Setting up a Totem Compass takes about five steps and one short wait: charge it, power it on, give it open sky until the swirling light stops, Bond with your friends, and go. On Version 5.0, your Compass calibrates itself as you move around, so the old calibration spin is now optional.
If you’re new here: the Totem Compass is a screen-free wearable that helps you find your friends without relying on cell service. Pick a friend, follow the lights, go find your people.
This guide walks through everything from first charge to first reunion, using the same steps as the official Totem Playbook, updated for Version 5.0. It also covers the optional Totem Compass App, software updates, and quick fixes if something looks off.
Watch the Totem Compass Quick Start Video
Prefer to watch? Our Quick Start Guide covers the basics in under five minutes. It was filmed before Version 5.0, so you’ll see a calibration spin that’s now optional (more on that below).
The Four Essentials: What Your Totem Needs to Find Your Friends
Before we get into the steps, here’s the short version. To find your friends, your Totem needs four things:
- A charged battery. Your Totem shows its battery level every time it starts up.
- A friend to find. Bond your Totem with a friend’s Totem so it has someone to guide you to.
- Open sky. Your Totem uses satellites to know where it is. Go outside and wait for the swirling light to stop.
- Current software. Version 5.0 brings Auto-Calibration, longer battery life and a stronger mesh network, so update before your trip.
Nail those, and your Totem does the rest.
What’s in the Box
Depending on the Bundle you chose, you’ll find a Totem Compass, a Skin, and charging for each person in your group. Premium Bundles add a Totem Necklace for everyone.
Attach your necklace or lanyard so your Compass can hang around your neck, hands-free, all day. It’s a small detail that makes a big difference once you’re in a crowd.
Pro tip: flip your Totem over. The QR code on the back opens the Totem Playbook, so the instructions are always with you, even if this page isn’t.
Step 1: Charge Your Totem Compass (About 45 Minutes)
Before your first adventure, plug your Totem Compass into a standard USB-C cable or the Tribe Charger, which charges your whole crew at once. The Touch Crystal glows red while it charges and shows a green light when it’s full, which takes about 45 minutes.
You don’t need to take the Skin off to charge, and every button stays accessible with it on.
Step 2: Power On and Check the Battery Ring
Click the Power Button once to turn your Totem on. The battery level appears as a ring of light around the Totem:
- Full green ring: fully charged
- Partial green ring: medium battery
- Yellow ring: low battery, so charge before you head out
The Touch Crystal (the glowing crystal on the front) also tells you which software you’re running: each software version shows a different Crystal color on power-up. Version 5.0 powers up Sparkly Pink. If yours shows a different color, jump to Step 7 and update.
Step 3: Give It Open Sky Until the Swirling Light Stops
Your Totem uses satellites to figure out where it is. If you can’t see the sky, neither can your Totem.
- Go outside with a clear view of the sky.
- Wait until the swirling light stops. Swirling means it’s still searching for satellites; no swirling means it’s connected.
This usually takes less than 5 minutes. Give it up to 15, especially the first time or in a new location. If it’s still swirling after 15 minutes under open sky, reach out to our team.
Step 4: Bond With Your Friends
Bonds are the connections between two Totem Compasses. Once two Totems are Bonded, each one can point toward the other. Every Totem can hold up to 8 Bonds, and Bonds stay put until you remove them. Bond once, find each other for the rest of the weekend (and the next one).
Bond Your Whole Group at Once
- Get everyone together. Hold or place all the Totems side by side, horizontally.
- Pick a leader. Choose one Totem to be the Primary Totem.
- Begin Bonding. Touch and hold the Primary Totem’s Touch Crystal for 8 seconds, until the ring starts flashing through colors.
- Add the rest. Repeat for each remaining Totem until they all show the same flashing colors.
- Lock it in. Touch and hold the Primary Totem’s Touch Crystal one final time to finish Bonding.
You’ll know it worked when each Touch Crystal locks into its own unique color and all the Bond lights move into the Touch Crystal (you’re standing right next to each other, after all).
Bond One Friend at a Time
Hold two Totems together and press and hold both Touch Crystals at the same time. A blue ring fills, shows the Bond color, and moves into the Crystal. This is also the fix if a group Bond doesn’t take: turn off all the Totems, try the group process again, or Bond them individually.
For the full walkthrough, see How to Bond Your Totem Compass.
Step 5: Let Auto-Calibration Do Its Thing (the Spin Is Optional)
Your Totem needs to know which way it’s facing to tell you which way your friend is. That’s calibration.
Older software asked you to spin in a circle before navigating. With Version 5.0, your Compass calibrates itself passively as you move around in Vibe Mode or Eco Mode. Walk to the stage, dance, wander the campground, and your Totem gathers what it needs in the background.
Manual calibration is still there if you want it: hold your Totem horizontally and spin until you see a bright white flash. It’s a quick fix if your lights ever seem to be pointing the wrong way. You should just need it a lot less.
Step 6: Find Your People by Following the Lights
Your Totem changes depending on how you hold it. Hang it vertically and the Touch Crystal shows your own color. Hold it horizontally and it switches into Compass Mode, where the lights show your Bonded friends.
- A friend’s light on the rim: they’re Bonded and farther away. Turn toward the light and walk.
- The light grows: you’re getting warmer.
- The light shrinks: you’re getting colder.
- The light moves into the Touch Crystal: they’re nearby. Look up. 👀
- A solid light: your Totem is actively communicating with theirs.
- A pulsing light: communication is lost. Their Totem may be off, out of battery, or out of range, so follow at your own risk: it shows where they were, not where they are.
Version 5.0 also tidies up stale Bonds. When a Bond hasn’t sent an updated location in a while, your Compass collects it into the Touch Crystal, where it pulses, instead of leaving an out-of-date light on the rim. The Bond isn’t deleted, and it returns once that Totem is active again. So on Version 5.0, a pulsing light in the Crystal means “stale,” not “nearby.”
Step 7: Download the Totem Compass App (Optional)
Your Totem Compass doesn’t need a phone. Bonding, navigation and SOS all work on the device itself. The free Totem Compass App (iOS and Android) is an optional extra that lets you:
- Update your Totem’s software over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi
- Name your Bonds, pick their colors, and show, hide or delete them
- Rename your own Totem
- See yourself and your Bonds on a map, and navigate offline event maps
- Read the full user manual, even offline
To connect, open the app and double-click your Totem’s Power Button to start Bluetooth pairing.
Step 8: Keep Your Totem Updated
Totem releases free software updates that improve battery life, navigation and the Unity Mesh Network™, the network Totems use to relay messages to each other. The easiest way to update is in the app.
Update on the Go: Bluetooth
- Make sure your Totem is paired to the app.
- Open Compass Settings (the Settings icon).
- Select Firmware Update.
- Select Update with Bluetooth.
- Tap Send to Compass.
Update at Home: Wi-Fi
- Make sure your Totem is paired to the app.
- Open Compass Settings, select Wi-Fi Network, and add your network and password.
- Return to Compass Settings, select Firmware Update, then Update with Wi-Fi.
While it updates, you’ll see a swirling light (searching for the network), then a progress light (installing), then the light fills (success). If it blinks orange instead, use a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network, double-check your password, charge your Totem above 50%, and make sure your internet connection is stable.
Running older software from before Bluetooth updates? Use the HotSpot method in our Software Update Guide one time, and the app can handle updates from then on.
Update every Totem in your group before you leave. Festival Wi-Fi is a myth, and everyone gets the latest improvements.
Troubleshooting: Quick Fixes for Common Setup Issues
- The Touch Crystal won’t respond and slowly pulses red. Your battery is low. Charge it.
- The Touch Crystal ignores you right after you tilt it flat. Give it a couple of seconds in Compass Mode to brighten before you touch it.
- It’s still swirling. Move somewhere with more open sky and give it up to 15 minutes.
- A Bond didn’t take. Turn the Totems off and try again, or Bond them one at a time.
- The lights seem off. Move your phone and other electronics a few inches away, then do a quick manual spin.
Still stuck? Our support team is made up of real humans. Email tribe@totemlabs.com, text +1 423-522-1990, or visit our Product Support page.
Make It Yours: Skins and Accessories
Once you’re set up, make it easy to tell whose Totem is whose. Give everyone a different Totem Skin color, and check out the TotemLoop anti-theft tether if you’d like an extra layer of security in a crowd.
Setting Up Totems for Your Whole Crew?
More than 65,000 people in 80 countries use Totem to find their people. If your group still needs Totems, the Totem Compass Bundle builder lets you customize the best Bundle for your group size, for up to eight people. The bigger the group, the lower the price per person. Want to know how many friends one Totem can find? Up to eight.
And nobody has to front the whole bill: you can split the payment with friends at checkout using Paysquad.
That’s it. Charge, power on, open sky, Bond, go. Less time searching, more time together. 🫶
Already have your Totems? Download the Totem Playbook for offline access.
