Drive Smarter requires certain permissions (granted by your phone's operating system) along with a few other recommended settings in order to operate properly.  

Required permissions and recommended settings are documented below.  

If having any difficulty with Drive Smarter or certain functionality, this is a great place to start.  


Important Notes:  

The permissions/options below can revoked by the phone's operating system for various reasons (such as if the app has not been used in a certain amount of time) so when having difficulty always check these options.  



iPhone


Open app info/settings to find the permissions and settings discussed below.  

  • iPhone with iOS 18 and later:  Settings > Apps > Drive Smarter 
  • iPhone with iOS 17 and below:  Settings > Drive Smarter


Enable the following options:

  • Location must be "Always" with the "Precise Location" option if available.
  • Bluetooth
  • Local Network (Required for all dash cams and WIFI connected radar detectors)
  • Notifications
  • Background App Refresh
    • Wi-Fi & Mobile Data
    • This option has a phone-wide setting, so check also under Settings > General > Background App Refresh



Android


Open app info/settings to find the permissions and settings discussed below.  

  • Android:  Settings > Apps > Drive Smarter 


Enable the options under the categories below.   

  • App Permissions: 
    • Location must be "Allow all the time" with the "Use Precise Location" option if available.  
    • Nearby Devices
    • Notifications
  • Mobile Data Usage:
    • Background Data
  • App Battery Usage:
    • Allow background usage
      • If visible, enable "Unrestricted" underneath Allow background usage.  The Unrestricted option may or may not be visible depending on your version of Android (other options you may see are Optimized or Restricted but neither will allow Drive Smarter to receive necessary data.)  



For additional help and information, choose one of these related articles:


Drive Smarter Self-Service (Main Page)

Connecting/Pairing a Device

Gallery/Live View (Viewing Dash Cam Footage)

Connecting a Device to your WIFI Hotspot

Apple CarPlay Guide

Android Auto Guide