The AirBolt GPS is designed to be flexible for multiple uses cases. It's a great device packed with lots of features. The above modes are extremely important to understand as they will impact how you use the AirBolt GPS - these modes operative very differently.
What is Optimised for Responsiveness and how does it work?
This is a mode designed for the most flexibility but it does impact battery life. Responsiveness mode means that the GPS is regularly checking in for changes to its settings or requests from you as a user. This means that you can change the GPS schedule, request location, make it beep etc and it typically the device will make those changes/respond to your request in a matter of minutes.
A great example to illustrate this is say you have set up your schedule for the GPS to report only once a day but suddenly you want it to report every minute. This mode typically allows you to make the change and it will reflect that change and start reporting every minute within a few minutes of requesting it
It's perfect for pets, moving valuables or anything you might want to track more often. In summary, it allows you to change settings on the GPS more often but does impact battery life.
NOTE: For this mode to work, this has to be supported by the network. Please read section below on how to know if this is available in your region.
What is Optimised for Battery Life and how does it work?
This mode concentrates more on saving battery but sacrifices responsiveness. This is the key distinction - you can make changes to the settings of the GPS however, these changes will only take effect after it's next scheduled report time or the next time it connects due to an Alert.
To illustrate this, lets say you have set the GPS to report hourly and it reports at 1pm, 2pm, 3pm , on the hour every hour. At 3:15pm you request the GPS to change it's schedule to 10 minute intervals. This change will only take affect at 4pm when the GPS is scheduled to report. After 4pm, it will then report at 10 minute intervals. If you want to change a setting again, it will then update at 4:10pm - again the next time your GPS is scheduled to report to you.
RECOMMENDATION: We suggest you pair this mode with the accelerometer. Why? You may want to monitor or keep your valuable safe over longer periods of time hence, you want to conserve battery. However, at the same time, you want to try ensure that should the GPS move, you get notified about it. Using the accelerometer can help you achieve exactly this as it detects movements. Furthermore, since the accelerometer makes your GPS wake up and report to you, as soon as you get this alert, you are able to make changes to its settings. It's a smart way to get the best of both worlds!
For more information on how to set up your accelerometer - click here.
In summary, optimise for battery mode is perfect for keeping an eye on valuables which are unlikely to move too much. You can only make changes to settings or request an ad hoc location when the GPS wakes up (you can set the wake up interval via settings).
NOTE: The longer the interval between reports the longer battery life
What happens when these modes are not available?
The above modes rely on special features being enabled by the local cellular provider. These features are being rolled out globally and we expect to see wider coverage over time.
If these mode are not available, your GPS the rules in terms of making changes to your settings etc apply as if you were in Battery Optimised mode however, your GPS will consume a lot more power reducing battery life. This is the least optimised mode in terms of power consumption.
If these modes are not available you will see N/A or off when you view your device on theportal at manage.theairbolt.com as shown in the picture below
How to select your GPS operating mode?
Selecting the operating mode is easy. You will be presented this option when you first set up the device but to change it, you can do so either via the app or via the portal.
Via the App:
To do so, click your device and open the menu by sliding it upwards. Click the tab below the "Play Sound" tab where it says "Optimised for...". You can then select the operating mode.
Via the portal:
Visit manage.theairbolt.com then login. Once logged in, select your device and on the left side you will see the menu as shown below. Choose your preference using the drop down under the heading "Operating Mode".
FURTHER READING:
Positioning your GPS to get the best signal and using Cellular location:
For getting accurate GPS location, you need to use the device facing upwards outdoors. If it is indoors it is very unlikely you will get a GPS Signal and the device will revert to cellular triangulation which reduces accuracy significant.
Please see this article to learn more about this.
Setting up a Reporting Schedule:
For getting accurate GPS location, you need to use the device facing upwards outdoors. If it is indoors it is very unlikely you will get a GPS Signal and the device will revert to cellular triangulation which reduces accuracy significant.
Please see this article to learn more about this.
Note once again, this is highly encouraged as if these is not understood, your experience with the GPS may be suboptimal.