Pokemon Go Plus and other wearables and accessories - why the hype?

You may be wondering why the Pokemon Go Plus is so popular when the RRP is a bit high at $35, but it offers a lot of benefits, if you're an avid player you'll often find that your battery life suffers when playing Pokemon Go which is a bit inconvenient even with a battery pack, this device allows you to track distance walked, collect items from PokeStops and catch wild Pokemon without having to look at your phone screen.

Why is the Pokemon Go Plus worth it?

• You only need to have the app open, you can run it in the background and flick through your Facebook timeline or browse Twitter, as long as it is open you can catch Pokemon, the phone screen can even be locked. 
• It will continue to track distance when using other apps or having your screen locked meaning you don't have to burn battery just walking around.
• You get a normal amount of XP, candy and stardust when using the Pokemon Go Plus. 
• It will allow you to play when riding a bike, walking in a crowd of people, or even in a class. 
• Significantly decreased battery consumption. 

How to use it

Wearing it/carrying it
The Pokemon Go Plus includes a cloth wristband so you can wear it on your wrist, but it can also be used from your pocket or attached to your belt or backpack with the plastic clip. There are so many ways to use it as there is even a small hole to attach a strap if you want to wear it around your neck or hold it in your hand more securely.

PokeStops
At a PokeStop the device vibrates twice and the LED flashes blue, when you click the device you will collect all the items at the stop, it will buzz for each item you have collected and the screen will tell you how many items you received.

Catching Pokemon
When you pass a Pokemon the device will vibrate 6 times and the light will flash green if you have seen the Pokemon before, or yellow if you haven't (in which case maybe get your phone out and check!), on the screen there will be a message saying "Pokemon is in range!" and there will be a thin yellow line from the Go Plus icon to the Pokemon which tells you which Pokemon it is targeting. If you press the button on the device during the 6 long vibrations, it will throw a single regular ball.

There will be 3 short vibrations, then if you catch something it will vibrate 5 medium length times, or if not it will vibrate twice and flash a red light.

Buying a Pokemon Go Plus

If you can resist, don't buy yours from one of the people buying and reselling them as they will come back in stock with Amazon before they ship from the profiteers anyway. If you add the Pokemon Go Plus to your wishlist, you can get a notification as soon as it becomes available again and snap one up for cheap!

You can also get wood covers for the Pokemon Go Plus which protect it and you can use to display your team affiliation!

If you do want to buy it now just to know it has been bought and will be a happy surprise when you do receive it, UK sellers have it for around £60 delivering around September 29, or for players in the US you're looking at around $80 arriving between Sept 23-Oct 11

Other useful accessories

If you would prefer to swipe the screen to catch your Pokemon still, try 

a case with Aim Assist, these cases protect against scratches, dirt, grease etc., and it has precise openings to give you access to all the controls. You can get these for just $8 on US Amazon.

 Augmented Reality Hand Strap, if you're anything like me I'm sure you will have noticed that it is ridiculously hard to play Pokemon Go one handed if you have small hands or a big phone, this universal clip on hand strap allows you to use your thumb to swipe, it is also useful for texting/general operation one handed!



A belt clip holder for your phone.  These can be really handy to allow you to have your phone readily accessible without taking up your hands, if you've got the Pokemon Go Plus you can have it ready to check if the Plus is showing a previously unseen Pokemon. These will only set you back around $5, although some phones have custom cases with a belt clip attachment as well.

 Car Phone Holder or Bike Mount

I really can't recommend you play Pokemon Go in the car while driving but with the introduction of the Pokemon Go Plus it is at least safer to do, as you'll only be pressing a button when you feel a vibration (resist looking at your phone to see what it is!)

A bike mount is going to be really useful if you're cycling around between PokeStops and gyms - this is the US best selling Bicycle Handlebar holder, it fits many different phones and it uses 2 butterfly bands to keep your phone secure. A similar thing is available in the UK.