New The iPhone beta is live. You can join via TestFlight. Android live on Google Play.
Get going

Up and running fast.

Android’s right there on Google Play, and on iPhone there’s an open beta through TestFlight. Pick your device and head outside.

Pick your device

Two platforms, one loop.

Live

Android

Google Play Store

Available to everyone, straight from the Play Store. You don’t need beta access.

Requirements

  • Android 8.0 or newer
  • GPS-capable (almost every device since 2016)
  • ~30 MB free storage

GPS quality matters more than the brand

encirkl runs on pretty much any Android phone from 2016 on. How precisely your loop gets recorded depends a lot on the GPS chip, though, especially in Berlin’s dense Altbau neighborhoods with tall rows of buildings. A few pointers:

  • Dual-frequency GNSS (L1+L5): found in most mid-range and flagship phones since around 2020, with noticeably fewer outliers between building facades. Examples: Google Pixel 6 and newer, Samsung Galaxy S20 and newer, Xiaomi/Poco X6 Pro and newer, OnePlus 9 and newer.
  • Very cheap entry-level phones (under roughly €150) often only have single-frequency GPS. It works, but it’s a bit less precise in narrow street canyons.
  • Fairphone (4 / 5): repairable, designed in Amsterdam, with solid GPS hardware. A good fit if sustainable hardware matters to you.
  • GrapheneOS on Pixel hardware: GPS tracking itself runs natively without Google services. To get badges into Google Wallet, though, you’ll need Google Play Services enabled in a (sandboxed) profile.

Installation

  1. Open the Play Store link (button below)
  2. Tap "Install"
  3. Allow GPS permission on first launch
  4. Pick a loop, head out
Get it on Google Play
Beta

iPhone

TestFlight Beta

The beta’s open to everyone and runs through TestFlight, Apple’s official tool for testing apps before they hit the store. An App Store version is planned for later.

Requirements

  • iOS 16 or newer
  • iPhone 8 or newer (recommended: iPhone 11 and up)
  • Apple TestFlight app installed first
  • ~40 MB free storage

Step by step with TestFlight

  1. Get Apple TestFlight from the App Store if it’s not on your iPhone yet. It’s free, made by Apple, and you only need to install it once.
  2. Tap “Open TestFlight” below. The link takes you straight to the TestFlight app with your encirkl invite.
  3. In TestFlight, tap "Accept" to join the beta
  4. Tap “Install” and encirkl downloads onto your iPhone like any other app.
  5. Open the app and allow GPS access on first launch. It’s only used during an active loop, to validate your route.
  6. Pick your first loop and head out

As a beta tester you’ll get new builds now and then, and you can send feedback straight from the TestFlight app. Once encirkl’s in the App Store, you can switch to the regular version.

Open TestFlight

The button opens the invite. If you don’t have TestFlight yet, install Apple’s app first, and the encirkl beta then loads from there.

After install

Your first loop.

Open the app, pick your neighborhood and choose a loop. Close it and a badge lands on your Wallet card. Perks at cafés and shops along the way come once the first local partners are on board.

Stuck?

We’ll help you out.

Report bugs through TestFlight (iPhone) or the feedback form in the app (Android). For anything else, just drop us a line.

Get in touch

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