14 July 2008

ViewRanger Expands European Map Coverage;
Delivers Topographic Maps Over Mobile Network

Augmentra, a leading innovator in gps-enabled personal navigation software for smartphones, today announced the latest version of its award-winning ViewRanger mapping and navigation software for outdoor activity enthusiasts.

For the first time, detailed topographical maps from National Mapping Agencies can be selected and immediately downloaded over a GPRS or wireless connection directly on to a compatible mobile phone handset.

Topographic maps for Great Britain (Ordnance Survey), Finland (National Land Survey Finland), and Slovenia (Surveying and Mapping Authority of Republic of Slovenia) are available to access over-the-air immediately. Mapping for a further five European countries will be available shortly.

ViewRanger is satnav specifically designed for the off-road user, whether hill-walker, mountain biker, geo-cacher, birdwatcher, or rural tourist. It offers a unique combination of 2D and 3D mapping, GPS navigation, sports-GPS analysis, content sharing, and buddy tracking.

Running ViewRanger on Symbian S60 handsets with integrated GPS, such as the Nokia N95, Nokia N82, Nokia E66 and Nokia 6220, removes the need for a separate outdoors GPS device.

Whether a frequent outdoors sport participant, or just an occasional visitor to the countryside, ViewRanger delivers outdoor navigation, tracking capabilities, and convenience that cannot be found elsewhere.

This latest version of ViewRanger includes many features to help outdoor enthusiasts maximise their activity and share their experience:

• Over-the-air delivery of topographic maps and points-of-interest map data.
• Integration with Yahoo GeoPlanet to provide extended gazetteer search, including a full Postcode search.
• BuddyBeacon friend tracking now allows multiple Buddies to be tracked simultaneously on a single handset.
• Enhanced try-before-you-buy experience with “One Tile Trial”.
• Enhanced integration of the smartphone camera with ViewRanger to provide “record to map” of photos and video clips.
• More efficient publishing of sets of photos to the online ViewRanger TravelLog and to the user’s Facebook profile via Augmentra’s ‘ViewRanger for Facebook’ application.
• Refinement to ViewRanger’s location-based alarms to permit a wider range of media types, including audio and video clips, to be automatically played based on the users location.
• Night Vision mode

“Users now have quick and easy access to topographic maps wherever they may be,” said Mike Brocklehurst, CTO at Augmentra. “ViewRanger already represents a revolution in outdoor recreation and sports-GPS tools, delivering more capability and convenience than any dedicated outdoor GPS unit. This update furthers our vision to create the ultimate companion for outdoor activity enthusiasts around the world – whether regular activity participant or simply weekend strollers.”

*click to enlarge

ViewRanger is available to use internationally with no base-maps, and with topographic maps for Finland, Great Britain, and Slovenia. Topographic maps for Belgium, France, Holland, and Switzerland are available through ViewRanger’s partnership with Geolives. Further international map coverage will be announced shortly.

ViewRanger is available from www.viewranger.com and selected retailers. Maps are available to purchase over-the-air direct to the handset, via web download for side-loading onto a phone, and pre-installed on memory-cards from retail partners for plug-in and go simplicity.