Entertainment & Recreation
In the field of entertainment and recreation apps that use the smartphone GPS we find some applications that directly compete with existing dedicated GPS devices and some applications that create whole new categories of tools that can only be possible with the convergence of elements offered by the smartphone.
Geocaching is a popular pastime that uses a GPS to find “geocaches” that might contain a logbook or small trinkets for trading. Typically people will use handheld GPS devices for geocacheing, but as the GPS and battery life in smartphones gets better, more people are looking at geocacheing smartphone apps to replace the handheld GPS. As with the PNDs, the advantage with the smartphone app is not needing to carry a second device. However, in some situations, the geocacher may want to use a dedicated device with a longer batter life designed to handle rough handling outdoors and inclement weather. These same handheld GPS devices are typically designed to be used by other outdoor sportspeople as well, such as hunters and fishers.
Smartphone applications are also being developed to help with athletic training. The My Tracks application will let you map your training route for running or cycling and track your time, speed, distance, and elevation. Like other dedicated GPS devices, the dedicated cycling or running training devices have additional features for the serious athlete such as heart rate monitors and cycle cadence, that many people may not need.
Games developed specifically for GPS enabled smartphones allow the player to interact with a virtual world superimposed on a real-world map. One such game, Parallel Kingdom, places the player within a virtual city, surrounded by monsters, gold, and other players. Imagine walking down the Ave, holding up your smartphone, and seeing dozens of creatures advancing toward your avatar. In another GPS-based game application, Own This World, the player gains territories by entering them (the territory corresponds to your GPS detected location). If the territory is “unoccupied” by other players, you can claim it as your own. If other players are present, you may build your armies by waiting (they grow every thirty seconds you are in the territory) and waging war against your opponents with the goal of winning that territory.
Perhaps the biggest growth area in personal applications for GPS in smartphones is in applications that use the GPS in conjunction with the camera. The quality of the camera in some smartphones now rivals the typical point-and-shoot digital camera of just a few years ago. The addition of the GPS and the automatic geotagging of photos adds a layer of metadata that is not only useful for the individual, but creates the possibility of new kinds of visualizations. One such visualization is the Flickr Places tool, which will place geotagged photos on a map for searching and browsing. Currently, very few point-and-shoot cameras have GPS built-in and you need to buy an add-on unit for digital SLRs to get the same GPS and geotagging function that is in just about every smartphone.
The range of personal GPS applications on smartphones is growing almost as fast as sales of new phones. With the enhanced capabilities of newer phones with better (and more) cameras and other sensing devices, the limits to art, entertainment and creative applications of GPS data are almost endless. We will, however, need to find a balance between convenience and our concern for privacy and security.
