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[APP REQ] Navigation Assistant

Hello everyone! I am hoping I can either get some ideas on what I could install, or maybe inspire someone to develop an app
I am a frequent traveler and I started out in my job always bringing my phone, mp3 player and gps. I started consolidating and with my old Blackberry and ditched my mp3 player. When I got my Motorola Droid I was excited to ditch my gps as well!
The problem is I am so used to using my Tomtom. I would click navigate, find a destination either by entering in the address, or going to a point of interest and either searching for it specifically (like target) or looking at a list (like food).
With Google Navigation is there doesn't appear to be a defined "front end". I can use a massive amount of apps to get me there, like Yelp, YP, Where, Google Places, or just a Google Maps search it self.
What I would like to see is a front end application that allowed me to search points of interests either in my current location or a defined location. Let me save these as favorites, show me a history of where I have been and let me search for a POI along my current defined route (ie, finding food along my route between the airport and hotel).
There is a free app on the market called App Launcher and while it has some great ideas, it isn't it. Am I missing something obvious? What does everyone else do?

I use telenav for this. I get it free from Sprint. Otherwise there is a fee for it.
I prefer it better than google maps for this reason. It also makes it easier to control the route I wish to take to get there.

[Q] Android without Google, completely

Hey,
jsut thought about this thought the whole day. I´ve got a Moto XT720 (Stock ROM) and it works pretty good. Now the thing is, I have the Google Account and so on. But I do not want that Google is tracking me, has access to my phone, and that my phone can connect to google servers (Mail, Calendar, Market, SYSTEM).
Is it possible that I can delete some apk´s so that I have a real standalone mobile phone?
Sorry for my bad english,
greetings

you gotta be kidding

Google's stuff is the spirit of their OS... Android needs google's account for the market moreover.

sounds a little impossible. just make an account for the market and don't use it for anything else. Only thing i can think of.

Exactly, but he wants remove google's apps too...
He wants a total googleapplicationless Android phone. What a problem !

Thanks guys,
I do not need the market also (for what?, I have the apps I want to use)
Greets

push..no one knows it?

If you do any web browsing on any device even on a pc or iphone google and bing etc will track data about you. You can't use any device online without someone tracking you unless you use a proxy and even then the proxy could still track you.
You can delete or freeze googles apps but browsing will be tracked on any online device so only sure way is switch off wifi and mobile data.
But that defeats the point of a smartphone then.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk

Maybe you should forget mobiles cause anytime you're tracked as soon as you power it on
Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk

a guess, flash a custom rom and dont flash the google apps pack?

ICS, at least stock ICS, has the ability to disable system apps.
Settings -> Apps (under 'Device) -> 'All' tab, click an app, click "Disable". It won't be uninstalled, but it will never run, meaning it cannot connect to the internet or do anything else.

e.coli said:
ICS, at least stock ICS, has the ability to disable system apps.
Settings -> Apps (under 'Device) -> 'All' tab, click an app, click "Disable". It won't be uninstalled, but it will never run, meaning it cannot connect to the internet or do anything else.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The problem is if he ever uses internet he will still be tracked. If he uses gps his location can also be tracked.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk

mistermentality said:
The problem is if he ever uses internet he will still be tracked. If he uses gps his location can also be tracked.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, it's a very strange request, but he could disable all internet-capable apps, and just use his phone for voice and offline apps?
He could still use GPS though, but not A-GPS. GPS just receives the signal from the satellites, this is why you can still log your position while off the cell network. It's one-way communication, so there's no way to be tracked just by listening to the GPS signal. He could download maps to the phone and use it for navigation that way.

Don't get an Android phone is my advice if you want no connection to Google.
-Sent from my Droid 2-

I agree, why would you use an google operating system, if you don't want to have any connection with google?
Android without the Android market is pretty dull, and even if you would use the amazon appstore (which is officially only working in the US/and maybe CAN) you would be stuck with only a fractal of not up to date apps, since in the amazon app store are alot of old versions flying around.
And please dont believe in the old google creep, who is sitting in front of the "internet" waiting is whole life only to set cookies in your browser. He does not exists!

I don't understand why you would want Android on your mobile device and not want google on it? Thats how smartphones work, if you don't want google on your phone I suggest you get a non smart phone.

Why so much hostility? Isn't the point of Android, and these forums, that it is so customizable? Maybe he doesn't like the new privacy policy.
Anyways, he could disable all Gapps and install Firefox or whatever, which would disconnect most of your connection to Google, but it's hard to avoid it if you want to use the internet at all.

e.coli said:
Why so much hostility? Isn't the point of Android, and these forums, that it is so customizable? Maybe he doesn't like the new privacy policy.
Anyways, he could disable all Gapps and install Firefox or whatever, which would disconnect most of your connection to Google, but it's hard to avoid it if you want to use the internet at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think anyone's been hostile, just surprised maybe as seems op wants no tracking yet to be able to use internet which can't be done except at best through a proxy.
To the op, you can root and uninstall or freeze google apps and browse via a public proxy server if you want to avoid tracking but your carrier and possibly google (the main operating systems all record your gps data inc ios android and wp7, think only wp7 was found collecting that though which is why I say possibly not probably) can still see where you have physically been via cell, gps and wifi logs.
If its just google you wish to avoid another option could be use a firewall or dns blacklist app to stop your device being able to connect to known google internet addresses.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk

miro101 said:
And please dont believe in the old google creep, who is sitting in front of the "internet" waiting is whole life only to set cookies in your browser. He does not exists!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, he does:
http://www.stateofsearch.com/top-15-of-eric-schmidts-remarkable-quotes/
If you don't know by now that all of the "free" apps aren't really free, you're kidding yourself. How do you think Google makes money? It's primary purpose is collecting information. Private informtaion (even the carriers...search on the term "carrier IQ"). That is the age we live in. The best that can be done is to either throw your phone away or learn how to secure your phone and info in as much as is possible. There are apps that can identify what apps are sending what data and block them from doing so (on rooted phones). Even then, data still gets out. It's a trade-off. For now, it's used for marketting purposes. However, that much data is bound to fall into the hands of some government who will use it to control the masses. It's just too tempting, and it's the nature of humanity. So, I'll limit whatever data exodus I can and accept the trade-off for the rest (until the government {read Anti-Christ} wrests control). The old saying applies: "It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you".

I honestly don't get the point in using a smartphone with fears of being 'monitored' or tracked. If you don't want to be tracked, don't use the internet, don't use a cell phone, and live under a rock for the rest of your life. That's the best advice I can offer.

[Q] Google Maps battery drain

Has anyone else noticed Maps generating a lot of wakelocks in recent versions? I'm not using Latitude, and with Maps installed, network location is always the top wakelock, even when I never open maps. When I remove maps, the wakelock goes away, and the battery life gets better.
I'm banging my head on the wall here...it wasn't like this is older versions, but lately I can't seem to do anything to calm it down, short of uninstalling/freezing it. It's not like I use it much, but it is nice for it to be there on the rare occasion that I do need it.

use an autorun manager to block it. one of the free versions allows for 4 toggles and I used them all on facebook (but for some reason maps isn't located in this program) so that doesn't really help your problem but i'll do some app research and report back. that'll probably be the only way to stop it.
edit: use gemini task manager and long click on maps and then configure auto run (root) i unchecked everything but a couple so that my geolocation for my beautiful widgets would work as well as facebook checkins although I'm not sure if maps has anything to do with this but i think it does.

Is Google Now working AND useful for you?

I know GNow kills battery due to the constant GPS use, but I was willing to give it a try if it "help" me with my life activities. However, the result has been less than impressive:
1). Weather
Always off by 5-10 degrees (California)
2). Public Transportation
Always informed me of the "nearest" train station, which I do NOT use and I use the other one (BART in California)
3). Package tracking
Never worked for me, especially now Amazon stop including the tracking number in their email.
So what else is GNow used for? How does that working out for you?

I find the delays on the motorway useful for my commute. Mine doesn't use GPS constantly.
Sent from my Nexus 5

lanwarrior said:
I know GNow kills battery due to the constant GPS use, but I was willing to give it a try if it "help" me with my life activities. However, the result has been less than impressive:
1). Weather
Always off by 5-10 degrees (California)
2). Public Transportation
Always informed me of the "nearest" train station, which I do NOT use and I use the other one (BART in California)
3). Package tracking
Never worked for me, especially now Amazon stop including the tracking number in their email.
So what else is GNow used for? How does that working out for you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Weather is usually right...same area as you. It does the same thing as searching "weather in san francisco" in google.
2. Yeah that doesn't work.
3. That only worked when I ordered my N5. Amazon used to work, now it doesn't.
I just turned it off. I can still use all the voice commands, so it isn't a big deal.

I don't mind it. Tracks similar articles referencing search strings, tracks sports teams. Liked the Olympic tracking although you could not specify what country you are tracking. Also like the tourists locations when out of town. I don't really notice a battery difference except after a day or 2 without rebooting (doesn't allow device to sleep. Reboot and it's all good again.)
Has a fair bit of potential and looking forward to future updates.
Sent from my HammerHead

pepdavies said:
I find the delays on the motorway useful for my commute. Mine doesn't use GPS constantly.
Sent from my Nexus 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesn't do that in the US. At least not where I am.

for me its useful for the following:
weather
traffic congestion
sports scores and match reminders
flight reminders
package tracking

Sc0rp10 said:
for me its useful for the following:
flight reminders
package tracking
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does these tracking only works with the Gmail account which you activated Google Now with?
Example:
1). I use 2 Gmail accounts --> A and B
2). A is activated for GNow
3). B is used for online shopping (package tracking, flight confirmation, etc.)
If I forward package / flight email confirmation from B, will GNow tracks it too even though it is only associated with A?

lanwarrior said:
Does these tracking only works with the Gmail account which you activated Google Now with?
Example:
1). I use 2 Gmail accounts --> A and B
2). A is activated for GNow
3). B is used for online shopping (package tracking, flight confirmation, etc.)
If I forward package / flight email confirmation from B, will GNow tracks it too even though it is only associated with A?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have 2 gmail accounts too but i can only get notifications/reminders from the primary account. in the google now settings under accounts & privacy you can switch accounts so i guess it only works for one account at a time.

Sc0rp10 said:
i have 2 gmail accounts too but i can only get notifications/reminders from the primary account. in the google now settings under accounts & privacy you can switch accounts so i guess it only works for one account at a time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forwarding the email to the primary account doesn't work?

lanwarrior said:
Forwarding the email to the primary account doesn't work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works for me for flight tickets. Haven't tried it for anything else.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Strange, like everyone else, amazon tracking stopped worked a while back. However, I ordered a cable from amazon yesterday, and google now offered me a tracking option. I click it, and it takes me to the UPS site and offers tracking info. I'm looking at the shipping email in my gmail (desktop), I can't see any tracking number.
Viewing the source, I see it now. Amazon includes the ups tracking number in the link, and google now is scraping it.

I have Google Now enabled. I like the traffic times (and accident warnings), the sports updates/reminders and the package tracking.
Google Now will also pop up a card if I search a destination on my PC. Convenient if I actually needed directions on my phone, but unless the place was in the city, I probably don't need directions.

I was under the impression that Google Now only uses WiFi and Cell towers to provide you location data. However, Google Play Services will have GPS data Google Now might use as well (Play Services collects GPS data at times under the Location Reporting feature). That's how I understand it and based on the Location window, Google Search/Now never uses GPS only Google Play Services.
Again, this is what I believe from my understanding of how Google Now works.

lanwarrior said:
I know GNow kills battery due to the constant GPS use, but I was willing to give it a try if it "help" me with my life activities. However, the result has been less than impressive:
1). Weather
Always off by 5-10 degrees (California)
2). Public Transportation
Always informed me of the "nearest" train station, which I do NOT use and I use the other one (BART in California)
3). Package tracking
Never worked for me, especially now Amazon stop including the tracking number in their email.
So what else is GNow used for? How does that working out for you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. weather has been off by 1-3 degrees, but who's to say which weather service is truly correct (i trust google over yahoo for instance)
2. i don't use public transit (horrible system set up in socal), but it gives me great directions and info on travelling to my destinations. i always check it before leaving work to see how traffic is so i can plan my way home for that day.
3. package tracking works perfectly for me
i also use it for sports scores, and track my stock portfolio.
i use it all the time, and i haven't seen any issues with battery drain at all to say that it "kills" the battery.

weather - yes
traffic congestion- no
sports scores and match reminders - yes
flight reminders - yes
package tracking - yes
Always listen feature is pretty heavy on battery and is never useful to me for most part of my day
However i use a Zerolemon extended battery so i only switch off when i am out for very extended periods of time
in short yes! google now is very useful to me and i love the new KITKAT integration with the experience launcher

I stopped using Google Now because it became kind of annoying. It kept recommending time to travel to these places that i frequented but it wanted me to label them and everytime I would swipe it away it would be there again the next day. I also turned it off for battery consumption. I just didn't find it that useful since my work place is constantly moving.
Also the weather seems inaccurate a lot of the time and I will just use the weather channel, or just briefly look at minarch which has the weather, current conditions and forcast right there on my homescreen.

I order from amazon a lot and it shows in Google now. UPS, FedEx, USPS. All there. I had about 6 in there earlier. All links worked.
Sent from the jaws of my Hammerhead!

I use it for weather (home & work cities), traffic/commute (mine shows for home & 2 jobs), sports scores & games/matches, packages as well...
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

I only use it for reminders, search references and sports updates. Otherwise its blank and seems minimal on battery.
The weather update was waking my phone consistently to update, where as dash clock does it only when the screen comes on so I use that instead.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Fairly useless battery drain for me. Weather? Off, location? It's annoying but i'm fairly sure I know how to get home.

Best navigation solution without data enabled

Hi all, i've searched the forum and found no such thread. What solution would you recommend when it comes to navigation on android without the need for data charges. I'd apreciate a free solution, but paid solutions are also welcomed.
Thanks!

You can try Sygic from playstore.
Another option is to use Waze- even though it requires network connection to calculate route and maps, you can turn the network off afterwards, and still be able to navigate using GPS only
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

I've tried them all. Sygic is the best overall in my opinion. There's a free trial (I think) on Play store.

OpenStreetMaps has an offline mode.
And if you find an APK of the old version of Google Maps, it also supports offline downloading.

The old TomTom application was a good "fully offline" navigation application. I'd still be using it personally if not for the fact that 1) all the carriers in my area have forced mobile data plans on users regardless, to the point that they actually charge you extra to disable mobile data from their end, and 2) even TomTom transitioned to a subscription based application, rather than a perpetual-license with annual versions.
At the end of the day, an online navigation option is best anyway, as it can adjust to changing conditions in real time. Waze is definitely a good one. I believe Google Maps will also continue navigating if you use WiFi prior to a trip to aim it at a destination, but in either case, you do lose access to the adaptability of the platform.