Sponsors of GoodMaps Outdoors
Guide Dogs, Australia
The Seeing Eye, United States
Features of GoodMaps Outdoors
- Four main tabs are easy to access at the bottom of the screen: Routes, Location, POIs and Settings.
- A unique GoodMaps Outdoors feature: Record a route using breadcrumbs, called Waypoints. No other accessible app has this. You can add these waypoints with the add button or you can shake the phone to create a Waypoint. It also automatically records a point after you have gone a certain distance. These Waypoint routes can be saved for future use.
- The Lookaround Wand in the top right tells you what is around.
- The More Info button gives the altitude and speed.
- Create your own POIs and share your POIs with others or keep them private with a shortcut on the Location page or from the POIs page.
- POI categories are announced with search results and make finding your destination easier.
- Audio tones and vibrations give feedback throughout the app, letting you know about upcoming turns, critical intersection information, and when search is loading.
- A robust route menu includes multiple methods of choosing a destination, from starting with a POI, an address from your contact list, your route history, and many more!
- Settings include many customization options like: vibrations, vision contrast, color settings, and distance units.
- There are announcement options like right, left, clockface or both.
Rich Outdoor Navigation Features
For the avid outdoor traveler, GoodMaps Outdoors has comprehensive features whereas GoodMaps Explore has basic outdoor features with accurate indoor features. The following list some of the GoodMaps Outdoors highlights.
- Instead of multiple layers of menus, the three important navigation elements are on the lower portion of every screen: Route, POIs, and Location.
- At intersections, the street name and direction of travel are announced.
- Intersections are described (e.g. four-way) with the clock face orientation of the streets.
- Directions are configured appropriately for pedestrian and vehicle routes, including heads-up announcements for approaching turns, turn now, continue straight and upcoming turns.
- If one wanders off the route, it is automatically recalculated and updated turn information is announced.
- Point your phone in a direction to hear what is nearby with the LookAround Wand.
- Nearby Points of interest and intersections are automatically announced based on your proximity to them.
- Outdoors has built-in route creation with options for pedestrian, vehicle, bicycle and getting warmer.
- There is an Uber button and a nearby Aira location button.
- Outdoors is available in English plus five other languages and is expanding to additional countries.
- Many of the announcements have sound events to distinguish them and to trigger a Bluetooth headset to wake up. For example, nearest intersection - if you are moving, the nearest intersection is announced ahead. If you are stationary, the nearest intersection is announced either in front or behind.
“It is better to travel hopefully than to arrive and visual assistance is just one click away."
