Visualize the great outdoors with ViewRanger on smartphones

Wednesday 2 August 2006 by Edward.

Pull out your smartphone and take a picture of that secret wilderness waterfall you just discovered and automatically record its location.

ViewRanger from Augmentra (a location-based mapping company from Cambridge UK) is an “immersive” mapping tool for GPS-enabled, mass market smartphones. It is designed for the countryside and displays a 3D panoramic view of your surroundings. This is a great tool for the “occasional” tourist and outdoor traveller.

Maps are available for Great Britain and their national parks.

Richard Bloor of SymbianOne recently interviewed Augmentra’s founders, Craig Wareham and Mike Brocklehurst. ViewRanger, he reports, is available on the Symbian Operating System and the S60 mobile phone platform, used on phones such as Nokia 6630, 6680, and N90. They are in discussion with overseas partners to export their technology. The founders’ goal is “to ensure Viewranger is the off-road satellite navigation system of choice of consumers and outdoor professionals.”

In my correspondence with founder Craig Wareham, he indicates that Canada and North America are attractive (markets) for several reasons — the large ‘non-urban’ spaces in those countries, the potential number of consumers, and simplicity in (business) dealings. A current European mapping project, he adds, is expected to consolidate ViewRanger support for mapping, points of interest, etc. worldwide.

Roger A. Brooks Rule 6 “The Rule of Wayfinding” suggests that ‘Real men don’t ask for directions.’ Sometimes a landmark will have no sign. It may have meaning only to you. Mark your map. Post your smartphone GPS point and photo. Create signage.

Posted in mobile phone, GPS, DURING the visit | No Comments »