Does airplane mode turn off your phone's location? Here's what to know - Business Insider

• Airplane mode turns disconnected your phone's wireless signals that could perchance interfere with the instrumentality connected an airplane.
• Depending connected the telephone exemplary and OS, airplane mode whitethorn disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but it won't crook disconnected GPS.
• Though your phone's determination services should enactment portion successful airplane mode, your telephone can't beryllium tracked by extracurricular devices oregon services.

Your phone's airplane mode is designed to disable wireless signals that mightiness interfere with the delicate physics systems connected an airplane. But surprisingly, there's nary azygous cosmopolitan explanation of airplane mode. Depending connected which telephone exemplary you and operating strategy you use, that could mean conscionable the phone's cellular service, oregon besides see Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. With uncommon exception, though, airplane mode doesn't interfere with your quality to usage GPS for determination services connected your phone.

Does airplane mode crook disconnected determination services connected your phone?

Your smartphone determines its determination utilizing GPS satellites by receiving signals from aggregate satellites and past triangulating its ain determination successful three-dimensional space. Your telephone isn't sending immoderate benignant of awesome to marque determination services enactment — it  lone receives them. And that means there's nary hazard of your phone's GPS strategy interfering with craft operations.

As a result, most phones bash not disable determination services erstwhile you crook connected airplane mode. That means apps which trust connected determination services volition inactive enactment decently adjacent successful airplane mode.

For instance, successful a bid of tests we performed, the measurement trackers connected an iPhone's Health app and an Android's Google Fit app accurately logged miles walked portion airplane mode was enabled. 

Can your telephone beryllium tracked erstwhile utilizing airplane mode?

Just due to the fact that airplane mode doesn't forestall GPS from working, that doesn't mean your telephone tin beryllium tracked oregon your determination tin beryllium utilized by services which aren't connected your phone. For your phone's determination to beryllium made disposable to different devices oregon services, your telephone needs to beryllium capable to nonstop that information implicit the internet. 

If you were sharing your determination with different user, for example, that volition apt not enactment successful airplane mode due to the fact that the telephone disables cellular work and perchance (depending connected the phone) Wi-Fi arsenic well. If your telephone can't pass with different devices, it can't stock its location. 

Likewise, Apple's Find My work volition not enactment if airplane mode is turned connected and Wi-Fi is unavailable — Find My volition lone beryllium capable to amusement the phone's determination from erstwhile it past had net connectivity.