Pokégear
Pokémon Gear (Japanese: ポケモンギア Pokémon Gia), or more commonly just PokéGear (Japanese: ポケギア Pokégia), is an important item for Pokémon trainers. It looks like a large, advanced, wristwatch, with a symbol resembling an S or a backwards 2 (perhaps the Silph Co. logo) at the top. It was first introduced in Generation II; the Generation III analog to the PokéGear appears to be the PokéNav, while the Generation IV counterpart is the Pokétch.
Functions
The main character of Pokémon Gold, Pokémon Silver, and Pokémon Crystal receives a PokéGear from their mother at the start of their journey. It has several functions, some of which will need to be unlocked during the game by recieving special expansion cards.
Time
The PokéGear displays the day of the week and the time of day, entered at the beginning of the game.
Map
The PokéGear displays a map of Johto and later Kanto.
Phone
The PokéGear will function like a cellphone, allowing the user to make calls to people that they've traded phone numbers with. This allows the player to talk to other characters and learn informaton from them, such as battling tips or when rare Pokémon appear.
| Person | Location | Extra |
|---|---|---|
| Bill | Goldenrod City | Calls when Bill's PC box is full. |
| Bird Keeper Jose | Route 26 | Gives Star Piece. |
| Bird Keeper Vance | Route 44 | Gives Carbos. |
| Blackbelt Kenji | Route 45 | Gives PP Up during random lunch breaks at noon. |
| Buena | Goldenrod City | Crystal only: obtainable after getting 30 Blue Card points. |
| Bug Catcher Arnie | Route 35 | Calls during a Yanma swarm. |
| Bug Catcher Wade | Route 31 | Reminds player of the Bug-Catching Contest. |
| Camper Todd | Route 34 | Reminds player of the Goldenrod City Department Store's bargain sale. |
| Cooltrainer Beth | Route 27 | |
| Cooltrainer Gaven | Route 27 | |
| Cooltrainer Reena | Route 26 | |
| Fisher Chris/Tully | Route 42 | Crystal only: Gives Water Stones. (Note: His name was changed from Chris in Gold/Silver to Tully in Crystal because Chris is a default player name in Crystal version.) |
| Fisher Ralph | Route 32 | Calls during a Qwilfish swarm. |
| Fisher Wilton | Route 44 | Calls during a Remoraid swarm, and gives various Poke Balls. |
| Hiker Anthony | Route 33 | Calls during a Dunsparce swarm. |
| Hiker Parry | Route 45 | Calls during a Marill swarm. |
| Juggler Irwin | Route 35 | |
| Lass Dana | Route 38 | Crystal only: Gives Thunder Stones. |
| Mom | New Bark Town | Saves your money and buys items. |
| Picknicker Erin | Route 46 | |
| Pikcnicker Gina | Route 34 | Crystal only: Gives Leaf Stones. |
| Picnicker Liz | Route 32 | |
| Pokéfan Beverley | National Park | |
| Pokéfan Derek | Route 39 | |
| Professor Elm | New Bark Town | Calls about major events. |
| Schoolboy Alan | Route 36 | Crystal only: Gives Fire Stones. |
| Schoolboy Chad | Route 38 | Calls during a Snubbull swarm. |
| Schoolboy Jack | National Park | |
| Sailor Huey | Olivine City | |
| Youngster Joey | Route 30 |
Radio
The PokéGear functions as a radio. This allows the player to get tips from Professor Oak and DJ Mary on Oak's Pokémon Talk, affect how active wild Pokémon are by playing Pokémon March or Pokémon Lullaby on the Pokémon Music station, or listen to the Lucky Channel to keep track of the Johto Radio Tower's lottery promotion.
| Program | Host(s) | Channel | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professor Oak's Pokémon Talk | Professor Oak, DJ Mary | 4.5 | Talk show discussing locations where semi-rare Pokémon can be found. |
| Pokémon Music | Ben | 7.5 | Broadcasts music, either a march or a lullaby |
| Lucky Channel | Reed | 8.5 | Broadcasts one ID per week; trainers who come to the welcome center with a Pokémon whose ID is similar will win a prize. |
| Buena's Password | Buena | 10.5 | Broadcasts one password per night between 6 PM-12 AM; trainers who come to Buena and recite the password can get points redeemable for prizes (Crystal only). |
| Un(kn)own Radio Station | Unown | 13.5 | If listened to in the Ruins of Alph, strange noises will play. |
Anime
Many characters in the anime own PokéGears:
- Lisa gave hers to Ash so that he could keep in contact with Professor Oak in Spell of the Unown.
- Jimmy, Marina and Vincent all own PokéGears. A plot point of The Legend of Thunder! is that it includes a tracking system to show where the other PokéGear currently is.
- Misty also owns one, so that she can keep in contact with Daisy at the Cerulean Gym.
For some reason, the backwards 2 was removed from the PokéGears in the dubbing of The Legend of Thunder!