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GeoFences in need of improvements before it’s a go-to location app

Review for GeoFences

Posted September 14, 2010 7:20am by Dan Kricke Tags: productivity

APPOLICIOUS ADVISOR RATING:

2 of 5 bars
  • PRICE: $0.99
  • TASTY: Handy way to remind yourself to stop at the store as you pass it on your way home from work.
  • BUMMER: No ability to set a radius for the alert, and very difficult to actually map a location unless you know the exact address.
  • COOL: Ability to name your locations helpful in remembering why you wanted to stop at the store in the first place.
SIMILAR APPS:

GeoFences (99 cents) is a novel concept that would be a must-have iPhone app if not for a number of issues that hold it back. I can’t think of a more useful app for my own personal scatterbrained lifestyle than an app that tells you when you’re near a point of interest that you need to stop at. Unfortunately, Geofences makes it so difficult just to set the point of interest that only those with extreme patience would follow through.

The layout to GeoFences is sparse, to say the least. You’re given the ability to type the name of your alert, the location for the alert, and activate it. You’ll have to know the exact address of the spot you’re trying to get to, however, because typing in “Jimmy Johns, Chicago, IL” doesn’t bring up a map of several Jimmy John’s locations to choose from, it simply puts a spot on a random point in Chicago.

An update that lets you search for the spot to place your alert would make GeoFences instantly more useful.

What’s more, even if you know the address of the place you’re trying to get to, there’s no option to  select a notification radius. Unless you’re practically already at the location, you’re unlikely receive a notification. Even when I was sitting right on the location, I’ve missed a notication once or twice.

Again, this is one of the more useful app concepts I’ve seen. I love it in theory and would very much like for it to be more user-friendly, but it’s difficult to recommend it in its current state. At this point, GeoFences could only be recommended based on its potential. A few small updates could make this the killer app it yearns to be.

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