Android Phones, Smartphones & Social Media – Have Apps, will Travel
Going ga-ga for clickable travel technology in 2010
Forget pocket guides that aren't so pocket-sized - not to mention out of date. For 2010, we want a bright, shiny and new travel guide that fits in our cell phone. And we want it packed with up-to-the minute reviews.
Have apps, will travel - better!Imagine traveling to a city you've never been before. You want to jump into the local vibe and soak up the flavour. Point your cell phone camera and watch the street before you become layered with information. Hotel and restaurant reviews, directions to tourist attractions, historical information - even the daily special at that cute jewellery store on the corner.
Pulling information from a plethora of social networks, Augmented Reality (AR) pinpoints your location using your phone's internal GPS and matches it up with the compass and viewfinder. What you receive is a clickable roadmap.
Android phones were released last year and are described by some as the iPhone on steroids. Sign me up! We know it's a Google effort to knock iPhone and BlackBerry off the podium, but who cares. According to Google employees who are "dogfooding" the device right now, it's the phone that makes you forget any other phone.
Motorola, T-Mobile and iPhone are jumping in with their
Google Android Phone own cool android apps that will change how you travel. BlackBerry seems to be asleep at the wheel on this one...
Want to download your android apps before your next trip? Check out these:
Wikitude World Browser - Community-written reviews give background information on noteworthy sites within your phone's field of view. Free on Android phones and iPhone 3GS.
Monocle - Built from the mountain of content on Yelp, text boxes supply names, phone numbers and ratings of restaurants nearby. Free on iPhone 3GS.
Nru (Near You) - Zagat's virtual compass positions you at the center of the picture and points out Zagat-worthy restaurants within a specified radius. Tap on the restaurant to read reviews, menus and prices. Free on Android phones and coming soon to iPhones (also free).
Layar - This fully-loaded AR browser allows you to access information from Google's local search, YellowPages.com and a multitude of other partners. Available now on Android phones; coming soon to iPhone 3GS - free.
Robotvision - Another sweet AR browser, this time from Bing, pulls information from Bing's local search, Flickr and Twitter that are geo-tagged and maps them right to where you're standing. Available on iPhone 3GS, $1.
Future-minded Apps
Family Finder - Traveling with a family member who wanders? Scan your surroundings with your smartphone's camera and icon will appear in the missing person's phone - a gentle reminder that you've been separated.
TwittARound - Can't get enough of Twitter - even when you're traveling? Scan the landscape with your phone and people twittering nearby will pop up on your screen. Talk about a great way to meet people while traveling!
Wikitude Drive - Say buh-bye to your GPS. This app will give you turn by turn directions with arrows layering over the phone's real-time camera view. Driving alone? The directions are called out by a voice so you can keep your hands and eyes on the wheel. Eventually developers hope to use visual recognition technology to read street signs and even point out empty parking spots. Suh-weet!
Comments
Android is the best company.
TwittARound is available in
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