HipGeo is a convenient journaling app that enables travelers to keep track of what they saw and where they saw it. Users then share their travels and use what other people share to enhance their own travel experiences. In a new release, HipGeo instantly transforms all those elements into virtual journals that can then be automatically shared a variety of ways.
“If Tumblr and Foursquare had a baby, it would look like the new HipGeo,” HipGeo’s Rich Rygg told CNET when we first reported on HipGeo back in January.
The latest release enhances social network and private sharing experiences by grouping together disparate mobile photos, videos and text into a location and storytelling stream, automatically.
We put HipGeo to the test on a recent trip through Scotland, Ireland and Wales and found the new version so easy to use it was difficult. In areas where we had no cell signal, we thought the new version of HipGeo was not working at all. But at those locations, HipGeo stores information, much like a digital camera, then uploads it later.Called “background mode,” when out of your home country with data services turned off to avoid charges, or when Wi-Fi is not available, HipGeo automatically saves entries. Later, when back home or when a signal is available, HipGeo posts those entries automatically.
When the trip is over, users can go back and fill in photos, journal details and more when a location has no information listed. HipGeo tracks everywhere users go, automatically. Adding media to the stream is up to the traveler.
Intrigued? A good way to get started with HipGeo is to post photos from a recent vacation or adventure then watch as HipGeo works its magic.
Note to HipGeo: in the next release, train the app to pick my best photos, automatically record descriptive phrasing I might say while at the location and send a text link to my friends who are not traveling, just to rub it in.
[Image- Chris Owen]