Scopely appears to be rolling out the Explorer Gadget to more countries, including the UK, Germany and the Phillipines. The Explorer Gadget is a new Pokémon GO item that works similarly to a built-in GO Plus. The Explorer Gadget was first discovered through datamining earlier this year, where it was described as an in-game item capable of automatically throwing Poké Balls and spinning PokéStops. The feature now appears to be entering a wider testing phase, although it has not been made available to all players.
It appears that the test has a once per day limit on your the account,, but with varying amounts of Pokémon to be caught, and Pokéstops that can be spun, during that singular usage. Different accounts have shown limit of 40, 69, 75, 79 and 80 catches and PokéStop spins, with 80 appearing to be the highest potential limit at present. It has been speculated that the higher limit may be connected to the Monthly Deluxe Pass, but this has not been confirmed. While it can only be used once per day, it does appear that it can be paused and resumed later.
The test appears to have started over night on 31st July 2026, and it is currently unclear whether the feature is available in other time zones or only to selected accounts. At the moment, the Explorer Gadget appears to use regular Poké Balls only, same as the physical autocatchers like GO Plus and GO Plus+. You can use the item once per day.
We don’t know yet if this is the start of a slow global roll out for the Explorer Gadget, or more advanced testing, but it certainly implies that it can’t be too far away from potentially being implemented for all trainers!
What is a GO Plus?
GO Plus is a term players commonly use for Pokémon GO’s Bluetooth accessories, such as Pokémon GO Plus and Pokémon GO Plus+. These devices let players interact with the game without constantly looking at their phone.
Depending on the device, they can notify players about nearby Pokémon, throw Poké Balls, and spin PokéStops or Gyms to collect items. Because of this, they are often used while walking, commuting, or playing in the background.
The Explorer Gadget appears to follow the same basic idea, but as an in-game item rather than a separate physical accessory, with a once per day usage limit, and a limit on both catching Pokémon and spinning Pokéstops.
