Device recognition

The device panel #

Tap the › on any device in the list to open its panel: the live signal, what its id tells you, how long ago you first saw it, how many times it has changed id, and two controls — rename and watch.

Stable vs. rotating ids #

The panel tells you whether a device's id is stable (it keeps the same one — many paired accessories do) or a private, rotating address that changes periodically for privacy. On iPhone there's no hardware address at all, just an opaque id. It's an honest read on how trackable a device is by its address alone.

Following a device across id changes #

blep stitches the churn back into one device by the handover: one id goes quiet exactly as a new one appears at the same distance and with the same advertisement signature. The panel shows how many times a device has changed id and how sure blep is, with the list of ids it has worn.

Identify a device #

Tap Identify this device on its panel and blep briefly connects to read its real name, maker and model — turning an "unknown tracker" into "someone's earbuds". It also reads a stable hardware signature (a serial, the device's GATT structure, even its battery), which lets blep re-link a device across its rotating ids even when the signal handover alone couldn't. It connects once, remembers the result, and never pairs.

Renames & flags that stick #

Because of the handover, a rename or a flag follows the device across its rotations — it doesn't reset every few minutes. Watch this device flags one for priority: blep keeps a live scan running and shows a quiet notification for as long as it stays in range (handy for keeping an eye on a suspected tracker). See Background scanning for how that runs.

How long it's remembered #

A device's identity — its name, flag and first-seen — is kept for as long as you keep seeing it, then forgotten on its own. The window is yours to set in Settings → Remember devices (1 to 90 days, 14 by default). It all lives on your phone and clears itself; nothing about which devices are around you ever leaves the device.

What it can — and can't — do #

• •It works within Bluetooth range and while a device is around to be seen — it can't follow something across town or while it's switched off.
• •A device that rotates its id and vanishes for a long time (or while the app is closed) may return as "new" — without watching the change happen, there's no honest way to be certain it's the same one.
• •Everything is computed on your phone, kept briefly, and cleared on its own. See the privacy policy.