Configuring Oracle Radio Settings

Configure audio, talk and channel shortcuts, iOS background reception, language, distance units, browser location sharing, and appearance settings.

Use the Browser App for account, session, and browser settings. Use the REST API to read or update the authenticated user's account settings; it doesn't select browser devices or grant browser location permission. The iOS background-reception setting is described separately below.

Reading account settings requires radio.settings.read; saving them requires radio.settings.manage. These requirements apply to the Browser App and REST API methods.

Configuring Account and Browser Settings

  • The following steps apply to the browser app. For Android map colors, see map appearance.

    Playback volume, transmission gain, chirps, transcription preferences, talk and channel shortcuts, channel order, transmit-channel selection, distance-unit preference, and the floating Radio-control preference save automatically to your Radio account. Microphone and speaker choices last for the signed-in session. Dark mode, interface language, and the location-sharing preference are saved in the current browser.

    When prompted with Share this browser's location?, select Continue to enable sharing and respond to the browser's location-permission request, or select Not now to leave sharing off. You can change this choice later under Location. Review your organization's location-sharing requirements before enabling it.

    1. In Radio, select Settings icon Settings.
      Settings opens over the current page. You can open it from a channel or another Radio page without navigating away.
    2. Under Audio, select the Microphone, and then select Test microphone.
      Review the Input level while testing. Select Stop test when the test is complete.
    3. Select the Speaker and set Playback volume.
    4. Select the Transmission gain and whether to Play start and end chirps.
      Select Test sound to verify radio playback and alert tones.
    5. Under Audio, turn Transcribe my transmissions on or off.
      This account preference is on by default. Turning it off stops server-generated transcription of your voice transmissions, not recording or playback. Text supplied by a client can still appear. It doesn't change another sender's preference or remove existing transcripts. For unexpectedly missing text, see transcript guidance.
    6. Under Audio, select Talk mode.
      • Push to talk (default): hold the talk control to transmit and release it to stop.
      • Tap to talk: press once to request transmission and press again to stop.
      This preference saves to your Radio account and applies to the browser's Radio page, floating control, and talk shortcut. In either mode, wait for Transmitting before speaking. See the talk steps.
    7. Under Hotkey, select Change, enter one letter or number for the talk key, and select Save.
      Shift remains part of the talk shortcut. Hold and release the shortcut in Push to talk mode; press it once to start and again to stop in Tap to talk mode.
    8. In the same Hotkey section, turn Enable channel shortcuts on or off.
      Channel shortcuts are enabled by default. They apply to the first nine channels in your saved order in the browser, not to mobile app controls.
    9. To remap a channel shortcut, enter one letter or number in its Channel shortcut field. To restore the defaults, select Restore 1–9 shortcuts.
      Use distinct keys for the channels and a different key for push-to-talk. Changes save automatically to your Radio account. Each shortcut follows a position in your channel order, so reordering channels changes which channel that key selects. See channel shortcuts.
    10. Under Location, turn Share this browser's location on or off and review the displayed status.

      When enabled and browser access is allowed, Radio sends this browser's location while the application is open and you are signed in. Joining or leaving a channel doesn't turn sharing on or off. Reported positions can be visible to authorized users and used to evaluate configured geofences. See location sharing.

      If browser access was denied, allow location access in the site's browser permissions, and then turn sharing off and on again. For other status messages, see sharing guidance.

    11. Under Units, set Distance units to Meters, Miles, or Server default.
      The server-default option shows the current default unit. Your selection controls browser map distances and geofence radius displays; stored and API distance values remain in meters. Administrators can change the instance default. A personal Meters or Miles selection overrides that default.
    12. Under Appearance, turn Dark mode on or off.
    13. In Appearance, turn Show Radio control in other applications on or off.
      This account preference enables the floating control on supported pages when your administrator allows it and you have talk permission and a listening channel. See floating controls.
    14. Under Language, select Browser language or choose an available language.
      The choice applies to this browser, not your account or message content. See language settings.
    15. To view the Radio UI version, select About and read Version.
      You can also select Show version in the expanded sidebar. Include the displayed version when reporting a Radio browser problem.
    16. Select Done or press Escape.
    Radio closes Settings and returns focus to the Settings control on the same page. Account and browser settings are saved automatically in their documented scopes.
  • Follow the authentication guidance.

    These operations apply to your own Radio account. Construct requests from the instance's returned endpoint as described in API setup.

    OperationMethod and pathPurpose
    getMySettingsGET /api/v1/radio/me/settingsRead your account's settings object. If no settings have been saved, the object is empty.
    updateMySettingsPUT /api/v1/radio/me/settingsSend a JSON body containing a settings object and an optional Boolean merge, which defaults to true.

    Use the following canonical version 1 fields for account preferences. Defaults are the Radio app's values when preferences aren't set; an empty settings object returned by GET doesn't contain these defaults. Use these fields rather than older top-level aliases.

    FieldSupported valueDefault
    settings.radio.versionInteger 11
    settings.radio.distanceUnit"meters" or "miles"; null uses the instance default for browser distance displaysInstance default
    settings.radio.audio.playbackVolumeInteger from 0 through 10072
    settings.radio.audio.transmissionGain1, 5, 10, or 201
    settings.radio.audio.chirpsEnabledBooleantrue
    settings.radio.audio.transcriptionEnabledBoolean controlling server-generated transcription of the sender's voice transmissions, not recording or client-supplied texttrue
    settings.radio.pushToTalk.shortcutKeyOne uppercase letter or digitT
    settings.radio.pushToTalk.mode"hold" (Push to talk) or "tap" (Tap to talk), used by the browser's talk controls and shortcut"hold"
    settings.radio.channelOrderArray of channel IDs in the browser display orderEmpty array
    settings.radio.channelShortcuts.enabledBoolean controlling browser channel shortcutstrue
    settings.radio.channelShortcuts.keysNine distinct uppercase letters or digits, one for each of the first nine channel positions. Keep the talk key separate.["1","2","3","4","5","6","7","8","9"]

    The following JSON request body sets the canonical account preferences and turns chirps and server-generated transcription off. Before updating existing settings, GET the document and preserve any other nested values you need to retain. The merge is shallow even when merge is true.

    {
      "settings": {
        "radio": {
          "version": 1,
          "audio": {
            "playbackVolume": 72,
            "transmissionGain": 1,
            "chirpsEnabled": false,
            "transcriptionEnabled": false
          },
          "pushToTalk": {
            "shortcutKey": "T",
            "mode": "hold"
          }
        }
      },
      "merge": true
    }

    A successful PUT returns HTTP 200 with success: true, the saved settings, and updatedAt. Self-service responses don't identify another user with userId. There is no corresponding WebSocket settings operation.

    Important

    Merging combines top-level keys, not nested objects. Preserve nested values you want to keep when updating an object. Setting merge to false replaces the stored settings document.

    Read the settings again after an update to verify the saved values. Browser Dark mode and language, microphone and speaker selection, and browser location-sharing choices aren't controlled by these account-settings operations. For errors, see API errors and settings guidance.

Configuring iOS Screen Push-to-Talk

Choose how the iPhone or iPad app's on-screen talk button starts and stops a transmission. This choice applies to this installation and is separate from browser account settings and Android controls.

  1. Open Settings and select Radio & Voice.
  2. Under Screen PTT Button, turn on Enable to use the on-screen talk button.
  3. Leave Tap to toggle talking off for the default hold mode: hold the talk button while speaking and release it to stop. Turn it on to tap once to start and again to stop.
  4. Return to Radio, verify the active channel and connection, and follow the iOS talk steps.

The upgrade switches existing installations to hold mode once. You can then enable tap-to-toggle again; later choices persist, and resetting settings restores hold mode.

These settings apply to the on-screen button. Dynamic Island has a separate background talk workflow. For an unavailable button or unexpected mode, see iOS screen PTT help.

Configuring iOS Background Reception

Use Background Reception to hear incoming Radio traffic while your iPhone or iPad is locked or you use another app. Radio uses the iOS system Push-to-Talk channel and requires microphone access even when you only listen. Be signed in and on duty before enabling reception.

Foreground listening is separate: you can listen while Oracle Radio is open even if microphone access is denied. Microphone access is required to transmit and to use Background Reception or Pocket Mode.

  1. In the Oracle Radio iOS app, select Settings, then select Background Reception.
  2. Review Microphone. If access isn't allowed, select Allow Microphone Access when offered, or grant microphone access to Oracle Radio in iOS Settings.
  3. Turn on Background Reception.
  4. Review Status, then return to Radio and verify the intended channel and connection.

An enabled switch saves your preference; it doesn't prove that Radio is connected or that incoming audio was delivered. An enabled, paired Bluetooth PTT button can also enable the background session. On an iPhone with Dynamic Island, follow the background talk steps.

Closing the app may leave the background session connected. To disconnect it, turn off Background Reception or Pocket Mode. This also disables your Bluetooth talk button and lock-screen Action Button, but keeps the Bluetooth button paired. Turning reception on again doesn't automatically enable those hardware controls.

If you stop hearing your team, keep Oracle Radio open and select Reconnect Background Reception. Review the status and follow recovery steps if it remains unavailable.

In these settings, only your explicit action to allow microphone access or enable reception can request permission. Opening Settings, refreshing the status, or turning reception off doesn't request microphone access.

Configuring iOS Pocket Mode

Use Pocket Mode to hear your team while your device is locked or you use another app. Be signed in, on duty, and connected to the intended channel. Pocket Mode controls the iOS background Radio session, not browser or Android settings.

  1. Open Radio and expand the connection row that shows your duty and connection status.
  2. Turn on Pocket Mode. If prompted, allow microphone access.
  3. Review Status and the intended channel. Connecting… or Not connected isn't confirmation that reception is ready.
  4. If reception isn't restored, keep the app open and select Reconnect Pocket Mode when available.
  5. To stop background reception, turn off Pocket Mode.

Turning Pocket Mode off also disables Bluetooth talk and the lock-screen Action Button, but preserves Bluetooth pairing. Re-enable those controls separately if you need them later. You can also manage reception in Settings.

Changing iOS Appearance

Choose how Oracle Radio looks on this iPhone or iPad.

  1. Open Settings and select Appearance.
  2. Select System, Light, or Dark.

System follows your device's appearance. This choice applies only to Oracle Radio on this device, not to other devices or the Browser App.

Configuring Android Screen Push-to-Talk

Choose how the Android app's on-screen talk button starts and stops a transmission. These device settings are separate from the Browser App's account-saved talk mode and from iPhone controls.

  1. Open Settings and select Radio & Voice.
  2. Under Screen PTT Button, turn on Enable to use the on-screen PTT and Critical Alert controls.
  3. Leave Tap to toggle talking off for the default hold mode: hold the talk button while speaking and release it to stop. Turn it on to tap once to start and again to stop.
  4. Return to Radio, verify the active channel and connection, and follow the Android talk steps.

The upgrade switches existing installations to hold mode once. You can then enable tap-to-toggle again; later choices persist, and resetting settings restores hold mode. Turning off Enable disables the on-screen controls, not a separately configured Bluetooth or hardware PTT button. For unexpected behavior, see PTT help.

Changing Android Map Appearance

In the Android app, the member map follows the app's Light, Dark, or System appearance setting. System follows the device's light or dark appearance. This is separate from the browser's Dark mode setting.

Changing the appearance keeps the current map position and zoom, with member markers and available geofence overlays shown in the new style. For location access, see mobile permissions.

Changing the Oracle Radio Browser Language

Use Browser language to follow your browser's preferred languages, or select an available language for Radio only. Browser-language selection uses English when no supported language matches.

  1. Open Settings, then select Language.
  2. Choose Browser language or an available language. Radio applies the selection and saves it in the current browser when storage is available.
  3. Select Done to return to your page.

An explicit language selection takes precedence over browser preferences. This preference affects interface labels and locale-aware formatting, not your Radio account settings. It doesn't translate channel names, user-entered messages, or transcript content. Transcript translation isn't available in the Browser App; see translation guidance.

If the interface language is unexpected, follow the language guidance.