CELL PHONES
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Phones
LAPTOPS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Laptops
CAMERAS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Cameras
» infoSync TV » Review Center
» Digital Frontier » Expert guides
» RSS & Alerts » Ask The Editors
Home / Cell phones / Multimedia smartphones
Apple iPhone 3G in-depth look: GPS and location-based servicesBy Philip Berne, 11 June 2008
GALLERY
»
Video review
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
Apple iPhone 3G
Enlarge
GPS is going to be huge on the upcoming Apple iPhone 3G, but maybe not in the ways you think.

It's a Friday night and you're meeting your sister and some of her friends for drinks and dinner after work. You don't want to show up before your sister, but she can't take personal calls at her job. So, instead, you take out your iPhone and look at a map where her picture marks her location. She's still at work, but you notice your friend Dave is nearby at a bar, and the map has a link to a favorable Zagat review. So, you get walking directions and download a picture of the place, then head over.

Most multimedia phones have GPS, but few allow third-party software makers access the phone's location data. All of what we described above is possible, if you had a few different devices (a Helio Ocean, LG Voyager, and a Navigon 7100, let's say). With the iPhone, we expect more integrated GPS software, bringing together some of the most useful features from a variety of location-based services.

We think that Loopt will be huge. Loopt is basically a buddy list with GPS locations. So, you can see where your buddies are on a map. If Loopt links up nicely with the major online social networks, we can see adding all of our online buddies to our Loopt buddy list. The best part is that Loopt is platform independent, so it will also work on other phones, mostly phones from Boost Mobile and Sprint, but more are on the way.

We also see location being integrated into other applications in new and interesting ways. Geotagging photographs is the most obvious example, but surely there is also room for GPS and location in games, as well. We've seen ideas for phone setting profiles that change based on location, turning off your ringer when you're at a movie, for instance. We'd also like to see a Nike+ application that tracks our running (okay, walking) with a GPS breadcrumbs map, including speeds as well as distances.

Navigating with Google Maps is the least interesting application for GPS on the Apple iPhone 3G. We're most excited to see what third-party developers come up with. Tom Tom has already announced support, so surely there will be excellent navigation options for the iPhone. But navigation is only the tip of the iceberg for GPS, which is going to be the killer app for the next Apple iPhone.

Apple iPhone 3G in-depth look:

  • Apple iPhone 3G to go on sale for $200 on AT&T in July
  • Hardware walkthrough
  • MMS, voice dialing and more to come soon
  • Price change will lead to new Apple iPhones
  • Apple App Store will attract talented developers
  • Best Multimedia smartphones
    Name Score Price Carrier
    C
    Nokia N95 8GB NAM 85% $650Unlocked
    Apple iPhone 3G 82% $200AT&T
    Nokia N95 80% $530Unlocked
    Nokia N78 76% $500Unlocked
    RIM BlackBerry Curve 8330 (Sprint) 74% $280Sprint
    Helio Ocean 72% $200Helio
    RIM BlackBerry Curve 8330 (Verizon Wireless) 69% $200Verizon Wireless
    RIM Blackberry Curve 64% $200AT&T
    Nokia N76 60% $500Unlocked
    Motorola Q9m (Verizon Wireless) 58% $130Verizon Wireless
    Click here to see full and advanced chart »
     
     
     
    RECOMMENDED
    Digital Frontier: Gadgets scrutinized
     
    iPhone 3G vs. Omnia vs. Touch Diamond
     
    Bold vs. Xperia X1 vs. Touch Pro vs. E71
    TOP STORIES
    Best 4-16GB multimedia phones
     
    Best 1-2GB multimedia phones
     
    10 best unlocked phones
    Top 15 smartphones
     
    Top 15 cell phones
     
    Hottest smartphones and cell phones coming in August
    CELL PHONE RESOURCE CENTER
    Best phones
     
    Expert guides
     
    Ask the Editors
    » Top 15
    QWERTY phones
     
    All-touch phones
     
    Touchscreen phones
    Business phones
     
    Multimedia phones
     
    Concept phones
    3+ inch screen phones
     
    Wi-Fi phones
     
    More...
    » Search (New!)
    Search by cell phone features
    » Manual comparison (New!)
    Select up to 4 cell phones side-by-side
    » By release
    May 2008, June 2008, Q3 2008
    » Top 15 by carrier
    Unlocked, AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, Helio, Alltel
    » Top 15 by user type
    Average Joe, Business users, Calling addicts, Fashion conscious users, Globetrotters, High-res addicts, Internet addicts, Multimedia enthusiasts, Music aficionados, Outdoor enthusiasts, TV addicts, Video lovers, More...
    » Top 15 by brand
    Apple, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia, BlackBerry, Samsung, Sony Ericsson Other
    » Top 15 by platform
    Palm OS, Symbian S60, Symbian UIQ, Windows Mobile
    » Top 15 by cell phone type
    Business smartphones, Multimedia smartphones
    Consumer QWERTY phones, Multimedia phones
    Concept phones
    NOW IN MULTIMEDIA SMARTPHONES
    iPhone 2.0.1 software update
     
    iPhone 3G problems
     
    Samsung i900 Omnia exclusive in-depth preview
     
    Samsung i900 Omnia exclusive video preview
     
    Samsung i8510 INNOV8 exclusive in-depth preview
    Samsung i8510 INNOV8 exclusive video preview
    Samsung INNOV8 i8510 16GB multimedia smartphone unveiled
    LG Chocolate 3 video review
    iPhone Apps: Reviews of the 6 apps we really use
    iPhone 3G: The world is ready for smart mobile solutions
    NOW IN PHONES
    Sony Ericsson TM506 3G phone with TeleNav for T-Mobile
     
    LG Invision mobile TV phone released by AT&T
     
    Palm Treo Pro is thinnest Palm smartphone to date
     
    iPhone 2.0.2 software update
     
    BlackBerry Kickstart 8220 / 8210 with Webkit browser
    Nokia 8800 Carbon Arte luxury cell phone
    HTC G1 / HTC Dream confirmed by T-Mobile as first Android phone
    What's the purpose of touch screen phones?
    Next 25 stories
    MUST READ
    CELL PHONES
    » Coming soon
    » Top 15
    » Best-rated
    LAPTOPS
    » Coming soon
    » Top 15
    » Best-rated
    CAMERAS
    » Coming soon
    » Top 15
    » Best-rated
    MP3 players
    » Coming soon
    » Top 15
    » Best-rated
    INTERNET TABLETS
    » Coming soon
    » Top 15
    » Best-rated
    GPS NAVIGATORS
    HDTVs
    CAMCORDERS
    About us | Site map | How to advertise | Feedback | RSS Feeds | | Archive
    Copyright 1999-2008 © infoSync World