Happy New Year to you all!  I hope that the year is progressing as you would have to be, including all of the business travel you enjoy.

Having fallen in love with my iPhone at this point, I’ve decided to periodically review groups of iPhone apps that are applicable to business travelers.  My interest in reviewing apps is not just about the deals you’ll find, but how easy the apps are to use.

This month I’m reviewing a hotel booking apps that are tied to major travel websites whose names you’ll recognize.  I was prompted to pursue this idea by a hotel booking advertisement on TV that features two skydivers booking their hotel reservations just after jumping from their plane.  While we get to stay on airplanes until they land, I thought the metaphor of booking one’s hotel room while “flying” through the airport to grab a cab was appropriate.  Can I thumb-tap my way through the booking app while dragging my bags to the taxi stand?

The apps I have chosen to review are for aggregator sites.  As a business traveler I don’t usually use this type of site to book travel, unless I’m on a spontaneous or previously unplanned trip, where finding a deal on a hotel immediately is more important than finding a specific hotel in a particular neighborhood.

Six Hotel Booking Apps for iPhone

What startled me most about comparing these 6 apps is the wide variety of what they assume are traveler priorities.  This means that home screen layouts, navigation buttons, and how quickly one arrives at search results varies widely.  I’ve listed as bullet points the aspects of each app that made an impression as I tapped my way through them.

Note: these apps are mobile versions of websites that aggregate listings from multiple hotel sources, not apps for specific hotels.  I’ll review hotel-specific apps in a future newsletter.

www.Hotels.com

The app took 45 seconds to configure itself before displaying information the first time.  The app immediately asked to use my current GPS location.  Has Tonight’s Local Deals button on home screen Easy to filter by name, price range, rating, etc. Easy to sort by rating, distance from current location, guest ratings, etc. Regular search picks up current location, assumes 1 person for 1 night, but it’s easy to increase the number of nights, rooms, and people with a quick screen tap.  Results viewable as a list or as map locations.  Sign-in available to your existing Hotels.com account, or sign up on your iPhone.

www.Priceline.com

The app took 30 seconds to configure itself.  It asks to use your current location via GPS but doesn’t show local deals as a result.  Clicking the map locator button will then show local deals.  The app has 3 main navigation buttons:

- Negotiate: gets you prices for hotel rooms and the areas where they’re available.

- Radar: this feature (including a pinging sound) shows recent winning bids in the area and their prices.

- Browse gets you prices and locations for a “book immediately” option as opposed to bidding blindly.  You can filter by popularity, star rating, and neighborhood.  Prices shown are before local taxes.  Sign-in makes booking go more quickly, but booking without sign-in is available.  The home screen also has a car deals button.

www.Hotwire.com

The app takes about 30 seconds to configure itself.  It asks to detect and use your current GPS location.  The app immediately starts with requirements: assumes check-in date is today for 1 night, 1 person, 1 room, all easy to change from drop-down lists.  Shows number of results, then asks to list by price, star ratings; to filter by neighborhood or amenities.  No photos: this is a blind search.  When selecting by star rating, it shows price and neighborhood, but no hotel name or photo.  Amenities are listed.

www.Expedia.com

The app took 15 seconds to configure itself.  The app immediately asked to use GPS Showed hotel availability first based on GPS location rather than asking any details; 1 night, 1 person assumed, but buttons there to change those details.  Names, photos, ratings and prices are all immediately visible Sort and filter available Same list viewable as pins on a map Nice size photo slideshows; link to reviews on same screen Red pins indicate that prices are currently discounted

www.Kayak.com

Didn’t ask first for GPS, asked to send “push” notifications: alerts, sounds, and icon badges.  The app includes search for hotels, flights, cars, and a flight tracker.  The Hotel search came up with Los Angeles as the starting city, but when I challenged the location by tapping on the name, THEN it offered a GPS fix as an option.  The search assumed 1 person/night/bed.  The remainder of the list included thumbnail photos, prices, locations, and star ratings.  Buttons include Filter, Sort, Map, and Compare.  Filtering by stars meant UN-checking the star ratings you don’t want to see.  Filtering options included price, brands, and name but NOT location!  I was seeing Seattle hotels despite my Bellevue specification, and there are 15 miles and a body of water in between the two cities.  Half of the results listed were links to Hotwire deals.

www.TripAdvisor.com

The app took 15 seconds to configure itself.  The app asked to use GPS fix, and asked to send Push notifications.  This site relies heavily on user ratings.  Search menu options include hotels, restaurants, things to do, flights and a link to their user forum as a link to write a review.  Home screen buttons include Home, Near Me Now, and Faves buttons, with the search box at the top.  Hotel search asked for city, zip, address, or the option to use a checkbox called Near Me Now.  Ratings take precedence — links in hotel listings also to guest ratings are right there on the same screen.  Checking rates brings up tabs for Hotels.com, Expedia.com, Venere.com, Orbitz.com, the hotel’s website, Priceline.com, and Travelocity.com, each with their own deals listed.  Not all sites showed the details for the hotel you select; some provided their own listings for other hotels instead.  I would use this for ratings, but probably not for directly booking the room, since TripAdvisor is only a ratings service NOT a booking agent.

From a usability standpoint, I think the Hotels.com mobile site has the best, most compact design.  I found it easy to, with one or two taps, find a deal for the night.

Got a favorite travel app for iPhone, Android, or other smart phone?  Use the comment section on post to tell me which apps you like to use.

It’s that time of year again when our thoughts turn to gift-giving. Most of us in the USA grew up with the concept of Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, when workers who have the day off get out to the malls to take care of their shopping. With the arrival of Internet shopping, the idea of Cyber Monday was born. That’s the Monday after Thanksgiving, when we turn to the Internet to order gifts that we couldn’t find in the stores, or for gifts that are only available online. Buying on or around Cyber Monday ensures that your gifts will arrive in time, and you won’t be paying exorbitant shipping costs to get them there on time.

Cyber Monday was two days ago, so if you’re planning on ordering online, now’s the time. As business travelers, we rarely have time to sit still and focus on shopping. I decided to check out the websites of my favorite vendors to see if their mobile versions are up to snuff. Here’s what I found that you may also find useful. Some of these sites have gifts for family; some have gear for next year’s round of travel.

www.Amazon.com

What can you say about the world’s biggest online bazaar? When I first visited the website on my iPhone, I noticed their button advertising their Apps for Amazon. Below the Cyber Monday banner, the Kindle Fire ad, and the Apps button, I found a neatly organized list of categories, complete with sub-categories and a Search Amazon.com box right at the top. Tapping the Books category, I was taken to the Bestsellers list, from which I could also tap Search or Newest (list).

Having a compellingly well-organized mobile site makes it much easier to find what you’re looking for especially with a site the size of Amazon. Be careful what you purchase there, though; not everything is hosted AT Amazon. Items shipped by third-parties may take longer to arrive.

I did visit the iTunes store to see what apps they offered, but the only one that caught my interest enough to download it is their Amazon Fresh app. We here in the Seattle area are lucky enough to enjoy Amazon’s home grocery delivery service, Amazon Fresh, and I will make good use of that app year round.

www.BHPhotoVideo.com

I bought my big camera and most of my photography equipment from B&H Photo/Video out of New York. While I wasn’t crazy about paying for cross-country shipping, their service and selection are among the very best in any industry, so they are worthwhile. Like Amazon.com, they have a HUGE inventory, so searching and shopping requires you to use good keywords to find what you want.

Unlike Amazon, B&H doesn’t (yet?) Have a mobile version of their website, so be prepared to zoom and scroll a lot while shopping.

www.Buy.com

This website is one of two sites I check when it’s time to buy electronics and hardware over the Internet. Buy.com consistently has the best prices with the lowest shipping, and over time they’ve maintained that reputation.

The mobile Buy.com site is very compact. You’re immediately presented with a search box and an opportunity to browse by category. Buy.com also has an iPhone app.

www.eBags.com

That’s right eBAGS.com: this is one of my favorites shopping sites for travel gear. EBags’ success comes largely from their selection and their liberal return policy. In other words, order 3 of something if you’re not sure what’s going to work, and they’ll take the other 2 back (in good condition), no questions asked. The eBags mobile site is compact and well-organized, so you’ll be able to see decent sized images and details.

www.Ebay.com

Ebay has been doing a lot of television advertising around their mobile website, so I’m not surprised to see their long list of categories come up right away. They too have a mobile iPhone app. I might consider loading that one on my phone if I’m selling on Ebay, but as a buyer, not so much. One thing I do appreciate about their mobile site is that they include a link to their “classic” site, so that you’re not limited to the mobile version if you’d prefer to use the main site.

www.NewEgg.com

This is the other site I use for buying hardware, in particular. NewEgg has been around at least as long as Buy.com, and they’re usually very competitive in terms of price and service. As expected, they too have an iPhone app, which they offer you immediately on the home page. Below that are buttons for shopping the main site or shopping the mobile site. I chose the Mobile version, but was redirected to the same screen, no doubt hoping to induce me to download their iPhone app. I’m not going to load my phone up with shopping apps, so save NewEgg for a time when you can visit the site on your laptop.

www.LandsEnd.com

This website is my source for both comfortable clothing (I’m allergic to nearly everything except cotton), and great luggage. I’ve owned 2 complete sets of Lands’ End luggage and been very happy with both price and wearability. Their mobile site has finger-friendly categories, making it easy to browse the site without going somewhere you didn’t mean to visit. They too have a link to the full website.

www.Zappos.com

I have not purchased shoes myself from Zappos, but McAlister got a pair of steel-toe work shoes for his seasonal job this past summer, and he was able to find what he wanted in the sizes and colors he wanted from Zappos. I’m encouraged to try buying from Zappos myself; I have a hard time finding shoes I like, especially for travel.

Zappos also has an iPhone app, which they offered with a Download Now button. Below it they have a “No Thanks, I’ll just use the Browser” link, so I tapped that one to get started. With a series of dropdown selections, I was able to start browsing for a comfortable set of flats in no time.

What is your favorite mobile shopping website or app? Use the comments section below to submit yours, and I’ll add them to the resource list.

Toolie

I have long been an advocate of using mass transit while traveling. I’ve been on trains and subway systems all over the world. I know most of you would prefer to rent a car to get around, but sometimes that’s just not an option.

For me, planning a transit excursion was fun; coordinating time schedules, locating bus stops, determining connections and layovers. Transit schedules have been readily available on the Internet for close to 10 years now. Even in countries where English is not the primary language, signs are often posted in English as well for the convenience of visitors. I’ve been all over Hong Kong island by bus, and it’s a great way to see the city and feel like a local, even if you don’t look like a local.

I recently acquired a full-time, on-site consulting contract near my home and decided to use mass transit rather than commuting by car through what is one of the worst highway bottlenecks we have around here. The bus to my client’s location uses surface streets and back roads, so the commute is quick and painless. Of course getting up at 6 am is challenge for me, but one I am committed to overcoming.

Naturally I began planning for my commute using the online transit pages. I remembered that a colleague on my last contract mentioned an iPhone App that delivers real-time bus information to your device. I installed it then but didn’t have much use for it until now. Having figured out the route, the iPhone app would be helpful in knowing exactly when the busses would arrive.

That one “timeliness” feature turns out to be a godsend. It removes the anxiety and frustration of wondering 1) whether you missed your bus, and 2) when it’s really going to show up. What’s nice about this particular application is that it not only shows you the bus you’re expecting, but every arrival at that stop, in case using an alternate bus is an option.

Timeliness is Next to Godliness

For business travelers, getting there on time is everything. We usually schedule our trips down to the last minute if we can, hoping that everything goes as planned. I think more travelers would consider using mass transit as part of their plan if they knew that the transit was reliable and timely. There is good news on this front; the increase in smart phone usage has encourage app developers to produce more of these real-time transit applications for our use.

Seattle is a high-tech town, so I would expect there to be coverage like this available. I went searching through iTunes, though, to see what other cities might have apps covering their territory. Naturally, having apps developed would depend on how much the local population depends on mass transit and/or how good the transit coverage is. As you might expect, the larger metropolitan areas have many apps available for download (most of them free). For example:

New York City Subways
Long Island Railroads
New Jersey Transit (Rail)
New Jersey Transit (Bus)
PATH Train (New Jersey to New York)

SE Pennsylvania Transit (SEPTA)
Washington DC Metro
NextBus DC

Chicago L (eLevated trains)
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA)
METRA: Long-distance Northeastern Illinois trains

San Francisco (bus)
CalTrain: SF commuter rail
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) around San Francisco
San Jose (bus)

But there are applications available for other metro areas as well.
Here is a partial list:

Denver
Los Angeles
Greater Boston (MBTA)
Miami-Dade County
Sacramento
San Diego
Seattle/Puget Sound

And don’t forget cities outside the USA:

Taipei
Bangkok

These are just the cities whose applications included the name of the city. There are dozens more applications in the list that didn’t include the city or region name, such as mine, titled “OneBusAway.”

These are just the iPhone applications — I saw many of the same apps in the Android Market as well.

Most of us travel pretty compactly, so hoisting a bag onto a transit bus isn’t any more difficult than hoisting it onto a hotel shuttle (except that you have to do it yourself). With the availability of this real-time transit information, the option to use mass transit on your next business trip should be seriously considered.

I invite you to jump on and enjoy the ride.

This has been a tough year for natural disasters, from earthquakes to tsunamis to hurricanes. With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 just a few weeks away, we are reminded that their are unnatural disasters also that also threaten human lives.

I remember taking a first-aid class when I was a teen, then a cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) class as a young adult. Most of those techniques have been updated, especially CPR guidelines that were just changed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9T25SMyz3A

As business travelers, it occurs to me that our smart phones could go a long way towards providing information to help us in emergencies. Yes, we check them for delayed flights and weather information — you probably already have a good weather app on your phone. But what about first aid? If you were caught in a life-threatening situation, could you be helpful? If someone was bleeding, would you know what to do?

Weather Apps for iPhone, Blackberry, and Android

Let’s cover the weather apps first. With Hurricane Irene’s devastation fresh in our minds, I was not surprised to see that the hurricane- tracking apps on iTunes were VERY popular.

• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hurricanehunterappcolallc/id456831217?mt=8 
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hurricane-express/id457745719?mt=8
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/noaa-radar-us/id415411639?mt=8

I also realized that I should include apps for other platforms in my newsletter, so here’s a selection.

iPhone apps

• http://www.weather.com/services/iphone.html
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-weather-channel/id295646461?mt=8
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/myweather-mobile/id435025246?mt=8

Blackberry

• http://www.weatherbug.com/mobile/blackberry/
• http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/1191?lang=en
• http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/3624?lang=en

Android

• http://www.weather.com/services/android.html
• https://market.android.com/details?id=com.aws.android.elite&feature=search_result
• https://market.android.com/details?id=com.accuweather.android&feature=search_result

Medical/First Aid Apps for iPhone, Blackberry, and Android

There were several categories of applications that could be helpful for disaster situation: disaster planning, first aid, and triage. Because I’m focused on in-the-moment concerns, I focused on the last 2 categories.

Blackberry

• http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/3779?lang=en
• http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/44226?lang=en
• https://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/48484?lang=en

Android

• https://market.android.com/details?id=me.jive.firstaid&feature=search_result
• https://market.android.com/details?id=com.phoneflipper&feature=related_apps
• https://market.android.com/details?id=com.healthagen.iTriage&feature=related_apps

iPhone

• http://www.phoneflips.com/2011/first-aid/
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mobile-first-aid-cpr/id380724565?mt=8
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/itriage/id304696939?mt=8

Pre-Disaster Planning

It wouldn’t feel right if I did leave out disaster planning — or rather pre-disaster planning. The US Government has an entire website devoted to disaster preparedness. As business travelers, we may not be home when disaster strikes, so making sure that your family is OK without is really important.

http://www.ready.gov

I highly recommend following their recommendations to ensure your family’s safety. I did find a mobile version of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s website that corresponds to this website.

http://m.fema.gov

Let me say that I hope you never need these resources, but I also encourage you to be prepared.

It’s been an odd day today. I heard a sound in my office that has NEVER been heard before: the startup sound of a Mac Mini! I inherited my Dad’s Mac Mini after he passed away in January, and this is the first time I’ve had both the room and the time to set it up (I’m using it for testing websites on Mac browsers). Exposure to The Fruit Side has been an interesting and engaging experiment.

I am pleased to say that I have resisted buying a bunch of apps for the iPhone, but I have been looking through the iTunes App Store and collecting items that may be helpful for business travelers BESIDES the obvious travel guides and airline sites. Skip the iTunes desktop application and go straight to the Apple website:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/genre/mobile-software-applications/id36?mt=8

These are the apps on my iPhone now:

eSpeakers
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/espeakers/id426816714?mt=8
This application goes with the eSpeakers service of which I am a subscriber. The National Speakers Association utilizes eSpeakers to manage their member profiles, but the eSpeakers app has so much more: schedules, booking dates, and so on. It was a natural fit for my business.

Facebook
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/facebook/id284882215?mt=8
Good grief, I might actually be able to keep up with social networking on Facebook! Having the free Facebook app makes it easy to fill up the loose time slots while waiting for ground transportation with messages to friends, reading the streamed comments, and so on.

LinkedIn
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/linkedin/id288429040?mt=8
I plan to do more on LinkedIn than I have in the past, so having this free app on the phone is also quite helpful.

Mobile Notifier
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mobile-notifier/id343067381?mt=8
This little app tells me when a purchase has been made through my shopping cart. One has to have an account with 1ShoppingCart or one of the private label companies, which I have had for 7 years. It’s great to hear the sound of money depositing into my account.

Skype
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/skype/id304878510?mt=8
I have a number of people I keep up with on Skype, and the fact that you can conduct free video calls from your phone over an Internet connection WITHOUT the computer is just aces!

QR Reader for iPhone
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/qr-reader-for-iphone/id368494609?mt=8
I haven’t had occasion to see many of these QR codes, but starting the app and pointing your iPhone at the code will immediately open the corresponding website. I plan to add the QR code for my website to my business card.

Camera Zoom 3
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/camera-zoom-3/id311657409?mt=8
I’ve missed a number of photos that I could have captured if I had just taken time to download a better camera application. This one has been around a long time, and the zoom works really well.

Here are some that look intriguing that I have not yet downloaded.

FedEx Mobile for iPhone
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fedex-mobile-for-iphone/id304462049?mt=8
When I’ve shipped boxes to or from my destination and I need to know how they’re doing, this application ought to do the trick!

USPS Mobile
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/usps-mobile/id339597578?mt=8
Same here: if I need to find a post office to mail something home, this little app would be very helpful!

OneBusAway
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/onebusaway/id329380089?mt=8
As gas prices rise, I’m experimenting with using public transit more around the Seattle area, and I found this real-time application for transit that covers Puget Sound. There are more apps like this for other areas.

What is YOUR favorite business travel-related application? Comment below so that we can all benefit!

Toolie®