Turn GPS On/Off

[Bunkshyde]

Nic,

I've just downloaded Cachly on the recommendation of other frustrated Geosphere users and THEY WERE RIGHT! This is a great Geocaching App. As a Geosphere refugee it'll come as no surprise that I'm doing a little feature-matching as I get used to Cachly!

I took Cachly for a run yesterday and this is one of two things I noticed that would (in my view) greatly improve the Cachly experience. As you will be very aware, running the GPS in an iPhone is hard on battery life. As a Geosphere user, I'm used to being able to turn the GPS in the iPhone on and off while using the application and would love to see this capability added to Cachly.

In practice, you locate your cache with the GPS on, discover it's a 10 minute hike up the trail, turn off the GPS while you hike and then turn it on again when you get close to GZ. Once the cache is found, turn the GPS off again for the hike back to the car! This way the GPS is only sucking the battery flat for the time it takes to actually locate the cache - not the whole time you are getting there and back. You've them got half a chance of getting your iphone battery to last more than half the day.

I'm thinking that a simple on/off button on the Map and Compass screens would be perfect.

[Nic Hubbard]

Glad you are enjoying using Cachly!

This is a tough one. I am of mindset of trying to make things powerful, while also being minimalistic. This means, if iOS can perform a function, I don't want to add it in the app (such as a flashlight feature). 

So, with that in mind, just locking your phone or exiting Cachly will turn off the GPS. Cachly doesn't keep GPS on while you exit the app, so this is the simple way to save battery life. When you want to turn it back on, just unlock your phone, or return to Cachly and GPS will turn back on.

Would this work for you?

[Bunkshyde]

Nic,

Thanks for the prompt reply. I don't think the option of exiting Cachly all the time while caching would be very practical. If however, you are assuring us (and I have to trust you on this) that the GPS is turned off by iOS when the phone is locked, then that would probably work. I assume that if Cachly is left running (while the phone is locked), the GPS switches back on immediately you bring the phone out of lock? Not totally ideal but so long as you consciously keep locking the phone while caching, you should be able to extend the battery life beyond a few hours.

[Nic Hubbard]

10 minutes ago, Bunkshyde said:

If however, you are assuring us (and I have to trust you on this) that the GPS is turned off by iOS when the phone is locked, then that would probably work. I assume that if Cachly is left running (while the phone is locked), the GPS switches back on immediately you bring the phone out of lock? Not totally ideal but so long as you consciously keep locking the phone while caching, you should be able to extend the battery life beyond a few hours.

Correct. You can even test this by being in Cachly, then locking your phone. When you press the power button again (still on lock screen) you can wait until the location icon in the status bar turns off. This means GPS is no longer being used.

Yes, GPS switches back on if you unlock your phone and are back in Cachly.

Another tip to save battery life is to turn your phone to Airplane Mode. Since iOS 8 you have been able to use GPS while in Airplane Mode. This will also really save on battery.

I will still add the GPS on/off idea to our feature list. I think it is a valid request that we will explore. Thanks!

[Bunkshyde]

I'd heard on the Geosphere Forums that your customer support was second to none and now I know the rumours are true!!

I hadn't properly connected the Location icon with the GPS as I was under the impression that Location came from multiple sources (incl internet routers, wifi & GPS). If it's that clearcut, then you've just locked me onto another important tool for managing battery performance in the field.

Thanks also for the Airplane Mode tip - hadn't hooked into that one either!!

Think I'll go back to the Geosphere Forum now and see if I can drum up some more customers for you - you deserve them 

[Nic Hubbard]

9 hours ago, Bunkshyde said:

Think I'll go back to the Geosphere Forum now and see if I can drum up some more customers for you - you deserve them 

Thank you! Please let me know if you have any other questions.

[barefootguru]

On 30/11/2016 at 9:04 PM, Bunkshyde said:

I'd heard on the Geosphere Forums that your customer support was second to none and now I know the rumours are true!!

I hadn't properly connected the Location icon with the GPS as I was under the impression that Location came from multiple sources (incl internet routers, wifi & GPS). If it's that clearcut, then you've just locked me onto another important tool for managing battery performance in the field.

Thanks also for the Airplane Mode tip - hadn't hooked into that one either!!

Think I'll go back to the Geosphere Forum now and see if I can drum up some more customers for you - you deserve them 

iOS does gather the location from multiple sources, but that's transparent to the user (and I think the app).

While Nic says exit the app, just pushing the home button or switching to another app has the same effect (or locking screen as stated) and also turns off GPS.  You can also confirm this in Privacy settings — the only options for Cachly are Never and While Using.

[Nic Hubbard]

5 minutes ago, barefootguru said:

While Nic says exit the app, just pushing the home button or switching to another app has the same effect (or locking screen as stated) and also turns off GPS.  You can also confirm this in Privacy settings — the only options for Cachly are Never and While Using.

I didn't meant close the app, just leave the app by hitting the home button. Closing it completely would be a huge pain for users.

[Bunkshyde]

I need to do some experimenting over this because there's no point leaving Cachly running only to find that some other random App is still using the GPS. The problem I have is that immediately after I click the top button on the phone to bring it out of sleep mode, the little (Location) arrow is showing. Problem here is that there's actually no way of being 100% sure the GPS is off as Apple don't treat it as the battery-hungry accessory that it is! If they did it, would have its own clearly-marked icon (Android does) which we could all refer to. When I left the GPS on while using Geosphere my battery life was always significantly affected and I could almost see it falling while in use (not quite but you know what I mean). When it was explicitly and routinely switched off (eg while hiking to and from a cache or driving) my battery lasted much much longer.

As it's summer now Downunder (well almost!), I should get a chance to test all this someday soon. I'm looking forward to using Cachly in earnest as it seems to be much more accurate with its compass. After that I will also report back on battery usage having followed Nic's instructions (and those of my fellow Kiwi "barefoorguru").

[Nic Hubbard]

16 minutes ago, Bunkshyde said:

As it's summer now Downunder (well almost!), I should get a chance to test all this someday soon. I'm looking forward to using Cachly in earnest as it seems to be much more accurate with its compass. After that I will also report back on battery usage having followed Nic's instructions (and those of my fellow Kiwi "barefoorguru").

One thing you can do to give you a hint as to which apps are using GPS is to go to your iOS Settings -> Privacy -> Location Services. You will see the location icon next to apps that have recently used your location.

Cachly 2.0 will be out on December 5th, so make sure to update!

[barefootguru]

9 hours ago, Bunkshyde said:

Apple don't treat it as the battery-hungry accessory that it is! If they did it, would have its own clearly-marked icon (Android does) which we could all refer to.

Wha?  That's exactly what the little arrow to the left of the battery indicator shows.  And as Nic says, if you delve into Settings you can see exactly what has been using your location.

[Bolling]

I'm a longtime Geosphere user as well. I agree it can drain the battery quickly unless the GPS turned off. One big difference between Geosphere and Cahly though appears to be in the device Privacy Settings. Cachly has the "while using app" option under location services. Geosphere has "always".

I've made an almost 100% switch to Cachly. Perhaps with version 2.0 I'll complete that swith complete that switch. 

[Nic Hubbard]

4 hours ago, Bolling said:

I'm a longtime Geosphere user as well. I agree it can drain the battery quickly unless the GPS turned off. One big difference between Geosphere and Cahly though appears to be in the device Privacy Settings. Cachly has the "while using app" option under location services. Geosphere has "always".

Yes, Geosphere has access to accessing your location even when you have left the app, so it could be using GPS and battery while you are not actively in the app. 

Cachly doesn't do this, and only uses GPS while the app is active.

[rragan]

You can also buy more time by putting the device in Low Power Mode via Battery in Settings. This turns off some things you likely won't miss and will extend your battery time. It auto exits this mode once you charge back to over 80%.