Pokémon GO’s Explorer Gadget is working again for at least one Trainer in the UK. The feature’s in-game panel is active and shows that it can automatically throw Poké Balls and spin PokéStops while Pokémon GO is closed.
UK – Explorer Gadget active again
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The panel displays two 30-action counters at 3/30 and 2/30, along with a visible Pause button. Together, those controls show the gadget is running and tracking its activity rather than simply appearing as an inactive menu option.
A German account also has the Explorer Gadget back in its Bag
A separate German observation found the Explorer Gadget back in at least one Trainer’s Bag after an app update. The return has not been established for every account in the country.
The German-language entry calls the item Entdecker-Gadget. Its description says the gadget automatically throws Poké Balls and spins PokéStops while the Trainer travels around, outlining the feature’s basic purpose directly on the inventory screen.
The same screen includes Link-Speicher, a container described as holding up to 600 Link-Ladungen at once. A pink x700 marker appears beneath the item icon, but the inventory screen does not explain what that number represents.
A separate observation recorded the Explorer Gadget as active at 7:30 p.m. UK time on August 6. That panel showed two 0/75 counters, with a Pokémon icon identifying one and a PokéStop icon identifying the other. It also displayed the same Pause control.
A later UK summary records 30 catches on August 7
A dated in-game summary from August 7, 2026 records 30 Pokémon caught with your Explorer Gadget. The summary includes a catch grid with 30 entries and a Share button. During a few hours around town, the Trainer kept the phone locked in a pocket while the gadget operated, providing a concrete catch total beyond the activity panel itself.
Explorer Gadget availability remains unclear beyond the reported accounts
The active panel functionality is confirmed in the UK observations, the German inventory sighting shows the item present in at least one account, and the later UK summary records 30 catches during one outing. It remains unclear whether the same functionality is available more broadly, when activation began, or what caused it to return. The German observation does not identify the app version involved or include an official explanation, and no official timing or rollout details are included.
Trainers who use Pokémon GO while walking with the app closed can check the Explorer Gadget panel for the counters and Pause control. If the feature is active on your account, share your thoughts in the comments and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, and Instagram.
Pokémon Go
Developed by Niantic Labs, The Pokémon Company
Pokémon Go is an augmented reality mobile game that uses GPS to let players locate, capture, train, and battle Pokémon in real-world locations. Players explore their physical surroundings to find PokéStops for items, battle at Gyms for team control, participate in Raid Battles cooperatively, and compete in the Go Battle League's player-versus-player format. The game is free-to-play with in-app purchases and features Pokémon from across multiple generations of the franchise.
- Genre Role-playing (RPG), Simulator
- Platforms Android, iOS
- Perspective Third person, Bird view / Isometric, Side view
- Modes Single player, Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO)
- Release July 6, 2016
- Publisher Niantic Labs
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Age Rating
