Polar Flow app location permission FAQ
How can I allow location permission for Polar Flow app?
On your Android phone go to Settings > Location > App access to location > Polar Flow and Allow all the time:
Why does Polar Flow app need location permission and why Location services need to be enabled to scan for Bluetooth devices?
After Android 6.0 was released in 2015, new permission requirements for Bluetooth Low Energy connections were introduced by Google. Android 6.0 or later requires applications to request permission before the app can use system data and features. The location permission is needed to scan for devices using Bluetooth Low Energy connections.
If the Location services are disabled and/or the location permission disabled for the Polar Flow app, the Android phone and our Flow app cannot find the Hardware identifier of the Bluetooth Low Energy sensor and therefore connection to the watch is not possible.
Android 12 does not require the user to allow location access for the Flow app to be able to scan for devices using Bluetooh Low Energy connections. Instead it requires the user to allow the Flow app connect to nearby devices to synchronize their Polar watches or sensors.
The location permission is needed for the Connected GPS feature (Polar Unite and A370) as well.
These advanced Polar device features require location access also in Android 12:
- Weather
- Daylight
- Navigation
- Flow app Training recoding
- Flow app Activity view
Is there any official documentation about the phone and Android app needing location permission to scan for Bluetooth devices?
The only official documentation can be found on Google developer pages. This is mentioned in the following Android 6.0 changes developer article: https://developer.android.com/about/versions/marshmallow/android-6.0-changes
Check the part Access to Hardware Identifier.
The location permission requirement to scan for Bluetooth devices is also mentioned in the following Bluetooth low energy overview developer document: https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/connectivity/bluetooth-le
Will you remove the location permission in the future for Polar Flow app?
As long as the Android requirement is valid, unfortunately we cannot remove the permission since it would not be possible to connect any heart rate sensors to the app without it.
Android 12 does not require the user to allow location access for the Flow app to be able to scan for devices using Bluetooh Low Energy connections. Instead it requires the user to allow the Flow app connect to nearby devices to synchronize their Polar watches or sensors.
As a reminder, the requirement is valid only for the Android version of the Polar Flow app. In iOS, location permission is not needed to scan for BLE devices.
