Acceleration, App, Compass, Connection, and Location signals in Power Apps
Applies to: 
Canvas apps
Model-driven apps
Returns information about the app's environment, such as where the user is located in the world and which screen is displayed.
Description and syntax
Signals are values that can change at any time, independent of how the user may be interacting with the app. Formulas that are based on signals automatically recalculate as these values change.
Signals typically return a record of information. You can use and store this information as a record, or you can extract individual properties by using the . operator.
Note
The Acceleration and Compass functions return accurate values in a native player such as on iOS or Android, but those functions return zero values as you create or modify an app in the browser.
Acceleration
The Acceleration signal returns the device's acceleration in three dimensions relative to the device's screen. Acceleration is measured in g units of 9.81 m/second2 or 32.2 ft/second2 (the acceleration that the Earth imparts to objects at its surface due to gravity).
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Acceleration.X | Right and left. Right is a positive number. |
| Acceleration.Y | Forward and back. Forward is a positive number. |
| Acceleration.Z | Up and down. Up is a positive number. |
App
Among other properties, the App object includes a signal that indicates which screen is showing.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| App.ActiveScreen | Screen that's showing. Returns a screen object, which you can use to reference properties of the screen or compare to another screen to determine which screen is showing. You can use the Back or Navigate function to change the screen that's showing. |
More information: App object documentation.
Compass
The Compass signal returns the compass heading of the top of the screen. The heading is based on magnetic north.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Compass.Heading | Heading in degrees. Returns a number 0 to 360, and 0 is north. |
Connection
The Connection signal returns the information about the network connection. When on a metered connection, you may want to limit how much data you send or receive over the network. Or, if your app is enabled for offline, you may want to display different information depending on the current sync state.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Connection.Connected | Returns a Boolean true or false value that indicates whether the device is connected to a network. |
| Connection.Metered | Returns a Boolean true or false value that indicates whether the connection is metered. |
| Connection.Sync | Returns an enum named ConnectionSync which holds the current synchronization state for an app that is enabled for offline. |
Below are the enums values available for Connection.Sync.
| Enum value | Description |
|---|---|
| Connected | Your device is connected to the network and your app is ready to work offline |
| ConnectedWithWarning | Your device is connected with a warning. |
| ConnectedPendingUpsync | Some data on your device must be synchronized with the service. |
| ConnectedError | There was an error on the last synchronization attempt. |
| ConnectedRefresh | Your app is currently synchronizing data with the service. |
| NotConnected | Your device isn't connected to the service. |
| NotConnectedWithWarning | The last synchronization warning. |
| NotConnectedPendingUpsync | There are updates on your device waiting to be synchronized. |
| NotConnectedSyncError | The last synchronization error. |
Location
The Location signal returns the location of the device based on the Global Positioning System (GPS) and other device information, such as cell-tower communications and IP address.
When a user accesses the location information for the first time, the device may prompt that user to allow access to this information.
As the location changes, dependencies on the location will continuously recalculate, which will consume power from the device's battery. To conserve battery life, you can use the Enable and Disable functions to turn location updates on and off. Location is automatically turned off if the displayed screen doesn't depend on location information.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Location.Altitude | Returns a number that indicates the altitude, measured in meters, above sea level. |
| Location.Latitude | Returns a number, from –90 to 90, that indicates the latitude, as measured in degrees from the equator. A positive number indicates a location that's north of the equator. |
| Location.Longitude | Returns a number, from –180 to 180, that indicates the longitude, as measured in degrees from Greenwich, England. A positive number indicates a location that's east of Greenwich. |
Examples
In a baseball field, a pitcher throws a phone from the pitcher's mound to a catcher at home plate. The phone is lying flat with respect to the ground, the top of the screen is pointed at the catcher, and the pitcher adds no spin. At this location, the phone has cellular network service that's metered but no WiFi. The PlayBall screen is displayed. The app is enabled for offline and is connected to the service.
| Formula | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Location.Latitude | Returns the latitude of the current location. The field is located at map coordinates 47.591 N, 122.333 W. | 47.591 The latitude will change continuously as the ball moves between the pitcher and the catcher. |
| Location.Longitude | Returns the longitude of the current location. | 122.333 The longitude will change continuously as the ball moves between the pitcher and the catcher. |
| Location | Returns the latitude and longitude of the current location, as a record. | { Latitude: 47.591, Longitude: 122.333 } |
| Compass.Heading | Returns the compass heading of the top of the screen. At this field, home plate is roughly southwest from the pitcher's mound. | 230.25 |
| Acceleration.X | Returns the acceleration of the device side to side. The pitcher is throwing the phone straight ahead with respect to the screen's top, so the device isn't accelerating side to side. | 0 |
| Acceleration.Y | Returns the acceleration of the device front to back. The pitcher initially gives the device a large acceleration when throwing the device, going from 0 to 90 miles per hour (132 feet per second) in half a second. After the device is in the air, ignoring air friction, the device doesn't accelerate further. The device decelerates when the catcher catches it, bringing it to a stop. | 8.2, while the pitcher throws the device. 0, while the device is in the air. -8.2, as the catcher catches the device. |
| Acceleration.Z | Returns the acceleration of the device top to bottom. While in the air, the device experiences the effects of gravity. | 0, before the pitcher throws the device. 1, while the device is in the air. 0, after the catcher catches the device. |
| Acceleration | Returns the acceleration as a record. | { X: 0, Y: 264, Z: 0 } as the pitcher throws the device. |
| Connection.Connected | Returns a Boolean value that indicates whether the device is connected to a network | true |
| Connection.Metered | Returns a Boolean value that indicates whether the connection is metered | true |
| Connection.Sync | Returns an enum value that indicates current sync state. | ConnectionSync.Connected |
| App.ActiveScreen = PlayBall | Returns a Boolean value that indicates whether PlayBall is displayed. | true |
| App.ActiveScreen.Fill | Returns the background color for the displayed screen. | Color.Green |