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I am searching for the best car locator application. I am using a Sprint HTC Hero. I looked at Car Locator and Car Finder, but there is a lot of negativity in the reviews. Is there a better one? A better App Market search engine would make this process a lot easier
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Are people really that unaware of their surroundings that they can't remember where they parked their car? I've never once not been able to walk right straight to where I left it.
I can forsee 2 times when I would need this app (desperately). When I leave my car parked at the airport for a week (I can barely remember what clothes I wore yesterday lol), or when I'm out downtown with my friends and we bar hop. We never really pay attention to the car's location relative to where we are walking, so we end up having to backtrack to each bar and then back to the car.
But for regular trips to the mall or to the grocery store .... nah, not so much.
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Device(s): Galaxy SII Skyrocket
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Quote:
Originally Posted by powerstroke5000
Hahaha, yes I am that stupid.
I didn't mean to imply that. I just can't imagine not knowing. Everybody is wired differently I guess. I don't put any special effort into it, I just know.
I used Car Matey and had problems with accuracy. I currently use Car Locater (we have giant shopping malls in South Florida and I am always forgetting where I park) and find it more accurate, although not as cute as Matey but I will take function over form.
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Are either of these simple to use. I looked at one of these apps and was pretty much expecting to hit a button and say this is where my car is and later hit a button and have it take me there. Wasn't the case.
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My issue is that I would be far more likely to not punch in to let it know the car location than where I parked.
I think what would work for me would be to have two android phones, one I left in the car with a "Where is my Android" type app on it.
I think a "Where is my car app" in some cases would be real nice if it automatically saved the last place you stopped after going faster than walking pace. You would have to keep your GPS going constantly, but it could work.
Of course, this would be ineffective if you parked at an amusement park or took some other form of transportation from where you parked, so there would need to be an over-ride.
I'm trying Smartpark right now because how little I need it, it's worth the cost (free). It includes a parking meter timer and for those cities with lots of parking ramps it has an altimeter to help you remember which level, too. I haven't had a chance to try that feature.
Carr Matey was too clever and cute for my taste but comes highly rated.
Car Locator is only a touch more serious. I installed the free trial while traveling in Florida last week but not sure it's worth $3.99 for how little I'll use it the rest of the year. I did enjoy the "pinging" radar directing me to my car (but found the arrows, map, and distance in feet or meters more useful).
One thing about car locators, you can only expect them to get you within sight of your car. With Car Locator, I could be back in the driver's seat and it would tell me I have 64 feet to go.
I can forsee 2 times when I would need this app (desperately). When I leave my car parked at the airport for a week (I can barely remember what clothes I wore yesterday lol), or when I'm out downtown with my friends and we bar hop. We never really pay attention to the car's location relative to where we are walking, so we end up having to backtrack to each bar and then back to the car.
But for regular trips to the mall or to the grocery store .... nah, not so much.
Airport parking lots are a big one for me, and major sporting events. The thing is until I saw this thread I never even considered that I would be able to have a car finder, I just look for landmarks and then keep hitting my alarm listening for the horn
I tried Carr Matey, and it was pretty flaky. About 40 meters off on the first try, and the compass needle was all over the place. The second time was better, but there are enough freebies to try that I don't need to mess with this one.
If you do find a freebie that works, donate to the developer; shareware is alive and well.
I didn't mean to imply that. I just can't imagine not knowing. Everybody is wired differently I guess. I don't put any special effort into it, I just know.
I was born with no sense of direction; I can get lost in a walk-in closet. With a good topo map and a compass, I'm fine, but at places like a stadium parking lot, or maybe Disney World, we're talking acres of very similar vehicles. I've come close to dying of thirst on some of those long parking lot "adventures."
I wish I had your directional facility, but at least technology has come to my rescue. Now if I could just come up with someone to help me carry all the gear...
I downloaded Carr Matey for a trip to Columbus, Ohio, specifically for parking at the Zoo. I found it to be quite accurate, which is a good thing since it started to rain very hard as we were leaving and both my kids were extremely tired and cranky.
I am searching for the best car locator application. I am using a Sprint HTC Hero. I looked at Car Locator and Car Finder, but there is a lot of negativity in the reviews. Is there a better one? A better App Market search engine would make this process a lot easier
lol if u have tried that many car finder apps and none find your car.. then i feel much safer on the road knowing u r still in parking lot..just kidding.. i had to say it..cause i have tried one or two of those apps just to see if it works..and none pinpoint.. u would have to be at the mall of america or another huge lot for u to be able to tell the general area ur car may be...
I can forsee 2 times when I would need this app (desperately). When I leave my car parked at the airport for a week (I can barely remember what clothes I wore yesterday lol), or when I'm out downtown with my friends and we bar hop. We never really pay attention to the car's location relative to where we are walking, so we end up having to backtrack to each bar and then back to the car.
But for regular trips to the mall or to the grocery store .... nah, not so much.
umm after bar hopping...i would hope ur car locater would not work....unless said locater directed u to cab or designated drivers car...just sayin...
I like car finder ar. At first I got it to show off augmented reality, but it actually works pretty good. I've tried a few car finders and some were too complicated to use.
This one either points you in the right direction, or you point your camera lens around until an icon tells you where your car is.
It came in handy at a south by southwest in austin and at scarborough faire in waxahachie. Some of you dont know where that is, but neither did I because I'm not from there. Which is why this app came in handy.
I would be interested to know if any of the car finding apps use bluetooth as my phone connects to my car stereo so when the ignition is turned of the phone should know that the car is parked.
I would be interested to know if any of the car finding apps use bluetooth as my phone connects to my car stereo so when the ignition is turned of the phone should know that the car is parked.
You can use spy phone to get car location. Software track people where they go where they are right down to the actually street they are on using a cell phone signal and some software.
Latest version of Car Finder AR has a very nice AR engine, same as Layar. You can also send location to other phones/emails with Car Finder AR.
I'm just looking at the stickied 'best apps' and thought that 'best car finder app' sounded interesting. Looking at the Car Finder AR page on AppBrain it really does look like a cool app.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Baz8755
I would be interested to know if any of the car finding apps use bluetooth as my phone connects to my car stereo so when the ignition is turned of the phone should know that the car is parked.
The description of Car Finder AR includes:
"-Saves location automatically on bluetooth disconnect"
This is so cool, I almost wish I had a use for such an app. But I ride a motorcycle rather than drive a car so I can always find a park close to where I want to be. I never have trouble finding a vehicle that isn't far away. But this is a really cool app that I could mention to anyone that might be travelling to the US and maybe renting a car and visiting places with a HUGE car parking area.
Device(s): Touch Pro 2 never had Android! Can't wait for the EVO. Touch Pro 2 was my 1st smart phone
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Ok so if I park in a garage at work will one of these apps show me what floor I am on and direct me to my car? I always forget what floor I am on and when I 1st got my EVO I had car finder lite. At one point and I never got it to do it again but the one time and I don't know how but I saw a white background with blue checkered squares and there was a rex X on the 5th line and I was parked on the 5th floor. Then every other time I just saw a map I could never get back to that one checkered background with the red x and people think I am crazy and maybe the red x being on the fifth line had nothing to do with me being parked on the 5th floor but I though if it did how cool is this app. But anyway I need a find my car app and will pay if it's good but I didn't want to get find my car lite again just yet. If there's a better one out there than I would like to try it and it looks like there's a few people are recommening. So maybe I'll try one tomorrow but if one really could tell me the floor I was on plus my spot that would be a plus and I don't mind paying. Thanks,
Device(s): Touch Pro 2 never had Android! Can't wait for the EVO. Touch Pro 2 was my 1st smart phone
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Had find my Car Lite before and liked it. Now I'm using the free app from Amazon car locator and don't understand how to really use it. I maytry this one thanks there is a demo and if I like it I don't mind paying for an app occasionally. Heck I've gotten so many free ones off Amazon.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kb961
By Far the bes one is Where's My Car by Swello. They have another app called Car Tool Box That does even more you should look at them!
Losing my car at the airport is something I have done only one time. It was so traumatizing that now I jot down the section in the garage (ex Red-A12) in a note pad the minute I park - and when I return from my trip a week or two later, I know where to go. When you travel as much as I, its hard to know what city/airport you are in, let alone where your car is...
Hi guys, this is just to inform you that we have just released Car Hound a new car finder application for Android. It has all the usual ways to save your parking position plus a completely new way: the Parking prediction. Substantially when you leave home you can turn on this feature and Car Hound will automatically detect where and when you parked your car with no other interaction needed from you. Of course you can schedule starting and end time of the prediction. You plan it once and it will work just when you need it.
It is available in the Android Market in two versions:
- the trial one ( http://market.android.com/details?id=com.mousedogstudios.carhound.trial works for 7 days)
- the commercial one ( http://market.android.com/details?id=com.mousedogstudios.carhound ) available for the whole november 2011 for a special price. If you have any questions about it feel free to check our website Mousedog Studios where you can find extensive infos and our contacts. Cheers!
The Mousedog Studios team
Last edited by mousedogstudio; November 16th, 2011 at 10:13 AM.
Reason: Wrong urls
Device(s): Touch Pro 2 never had Android! Can't wait for the EVO. Touch Pro 2 was my 1st smart phone
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Mine is called Car Locator but I used a different one my EVO 4G. The one i had actually had a while background and had an X on the 5th line and I was parked on the 5th floor of the garage and I never got it to do that again. That screen never came back up but I usually remember my spot just not the floor so I ask my assistant to keep it for me in my notebook and when I get off work he tells me parked on what floor. But I may try car hound. The 1st link nothing was there the 2nd link it took me to Market.
Glad to hear that. And we would be happy to know your impressions, expecially about the innovative Parking Prediction feature (we're very proud of it).
Cheers,
the Mousedog Studios team.
The Following User Says Thank You to mousedogstudio For This Useful Post:
I use to use Where did I Park? because it had the one feature I was looking for: It would detect when I removed the phone from the car dock, turn on the gps for a couple seconds to get a position, and then turn it back off. It is rare that I need to use a car finder application, and I only realize that when I am looking for the car, not when I am parking it. So, I never remember to activate it when I leave me car.
Unfortunately it is no longer supported and hasn't worked properly in a a while. Do any of the current applications have this feature?
I use to use Where did I Park? because it had the one feature I was looking for: It would detect when I removed the phone from the car dock, turn on the gps for a couple seconds to get a position, and then turn it back off. It is rare that I need to use a car finder application, and I only realize that when I am looking for the car, not when I am parking it. So, I never remember to activate it when I leave me car.
Unfortunately it is no longer supported and hasn't worked properly in a a while. Do any of the current applications have this feature?
Interesting consideration, thank you Rotor Head.
I can say that, althought Car Hound hasn't (yet) the car docking sensing, it does focuses on the use case you described: you don't want to be forced to remember, when you're parking, to activate some function on your smartphone. You want to live your life. BUT, sometimes, you need your smartphone to remember for you where you've parked.
That is exactly what we addressed with the "parking prediction" feature: it uses other means (not the car docking but the gps) to understand when you've parked. So the parking position is there, ready for you if you need it.
One last thing: you can be sure we'll not discontinue our app's support (we're a software house dedicated to mobile development, it's our daily work).
Kind regards,
the Mousedog Studios Team
Last edited by mousedogstudio; November 22nd, 2011 at 04:34 AM.
Reason: Typo
The parking prediction sounds interesting. I am a bit concerned about battery life if I want it to be generally available. Also, how does the algorithm handle roller coasters?
The parking prediction sounds interesting. I am a bit concerned about battery life if I want it to be generally available.
From what we've observed so far, the battery usage is not so heavy. It's less then the navigator, for example.
Besides this, to improve the energy saving we implemented an additional working mode for the parking prediction: the working intervals. With this mode you can set several periods of the day (starting and stopping hour) applied to several days of the week. The parking prediction works only in those time periods.
This way you can teach Car Hound when you take the car: for example when you enter office, when you return home, have lunch, go shopping, and so on.
No energy wasting in other moments.
Last edited by mousedogstudio; November 22nd, 2011 at 07:55 AM.
There are a few ways this app is different from others on the market (most of which are also quite good)
First, it uses a 3D arrow to point you in the direction of your vehicle no matter how you hold your phone. So basically if you hold your phone in front of you perpendicular to the ground you get an arrow pointing out into space in the direction you need to travel. It also has a target floating out in 3D space that grows larger or smaller depending on how close you get to your saved location.
Second, most functions and information are contained on the main screen as well as buttons that can center the map display on your current location or that of your car.
Third, a very capable free version that never expires. The paid version allows for multiple locations to be recorded and retrieved as well as shared with people in your contacts via email or SMS. Both the free and the paid can post your location to Facebook.
I wrote the app so I am a bit biased but I feel the 3D directional arrow really sets it apart.
There are a few ways this app is different from others on the market (most of which are also quite good)
First, it uses a 3D arrow to point you in the direction of your vehicle no matter how you hold your phone. So basically if you hold your phone in front of you perpendicular to the ground you get an arrow pointing out into space in the direction you need to travel. It also has a target floating out in 3D space that grows larger or smaller depending on how close you get to your saved location.
Second, most functions and information are contained on the main screen as well as buttons that can center the map display on your current location or that of your car.
Third, a very capable free version that never expires. The paid version allows for multiple locations to be recorded and retrieved as well as shared with people in your contacts via email or SMS. Both the free and the paid can post your location to Facebook.
I wrote the app so I am a bit biased but I feel the 3D directional arrow really sets it apart.
Just installed this on my phone, look really interesting, but I haven't tried it yet so I really can't recommend it. If it works as stated it will be the best to find a car though...
I can see how if this works it will be a super useful app!
Just installed this on my phone, look really interesting, but I haven't tried it yet so I really can't recommend it. If it works as stated it will be the best to find a car though...
I can see how if this works it will be a super useful app!
Let me know if you have any issues and I'll do my best to work them out.
as we live in a crowded place there are usually very few free parking slots around our flat, especially in the late hours. So what happens from time to time is that my wife has parked the car the day before - and I have no clue where to look for it (or vice versa).
I have found car finder apps that can actually share the location, but ...
* I don't want to send a 15 cent SMS each time I park the car
* My wife doesn't want to copy the location out of an email into the car finder app manually
We both have an android smartphone and they are actually connected to the same google account. So "marking the spot" in google maps would work well - but doing that takes about 30 seconds or more which is way above the "womens acceptance factor".
But I could imagine that there is an app around that can "mark the spot" on google maps for me just by starting it. You could use an app like tasker to start the marking app whenever your phone disconnects from the car dock.
Sounds a little complicated, doesn't it?
But hey they call them SMARTphones, don't they?
Carrr Matey used to work on my Atrix but stopped. I always get the errors "no gps signal" and "your current location reading is not accurate enough" even though it pinpoints my location perfectly to within a couple of feet. carrr matey refuses to recognize that my GPS location is correct and so will not let me drop anchor. My Atrix’s GPS seems to be fine but in carrr matey, the blue dot never does stop blinking. I will try a couple of the apps on this thread.
What is the best car finder application?
Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch, CM9 ROM
