Today’s smartphones pack built-in GPS capabilities that have all but demolished the need for a standalone GPS unit. But what if there was an app for outdoors enthusiasts that turned your smartphone into the digital equivalent of Bear Grylls? That’s essentially what you can expect from ViewRanger, a powerful outdoor GPS app that’s been available internationally, but is just now launching in the U.S.
The $5 app lets trailblazers plan, plot, navigate, record, and analyze their outdoor adventures straight from their GPS-enabled smartphone. It uses Open Source Web maps to provide detailed information on any popular location or alternatively, users can make in-app trail guide purchases on the fly. The trail guides (which cost between 70 cents to $1) are then pinned on the map providing trail descriptions, directions, and pictures straight out of publishers’ guidebooks.
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Routes can be created on the fly via your phone or you can plan one beforehand on your computer using ViewRanger’s Web-based route-planning tool, My.ViewRanger. Your route can then by synced to your phone or you can import routes as existing GPX files.
Twitter addicts will also appreciate the app’s social networking feature, Buddy Beacon, which connects to your Twitter feed and lets you share your pictures and location with your friends. The app works with all iPhone and Android models as well as select Symbian phones. Click here for a complete list of compatible phones.