{"id":1042,"date":"2010-07-03T05:00:52","date_gmt":"2010-07-03T10:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/?p=1042"},"modified":"2010-07-03T04:01:37","modified_gmt":"2010-07-03T09:01:37","slug":"useful-smart-phone-apps-for-motorists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/2010\/07\/03\/useful-smart-phone-apps-for-motorists\/","title":{"rendered":"Useful Smart-Phone Apps for Motorists"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Yonkers, NY<\/strong> \u2014 Consumer Reports provides a list of useful smart-phone apps for drivers, tested for the major smart-phone platforms, in the August issue of the magazine. Some of the apps are free.<\/p>\n

The full list is available in the August issue of Consumer Reports, which went on sale June 29th. The reports are also available to subscribers of www.ConsumerReports.org.Updated<\/a> daily, www.ConsumerReports.org<\/a> is the go-to site for the latest auto reviews, product news, blogs on breaking news and car buying information.<\/p>\n

CR\u2019s editors stress that motorists should not handle their phones while driving, because that creates a distraction that jeopardizes safety for themselves and for others. Using a mobile phone while driving may have legal consequences as well.<\/p>\n

Car Finder<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> 99 Cents.
\nPhone:<\/strong> IPhone.<\/p>\n

Car Finder uses your phone\u2019s compass and GPS capability to mark the position of your car when your park and then guide you back to it later. It works in parking lots or city streets, but because it relies on the phone\u2019s GPS signal, it won\u2019t work in an indoor garage.<\/p>\n

aCar<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> Free.
\nPhone:<\/strong> Android.<\/p>\n

Once you set it up by entering maintenance-schedule information from the car owner\u2019s manual, aCar reminds you when your car is due in the shop. It even reminds you when it\u2019s time for your car\u2019s annual inspection, and tracks fuel mileage and costs.<\/p>\n

DriveSafe.ly<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> Free or $13.95
\nPhones:<\/strong> BlackBerry and Android; coming for Phone, Palm webOS.<\/p>\n

With the premium version DriveSafe.ly reads e-mail and text messages aloud while you drive and can send a response message saying you\u2019re unavailable. The free version has a limit of25 words per message. The premium version can handle messages of 500 words.<\/p>\n

iWrecked<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> Free
\nPhone:<\/strong> iPhone.<\/p>\n

This simple program takes you through a list of what to do after a car crash, including taking photos of the scene and getting contact and insurance information from other drivers. It will also dial 911 and locate the nearest police station, taxi, or tow-truck service to assist you.<\/p>\n

RepairPal<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> Free
\nPhones:<\/strong> iPhone, coming soon for Android.<\/p>\n

RepairPal helps you find a repair shop and get estimates. If you break down, it will locate a tow truck. After you enter your car\u2019s make, model, and other details, it will give a range of estimates in seconds. It also helps keep records and gives service reminders.<\/p>\n

Magellan RoadMate, Navigon Mobile Navigator, TomTom<\/h3>\n

Price:<\/strong> $70-$80
\nPhones:<\/strong> Magellan and TomTom: iPhone; Navigon: iPhone and Windows Mobile.<\/p>\n

Of the navigation apps CR tested, these stand out. All are easy to use and have features found on better portable GPS navigators. And all let you route to an address from your phone\u2019s contact list. But they\u2019re relatively expensive and require a separate mount, and most new smart phones already come with free navigation capability<\/p>\n

With more than 7 million print and online subscribers, Consumer Reports is one of the most trusted sources for information and advice on consumer products and services. It conducts the most comprehensive auto-test program of any U.S. publication or Web site and owns and operates a 327-acre Auto Test Center in Connecticut. The organization\u2019s auto experts have decades of experience in driving, testing, and reporting on cars. To subscribe, consumers can call 1-800-234-1645 or visit www.ConsumerReports.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yonkers, NY \u2014 Consumer Reports provides a list of useful smart-phone apps for drivers, tested for the major smart-phone platforms, in the August issue of the magazine. Some of the apps are free. The full list is available in the August issue of Consumer Reports, which went on sale June 29th. The reports are also […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[1377,1378,1379,678,1380,1381,1382,1383],"class_list":["post-1042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community","tag-acar","tag-apps","tag-car-finder","tag-consumer-reports","tag-gps","tag-iwrecked","tag-repairpal","tag-smart-phone"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1042"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1044,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions\/1044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paristn.net\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}