Guide · No signal

No signal? Keep talking.

In the forest, on a mountain or at sea, Surfping phones find each other over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi and pass your messages along. Here is how to use it.

Get it onGoogle Play

Surfping Radar screen: your crew on the radar, no signal needed

Before you go

Do this at home or at the trailhead while you still have internet.

Everyone installs Surfping

Each person signs in once with internet. Surfping can’t create an account offline.

Start a trip for your group

Open your group, start a Trip and set a meeting point and a “back by” time. The trip’s crew key reaches every phone while you’re online.

Meet once with Radar on

At the trailhead, turn on Radar together for a minute. Phones swap keys, so later messages are sealed for the right person.

On the trail

No bars? Open Surfping and keep it on screen when you want to talk.

Radar turns on by itself

When the signal drops, Radar switches on while Surfping is open. You can also tap On in the Radar tab.

Chat as usual

Write in your chat or group. Phones in range, about 30–100 m, get it straight away.

Your group is the network

Out of range? Your message hops through other Surfping phones in between. They carry it sealed and can’t read it.

Messages wait for you

If nobody is close, your phone keeps the message for up to 24 hours and hands it over as soon as a phone comes near.

See your crew

In Trip, the Radar and compass show where your group last was, with roll call and the “back by” reminder.

Back in signal

Online messages that were waiting send by themselves when the internet returns. Keep Surfping open for a moment.

How a message travels

Ana is too far from Citra. Budi walks between them, so his phone passes the sealed message along.

Good to know

Calls need internet. With no signal you can send messages, see your crew on the Radar and use roll call.
SOS works with no signal too. Hold the SOS button and your position goes to your crew and to every Surfping phone in range, strangers included, repeating every 30 seconds until you tap “I’m safe”. With internet it also goes to your trip group online.
Surfping is not an emergency service and never contacts anyone outside Surfping. Call your local emergency number when you can.
Messages to one person or to a crew are signed and sealed for the recipient, so phones that pass them along can’t read them. The “Everyone nearby” room and SOS are public to Surfping phones in range, and they see your name and @username while Radar is on. You can report and block.
Range is roughly 30–100 m between phones. Rocks, trees and walls shorten it.
Radar uses Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, which drain the battery faster. Bring a power bank on long trips.
No app can protect a phone that is already infected with spyware.

Questions

Do I need a SIM card or Wi-Fi network?

No. Phones connect to each other directly. You only need internet once, to create your account and set up the trip.

Do the other phones need Surfping?

Yes. Messages travel between phones that have Surfping with Radar on.

Who can see my SOS?

Your crew and every Surfping phone in range, strangers included. They see your name and position, and that Surfping is not an emergency service. It repeats every 30 seconds until you tap “I’m safe”.

Can strangers read my messages when they relay them?

Messages to one person or to a crew are sealed for the recipient. A phone that relays them cannot read them, but it can see that a message is going from one Surfping phone to another, and for one-to-one messages who writes to whom. The “Everyone nearby” room and SOS are public to Surfping phones in range.

Does it work in the background?

Keep Surfping open on screen to be found and to talk. Radar stops when you leave the app unless you turned it on yourself, and then a notification shows it’s on.

Ready for your next trip?

Free, no ads, no phone number.

Get it onGoogle Play

Google Play for Android. App Store for iPhone: coming soon.

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