What is AGPS?

Since we posted HTC’s new roadmap for 2007 yesterday, a number of eagle eyed readers notice ‘A-GPS’ being listed in the specification of some of the devices. We’ve had several people emailing us asking “What is A-GPS?” so here is a quick run down.

A-GPS or Assisted GPS is a technology that uses an assistance server to cut down the time needed to determine a location using GPS. It is useful in urban areas, when the user is located in “urban canyons”, under heavy tree cover, or even indoors. It is becoming more common and it’s commonly associated with Location Based Services.

A-GPS differs from regular GPS by adding another element to the equation, the Assistance Server. In regular GPS networks there are only GPS satellites and GPS receivers. In A-GPS networks, the receiver, being limited in processing power and normally under less than ideal locations for position fixing, communicates with the assistance server that has high processing power and access to a reference network. Since the A-GPS receiver and the Assistance Server share tasks, the process is quicker and more efficient than regular GPS, albeit dependent on cellular coverage.

A greater number of devices are being launched with A-GPS as it provides faster position fixing and better coverage in heavily built up areas. You’ll notice that several of the new HTC devices have A-GPS as does the Acer P630 that we reviewed recently.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, A-GPS, GPS, Sat Nav]