Frequently Asked Questions

Last change: 2024–07–08

Data and Backup

Which phone do you recommend to use with the app?

Here's a list of recommended devices on GSMArena. We strongly recommend a device that has:

A barometer sensor is essential for any serious use. A phone without a barometer will work fine, but Power, Energy, Altitude, Ascent/Descent and Slope metrics will not be as accurate, and may even be very inaccurate.

As noted, the app supports external barometer sensors. The most famous one is RuuviTag, and it is highly recommended for accuracy even if your phone has an internal barometer.

How can I backup my tracks?

Starting with version v8.00 (2024-03-25) there has been a change in tracks storage paradigm.

New method (v8.xx)

Please go to the Settings > Storage, and choose data storage location. This can be any folder you want. Then use your preferred method to backup this folder, for example by syncing with an online storage service (see below).

There's no need to backup other configuration files from the app's internal folder anymore. They are being automatically backed up by the Android system and restored when you change phones. You must be using the same account on both phones, though. If you plan to use a different account, please use the method below to also back up your profiles and other configuration data.

Old method (v7.xx and older)

The best way is to set up an automatic sync of the entire /Android/data/com.sublimis.urbanbiker/files/Documents/UrbanBiker folder to a desired storage service.

Backup your data online

Sync your data to a desired online storage service using the following apps:

Many other apps are available for this purpose, and also for other services. Please pick the one that suits you best.

How to keep tracks and settings when changing to a new phone?

Starting with version v8.00 (2024-03-25) there has been a change in data storage paradigm.

New method (v8.xx)

  1. Old phone: Finish all tracks in all profiles!
  2. Then simply copy the entire data storage location/folder from the old phone (or the backup location) to the new phone. A file manager app like the Cx File Explorer can be useful.
  3. New phone: Launch the app. Go to the Settings > Storage, and choose data storage location to be the folder where you previously copied your data.

There's no need to manually backup and restore other configuration files from the app's internal folder anymore. They are being automatically backed up by the Android system and restored when you change phones. You must be using the same account on both phones, though. If you plan to use a different account, please use the method below to also back up and restore your profiles and other configuration data.

Old method (v7.xx and older)

  1. Do not install the app on the new phone just yet.
  2. First make sure to FINISH all tracks in all profiles on the old phone!
  3. Then simply copy the entire /Android/data/com.sublimis.urbanbiker/files/Documents/UrbanBiker folder from the old phone (or the backup location) to the new phone before installing the app. Make sure you put the folder into the same location, i.e. to the (internal) USB storage, NOT on a SD card! If you were using a very (very!) old version of the app, also copy /Documents/UrbanBiker folder if it exists. Use a file manager app like the Cx File Explorer for this.
  4. Install the app on the new phone and launch it.

If you've made a mistake and notice that your profiles, data and settings are not restored, reinstall the app and do everything again.

What happens to my data if I uninstall / reinstall the app?

Note: We recommend that you first Finish all unfinished tracks in all profiles, before uninstalling the app.

Starting with version v8.00 (2024-03-25) there has been a change in data storage paradigm.

New paradigm (v8.xx)

Your data remains intact if you used the custom data storage location feature in Settings > Storage (highly recommended).

Old paradigm (v7.xx and older)

All saved tracks and most of the settings are saved to (internal) USB storage folder /Android/data/com.sublimis.urbanbiker/files/Documents/UrbanBiker. This folder may get deleted when you uninstall the app! To be on the safe side, you can copy the entire folder to your computer or somewhere else as a backup before reinstalling the app. Other possibility is to backup this folder to your Google Drive account automatically. Please see the previous question.

Other data (unsaved tracks, some common profile settings) are saved under a system-designated private folder which you cannot access unless the phone is rooted. Contents of this folder are removed when the app is uninstalled, but are normally backed up and restored automatically by the system when the app is reinstalled.

How to restore a license when changing to a new phone?

You must use the same Google account on your new phone. If you purchased your license via the in-app purchase process, the license should be automatically restored for you. To check that Urban Biker is licensed, open up the About screen and the license name should be displayed under the app name at the top. If there's the "Upgrade" text instead of license name, then the app is not licensed.

If this is the case, and you had a subscription, you can check here for your active subscriptions: Play Store subscriptions.

If you instead had a license purchased as a separate APK, please try to install the license from here: Pro License, or here: Pro Plus License. If this does not work, or you simply want the old license type be converted to the new type, please let us know. Send us you order ID and we'll send you back a license key that does not require a separate APK.

Is there a way to edit the history? At times I forget to change between profiles, biking and walking. It would be nice to be able to change this in the history once I realize my mistake.

Sorry, this is not possible in our app at the moment. The thing is, this would require us to save every bit of information acquired and used during the track recording (not only location and altitude, but also the accuracy, doppler speed, barometer pressure, temperature, etc.) in order to make it possible to recalculate all track statistics correctly after the track gets split. This is not feasible at the moment.

On the other hand, splitting a GPX file alone is rather simple task and can be easily done manually. Simply open the GPX file in any better text editor (if you use a code editor that's even better) and delete all lines from the end of the file that don't belong to your ride. This will usually imply deleting everything from the last </trkseg> tag in the file, up to the <trkseg> where the unwanted data begins. If these lines belong to another profile, instead of deleting you may want to move them to the beginning of other GPX file, right before the first <trkseg>.

You can identify where the foul data begins by examining the timestamp of each line, and also the speed (which is in m/s). For example, it's easy to see where biking ends and walking begins by noting the drop in the speed - from about 5-6 m/s to about 1-2 m/s. You can then repack the edited GPX file back to the original zip if you want. However, note this will not change the track statistics shown in the history screen. To change those, you must also edit the SUMMARY file (the file structure is pretty self-explanatory when you open it in the editor so we'll not explain it here).

How to delete a track?

To delete a track, please go to the History screen and long-click on a track to select it. You can then select Delete from the menu. When track gets deleted, the corresponding profile's totals will reflect this (totals will get reduced by the appropriate amounts, if track's start date was newer than the profile totals start date).

Sensors

Sensors are not working when I switched to a new phone

If you were using ANT+ sensors, please note that majority of todays phones do not support ANT+ anymore. Luckily, many sensors now support both Bluetooth and ANT+ protocols. Simply remove any ANT+ sensors from the profile (by going to the Settings > Sensors screen), and scan again to find and use them as Bluetooth sensors.

Which speed/cadence sensor do you recommend to use with the app?

We recommend using a sensor which supports Bluetooth protocol, as ANT+ is not supported on majority of modern phones anymore. Here are some of them:

There are also many "generic" speed-only or cadence-only sensors that are both inexpensive and reliable, e.g. the one from Bontrager. You can set up two of them, then tell the app to use one for speed and the other for cadence. In general, any standard Bluetooth sensor should work, just be aware that cheapest sensors may not be as reliable.

Which heart rate sensor do you recommend to use with the app?

We recommend using a chest strap sensor which supports Bluetooth protocol, as ANT+ is not supported on majority of modern phones anymore. Armband sensor should also work okay. We do not recommend using wristband sensors, as they are usually not intended to be used as dedicated HR sensor, and also can be very inaccurate. Here are some of the recommended sensors:

If you add a speed sensor, how do you use that sensor instead of the gps, to show a precise speed?

The app will provide speed from the sensor whenever it's available. This means the sensor must be added to the profile so it gets connected when tracking starts, but also the wheel circumference must be given in sensor properties screen. When Automatic circumference option is enabled (this is the default), the wheel circumference will be measured automatically.

The app will also seamlessly switch from sensor speed to GPS speed and vice versa if there is a problem with the sensor, for example if it gets disconnected during a ride, its battery runs empty, or similar. This is indicated in the app's status bar - "sensors" icon will be yellow or red (yellow: wheel circumference still unknown, red: sensor not connected).

I have another speed sensor, and was wondering if I could use that speed sensor as a cadence sensor if I add a magnet to the pedal arm?

Yes, of course! Simply enable Swap speed and cadence option in sensor properties page for that particular speed sensor, and it will effectively become a cadence sensor.

Recording issues

How to fix recording issues on Huawei and some other phones

To resolve recording issues, please do the following in Android Settings:

  1. Add our app to the protected apps list
  2. Disable any battery optimizations or energy saving modes
  3. Make sure Location is set to "High accuracy" mode

Battery optimizations on these phones are too aggressive, so the system blocks the GPS or force closes any background app which is not protected by the user. It usually happens when the screen is turned off. Unfortunately, the app cannot prevent it - You must do this manually.

More info, with step-by-step guides can be found at dontkillmyapp.com, but also e.g. here, or here.

Power and Energy

How to properly set up Power/Energy parameters?

Default settings of the power/energy parameters are valid for an average city bike and an average rider.

Weight may be most important parameter of them all, so be sure to correctly enter weights of yourself, bike, wheels, and possible cargo (tools, food, clothes, water, etc. as this will make the result even more accurate). But you need not get too finicky; if you estimate the weight of yourself, the bike and the cargo to within ±3kg that's perfectly okay.

Drag area (CdA) parameter need not be changed, unless your bike is something special like recumbent bike, or you ride in aero position (in which case you could lower this a bit to e.g. 0.4), -or- you wear a big jacket that gives lot of wind drag, or have bags (panniers) on your bike, in which case you could probably increase this a bit to e.g. 0.6.

Roll resist (Crr) parameter is slightly more important. The default (0.01) is set for average city bike tyres and professional mountain bike tyres. If you ride professional road tyres, you should probably decrease this to e.g. 0.005. If you ride grippy tyres designed for nothing but offroad ride, you should probably increase this to e.g. 0.025. This also applies if you ride on surfaces rougher than asphalt, e.g. on a gravel road, in mud, snow, etc. You can get a feel for this number (or even find the exact one) by visiting https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/.

Efficiency η (greek "eta") is an easy parameter to set, but can greatly skew the results if set too high or too low. Basically, if you are a fit athlete, you can set this to 25%; if you are very unfit, you can set this to 19-20%. If you feel something in between, you can set this to 22-23% and be done with it. Just bear in mind that this few percent difference translates directly into calorie count value - smaller η means more calories will be expended for the same trip (as you are less efficient in converting calories to work/motion), and vice versa.

Why is calorie count different than in another service e.g. Strava?

Many services estimate calorie count using an overly simplified formula, where they basically use predefined average calories per hour for a given activity type and simply multiply that with duration.

Our app computes calorie count during a ride based on ride dynamics. It takes into account factors like air drag, roll resistance, altitude change, acceleration and others, which makes it more accurate (assuming parameters are correct).

Licensing

Please visit urban-bike-computer.com/shop for more information.

Translations

Please visit urban-bike-computer.com/translate for more information.

Miscellaneous

Where to download offline maps?

https://github.com/mapsforge/mapsforge/blob/master/docs/Mapsforge-Maps.md

After you download a map file, place it in the /Android/data/com.sublimis.urbanbiker/files/Documents/UrbanBiker/maps folder, or point the app to the file by using the appropriate function within the app ("Select file or folder").

Is it possible for app to work with offline maps without Google apps installed?

Unfortunately, Google map library that our app uses to display maps (both online and offline) requires Google Play Services to work. We may provide an alternative map library in the future, but it's not our priority at this time.

How to install the latest ANT+ services?

ANT+ services pre-installed on Android phones are often outdated and can cause problems with sensors. Recommended approach is to install the very latest available versions, and these are the versions available from the links below:

If successfull, the version of ANT Radio Service installed on your device should be 4.14.30 or greater, and the version of ANT+ Plugins Service should be 3.6.40 or greater. Please see images below.

ANT+ sensor not working

Please make sure that ANT Radio Service app owns the permission to use ANT hardware. See the image below.

Contact

Why don't you reply to my email?

Please do not hesitate to resend your support request again, if you feel we don't answer quickly enough! This will indicate to us the urgency of the request, and we'll at least provide a short reply explaining why we're unable to give a definite answer at the time.

The most simple requests are usually answered quickly, or within a day. Complex requests usually require us to first do some testing, or examine the source code more closely before we can answer. It can happen that the testing takes quite some time, or even that there's no definite answer in reasonable time.

As new support requests keep coming in every day, sometimes it can happen that we simply forget to answer some of the older requests. This doesn't mean that we ignored them; please don't take us as arrogant if this happens!

Contacting us

If you have more questions, you may contact us at:

https://github.com/Sublimis/UrbanBiker/issues
https://www.facebook.com/UrbanBikerApp
contact@urban-bike-computer.com

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