FrontierSI releases new study demonstrating how cloud-based technology can significantly improve smartphone navigation accuracy

Melbourne, 4 June 2026

FrontierSI has released a new white paper showing how cloud-based positioning technology can significantly improve the accuracy of everyday smartphone navigation, helping mobile devices determine location far more precisely than is currently possible.

The study, Mobile Phone Positioning Performance – Evaluation of the Tupaia Cloud-Based Differential Positioning Service, evaluates how advanced cloud-delivered GNSS correction services perform on standard Android smartphones in real-world driving conditions.

While most smartphones today can typically locate a user within several metres, that level of accuracy is becoming increasingly limiting for emerging technologies such as intelligent transport systems, advanced driver assistance features, high-precision mapping and future mobility applications.

The research tested four smartphones across a suburban driving route in Melbourne featuring traffic intersections, tall buildings, railway bridges and open-sky environments. Using the Tupaia cloud-based positioning service, the study found that newer dual-frequency smartphones were able to consistently achieve sub-metre horizontal positioning performance under most conditions.

Eldar Rubinov, PNT Technical Lead at FrontierSI commented,

“Smartphones are already the world’s most widely used positioning devices, but their accuracy has traditionally been limited. This study shows that cloud-based differential positioning can materially improve smartphone accuracy. It also demonstrates how mobile devices are getting much closer to the level of precision needed for future transport and location-based applications.”

Unlike conventional smartphone navigation, which relies solely on the phone’s built-in receiver, the Tupaia service uses cloud-based corrections to deliver far more accurate positioning. Importantly, the findings also showed clear differences between handset capabilities, with newer dual-frequency devices substantially outperforming older or single-frequency phones in both accuracy and reliability.

Graeme Kernich, CEO of FrontierSI, said:

“Positioning is becoming critical digital infrastructure. As industries increasingly rely on precise location data, understanding how these technologies perform in real-world environments is essential for future transport, infrastructure and mobility systems.”

The white paper is the second release from FrontierSI’s PNT Labs, an independent testing and evaluation capability designed to assess the performance and resilience of positioning, navigation and timing technologies under both normal and disrupted conditions.

To download a copy, click HERE.

For more information, visit www.frontiersi.com.au or contact Eldar Rubinov: erubinov@frontiersi.com.au.