External GPS disconnects when collecting point with photo containing EXIF coordinates

Description
When collecting a new point with a photo that has EXIF coordinates populated to form, the external GPS receiver gets disconnected and reconnected. This issue does not occur when recording features without photos.

Environment
Staging

Application (+ app version, build, operating system)

• App build: 682511
• Android version: Android 14

Steps to reproduce

1. Open the Mergin Maps app and Connect device to external GPS receiver and wait for location data
2. Click Record a new point feature
3. Take a photo for the feature
4. Save record
5. Observe GPS connection status

Actual results

• External GPS receiver disconnects and reconnects when collecting point with photo
• Issue is reproducible consistently with photo collection

Expected results

• External GPS receiver should remain connected throughout the entire data collection process
• Photo collection with EXIF coordinates should not interfere with GPS connectivity
• GPS connection should be stable regardless of photo capture

Screenshots or logs

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/4eec10f9-2681-4050-9272-d4070d8b1cc6

Conclusion
Created by GitHub Copilot and supervised by a human test analyst.

Reproduce the issue by connecting an external GPS receiver, recording a new point, taking a photo with EXIF coordinates, and saving the record. Trace the flow from photo capture and EXIF processing through record saving while observing GPS connection status. Done means the external GPS remains connected when collecting and saving a photographed point.