A GPS tracker is unusual compared with an app that only needs your location while you are looking at the screen. Its core job may continue after you switch apps or lock the phone, so Android applies additional rules.
Android considers location access to be in the background when an app obtains current location outside the foreground situations defined by the platform. Modern Android versions require apps to justify and request background access appropriately.
A tracker may also use a foreground service while continuous tracking is active. 'Foreground service' is an Android technical term; it can continue work while the app's main screen is not visible and is associated with user-visible system behavior.
Android lets users choose approximate or precise location for apps that request location. Background precision follows the permission level the user granted. If a route logger only receives approximate location, it cannot manufacture precision that Android did not provide.
For a GPS tracking app whose purpose is a detailed route, precise access is normally the meaningful choice if the user wants that functionality.
Android 8 and later introduced background location limits to reduce battery consumption. Manufacturers may add additional app-sleep and battery-management systems.
This is why testing only with the tracker open on screen is insufficient. A reliable setup test should include locking the phone, leaving it idle, moving with it, and checking whether points continue to arrive.
Menu names differ across Android releases and phone brands, so use the wording on your own device rather than blindly following screenshots from a different year.
The current LocationOf Android app requires precise location to record useful GPS positions. Background location is recommended when you want reliable continuation outside the visible app and after relevant lifecycle events.
For power-management problems, read battery optimization and GPS trackers. Samsung users can continue with Samsung background GPS setup.
Background permission is one part of reliable tracking, not a guarantee. The application still has to use Android's supported location and service mechanisms correctly, the operating system can impose scheduling and battery limits, and the manufacturer may add its own sleeping-app behavior.
That is why a setup checklist should end with a real screen-off test rather than with a screenshot of a permission page. Start tracking, lock the phone, move with it for a while, and inspect whether timestamps continue to advance. Then repeat after a reboot if automatic recovery after reboot is part of the feature you depend on.
If the permission is correct but updates still stop, the next place to look is app-specific battery management rather than repeatedly toggling GPS itself.
Android provides foreground services for work that must continue in a user-noticeable way. Continuous location tracking is a common example. A foreground service is not the same as keeping the application's screen open; it is a system mechanism that lets ongoing work continue while Android presents a persistent indication such as a notification.
From a privacy perspective this visibility is desirable. A legitimate tracker should not depend on hiding its ongoing location activity from the person using the phone. From a reliability perspective it also gives Android a clearer signal that the work is intentional and user-relevant.
If the required tracking notification disappears unexpectedly, that can be a clue that the service or app has stopped rather than that satellite reception suddenly failed.
Once the Android permission model is correct, Samsung, Xiaomi and other manufacturers can still behave differently because of their own battery and app-sleep systems. Do not assume instructions written for a Pixel will exactly match a Galaxy or HyperOS device.
LocationOf should therefore be tested on the actual handset family you intend to rely on. Samsung users can continue with Samsung background GPS tracking; Xiaomi users should see Xiaomi and HyperOS background GPS; Pixel users can use the Pixel guide.
Use manufacturer-specific exceptions narrowly. The goal is reliable authorized tracking, not disabling every battery protection on the phone.