Turn-by-turn mobile navigation services are now offered by all four of the major North American carriers for a monthly fee. And while it may seem like you're getting real-time traffic information, that's not entirely true.
Noam Bardin, CEO of Waze, a mobile navigation application company, says traditional navigation systems are way too expensive and essentially worthless when it comes to providing vital information regarding real-time road conditions.
"The things that affect us on our daily commute are really temporary," Bardin says, adding that most map data is updated every six months. Bardin says that if there's a three-month construction project in your area, traditional turn-by-turn will continue to route you through that area regardless of slow moving traffic. "Three months is not a resolution that these established map companies are going to be able to handle."
As for expense, whether you choose to go with the monthly subscription service provided by a carrier, which on average runs about $10 per month, or invest in a separate portable unit to keep you on track, things can get a little pricey. In fact, a recent Navigon iPhone application lists for $69.99.
So what’s the alternative? Bardin thinks he’s got a solution to all of that with Waze, a free community-based navigation application that allows users to collect and report real-time road and traffic conditions and share them with a larger community of Waze users. The application is dependent on interaction from its users, and Bardin concedes that it needs users for the software to mature.
"That's the biggest challenge we have. Waze is a community application and it takes time for it to mature. But anyone who uses the app is actually participating,” Bardin says, noting that just by driving around with their phone on, users are collecting map data for the system.
On a higher level of participation, however, users actually report things that are happening in real-time with pictures and geo-tags. At the highest level of involvement, a user can be given editing and approval permission for an entire town or city. Users can earn these privileges by racking up points that are awarded for participationm
“People ask to become area manager. They basically take responsibility where they are the big cheese for their town or city,” Bardin explains.
Bardin says he’s already seen success in Israel, where the application has already been downloaded over 150,000 times on the Android platform. He says in Israel, the application has achieved critical mass.
The application is being offered in the United States on Android, and the company recently added an iPhone app, which is the fourth most popular navigation application at the Apple App Store.
Bardin says that Android was the most logical first step, as the platform provides a speedy time to market. He hopes the application will eventually be available on BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and Symbian platforms as well.
Does the company worry that drivers will attempt to send updates while driving? It has a solution for that. “We freeze the keyboard when you're driving over 10 miles per hour,” he says. “We're concerned about the safety factor."