At this time of year you will no doubt have seen many people driving along with TomTom satnav units stuck to their windscreens. It’s all very nice but it can be a little expensive, so imagine my surprise when the guys at smart2go said, “Hey, we do a mapping system for free!”
I gave it a go and, considering it’s free (you only pay for navigation and city guides), this is a fantastic piece of software. You can select a location based from zip / postal code / city / street or house number in many different countries and there’s a POI (Place of Interest) search which finds places to sleep, eat, drink, shop etc. Also, if you have GPS, you can track your location to help you get around more efficiently.
The first thing I spotted was that it needed to download maps on the fly. Whilst this may be OK for “flat rate” data users, smart2go have identified that some people may want to download the maps on a cheaper connection (over ActiveSync or Wifi) instead of as-you-go. All you need to do is grab their MapLoader software, select the region you want, download the maps, transfer them onto your memory card or mobile device and away you go.
Yes, I’ll admit it’s made by Nokia 😉 .. however it’s slick, easy to use and gets the job done. Read on for more shots and smart2go in action.
Link – smart2go.com
Zoom out and you’ll see the UK, Europe and then the world!
Loads of menu options to play with, including searching the local area for amenities and GPS location
After clicking “Search Nearby” I can immediately find a local pub by clicking “Eat & Drink”
Here’s the result. Pubs, restaurants and lots of burger places for me to try – a real life-saver when you’re hungry 🙂
Other options are available. You can change the voice guidance, city guides, favourites etc.