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GOOGLE
GOGGLES
FREE; IOS 4,
ANDROID
Big G has evolved
into the ultimate
city tour guide.
Simply take a snap
of, say, a landmark,
artwork or signpost
with your phone,
and Goggles will
identify it and show
search results. It
can even translate
snippets of text on
menus to help avoid
dining disasters.
Owners of older
iPhones can use
the Goggles tool
within the Google
Search app.
GLYMPSE
FREE; MOST
PLATFORMS
Whether you’re at
a conference or
a stag weekend,
Glympse is ideal for
keeping track of a
few pals without
anyone outside the
group also knowing
your movements.
Once your friends
or colleagues
have accepted
the invitation,
you can then see
where everyone
is for up to four
hours on either
your computer or
any phone that’s
running the app.
LAYAR
FREE; IOS; ANDROID
Layar shows you
information about
the real world
superimposed
onto a live video
feed from a phone
camera. So, for
instance, you can
ask it to reveal the
location of galleries
as you’re walking
down the street
and it will show up
on the screen, or
show it a picture
of something you
want to buy and it
will take you to the
website where it’s
for sale. Just point
and snap.
TIME OUT
FREE; IOS, ANDROID,
BLACKBERRY
Digital city guides
abound, yet Time
Out shows how it
should be done –
and for free. With
its credible reviews,
itinerary-creation
tool and, crucially,
offline access for
when you’re on
the road, this is the
savvy traveller’s first
port of call. Shame
there are only 13
locations, including
four designed for
visitors rather than
locals. More useful
than crowdsourced
apps like Yelp.
GROUPON
FREE; MOST
PLATFORMS
You probably know
the benefits of this
discount-deal site,
but you can also
sniff out money off
on a hotel or posh
lunch in cities
worldwide with the
app. Specify the city
you’re travelling to
or let the app locate
you. Once paid for,
vouchers may be
redeemed using the
phone itself, with no
need to print. The
snag? You’ll need
to know the local
lingo to check the
small print.
Q
Dear Doc,
What’s the best way to
detangle my life from the
rat’s nest of cables I seem to
constantly have to hoik around
to charge up my various
gadgets while I’m travelling?
GD, London
+
GADGET DOCTOR
Technology expert Alex Pell solves your travel-techwoes
CONNECTED
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Enhance your life on themove
BEST APPS FOR...
A
If carrying fewer gadgets is simply out of the question –
and we assume it is – you have two main options. The first
is a worldwide-compatible device that can share a single
mains-power socket between multiple gadgets, such as the
iDapt i4 (
¤50; idaptweb.com
). This is an elegant little item
which has three interchangeable dockets plus a USB socket
that between them can cunningly re-juice up to four gizmos
at once. The alternative is a portable battery pack, able to
energise one device at a time – useful for festivals. Check out
the swish Veho Pebble SmartStick (
¤30; veho-uk.com
).