So, you just checked into the hotel and you want to find out where the best place is for Chinese food in the immediate area. You can either go to the front desk and ask them; ask a local cab driver—who might ride you around forever; or check your favorite app.
I vote for checking the app. You can get great information about prices, cuisine and locations (in case they have more than one). Or, let’s say that you want to go work-out at the nearest gym. An app can take you to the closest or to your favorite place. [Your choice.]
Finally, what if you’re late and need to get to a conference or nearby attraction post haste? An app can help you choose the best route. There are several apps on the market that could easily perform each task. However, Google has actually evolved into an all-in-one product that can do all of them surprisingly well. I’ve used it for all of the tasks and it flows effortlessly from navigating to displaying information about a particular business in the mobile browser. Best of all, it talks to you!
Using voice commands, you can ask the interface questions and in certain instances it answers back. The closest thing to artificial intelligence I’ve seen.
You can still buy devices like the Garmin or TomTom specifically for navigation; or use apps like ‘Around Me’ or “YP” (Yellow Pages) to find a business or a restaurant. But, if you have a phone that has limited storage and memory, like I used to—Google is a great versatile application for getting the basic results.
Around Me gets more detailed with categories of businesses and it updates real-time as you move about. YP, in my opinion, goes a bit further. Though it updates when you refresh the app, it shows you a lot of great additional information about the store or restaurant, along with TripAdvisor ratings, hours of operation and related photos others have associated with the location. It has a slider that you can use to determine the distance you want to search. You can also add your own photos and comments or write a review!
I think the best thing ever is that both Around Me, and YP tie into the Google Maps application. This allows for great synching with one of the few real time mapping programs available and is standard software with your cell phone.
A word of caution however. Though technology has come a long, long way, cell phone GPS (Global Positioning System) has been known to lose signal when traveling in areas with tall buildings. It has happened to me while riding in a city between tall buildings. The standard GPS device—like the Garmin or TomTom, that was mentioned earlier is less likely to do so. It normally comes back once I drive around a little or get in an area where there is less obstruction by tall buildings, but it’s still distracting and you may end up driving beyond your destination. Sometimes, you can download directions or instructions to you phone in case a signal loss occurs; and that can be very helpful.
Overall the apps work flawlessly and are very helpful. I’ve saved a lot of time using them when traveling to areas I wasn’t familiar with. Especially when traffic is backed up, The GPS makes navigating alternate routes a lot easier.
NOTE: Using the GPS and other apps can cause the phone battery to drain quickly. So, just remember to bring your charger!
Well, hopefully the tips mentioned were helpful. Please remember if you need tickets or reservations, check www.MilitaryFares.com. Then, turn on that GPS app or device and let’s start exploring!
