Documentation

Install the beta

How to join the SpectreNav closed beta on iOS through TestFlight or on Android through the Play Store closed track, and what happens on first launch.

Updated October 31, 2026

SpectreNav is in closed beta on iOS and Android. There is no account to create: everything the app records stays on your phone, and the only thing it sends anywhere is anonymous signal data, which you can switch off. See Data & privacy.

Before you start#

You need:

  • An iPhone, or an Android phone with a Google account for the Play Store.
  • A supported radar detector if you want live radar and laser alerts: a Valentine One Gen2, a Uniden R4, R4W, R8, R8W, R9 or R9W, or a Radenso DS1 or Theia. See Pair a detector. The app works without one for navigation, camera alerts and reports.
  • A data connection on the first launch so the app can download the camera database for your region.

iOS (TestFlight)#

  1. Install TestFlight from the App Store if you do not already have it.
  2. On your iPhone, open https://testflight.apple.com/join/vEX2Fmyx.
  3. Tap Accept, then Install.
  4. Open SpectreNav from your home screen. TestFlight tells you when a new build is available.

Android (Play Store closed track)#

  1. Join the Google Group at https://groups.google.com/g/spectrenav-beta with the Google account you use on your phone.
  2. Watch for the email from the group. It contains the Play Store invite link.
  3. Open the invite link on your phone and accept the invitation.
  4. Install SpectreNav from the Play Store. Updates arrive through the Play Store like any other app.

If the invite link says you are not eligible, check that the Google account on your phone is the one you used to join the group.

First launch#

Welcome page of the first-launch flow
The first page. No account is needed.

The first launch walks through four short pages:

  1. Welcome to SpectreNav: what the app does. No account needed.
  2. Alerts need your location: choose Allow While Using App on the system prompt. Location drives the speedometer, camera and police warnings and directions, and is not shared.
  3. Do you have a radar detector? Choose "Yes, I'll pair it" to pair now, or "No, use GPS alerts only" to carry on with cameras, reports and navigation. You can pair later from Menu → Detector.
  4. Hear alerts in the background: allow notifications so detector alerts and camera warnings reach the lock screen and CarPlay when the app is not on screen.

The last page, You're set, lists what is on. It also carries the "Your data" card: detection accuracy improves using anonymous signal data from your trips, tied to a random device ID and never to your identity. You can opt out any time under Menu → Settings → Data → Data & privacy.

Bluetooth permission is asked for when you pair a detector, not at first launch.

Updating#

The beta ships continuously rather than on a fixed schedule. Install updates when TestFlight or the Play Store offers them; detector support and the camera database format can change between builds. The version and build you are running are on the About screen: Menu → Settings → More → About.

Getting help#

Email support@spectrenav.com (also reachable from About → Contact Support) with your platform, the version and build from About, and the detector model you use. If the problem is a connection or alert that misbehaved, turn on Menu → Settings → Data → Diagnostics → Diagnostic mode, reproduce it, then use Export diagnostic logs and attach the file.