Pokémon GO Explorer Gadget update: it now catches while you play

The headline change is that the Explorer Gadget now helps while Pokémon GO is open and active on your phone. Before this update, it only did anything once you closed the app or locked your screen and walked around.

It still works the old way too. Turn it on, put your phone away and walk at a normal pace, and it keeps trying to catch nearby Pokémon and spin PokéStops in the background. The difference is that you can now open the map halfway through a walk without cutting it off.

To show what it is doing, the game puts a pink Poké Ball icon above any Pokémon or PokéStop the gadget is working on. If you see that icon, the gadget has already picked that target.

Turning it on takes a couple of taps, as long as your account qualifies.

1. Make sure you are Trainer level 20 or higher. Below that, the gadget is not offered.
2. On the map, look for the Explorer Gadget icon in the top right corner and tap it. If it is not there, open your Item Bag and check the Key Items section.
3. Switch it on. You can keep playing, or lock your phone and carry it with you.
4. Walk at a casual pace. It is built for walking, so moving fast is not the way to get results.
5. Tap the gadget icon again any time to see a summary of the Pokémon it caught, how many it caught and how many PokéStops it spun.

Keep some space free. If your Pokémon storage fills up, it stops catching, and if your Item Bag is full, it stops spinning PokéStops.

How to take over a catch yourself

Spot a pink Poké Ball over a Pokémon you would rather catch by hand, perhaps a shiny candidate or one you want to throw a curveball at? Tap that Pokémon or PokéStop yourself and you take over from the gadget.

Be quick about it. Scopely says you only get a limited window after the pink icon appears, though it has not said how many seconds that window lasts.

The update makes the gadget more convenient, not more powerful. Several rules from its August launch still apply.

• Poké Balls only. At launch Scopely said the gadget throws regular Poké Balls and never Great Balls or Ultra Balls. The new notes do not mention any change to that, so keep a healthy stack of basic balls.
• A daily cap. Both its catches and its PokéStop spins are capped each day, and the cap rises with your Trainer level. Once you hit it, the gadget stops until the next day. Scopely has not published the exact numbers.
• Some Pokémon are off limits. It will not try to catch Pokémon you have not yet registered in your Pokédex, so new species still need your own throws. It also skips the stronger wild Pokémon the game calls mighty.
• Level 20 or above. Newer players still have to level up before they can use it.

Those exclusions are deliberate. The gadget handles the routine catches, and you still have to show up for anything new or tough.

If you already own a physical accessory such as the Pokémon GO Plus +, you can use both, just not at the same moment. Only one of them can be active at a time.

The good news is that you do not need to unpair your accessory to try the built-in gadget. The map view shows which one is running. When an accessory is paired, the official instructions say to switch the gadget on from the Key Items section of your Item Bag rather than from the map.

So which should you use? The Explorer Gadget is free and needs nothing extra, but it is limited by that daily cap and its basic Poké Balls. A paired accessory is a separate device you have to charge and carry. Many players will likely run the gadget on short trips and keep the accessory for longer days out, though that is a choice, not a rule from Scopely.

The gadget was not the only thing that changed. Scopely also rolled out a set of smaller quality-of-life tweaks:

• An Appraise button of its own. On a Pokémon’s summary page, a dedicated button now sits just above the Additional Options button, so checking a Pokémon’s stats takes one tap.
• A clearer catch screen. After a catch, a redesigned summary makes your rewards and bonuses easier to read.
• No more special Power Spot spawns. Power Spots are where Max Battles take place. Visiting one, or leaving a Pokémon at one after winning a Max Battle, no longer triggers special wild encounters nearby. Scopely says this keeps wild encounters more consistent for everyone.
• Easier-to-read PokéStops. PokéStops you have already spun now look more different from unspun ones, thanks to a change in color saturation.
• Fresh visual effects. The ring around Pokémon drawn in by a Lure Module or met on a Route has a new look, and so do the effects around Pokémon pulled in by the Mystery Box or the Coin Bag.

If you used Power Spots as a bonus spawn spot, that is the change you will feel most. Plan your Max Battles for the battles themselves, not the extra encounters afterwards.

For most players, the update turns the Explorer Gadget into something you can switch on in the morning and forget about. You can check raids, open the map or spin a PokéStop yourself without wondering whether you just stopped your auto-catcher.

It is also a small push toward walking. The gadget is tuned for a casual walking pace, so a lunchtime stroll or the walk to the bus stop now earns you catches and items whether your phone is in your hand or your pocket.

The catch, quite literally, is the daily limit. Once it is used up, everything goes back to manual for the rest of the day, so turn it on when you know you will be moving.