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A month ago I moved to a new house which sits roughly one mile away from my old house. Unfortunately, my iPhone location still shows my old home address which affects every single app that requires location service.

I found some discussions on Apple's Forums and it seems that Apple uses a database that collects address for WiFi routers but no manual correction is allowed. My new house has a big French window that brings in perfect GPS signal and if I turn off WiFi the location is pretty precise.

It is ridiculous that Apple insists on using a vague location of WiFi networks when GPS is more precise. What is even more ridiculous is that Apple assumes personal WiFi routers can never move locations. My iPhone does not even give a single prompt when the discrepancy existed for an entire month. Anything I can do besides ditching this stupid iPhone?

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  • Did you take your network gear with you in the move? That's usually what determines the location, until the next time the locations are rescanned. The phone isn't at fault.
    – Tetsujin
    Dec 26, 2022 at 22:05
  • Yes. So that's what I think is ridiculous. People at apple assumes that personal WiFi routers cannot move location, and that when discrepancy happen their assumption shall prevail against the truth (GPS). And I'm not sure when is "the next time". It already been a month. Maybe several years?
    – J_B
    Dec 27, 2022 at 3:26
  • This isn't Apple's fault either. This is just how worldwide geolocation works these days. There's nothing you can do but wait it out.
    – Tetsujin
    Dec 27, 2022 at 8:27
  • I'm not getting the same problem on my Android phone. Unfortunately I cannot agree that the way how worldwide geolocation works is to use WiFi positioning rather than GPS and that when the two disagree WiFi shall prevail.
    – J_B
    Dec 29, 2022 at 3:25

1 Answer 1

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Have you changed your own home address on your Contact information in the iPhone?

Location finding on phones is assisted-GPS (a combination of WiFi positioning, GPS, and good-old mapping), and while it can make assumptions based on databases of coordinates vs SSIDs, those databases are not unique, and not run by Apple.

Giving your phone the hint that you've moved would seem to be the first logical step. Eventually it will update.

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  • Thanks for your input. My contact info address is neither of the two. It's an address I lived in six years ago. I've updated it but for now it does not help. IMO the logic should be that GPS shall be the primary source, and that WiFi should only take over when in large indoor venues where GPS signal is weak, which is not my case. The database only serve as a secondary source to assist positioning. It's a terrible idea that when that database doesn't agree with GPS data, iphone simply choose to ditch its GPS. And apple does not give us a chance to correct their self-righteous guessing.
    – J_B
    Dec 27, 2022 at 3:43
  • I think you're seriously overestimating the ubiquity of GPS. You will only get a good GPS fix if you stand outdoors with plenty of open space around you. GPS can't penetrate a car roof, you'll never see it indoors. That's why it's 3rd down the list of positioning protocols, after Wi-Fi & phone mast.
    – Tetsujin
    Dec 28, 2022 at 10:01
  • Unfortunately I cannot agree with your point. When I turn off WiFi the blue dot immediately moved to my new address. It could be from Cellular base station or GPS, but clearly it's not WiFI. I don't think when I'm driving and navigating on my phone it uses WiFi rather than GPS to give me navigation.
    – J_B
    Dec 29, 2022 at 3:34
  • You are talking about the "availability" of GPS while actually the question is the "reliability" under the premise of "availability", for both of them.
    – J_B
    Dec 29, 2022 at 3:40
  • When you're out & about it's using phone masts for rough triangulation, wifi for better accuracy - it doesn't have to be able to login to any wifi, it just has to be able to 'see' it. Last of all is GPS, usually when you're further from civilisation… & when it can clearly see the sky. I used to have a dedicated GPS with additional rooftop arial & it would get hopelessly lost in built-up areas. GPS has to see a lot of sky to function. If you switch off wifi & you're indoors, it will use other wifi nearby plus phone mast triangulation. It cannot see GPS indoors.
    – Tetsujin
    Dec 29, 2022 at 13:16

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