Location Provider
Network Survey offers multiple location provider options for location tagging survey data. Choosing the right provider balances accuracy, battery life, and use case requirements.
Available Providers
Section titled “Available Providers”FUSED (Default)
Section titled “FUSED (Default)”Description: Android’s FusedLocationProvider combining GPS + Network + Passive
- Accuracy: 20-100m typical
- Battery: Low
- Best for: General monitoring, battery-constrained surveys, indoor/outdoor mixed
Pros: Most battery efficient, works indoors, fast fix
Cons: Less accurate than GPS, variable accuracy
Description: Direct GPS/GLONASS/Galileo/BeiDou satellite positioning
- Accuracy: 5-20m typical
- Battery: High
- Best for: Accurate surveys, outdoor use
Pros: Most accurate, consistent
Cons: Higher battery drain, doesn’t work indoors, slow initial fix
NETWORK
Section titled “NETWORK”Description: Cell tower + Wi-Fi positioning only
- Accuracy: 50-200m typical
- Battery: Very Low
- Best for: Indoor surveys, quick location
Pros: Works indoors, very low battery, fast fix
Cons: Can be the least accurate, database dependent
Description: All providers simultaneously, logs from each
- Accuracy: Best
- Battery: Highest
- Best for: Comparing providers, research, maximum data, best location fix
Pros: Maximum data, redundancy
Cons: highest battery drain
Changing Provider
Section titled “Changing Provider”Settings → Location Provider
Select from dropdown - applies immediately to next location fix.
Use Case Recommendations
Section titled “Use Case Recommendations”- Outdoor Drive Test: GNSS or ALL (vehicle power available)
- Indoor Site Survey: FUSED or NETWORK (GPS doesn’t work indoors)
- Long-Term Monitoring: FUSED (battery efficiency)
- Research/Validation: ALL (compare all sources)
Related
Section titled “Related”- GNSS / GPS - Understanding GNSS data
- App Settings - Other configuration
- Battery Optimization - Battery life