Gps On Vaio VGN Z ?

Is there or is there not a gps module on the vaio z?

It appears in the gadget deppartment under the smartwi gadget but you cant seem to turn it on anyway.

Maybe its possible that it only works when you have WWAN turned on?

Let me know if anyone has any news on this.

 

Yes, it's part of the Sprint WWAN card (GPS built-in). You'll need to activate the service if you want to be able to use it.

 

can we get rid of sprintfrom smart wii utility

 

Is there any hack to activate the GPS only? I live in Europe so I cannot activate the Sprint..

Do you think the GPS would remain functional if I activate the sprint(trial) when I'm in the US next time and then use the laptop where spint does not have coverage when back in Europe?

 

AFAIK, the GPS isn't really GPS in that it doesn't use satellites... it uses a dodgy system of triangulating between phone cell transmitters. Hence the reliance on activating the Sprint service.

I haven't tried it, but I'd guess this form of GPS isn't as accurate as most cheap Bluetooth 'true' GPS receivers, so I would just get one of those if you need GPS and avoid any subscription (unless you want Sprint WWAN service anyway, of course)...

 

I think it is a real GPS, it can use phone cell towers but it has fuly functional GPS built in and if mange to make it run will be able to use it with Microsoft Streets and Trips, AutoRoute, Garmin MobilePC

 

Do you have any evidence for this? It seems strange that they would include fully fledged GPS - i.e. using actual GPS satellites and not just cell triangulation - when most similar bundles just use the cell triangulation method...

 

The Expedite E725 offers fast, wireless broadband speeds to customers and helps them achieve the LAN-like mobility for which the industry has strived. It helps increase productivity to the max while maintaining contact with clients, colleagues and family. The Expedite E725 PCI Express Mini Card Embedded Module provides data speeds up to 3.1 Mbps. It helps increase productivity to the max while maintaining contact with clients, colleagues and family. High efficiency compact broadband design provides consistent throughput performance.


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GPS capability allows you to retrieve location data from GPS satellites and utilize navagation and location-based applications
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how do u know its the expedite 725? i don't have the Z so i cant check the model. and u said that it has a download speed od 3.1 mpbs? i though the z could do 7.2mps WWAN. and IF it does have GPS, i think sony would have mentioned it on their site....dus anyone hav more info?

thanks.

 

only the euro models do 7.2mbps, US is slower

 

so then technically its possible to use it as a gps only rite? any idea how sum1 mite b able to do that? maybe unlocking it or sumthing?

 

this is how i know is expedite 725

 

I'd to know what app can I use with GPS builded in Z591U? I can turn it on ,it fix my location quickly but I had no idea what it use for ,I have no maps in my laptop.Can some reccomend something I can use with it?
Thanks

 

you can use streets&trips, Garmin Mobile PC, if you have activated sprint and you have data you can get google earth plus( 20usd/year).
go get streets and trips free trial and see how it works

how did you activate the gps?

 

hi.
Nothing speacial.You have to activate sprint network first.After that you can activate GPS.This GPS can not work without sprint service.

 

what if i activate sprint for a week and then deaktivate it. do you think I will be able to use the gps ?

 

The answer is NO

 

I've heard this many other places too. That's what led me to believe that the GPS is using cell triangulation and not satellites (otherwise, why would it be locked in to the Sprint service?).

 

read this forum :
ww.evdoforums.com/thread3551.html

 

OK, so I've read that thread and the summary seems to be that most EVDO cards which 'support GPS', use cell triangulation. Some cards may also have 'MS-based GPS', using satellites, but they must be using cells some of the time or you wouldn't be able to use them in basements (with no line of sight to the satellites as required by true satellite-based GPS).

Whether you can unlock the MS-based GPS to work without Sprint's say so is debatable - it's not obvious from that thread whether the people who got it to work already had working EVDO connectivity or not.

 

Sorry for the double post, but I just want to close this thread by confirming that the GPS does indeed work without having to pay for the 3G dataplan, and the GPS is indeed satellite based, it's not based on cell triangulation:

 

anyway to get the GPS working on Z31wn (Europe model)? The z31wn has a gobi qualcomm's chipset, the same as Z6xx, Z7xx I think.

 

If they have the same Gobi chip, then it should work the same way. You just need to update the SmartWi to see the GPS option.

 

We don't use smartwi in Europe, but Vaio Smart Network. Here is results by using smartwi, no GPS available:


When I active the wifi, it turns off WWAN:

 

I think I found the problem. All I need now is a GPS software to test it

 

Can you share how you solved the problem? I have a Z11WN (european model), and at Vaio Smart Network I don't see any GPS option.

 

It really works, I just tested it with Garmin Mobile PC.
If you want to have GPS, you need to use SmartWi. But I don't think Z11WN has GPS because it has an Option 3G Card, not a Gobi Qualcomm one.

 

I have WWAN, that I use with Globe Trotter Connect. Is not the same eh? Where can I download SmartWi?

 

No it's not the same. You use Globe Trotter Connect because you have an Option card (I used to use it with my old SZ71WN). The newer Sony's notebooks come with a Gobi Qualcomm which you use 3G Connection Manager for the WWAN. The reason that we can use GPS is because the Gobi Qualcomm card has a integrated GPS unit. I don't think it's the same as the Option one.
If you want to try SmartWi, you can download it here:
http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=VGNZ790&upd_id=4561&os_id=36
You need the Universal extrator to pass the model detection.

 

SmartWi comes pre-installed on the Z. It's Sony's own utility. Beware -- it comes with some limitations, including (but not limited to):
- Doesn't work with multiple simultaneous connections to the same network.
- Doesn't support IPv6 (guess how my home network is set up?)
- Doesn't support correct DPI settings (uses a mix of bitmapped graphics and scalable text, in violation of Microsoft's GUI guidelines).
- May periodically hang up one connection when another is established (like walking past the machine with a paired bluetooth phone).

If it wasn't for the lack of quality of the SmartWi program, I would have been a Sprint subscriber. As it is, I have uninstalled SmartWi, and use my much slower cell phone data connection when needed. Not because of the costs, but because SmartWi is, quite frankly, crud.
If anyone finds an alternative that lets me use the EVDO connection on my 590, I would be very happy.

 

You can use a European SmartWi counterpart called Vaio Smart Network with Gobi Connection Manager. The limitation is a lack of GPS.

 

But I think SmartWI only uses a switch to turn GPS on or off like changing a registry entry or something else. Does someone knows more?

 

I think it uses the driver to change the parameter of the device, but we can't figure it out

 

Does anybody know if GPS works in the Z46 sold over here at Hong Kong? Sony didn't state it has built-in GPS, so not too sure whether it works or not.

 

I don't think Z46 has WWAN module, so you can't have GPS

 

Hey NHT,
I have the same problem you had with SmartWi on my Z41.
What did you do to make it work ?

 

Hi NHT, I have a vaio vgn-p530h with the gobi chipset with wwan and gps, but i can turn on the gps, the wwan, wifi and bluetooth works just fine. But in the smartwi window in the section of gps it doesnt give me the option for turning on the GPS.

I read in other post of you, that i need to change one file: localization/Resources.fr-CA.xml because in the smartwi window it apears like "res_wanVerizonName_man" and not "Verizon wireless mobile broadband",y"res_gpsGPS_man" in place of "GPS".

So what should i do????

Thanks

 

drhdez do you havethe same window as in attachements? What OS?

i got the same in vista, but in 7 it's small and smartwi and vaio smart network is almost the same. and there's no dedicated GPS control in both.

 

drhdez, which version (language) do you have in your Windows?

This is my newest SmartWi

 

i got all the same except GPS.
can't you give a link to this version?

 

I got it on the Z890's drivers' page

 

I've downloaded from there, but now i installed qualcomm drivers, gobi imagess, and all the stuff marked as required from support page.
and now i got gps switch there!
thank you!

 

anyone can answer me that my z550 dose not support "real" GPS thank you

 

I have the windows vista home basic it is in english the OS but the smartwi its in spanish. i All ready erase an reinstall the smartwi (like sony support recomended).

And the image you show me its diferent of mine because its mine its green.

So what do you recomend me to do?

 

Because it's the older version. Download the lastest version on Z890's drivers' page

 

I can't find it, can you give me the url?

 

Your image is green because it comes that way under Vista.
Your image is not green because you have Win 7. That is the case with the Z-890 (which has Win7 factory install) and with my Z-790 since I upgrade to Win 7.
SmartWi is one condition to operate the GPS.
1st you turn on the VZAccess Manager, then slide on the Location services ( call GPS under Vista). By the way that action will turn off your wireless network. Do not forget to turn it on once you are done with GOS.
2nd yo need a software. My Z-790 came with a MS program called "Streets and Tips 2009".
Et voila, mon ami

 

Here you go http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=VGNZ890&upd_id=4901&os_id=49

 

Thanks a lot!!!! Its working. I have another issue withc my vaio p do you know if the 3g gobi qualcom its locked for use only with verizon? becuse ii want to use with my local plan (iuscacell).

 

I have no idea. The gobi qualcomm in my Z Europe isn't locked. You can try with another sim card to see.