Thing 19

OOH.  Thing 19 may turn out to be my favorite "new" app for all of 23 Mobile Things!!

For Thing 19, I chose RoadNinja.  In some features, I am still a "relatively novice" user on my iPhone.  I've had the phone since November and I STILL haven't used a GPS feature.  OK, I used it once but I didn't think I was very successful with it.

I live WAY north of the Metro, like I'm sure other bloggers out there do.  I have my normal ways I go places (specifically) in the Metro, and normal exits I take (and those I never take).  THIS is why I love RoadNinja.  It TELLS me what is at each exit before I get off the freeway.

I will say that I have not actually had a chance to fully explore this app WHILE ON THE ROAD.  Everywhere I have driven since I started exploring the app, I have been the driver and it is not safe or recommended to be playing with apps as you drive down the freeway.  As I sit at home blogging, I can view the I35 exits near my home.  This is ALSO interesting because I KNOW those exits and I wonder how the app chose the exit choices - there are more businesses at my "home" exit than what is listed.

Features I love:  I love the DISTANCE to the gas station.  In my younger years (OK, until my daughter was born which was only three years ago), I lived more on the edge in regards to my car's gas tank.  As in "What does empty really mean?  How many miles can I go on the low fuel light?".  I also had a few cars with less than reliable fuel gauges, so I would clock miles - which varies depending on how you drive.  I like to KNOW how close to the freeway the gas station is if I can't see it.  This also helps with bathroom stops - once again in my youth.

I LOVE the map feature.  I LOVE the gas price feature - well, my husband will love the gas price feature when we use the app together.  I like the restaurant listings.  It's like an interactive road sign that tells me exactly WHERE the businesses are at the exit.  I also like that the app gives you options in advance.  For example, if we are trying to decide to stop for a quick bite to eat, I can scroll through at look at the next four or five exits and decide instead of either picking an exit not knowing what is ahead or stopping at the same old place every time.

I think this will be a fun app to play with on any type of "road trip" - I don't count my drives to St. Kate's as road trips.  This is something I will be recommending to my sister on her family road trip to Tennessee this summer (from Wisconsin).

One thing I DO wonder about is the process of what businesses get chosen for the app.  As I said earlier, I KNOW there are more businesses at my "home" freeway exit.  Why were some chosen but not others?  I also wish this app covered more roads than just the main exits off the freeway - in my case, I35, 35W or 35E.  This would probably make the app unwieldy, but I would LOVE an app like this for Minneapolis or St. Paul or other inner-ring cities that I frequent less.

RoadNinja is definitely a keeper.