3. My Pokémon GO Plus Amazon Product Review

Pokémon Go Plus Product Review

My Pokémon GO Plus Amazon Product Review

Written by Jameson (Rubiksguy) O'Connor

Since its release (in the USA) on July 6, 2016, Pokémon GO has taken the world by storm.  While the game can be played perfectly fine without the Pokémon GO Plus accessory, I would recommend it for the more hardcore of players who want to get every advantage in the game they can, or just want to increase their daily catches and PokéStop spins.  I’ll be reviewing this product below, and I hope it answers your questions so that you can make your own decision on whether or not you want to buy one for yourself.

When I first thought about buying a GO Plus, I looked at the $35 price tag, and thought it would be better spent on the in-game currency, PokéCoins, and wasn’t interested in buying one.   However, once several months passed, and having seen my friends use theirs, I was tempted, so I ran over to Target and bought one, considering that I might return it a week later.  That was over a year ago; it’s safe to say it’s grown on me.  I’ve even convinced at least 5 of my friends to buy one, going so far as to drive them over to the store myself while on a break from our adventures.

So what is the Pokémon GO Plus and what does it do?  The Pokémon GO Plus is a small device in the shape of a PokéBall with a single button in the middle.  The device is about the shape of a quarter, and about three-quarters of an inch thick.  It comes in the box, button cell battery included, with a wristband and a belt clip, which you can swap between with a Phillips Screwdriver.  I tend to use the wristband because the strap gives me something to hold onto, even when its not on my wrist, so I don’t risk dropping it.  

In addition to tracking egg/buddy distance traveled better than the app itself, the main benefit of the GO Plus is that it allows hands/eyes free gameplay. When the Pokémon GO Plus is connected to your phone via BlueTooth, it will vibrate if there is a PokéStop or Pokémon in range of you. A simple press of the button will collect items from a nearby PokéStop, or attempt to catch a Pokémon for you. This can be a blessing and a curse though.  It's a blessing because of the small conveniences, like if you’re sitting in Starbucks, having a coffee and working on homework, you can be using your phone for other purposes and just waiting for the GO Plus to vibrate, at which point you can either push the button and take your chances, or switch over to the game briefly to try and manually catch what it’s targeting for a higher chance of actually catching the Pokémon. This allows for an eyes-off style of gameplay that can also be used on the job, a date, or while driving, where it would be considered rude or illegal to check your phone, allowing you to just push the button instead. While not as beneficial as playing the game directly, it awards free Pokémon and items you wouldn’t otherwise get in these situations, with the simple press of a button.  It can be a curse, though, because while it does try to catch a Pokémon that it targets, it only throws one normal PokéBall, even if you have hundreds of Great or UltraBalls, and won't give the Pokémon a berry, or credit you for a Nice, Great, Excellent, or CurveBall throw. Worst of all, if it doesn't catch the Pokémon, the Pokémon WILL run away.  High risk, high reward.  However, for those moments when you wouldn't be playing anyway, it results in just extra stuff you wouldn't be getting otherwise; just don't check your journal afterwards if you don't want to see what ran away.

This hands/eyes free aspect of the Pokémon GO Plus allows for the single biggest reason I would recommend having one: what my town calls, Item Loops. I live in a city with a downtown that has 28 Pokestops in a perfect two street loop; straight up one street, straight down the other.  The speed limit is 20MPH, so I'm usually not worried about the in-game speed limit stopping me from collecting anything. Additionally, the loop is almost exactly a five minute drive to complete it, and since PokéStops refresh five minutes after spinning them, this almost always results in a perfect loop with no downtime. This allows me to collect hundreds of items and dozens of Pokémon while driving, listening to music, and keeping my eyes on the road, just by pushing the button on the GO Plus. 

Another benefit of playing with the GO Plus is the ability to interact with multiple things in game. For example, the GO Plus will target a random Pokémon near you, and once it has, you can click its button and enter the catch screen with another Pokémon or PokéStop on your phone while the GO Plus is dealing with the first. This also works during a raid or gym battle; since these often last several minutes while you're staying in the same place, the Pokémon GO Plus will pick up on new Pokémon that spawn while you're battling, or spin PokéStops as they refresh (you'll even see the items it looted flash up in the right corner of the screen mid-battle, which is kind of cool and unique).

These are the main benefits of the Pokémon GO Plus, and they make the device worth it in my mind, and can lead to an amazing experience... When it works...

One of the biggest flaws of the Pokémon GO Plus isn’t the hardware itself.  From time to time, there will be connection issues.  However, these are usually the fault of the game needing an update that Niantic, the company, hasn’t pushed out yet, that results in a bad connection between the phone and the Pokémon GO Plus. Sometimes, the GO Plus works great and I completely forget about any issues for days.  Other times, however, like I've been experiencing recently, it will disconnect itself every time you push the button to interact with it, essentially making it useless. While it has taken Niantic a decent amount of time to fix these issues when they arise, since it seems to be a software issue for everyone with the GO Plus, I suspect it will get fixed eventually, so I still recommend one, because when it works, it's amazing.

The GO Plus uses a button cell battery, and usually lasts a few weeks before you need to change it, depending on how much you play.  You can save battery by disconnecting it from the phone of course, if you know you don't need to use it for awhile, or just prefer to play the normal way for a bit.  Batteries cost about $5 at your local box store, but I buy an 8 pack off of amazon for just $1 each battery, found here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LY8TNRS/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ARD7DP6BI3ZPJ&psc=1

The durability of the GO Plus is pretty good.  Mine has received just a small chip on the front side paint so far.  However, I did manage to accidentally break the wristband by pulling on the PokéBall part of the device when removing it from my wrist in a rush, causing a small piece of plastic that secures the wristband to the device to snap.  Regardless, that was my fault, and shouldn't be an issue so long as you unlock it properly, or just pull on the lock end of the strap when removing it, rather than the main device end. Basically, great durability so long as you aren't stupid with it as I was :P

In conclusion, the Pokémon GO Plus is by no means a required accessory to play the game, but I would recommend it.  If you have $35 to spare, it can help you stock up on items and collect more Pokémon than you would in a normal day, especially if you are otherwise occupied and can only push the GO Plus instead of playing the game the normal way. Finally, for those that live near a populated area with lots of PokéStops that you can drive between, this device can help you keep your eyes on the road and still play in the background.

If you decide you want to purchase a Pokémon GO Plus, you can find them at most big box stores that sell video games, like Best Buy, Target, and Game Stop.  Or, if you're more of a fan of online shopping, you can order it through amazon here:

https://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Pokemon-Go-Plus-Android-iOS/dp/B01H482N6E/ref=sr_1_3?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1529141386&sr=1-3&keywords=Pokemon+go+plus