How can you track Pokemon with the new device? (Gamestop)
How can you track Pokemon while using your Pokemon Go Plus device? While it doesn’t offer features like the elusive “Nearby” and “Sightings” panels in San Francisco, it does give some options for tracking down Pokemon. And it looks like the code may allow for even more in the future.
Here’s what you need to know.
When you’re tracking Pokemon using the Pokemon Go Plus, you may actually get notified about a Pokemon on your wearable device before you can see it on the app. Redditor Zyb0r reported that your Pokemon won’t appear on the app right after your Go+ buzzes. Instead, the app needs to refresh first once it’s opened before the Pokemon will appear, and this can take time. Even if you have the app open, your device might buzz and show a Pokemon is near before it actually appears on your app.
This means that you can potentially “track” and even catch a Pokemon in the area before you can see the Pokemon on your app’s map. Redditor suavenz, who got the device in New Zealand, confirmed that the Plus device can pinpoint the location of a Pokemon before it actually spawns on the app. Unfortunately, this “tracking” feature doesn’t work across the board with all Pokemon in your range. For example, the Plus doesn’t catch Pokemon who are lured near you because of incense, so it won’t indicate them for you either.
In addition to this nifty feature, players on Reddit reported that when you’re using Pokemon Go Plus, a Plus symbol will appear on your app’s screen that points to nearby Pokemon. You can check out the discussion about it here.
But there may be more to come. It appears that the tracking feature for Pokemon Go Plus was originally going to be far more advanced. Redditor TGK_22 reported that the Plus’s help page originally had information about tracking that has since been removed. The original information said that when you tapped the “Nearby” panel on your app and selected a Pokemon from the panel, your Pokemon Go Plus device would vibrate to tell you if you were getting closer to the Pokemon. The vibrations would get faster the closer you got to the Pokemon. This function, the help page stated, would only work once you reached a certain level in the game. You can read the now-deleted instructions here.
Reditor jiia reported that the API for the Plus indicates the ability to track specific Pokemon who are in the nearby list. Some players are wondering if the Pokemon Go Plus device has extra tracking features that can be unlocked when used in conjunction with the special Nearby tracking feature that’s currently only available in San Francisco. Or if they’re not available now, perhaps Niantic is waiting for the right moment to make these features available.
