All I had to do was update my game.
My coworker tried, but it said it wasn't available for the US.
UPDATE: Battery mode kinda glitchy, still get the black screen when you have phone flipped down while in pocket. But, getting it back to regular screen doesn't let you do anything else. One way of checking is to try and rotate the view of your character/trying to access the menu. If you can't do either then close the app and relaunch.
Power leveled to Level 5 while walking my puppy and hitting multiple PokeStops. You need to be Level 5 to be able to access gyms whether you want to battle other teams who have established themselves at the gym or putting your Pokemon in them. Was able to put a Pidgeot that I caught in a gym. Having one Pokemon gives you 10 coins and I think 100 Exp, didn't really care about the Exp since coins is the currency you need for the menu shop so the p2w aspect of the game