Pokemon Go Update: Battery Saver, Nickname Change, Safety Reminder and More

Niantic Labs has just officially rolled a new update on the Pokemon Go with some minor tweaks, additions and some bug fixes. However, one of the most loved tracking features where footsteps are shown right below each nearby Pokemon to determine how far or near a pocket monster is is not coming back, at least in this update. But the Battery Saver feature is available again, as well as the ability to change your nickname (one-time only) are just some of the new stuff included in the 0.33.0 version for Android and 1.3.0 on iOS devices. See below list of updates included in the new Pokemon Go versions.

• Added a dialog to remind Trainers that they should not play while traveling above a certain speed; Trainers will have to indicate they aren't the driver.
• Fixed a bug that prevented "Nice", "Great", and "Excellent" Pokeball throws from awarding the appropriate XP bonuses.
• Enabled the ability for Trainers to change their nickname one time, so please choose your new nickname wisely.
• Resolved issues with battery saver mode on iOS and re-enabled the feature.
• Other fixes.

So one of the biggest part of the update is the activation of a new dialog that tells you you are moving too fast. Once the dialog pops up, you will need to indicate that you are not driving or a passenger to continue playing Pokemon Go. It is not stated what the speed limit is, but we are thinking you should not go beyond 25-30 kph. This should also give you a clue that your "walked KM" at this speed rate for hatching eggs is not counted. 

Also is the one-time nickname change. If you do not like your current nickname and wish there was a way to change it again, well you do now. But it's only for a one time opportunity only, whatever your next nickname is going to be will be your avatar's name for the rest of your Pokemon Go life, unless Niantic Labs gives us another chance to rename our avatar or we create a new Pokemon Go account and start anew. To change nickname, simply go to the settings of the game and then select Change Nickname. 

Getting appropriate XP points for those Nice, Great, and Excellent catches has now been improved on this update. This is one of the flaws I have noticed ever since I started playing Pokemon Go, I thought it was not accurate as I didn't think I was getting the right Pokeball throw XP points, I was correct and it has now been addressed. I am downloading the update now on my Android device and I will check if this one is now really working. 

The "Nearby" tracker has now been changed to "Sightings" and now has an additional little details alongside a Pokemon. It still works pretty much the same thing, but the tracker now refreshes and rescans the area every 10 seconds adding and removing Pokemon that have spawned and de-spawned in the area.

The update is now available for Android and iOS devices, so if you have not received the new patch yet make sure you go to your respective app stores and update your Pokemon Go app. And if you are using the APK version, good news is the update is now also available for download. I download my Pokemon Go apk update via apkmirror.com website.

How to download an apk version of app? See my post here on how to download Pokemon Go apk.