Location & GPS

Bïndo uses your device's GPS for one thing: stamping a coordinate on each sighting. It does not record trails or routes, just a single pin per bird.

How it works

When you log a sighting, Bïndo tries to get an accurate GPS fix:

1. It checks for a cached location first (up to 2 seconds old). If it is available and accurate enough, it uses that instantly.
2. If not, it requests a fresh fix with a 5-second timeout.
3. The fix must be 50 metres or better to be accepted automatically.
4. If accuracy is worse than 50m after two attempts, the app opens the custom sighting screen so you can place the pin manually on a map.

The accuracy of the accepted fix is stored on the sighting record.

Placing a pin manually

If GPS is not available or is not accurate enough, the custom sighting screen opens automatically. From there you can tap the map to drop the pin at the exact location, tap Use current location to try GPS again, or paste coordinates directly (decimal degrees, e.g. -33.9249, 18.4241).

When battery is low

When your battery drops below 20%, Bïndo switches to a low-power location mode. It polls less frequently and accepts coarser fixes, which keeps the app functional without draining the last of your battery. Sighting creation still works the same way.

Location permission

If you deny location permission, the quick-add flow always opens the custom sighting screen for manual placement. You can grant permission later in your device Settings.

Foreground only

Location tracking only runs while the app is open on screen. Bïndo does not collect location in the background.