It helps to understand how GPS works in order to optimize it. GPS stands for Global Positioning System and was developed by the United States Army. GPS today is considered an essential function in different devices. For this reason, we will teach you how to activate GPS on devices, whether Android or iOS, and you will see that it is as simple as correctly calibrating the compass on Android .

How to Activate GPS on Android and iOS Devices to Know My Current Location

Index(  )

1. How does GPS work on mobile?
2. How to activate GPS on Android?
3. How to save battery with GPS?
4. How to activate the GPS of your iOS device?
5. How to activate the GPS if my mobile was stolen?
   1. on android
   2. on iOS

How does GPS work on mobile?

In 1973, it was launched for civilian purposes in the eighties. Initially it was used with 24 satellites , but there are now 31 operational GPS satellites in orbit. Smartphones communicate with these satellites via a GPS antenna, which is part of the hardware in the vast majority of smartphones and tablets today.

The antenna is connected via a driver to the software. This means that there are three main sources, from which GPS problems can arise:

• The number of GPS satellites at the current location
• The quality of the GPS antenna on the smartphone.
• The implementation of the driver in the operating system.

The GPS sensor in your smartphone is essential for the use of navigation applications and services, such as Google Maps.

How to activate GPS on Android?

Activating or deactivating the GPS of your device is an extremely simple process , which on Android devices does not require much more effort. As for what we have to do to activate or deactivate both the WiFi and the mobile data of the terminal.

To take advantage of this feature of our Android devices, what we are going to do then is use geolocation through a location system that is incorporated into them, for which you have to follow these steps:

• From any Home screen, tap Apps.
• Tap Settings.
• Then privacy and security.
• Tap Location.
• If necessary, slide the Location slider to the right to ON, then tap OK.
• Tap Location method.
• Select the desired location method.
• High precision: Use GPS and mobile and Wi-Fi networks to locate us.
• Battery saving: Deactivate GPS and only locate through mobile antennas and Wi-Fi networks
• Device Only: Uses only GPS to locate.

Once you have done the above, the applications that you have installed on your terminal will be able to access the information provided by the location system of your smartphone, something essential to get the most out of them.

If what interests you is being able to get to a particular place, in that case you can also take advantage of GPS, although you must use one of the geolocation applications, such as the one called Google Maps that is installed by default.

All you have to do is add the information about the address you want to go to at the top of the app’s Finder, and when you’ve done that you’ll be able to view all this data in a very simple way.

On the other hand, and as a trick, we want to tell you that many manufacturers use customization layers that allow you to activate or deactivate the location of the device using GPS just by scrolling the screen from top to bottom.

There you will find an icon that refers to the location of the device, and simply by clicking on it you will get the system to send information about your location , or otherwise, to stop doing so.

How to save battery with GPS?

The maximum precision mode can be useful when you need almost total precision due to the use of applications, such as the GPS of your car and the like. In this way you can calibrate and improve the GPS location on your device , and make it more accurate.

Even so, to save battery it will be recommended that you go into Battery Saver mode when you are not using the mobile. This mode is the one that consumes the least. Although the accuracy is much lower, it will be more than enough for basic applications. Applications that only require an estimated location.

It is also possible to turn location off completely . To do this, we go from the Settings> Location window, we can use the switch that appears at the top to deactivate it completely. Android shows us a list of the applications that make use of the location functions and how much battery the connections they carry out suppose.

The optimal configuration to avoid losing connectivity and not having an excessive battery drain is to configure our Android as “Battery saving” and manually change it to “High precision” every time we need to make precise use of the GPS location.

When it comes to thinking about all the elements that are part of our smartphones on a day-to-day basis, there is almost no doubt that some of the most interesting have to do with the location of the devices. Of course, if so many features confuse you a bit, you can always ask Google Maps support for help .

And in this sense, although we could stop at several of them, we want to do it very specifically in the GPS. The system that together with the GNSS or Global Navigation Satellite System , allows us to locate almost any type of device. This is why enabling GPS on devices is controversial for some people.

The truth is that when we talk about this equipment, we have to say that mobile location systems are essential to know where we are, what shops or tourist sites are nearby, among others.

In fact, in some cases the GPS of your smartphone allows you to access your phone even if it has been stolen , so it is an element that you should not lose sight of, especially thinking about what, for it to work, it has to be active. Therefore it is necessary to know how to activate the GPS on your device.

How to activate the GPS of your iOS device?

In Apple iOS devices, as is the case with the iPhone, we can also carry out this procedure without too many difficulties, this time betting on a very particular step by step, the following:

• Go to the Settings menu of the device
• Look for the Privacy option and then the Location option
• Enable this Location option by sliding the switch to the right
• Within the same section you can decide which applications and websites will have GPS activated and access to this system. You can also indicate the specific moments in which you want the location to be sent as information
• On the other hand, if you want to search for a specific address using GPS you have to go to the Maps application
• At the top you can write any address you want and wait for the system instructions to get there

How to activate the GPS if my mobile was stolen?

As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, we also have the possibility of trying to find the mobile phone that has been stolen, through the GPS system, and that is why we are going to show you the steps you must follow according to your operating system.

It is interesting to know that we cannot locate the mobile if the GPS is deactivated. However, it must also be taken into account when it is turned off .

on android

• From the classic Google search engine, access the Gmail account associated with the stolen device
• At that moment, enter the Google App, located in the upper bar where the company image appears
• Login to Account
• Then go to Access & Security and look for the option to Find your phone
• At that moment, a list with different alternatives will open.
• You have to choose one between Ring your mobile, Lock your mobile, Find the location of your device, Erase the data of your device, etc.
• When you have chosen one or more you can carry them out
• You will also be shown a map of the site where the mobile device is located at that moment, or at least where it was located the last time the GPS was activated by a user. If the GPS is not active, the reliability of the data could decrease a little

on iOS

• Assuming that you had the Find My iPhone option activated, you have to enter iCloud
• On this platform you can choose if you want from Find my iPhone to play a sound or track the location of the device

Even unlike what happens in Android, iOS has been developed in such a way that if you have lost the device and whoever has it wants to return it, you can make a number appear on the screen so that they can communicate with that person.

Also, as in Android, you have the possibility to remotely erase the content of the device and leave it only stored in your cloud, so that if it has indeed been stolen, nobody can access your files.