds, dense clouds) and surrounding buildings, in canyons of tall buildings, the signal reflects off the walls, creating a multipath effect, which confuses the navigator, in such situations, the software setting is ineffective.
- 🚫 Remove a metal cover or bumper when using navigation.
- 🧲 Remove magnetic plates from the area of the antenna of the smartphone.
- 🏙 Consider the impact of high-rise buildings and dense construction on the signal.
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Physical obstacles, such as metal and thick glass, are the main enemies. GPS-signal, often affecting it more than the software settings.
Updating firmware and system components
Xiaomi regularly releases updates for its devices that contain not only new features, but also corrections for errors in the operation of drivers. GPS-If you have an older version of the software installed, the problem may be a known bug that has already been fixed.
Check for updates in Settings → About Phone → MIUI. It is also important to update Google’s system components, particularly Google Play Services and the Google Maps app itself. These components contain Wi-Fi databases of networks and cell towers that are used for (location over the network).
Sometimes after a major firmware update, a complete reset is required, as old configuration files may conflict with new algorithms, but before that, you should try simply restarting the device to Safe Mode to eliminate the influence of third-party applications.
⚠️ Warning: Before updating your firmware or resetting your settings, be sure to back up important data so you don’t lose contacts and photos.
In some cases, users install custom firmware or modify system files, which can lead to GPS malfunction. If you’ve experimented with root rights or system libraries replacement, returning to stock firmware may be the only solution.