Pulse Troubleshooting

The First things to try or know that will most likely solve your issue or will help our team better support you via email:

1. Make sure your camera and lens are both set to 'M-Manual'. Enable remote control in your camera settings (if applicable) and disable autofocus.
2. Pulse controls camera settings, time lapse, exposure ramping etc. using Bluetooth Low Energy. Pulse transfers images and histogram info using Bluetooth Classic. If you're having problems with transferring images, submit a bug report to our engineering team as described below and we'll look into it! In the meantime, toggle image transfer to 'Off' and you'll be able to use all other features in the app once connecting.
3. It helps to reset the bluetooth data cache if there are connection issues. Best 3 ways to do this: 1: fully close and restart the app and power toggle your Pulse/camera. 2: Turn your bluetooth on/off. 3: 'Forget' Pulse in your phone's Bluetooth settings. Pulse pairs automatically in the app. For more information on this last tip, see below under 'Connection Issues.'
4. Switching between Photo (M) and Video modes will currently mess up the bluetooth connection. We're working on this. In the meantime, start your Pulse, Camera, and App up using the mode you're currently working in, and restart the system if you switch modes (for example: turn off Pulse and close the App before switching your camera from Video to Manual, then turn Pulse back on and open the app).
5. If your camera has a USB 3.0 port, you will have been shipped a USB Micro cable. This cable fills half of the port but supports full compatibility between Pulse and your camera. For a bit more info on this, head over to our Cable Checker.

Having trouble connecting to Pulse? Try these 5 steps: 

1. Make sure your Pulse is charged. Having trouble with charging? Click here.
2. Turn Pulse On.
3. Go to your phone's Bluetooth settings. Make sure Bluetooth is turned On.
4. Select "My Pulse" and press "Forget Device." This only applies if Pulse shows up on your Bluetooth menu.
5. Fully close the Pulse App. Android: do this in your phone's settings. iOS: double tap the home button and swipe up on the Pulse App.
6. Reopen the Pulse App.

Still not connecting? Fill out a bug report, and/or shoot us an email!

The Pulse App has a bug reporting feature that allows you to run through the issue you're having in the App, and submit the resulting code directly to our Engineers! Follow the directions below to submit a report so our Engineers can fix the issue.

1. Screen 1: Open Settings in the Main Menu.
2. Screen 2: Click Debug button to 'On' (highlighted blue).
3. Recreate whatever issue you were having in the app.
4. Once issue is recreated, navigate back to Screen 2 and click 'Submit a Bug.'
5. Screen 3: Enter your information and hit Submit! Our engineers will take a good hard look at the resulting code from using Pulse with your phone and camera :)

• Make sure your Bluetooth is turned on and Pulse has a charged battery
• Select 'Forget Device' in your smartphone's Bluetooth settings. This allows Pulse to pair correctly in the app.
• Navigate to 'Devices' in the Pulse App. Pull down the page to refresh and search for Pulse devices. Click to the bubble to disconnect/reconnect with detected Pulses.
• Turn Pulse On/Off, leaving Off for at least 5 seconds to reset.

• Enable your camera for 'Remote Control'
• Set your camera and lens to 'M-Manual'
• Make sure your camera is connected securely to Pulse via USB
• Make sure you have a Bluetooth connection in the Pulse App (you'll also see the BT icon highlighted in white on the top menu of your smartphone)
• Check to see if there are any other Bluetooth devices nearby interrupting connection with Pulse and your camera
• Make sure you are within 100 yards of Pulse and your camera

• Set your camera and lens to 'M-Manual'
• Pulse is not able to retrieve settings (like Aperture) from fully manual lenses
• Refresh your Pulse connection in 'Devices'. This will allow Pulse to reset and reconnect to the camera.

• Thumbnail image transfer takes 3-5 seconds depending on how fast the camera can save the image to the SD card. This time is also affected by the physical distance between your Pulse and your phone/device. To see histogram data, swipe right on the image.
• Images and histograms are transferred with Bluetooth Classic. The app will prompt you to pair with Pulse when you first open the App, but if that does not work for whatever reason, you can also connect to Pulse from your phone's bleutooth settings. 
• If all else fails, turn Bluetooth on/off on your phone, turn Pulse off (for at least 5 seconds to reset), and turn your camera on/off. 

• Make sure your USB cable is secure between Pulse and your camera. Pulse is holding your shutter open, and needs to maintain a reliable connection!
• Give your camera time to save the image between long exposures. You may experience delays if you attempt to trigger long exposures before your camera is ready.
• Certain Nikon cameras have limited features due to USB limitations. For more information, see our Camera Compatibility page.

• Set a good exposure before triggering your HDR image. Pulse will under and over expose around this beginning exposure based on what you set in the app.
• Your camera needs to be fast enough to save the long exposure images before getting triggered to take the next.
• Check you have access to camera settings in the App. Pulse needs to change your camera's exposure between images and won't be able to do so if it doesn't have a reliable connection.
• Certain Nikon cameras have limited features due to USB limitations. For more information, see our Camera Compatibility page.

• Your Pulse does not need to maintain connection to the App to carry out the uploaded exposure ramp time lapse. If you need to change the settings during the time lapse, you can reconnect to Pulse in the App and adjust the exposure ramping settings. 
• If your time lapse interval is less than 5 seconds, we do not recommend attempting to transfer images or histogram data. The camera is unable to be triggered while transferring this data, and images in your time lapse sequence may be missed

• For Canon cameras, make sure to switch camera settings to 'Video' mode. Certain Nikon cameras are able to switch automatically through the App.
• Check your camera's video capabilities when attempting longer videos. Some cameras overheat when shooting high-quality video for extended periods of time.
• Certain Nikon cameras have limited features due to USB limitations. For more information, see our Camera Compatibility page.

• Pulse takes ~6 hours to charge and has a 24 hour battery life.
• Your Pulse LED will blink twice every three seconds when charging, and hold Blue when fully charged
• The current battery level is shown in the upper-left corner of the App when Pulse is connected.