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Location Status Icon Always Showing
- Thread starter ghsDUDE
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If I do that, I won't be able to see when anything is requesting my location...right?
That simply displays the icon or not, it doesn't actually affect if something is being used or not (and would just hide the usage essentially).
Agreed, but system services are constantly using location services normally. Having that enabled defeats the purpose of the status bar icon providing useful meaning.
That only affects status bar icon display of native system location services, but does not affect the status bar icon display for other apps using location services.
Not necessarily, as it largely depends on the services and which ones you have enabled (as many of them aren't even needed for anything on the end-user side and many have a lot of them disabled and the few they do use should mostly only be used occasionally and often when expected associated with something).
Disagree. Some of those are core to the use of the phone and are constantly using location services normally. Having the status bar icon display for those is less useful and if trying to determine rogue third party apps, makes that difficult.
I've had them all enabled for some time and don't recall the arrow being there most of the time, let alone all the time. Generally though I have most of them disabled as many aren't of use to me as the end user (like WiFi or Cellular Network or Traffic reporting that is basically there to send information to Apple and doesn't really provide me with anything useful or needed).
In this particular case it seems that the OP didn't change any settings and yet now sees a location services arrow that wasn't there before the recent update with the same settings.
You've responded to yourself by saying you've disabled most of them. 
Point is having the icon displayed for native system services makes that icon less useful for determining if third party apps are causing problems. Of course, if you don't trust native system services, that's a whole other matter.
Point is having the icon displayed for native system services makes that icon less useful for determining if third party apps are causing problems. Of course, if you don't trust native system services, that's a whole other matter. It can make it like that, depending on which services you have enabled. You can also visit the location services section of the Settings app and see which apps or services are using or were recently using the service.You've responded to yourself by saying you've disabled most of them.
But, even that aside, again, in the context of what the OP is describing and asking, where something has changed, simply disabling the icon wouldn't really explain or help much.
It does help, but unfortunately you are just not understanding. System services will regularly keep the location status bar icon shown, especially in 9.3.x on newer iPhones. The OP is unnecessarily focused on it because it is always visible. But there is nothing to be concerned with, unless he suspects an issue. Is there a reduction in battery? Is he jailbroken and thinks there is a problem? Apple specifically includes that option to disable it for system services likely because it will show so often. It's similar to people who have battery showing in their status bar than obsess over it needlessly.
Why would something be different with newer phones and iOS 9.3.x? Is there something wrong with wondering about something that has been one way and then is another way and at least just trying to understand what might be behind it? Just hiding it doesn't seem to address any of that aside in the sense of just ignoring it.
Sigh. The goal is to put the OP at ease. That there is no issue. It would seem your objective is different. Go for it.
Seems to me that the OP was looking for an explanation/reasoning behind it. Don't think trying to figure out what changed is somehow implying there's an issue or creating some "agenda".
Furthermore, even with that aside, having all those services on doesn't keep the location arrow on consistently or even most of the time on a few devices that I deal with--and I enabled it all just to try it out too to make sure I was recalling it correctly--so what you are describing doesnt really appear to be a typical thing either.