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Ever pull up to an EV charging station, plug in your car, then realize you don't have enough cell signal to initiate a session in your charging app? Some drivers will take the time to call customer support and have them remotely start the session, while others might give up and drive to a different station. Either way, it's a big inconvenience for drivers like you who have things to do and places to be.
PowerFlex has solved this problem with Offline Mode, a new feature within the PowerFlex App that enables drivers to charge their vehicles even when their mobile device is unable to connect to the internet. Read ahead to learn more about Offline Mode, as well as some other new mobile app features that are greatly improving the charging experience for our drivers.
Under normal circumstances, drivers initiate a charge session at a PowerFlex EV charging station by plugging in their vehicle, scanning the station QR code with the PowerFlex App, then confirming their charge preferences and payment method. But if you find yourself in an area with poor cell service, the app might encounter issues communicating with the PowerFlex charging network. This is no longer a concern thanks to Offline Mode, which works in the background to make sure your charge session goes off without a hitch.
Offline Mode is a completely automated feature built into the PowerFlex App — you don’t need to do anything special to activate it. Simply initiate a charge session like you normally would by plugging in your car, scanning the station QR code, and confirming your preferences. You can then leave the area and go about your day with the PowerFlex App still running in the background. The app will periodically check for a network connection while you’re out and about, and once it has enough signal, the app will remotely start your session.
The PowerFlex App with Offline Mode makes charging your EV a completely seamless experience, whether you have full bars or none.
Best of all, unlike other solutions on the market, PowerFlex’s Offline Mode doesn’t require additional hardware or IoT infrastructure installed at the charging site — making Offline Mode instantly available to all PowerFlex App users without any action required by EV charging station owners.
We’re constantly updating the PowerFlex App with fresh capabilities that make EV charging easy for drivers. Here are two more exciting new features:
The PowerFlex App now offers two ways to pay for your charge session: You can either pre-load funds into your PowerFlex Wallet (and payments for each charge session are deducted from your balance), or you can select the new Pay-As-You-Go mode. With Pay-As-You-Go, your debit or credit card is charged directly for each charge session without the need to pre-load funds.
The ability to pay for charge sessions as you go was one of our most frequently requested features, and we’re happy to make it available now to our drivers. For more information on how it works, check out the Pay-As-You-Go FAQ section on the PowerFlex App download page.
Whereas other charging providers don’t take drivers’ schedules into account when distributing power among chargers, PowerFlex allows you to select how much energy you want and how long you plan to stay plugged in so that your vehicle achieves your desired level of charge by the time you need to leave. These settings are easily managed on the Charge Preferences screen inside the PowerFlex App.
But what if “set it and forget it” is more your style? No problem. Just go about your daily routine and the app will learn your charging habits over time, providing you with default settings that meet your needs in most scenarios.
For example, let’s say you arrive at work every weekday at 9 a.m. and leave around 5:30 p.m. The app will recognize this pattern and tell the PowerFlex EV charging system at your workplace to have your car charged up to your desired level by the time you head home. But what if you have to leave at 3 p.m. one day to go to the dentist? Just make the change in your Charge Preferences and you won’t miss the appointment (unfortunately).
To start using Offline Mode, Pay-As-You-Go, and more convenient features, be sure to download the latest version of the PowerFlex App, available now in the App Store and on Google Play. And don’t forget to leave us a rating and a review so we can continue bringing you the best EV charging experience possible.
