Foursquare App: the Ultimate Location-Based Social Network & Your Personal Travel Guide for an iOS Device

Foursquare is a big thing in social networking. Designed specifically for mobile devices, this location-based service has had a quite recent update on the iTunes App Store.

Millions of users from all around the world do their daily check-in in any part of the Earth: just name it! There have already been over 2 billion check-ins in over 35 million locations, according to Foursquare Labs. There has also been made a check-in from pace in 2010: the location was the International Space Station. So, if you are not yet a Foursquare user, it might be the right time to try the app.

Price: Free
Current Version: 5.2.2 (August 9, 2012)
Genre: Social Networking
Developer: Foursquare Labs
System Required: iOS 5.0 or later
Rating (App Store): 4

How Foursquare Works

The Rules of Foursquare. Foursquare is the way of telling other people about locations you like visiting and places you dig the most. If this is what you want, then you should register at their website, after which you should get an iOS Foursquare app for your device. You need the app to check in at different places on the go. What’s great, you get rewards for your activities: badges (which are basically your encouragement prizes), mayorships (for which you can get discounts or gifts), and special offers (more gifts from establishments and businesses). Of course, there are some rules of your Foursquare behavior.
Rule 1. Always check in at spots you are actually in. Whether it is a pizzeria, or a train station, or a mall, you can check in once you’re there, but only if you’re there at the moment, not when you’re just passing by.
Rule 2. Check in only at existing locations. This can be not just some establishment or venue, it can also be a neighborhood. Still, if you don’t have an office, for example, don’t create a location for it at any place you’ve had a chance to do your work.
Rule 3. Foursquare doesn’t count your check-ins when they are too far from each other. You shouldn’t do it as well.
Rule 4. When you’re checking-in, your time spent on the location should be greater than the time it takes you to check in. Let’s be honest, it doesn’t really counts when, say, you just peep into some place to simply check if your friend is there.
Rule 5. Leave comments and, especially, tips for others to learn something important about a certain place.
Rule 6. It might seem a bit weird, but your experience is more important than the bonuses you get. So, you shouldn’t visit this fifth pizza place that will bring you a badge if you are not into pizza at the moment.
Some of the above are just recommendations for you, but all these rules will make your Foursquare experience more enjoyable for you.

What to Expect. Be ready for some adventure: explore places which you even didn’t know existed, earn rewards and create your personalized guide. It will be also a great surprise bumping into a friend of yours who just checked in a place you are going to right now.

What You Need. You need time, enthusiasm, and your adventurous spirit to start this quest. And, of course, an app!

The New Version. In the new version, the feature of seeing check-ins from your nearby friends has been refreshed: when you are on your Friends tab, you can choose to see only their current check-ins. Also, when you are in some place where the light is bad or some other factor can decrease the quality of your photo, you can easily upload a picture from your gallery, which you’ve made some time ago.

Features

• Check in at locations: save and share info on your current whereabouts, wherever you go
• See what places your friends like going to & join them in your favorite location
• Explore the world around you through personalized recommendations and deals
• Search for places that you are interested in the most by keywords or by browsing categories
• Discover and create your own tips and lists
• Get rewards for your activity: earn mayorships and badges, and unlock special offers

Watch the Foursquare tutorial on YouTube:

Pros and Cons

Pros: the app allows you to know your city better and constantly explore something new; there are easy rewards and bonuses you can get in your favorite places; you can add the location if it’s not on the map; you can access tips and create your own ones. Besides, user interface is very friendly.

Cons: the app kills time and, especially if you’re on your hunt for badges, it wastes your money too.

If you are fascinated by all these location-based social networking apps, there are some of them we have paid our attention to. For example, there is such service as Highlight, which allows you to see people who are nearby and detect the ones who can be potentially interesting for you. Another one, Twist, a time-saving app, notifies others on your location if you have a meeting, so that they can worry not, and you certainly have an excuse. Follow us; there are definitely more great apps to come!