FAQ

Contents

General

What do the different colors of the charging station icons on the map mean?

The meanings are listed below:

Icon Charging power

< 11 kW

at least 11 kW

at least 20 kW

at least 43 kW

at least 100 kW

What does it mean if a charging station has an icon with two lightning bolts?

If the icon contains two lightning bolts, the charging site has more than one connector. If a filter for specific connectors or a certain charging power is selected, the icon only applies to the selected types of connectors.

What do the different colors of the connectors mean?

In the detail view of a charging station, the connectors are shown with real-time availability data shown with different colors, as listed below:

  • Green: At least one connector of this type is available
  • Red: All connectors of this type are out of order
  • Teal: All connectors of this type are in use or out of order
  • Grey: No real-time data available

What does the green checkmark next to a charging station’s name mean?

The checkmark is intended to give you an indication on the reliability of the information about this charging station. Remember that this is only an indication and does not guarantee that the charger is still accessible and in working order. Depending on the selected data source, this is implemented in slightly different ways:

  • GoingElectric.de: This charger has been verified by a member of the GoingElectric community, i.e., at least one successful charging session has been reported and there is no current outage report. If a charger is not working, please report it at GoingElectric.de.
  • Open Charge Map: A member of the Open Charge Map community has recently verified this charger by means of a check-in, an edit, or a comment, and there is no current outage report. If a charger is not working, please report it at OpenChargeMap.org.
  • OpenStreetMap: This feature is currently not implemented for this data source.
  • NOBIL: The data for this charging station is either reported to NOBIL directly from the operator or it has been manually updated in the last 6 months.

What is F-Droid and why are there differences between the versions of the app available on F-Droid and the Google Play Store?

F-Droid is an alternative Android app store that focuses on free and open source (FOSS) apps. As per F-Droid’s policies, apps available through its store must not contain proprietary dependencies, such as certain Google services. Thus, the version of EVMap available on F-Droid contains some changes to remove such dependencies. The details can be found in the list below.

Due to the downsides mentioned below, it is recommended for most users to install the app from Google Play to have access to all features. The F-Droid release is mainly intended to provide an alternative means of installation for devices that cannot access Google services or users who would like to avoid them.

Changes in the F-Droid version of EVMap:

  • Map data and place search are solely provided by OpenStreetMap data (Jawg Maps / Mapbox / ArcGIS), while the Google Play version offers a choice between Google Maps and OSM.
  • Support for Android Auto is implemented, but may not work as Google restricts Android Auto support to apps installed from Google Play.
  • Donations are accepted through a PayPal link instead of the Google Play in-app purchases mechanism.
  • The F-Droid version of the app should also work on Android devices that lack the preinstalled Google Play Services.
  • Due to F-Droid’s policies, we have less control over the release of new updates. Updates will typically appear on F-Droid a few days later than on Google Play.

Price comparison feature

Why is the price comparison feature no longer available?

Costs for Chargeprice data access have risen sharply and can’t be covered by donations, so EVMap can no longer show this data directly. For now, the price comparison button links to the Chargeprice website or the Chargeprice app (if installed). An alternative solution is being developed, but it’ll take time and may start with limited features. Thanks for your patience and support!

Permissions

The following permissions are needed by EVMap:

Internet access

Needed to load information about charging stations from the internet.

Location access while running in the foreground

Needed to show your current location on the map and load charging stations nearby. This permission is optional, since Android 6.0 you can decide if EVMap can access your exact (GPS) or approximate (WiFi/mobile network) location or none at all.

The Android Auto and Android Automotive OS apps are not usable without the location permission, because it always shows nearby charging stations.

The app only accesses your location when running in the foreground - starting with Android 10 this is also enforced by the system (a separate permission would be needed for background access)

View network and WiFi connections

Used e.g. by the Google Maps and Google Places libraries to check if there is an internet connection and to adapt their data usage to the type of connection (mobile data or WiFi).

Special permissions for Android Auto and Android Automotive OS

The Android Auto and Android Automotive OS apps need the following additional permissions:

  • Access vehicle data (e.g. vehicle GPS)
  • Run foreground service (to use the smartphone’s GPS in case the vehicle does not provide this data)
  • Android Car App Library Map Templates (to display the user interface using the templates provided by Android Auto)

Google Play Billing service (only Google Play version)

To support in-app purchases for donations via Google Play