Navigation: Use your cellphone with interactive maps

An alternative to GPS-based navigation devices?

A group of researchers at Southampton University in the UK have devised a new means of getting interactive maps on your cellphone: by snapping digital pics of readily available paper maps. Thankfully, there's actually quite a bit more to it than that (though we've seen worse ideas). Dubbed, Map Snapper, the app will take that fresh pic of a portion of your paper map, send it off to a central server for analyzing, and promptly send it back to you, complete with details on all nearby points of interest. Just rinse and repeat every couple of blocks. While the developers are quick to acknowledge reality and admit that their system is useless for anyone with a GPS-equipped cellphone, they're nevertheless looking for commercial partners to bundle Map Snapper with their handsets -- meaning, of course, you can't get it right now.

Related news: Foursprung, P4MR, navigation, cellphone

Source: Engadget

Read more

Read what others are saying about it: Bloglines, Feedster, Technorati