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App Version 1.9.0

· 3 min read
Coco Tang

 

PLEASE UPDATE TO THIS RELEASE. This update includes the following new features and is not backwards compatible. Failure to update to 1.9.0 will cause all transactions in the mobile app to fail once we activate transaction fee chain variables.

What will fail:

  • wallet-to-wallet payment transactions
  • updating hotspot locations
  • adding a hotspot

What will NOT fail, as these are blockchain activities and not wallet activities:

  • hotspot earnings
  • proof-of-coverage challenges
  • witnessing
  • consensus groups
  • creating challenges

Why will those transactions fail if I don't update my app version?​

The blockchain essentially has a new way of processing transactions (with transaction fees). So any service (including the app) will need to "speak the blockchain's new language" for transactions to succeed.

Other Features included in this release

GPS Information (Experimental)​

As part of validating network coverage, the team looked to expose key GPS information for Hotspot owners to see if their GPS location matched their Hotspot location on the blockchain. For more information, please see the previous post on this: https://helium-community.slack.com/files/T23CDV4N4/F014793ASPR?origin_team=T23CDV4N4

At this stage, the GPS information is experimental and merely for informational purposes. There is no impact to Hotspot mining. If you do decide to move the Hotspot, do so at your own discretion.

  • Reasserting it across a room is not necessary, just unplug and replug the power.
  • Acquiring a GPS fix may also take up to 48 hours, depending on satellites in the sky, cloud coverage, and obstacles in the way between the GPS antenna underneath the black disc and the sky.
  • If you occasionally see a bad assert, and your Hotspot is asserted in its physical location (accurate to 200 meters), do not panic! The GPS can wander. If you leave it alone, the bad assert will likely change back to a good fix.

Show synced block height if a Hotspot falls out of sync with the chain​

If your Hotspot falls out of sync with the tip of the blockchain, the app will now show it's current synced block height so you know how many blocks it has before the Hotspot is caught up.

Transaction Fees​

As mentioned earlier, the breaking change introduced in 1.9.0 relates to how the mobile app calculates transaction fees.

When the chain variable for transaction fees are activated, users will see how much it will cost to send a payment transaction (wallet-to-wallet), add a hotspot, and update hotspot location.

All Hotspots from Helium will continue to see 0 fees for adding a Hotspot, and setting a location for the first time.

We will send another notice when the chain variable is activated.

Bug Fixes

  • Fixed Hotspot filter for consensus groups

  • Fixed how participants in a challenge and witnesses are displayed in the mobile app.

  • Fixed Hotspot loading times for those with 50+ Hotspots in their app

  • Fixed stale data when swiping between Hotspots

Known Issues​

Switching Wi-Fi networks doesn't work if both Wi-Fi networks are found in the scan list.

  • If you need to update your Wi-Fi credentials and both old and new networks appear in the scan list, contact support@helium.com and we can help manually update it for you.