Travel Tips for Your Phone

How To: Find the Most Accurate Weather Source for Your Area (And See Which Apps Use It)

Not all weather sources are equal. When you're looking at the forecast, you hope that it's at least semi-accurate so you can plan the week and days ahead, but many sources are unreliable. And with the famous Dark Sky API shutting down on March 31, 2023, you'll need an alternative source of weather information if you use an app that utilizes that API.

How To: Send Your Uber Trip Status to Trusted Contacts if You're Ever in a Sketchy Situation

When you're riding in an Uber, on your way to meet family or friends, they may want to know where you are exactly to see how long until your arrival. On the other side of the coin, there may be times when you want to tell family or friends where you and your Uber car are without them asking, like when you're in a dangerous situation. Uber makes this easy, as long as you set it up first.

How To: Check In to Businesses on Yelp to Get Discounts, Freebies & Other Coupon-Like Deals

On Yelp, you have the option to check in to a business you're visiting. For you, broadcasting who you're with and where you're at is fun for social purposes, but for business owners, you're basically giving them free publicity. Well, almost free publicity. Since there's incentive to get you to check in, some businesses reward customers with special deals, such as 20% off your first visit.

How To: Download Movies & TV Shows on Amazon Prime Video for Offline Playback

Back in 2015, Amazon Prime Video was the first subscription-based streaming service to introduce the ability to download movies and TV shows for offline viewing on mobile devices. For travelers and users with limited data plans that like to watch films and episodes on the go, this was a godsend. Amazon has updated its apps many times since then, but the process remains relatively the same.

How To: Set or Change Your Home & Work Addresses on Apple Maps

Having your home and work addresses set in Apple Maps makes them incredibly easy to navigate to no matter where you're located. If you move to a new house, stay in a hotel or resort while vacationing, report to a different office, or have multiple job sites to visit regularly, updating these addresses isn't only straightforward — there's more than one way to do it.

How To: Download Maps & Navigation Routes for Offline Use in Apple Maps

Whether due to spotty cellular reception or just data that you want to save, popular navigation apps like Google Maps and Waze offer an offline feature that lets you navigate from one location to another in the absence of internet service. Apple Maps also lets you use its service offline on your iPhone, though the feature is not as straightforward as it is on its competitors.

How To: Translate Text in Any Android App

Sometimes, you encounter words in a non-native tongue while using your Android device. The Google Translate app has an awesome feature where it will translate any text you highlight. An overlay will appear, and on this overlay, there will be the translation of the foreign word. This can help you if you need a translation quick fix or if you are learning a new language.

How To: Get Your Lost Item Back from an Uber Driver (& What to Do if They Don't Respond)

You would think that recovering your smartphone or another important item that you leave behind in an Uber ride would be a simple process, but it can actually be a pain in the ass. You have to find out how to report it to the driver, hope the driver is honest, pay a fee, and contact Uber directly if none of that works. But we're here to help make this process as easy as possible for you.

How To: View Air Quality in Apple Maps to See How Polluted Cities & Destinations Are

While the United States, in general, doesn't have the worst overall pollution, the air quality can drastically change from one day to the next. If you're particularly sensitive to pollutants in the air, there are apps that show how clean or polluted the air is in your area, as well as in cities you plan on traveling to, but Apple's making those apps less relevant with a new feature in Apple Maps.

How To: Add 2-Step Verification to Uber for Stronger Overall Account Security

If you've ever received an email from a sketchy address purporting to be Uber, asking you to sign in with your credentials, you might be a phishing target. Hackers use a fake login page from real-looking domains to trick you into giving up your account information, and while it's been an issue in the past, Uber is making it more difficult on cyber thieves with the addition of two-step verification.

How To: View Popular Hours, Wait Times, and Live Visit Data for Businesses to Determine When to Go Out, Stay Home, or Move On

Unlike Apple Maps, Google Maps can tell you when a restaurant, bar, club, or other business you're thinking of visiting is busy. It's extremely helpful if you want to avoid peak times or wait for the place to be empty. If you can't pry yourself away from using Apple Maps, there's an easy alternative to see the popular times of most businesses.

How To: Catch a Ride with Lyft or Uber Straight from Apple Maps in iOS 11

There's no denying the impact ride sharing apps like Uber and Lyft have made on our lives. With fares that undercut traditional yellow cabs, combined with the fact that your ride is just a tap away, these services have become the primary mode of transportation for many folks in urban areas. Thanks to iOS 11, booking an Uber or Lyft has just become a lot more convenient.

How To: Your Complete Guide to Planning Multi-Stop Trips in Apple Maps on Your iPhone

One thing Apple Maps always lacked was the ability to add stops along a route while planning a trip. Navigation would help you travel from the beginning location to the final destination, and the only places you could add between that were pit stops like banks and ATMs, coffee shops, convenience stores, eateries, fast food, gas stations, and parking lots. That all changes in Apple Maps' latest update.

Best Navigation Apps: Google Maps vs. Apple Maps vs. Waze vs. MapQuest

You don't have to be a frequent flyer to know how indispensable navigation apps have become. Many of us rely on these apps for traveling from state to state and getting around in foreign cities, but even more of us count on these apps to beat rush hour traffic and find the quickest routes to school or work. So naturally, we all have our favorite mapping apps, but which one is truly the best?

Prev Page