Prepared With Love – PG Independent – Supermarket Chain

Love Lane Market offers nothing but the best, so its customers can do the same

Upon entering love Lane Market, in Mattituck, N.Y., on Long Island’s North Fork, one immediately gets the impression that this is a place for serious foodies.

Indeed, one look at the store’s online banner sums it up succinctly: it features the store’s logo – a heart with a fork through it (with a compass and the letter “N” signifying North Fork) – and the following text running in a panel on the right:

Homemade mozzarella and ricotta, fresh and smoked fish and seafood, artisanal breads, pastries, cakes, organic foods and meats, local produce, gluten-free foods, organic rotisserie chicken, sausages, in-house butcher, wood-burning pizza oven, fresh handmade pasta.

“Our No. 1 priority is high quality,” says Mike Avella, who owns love Lane Market with his wife, Patti. “After that, it’s local organic, then local, then after that, it’s just the best of what’s around. obviously, for products like olive oil, we don’t get that local, but we get the highest quality we can. if I’m not satisfied with the quality of the product, we just won’t have it. There is a supermarket a block and a half away that sells everything. if you want frozen hamburger, you can get it there. if you want freshly made pasta or fresh duck from a local farm, this is where you come.”

“What we sell has got to be the best. It’s local whenever possible, and organic as well. But overall, the goal is to have the best ingredients possible.”

Although he claims he’s new to the business, Avella is no stranger to the tastes of the local and seasonal traffic that encompasses his customer base. In fact, he’s been feeding them for seven years in his restaurant, love Lane Kitchen, which is adjacent to the grocery store, separated by seats and tables in an outside eating area between the two buildings.

His philosophy at the restaurant is basically the same – a focus on high quality and local products – and the menu regularly changes to highlight those foods that are in season. The market gives his restaurant customers an opportunity to bring some of the best home with them.

Once inside the store, either from the love Lane entrance or the door facing the restaurant, a shopper sees that all offerings are visible from every point inside. at the center, highlighted by three skylights and encircled by meat cases, is the butcher’s platform, almost like a stage, where John Nordin, a Culinary Institute of America graduate and former Todd English chef, prepares meat to order. “The butcher was one of the top requests for this store,” says Avella. “There aren’t any real, dedicated butchers in the area.”

As with all of its products, love Lane’s meat offerings have to be the best, and they have to be local when possible. Avella primarily sources from McCall Ranch in Cutchogue, N.Y., where farmers raise purebred Charolais cattle. McCall’s purely natural and antibiotic-, steroid- and hormone-free Charolais is a historic breed of cattle originally from France and considered by continental chefs the finest beef available.

Many of the offerings lean toward Italian style, such as porchetta and several varieties of sweet and spicy sausages, but just about every cut of beef is available. Duck is also among the top choices, both at the restaurant and the market, and Avella often finds himself making daily trips to the duck farm to procure product before it’s frozen. “I always want my ducks fresh,” says Avella. “Everything they fabricate, they freeze. So I’ll call the farm and tell him what I need the day before, and he’ll tell me what time to come and pick them up before they are frozen. we sell out of them quickly, so I’m there almost every day.”

Immediately behind the meat case, along the rear wall of the market, are the wood-burning pizza ovens and rotisseries on which chicken, full suckling pigs and potatoes are roasting. The rotisserie has a special holder for potatoes that spins right under the chicken, allowing the spuds to catch and soak up the dripping chicken fat for extra flavor. Unlike the ducks, the chickens are bought frozen and already trussed from Pawling, N.Y.-based D’Artagnan Farm for roasting consistency. The area includes a counter and seating area with real John Deere tractor seats.

There’s some integration between the restaurant and the market, so if restaurant customers would like to try to replicate a love Lane Kitchen dish, they can pretty much find all of the ingredients at the market. “We make fresh pasta here, and we make it for the restaurant as well,” says Avella. “At the same time, they make chicken salad there, and we use it over here in the market. if they are doing a duck dish, they will grab some ducks from us. There is nothing that we use over there that you couldn’t find here. They don’t necessarily take it from here.”

Many restaurateurs are wary about giving away recipes, but Avella sees this as just another service to his customers. “I listen to some chefs, and they’ll say, ‘I give customers the recipe, but I always leave something out.’ why? do they think that no one else can cook? I’m perfectly happy to give out our recipes.”

Designed with Care As with the store’s products, much of the store design was undertaken with quality in mind, and most of it was done from scratch. “We basically brought the building down to nothing and rebuilt it,” explains Avella. “The beams had to be reinforced because they wouldn’t hold the weight, the gas lines are new, all the refrigeration, lighting and plumbing are new. There was no insulation at all. There had been a refrigerated room in the back, and when we ripped it apart, we found horsehair, which used to be used for insulation beck in the 1920s, when the building housed an A&P.”

The floor of the market features Moroccan tiles which were bought on closeout from a French bistro, and the ceiling, in addition to the natural beams and skylights, features designer lamps complemented by high-efficiency LED track lighting.

Hanging from the ceiling are two extremely large-diameter fans from aptly named Lexington, Ky.-based supplier Big Ass fans, which are designed to be friendly on the eye as well as on the energy bill. Although they seem to be rotating slowly, their large blade size actually generates a steady, cool breeze throughout the store.

Even the shopping carts were chosen with care specifically for the store, and, as with many of Avella’s offerings, love Lane Market is the only grocer in the region, if not the country, to carry them. “I spotted them in Italy and tracked down the supplier,” he says. “They’re made from recycled water bottles, and are the perfect size for our store. They are also extremely sturdy – much sturdier that they appear at first glance.”

Jack of all Trades As if it weren’t enough running a restaurant and sourcing products from all over the world, Avella is also the entire IT staff for love Lane Market, taking advantage of his former IT career on Wall Street. his music and POS information is all run from servers in an office above the restaurant, and piped across into the market from below ground. The store’s music can additionally be controlled by Avella’s iPhone, through which he can also make store announcements.

Avella’s POS system is a Web-based solution from New York-based Erply that he found ideal for a small market like his, at a price he couldn’t beat: just $900 per point-of-sale station for hardware, and $99 per month for hosting and maintaining the POS software.

Indeed, wearing so many hats keeps Avella busy most of the time, and he admits to working seven days a week for much of the year. But for him, it is truly a labor of love, which after all, is quite fitting for a man with two businesses on Mattituck’s love Lane.

For Bump CEO, learning from 60 million downloads (Day on the Job)

Bump CEO Dave Lieb (middle) sits at his computer in the company’s offices while its receptionist/security guard (and dog) Austin tries to share his opinions.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–From Dave Lieb’s desk, he can see a wall-mounted monitor about 75 feet away with nothing on it but black digits on a white background. Right now, it reads “59,957,611.”

“It’s going up one a second,” says Lieb, the CEO of Bump Technologies, watching the number steadily climb. “I think we’ll hit [60 million] just after lunch.”

As part of my Day on the Job series, I’m visiting Lieb just a day before the third anniversary of his October 12, 2008, e-mail telling his eventual co-founder Andy Huibers about his idea for a new company.

While CNET reporter Daniel Terdiman visited Bump for a Day on the Job story, the company was nearing 60 million downloads of its apps.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

From that e-mail, Bump was born. Now, Lieb is the CEO of a startup with just under 60 million downloads of its apps (and more than 10 million active users) and about $20 million in venture funding.

Full scheduleToday is a busy day for Lieb. his morning begins with meetings: hiring at 9:30, product at 10, and analytics at 10:45. But first, he’s trying to put a presentation together for a talk he’ll be giving in the late afternoon to engineering and business students at UC Berkeley as part of its Life of an Entrepreneur series.

“Sadly, I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare,” Lieb, dressed today in jeans and a blue T-shirt and sitting at his cubicle at the far end of the Bump offices says. “So it’s going to be a lot of ad lib.”

Sitting down with Bump’s recruiter Michelle Wu, the hiring meeting began. She’s been helping him with the presentation, and she thinks he needs to add a recruiting slide. “No, play our [recruiting] video,” Wu says. “I think it’s good: this is startup life. It’ll quiet the crowd down.”

“I’ll just throw it off as a joke,” Lieb says. “I’ll say my head of recruiting forced me to show it.”

Lieb sits in a hiring meeting with recruiter Michelle Wu and co-founder Andy Huibers.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

With that, Huibers wandered in and the three began discussing Bump’s fall hiring plans. One question was how to get the word out about an open systems engineering position. “Should we target Solyndra,” Lieb asked, referring to the troubled solar outfit.

With his MacBook Air closed, Lieb sat at the table, his legs crossed, rubbing his beard. normally, other staffers would be talking about potential hires, but everyone’s jammed up right now building Bump’s next major release.

‘Master of metaphor’ At 10 a.m., the room began to fill up for the product meeting. among those arriving was Austin, Bump’s receptionist and head of security. He had a chew toy in his mouth: Austin’s a pit bull/boxer mix with a bit of Carolina hound thrown in.

The chairs were quickly taken, and Lieb got up and offered a woman his chair. He left for a moment and returned with a blue exercise ball to sit on.

Though he’s the CEO, Lieb was mostly quiet. Sitting off to the side, he took occasional notes on a Post-It. One major topic was whether to remove some current features in the next big release and whether to put in some new features in interim iterative updates.

Lieb thought putting in a few new features was smart. “If we’re going to remove features [later],” he says, “some small subset of users will be upset…They’ll get the throw up out of their mouths before we give them their meal.”

“You’re the master of metaphor,” someone retorted.

Bump has users all over the world, but one of its biggest markets is Japan, and in both the product and the analytics meetings, Lieb and his team talked about differences in how the service is used in the U.S. and in Japan. Lieb argued that there may well be cultural behaviors accounting for different usage patterns–such as the extremely formal way that Japanese exchange business cards.

If so, he added, Bump could benefit from uncovering other things it could learn that would help in Japan. Fortunately, Lieb said, he had a wedding to go to in Thailand soon and suggested it might make sense to detour briefly to Japan to see what he can find.

Now nearly noon, it was almost time for Bump’s twice-weekly team-building lunch. Lieb used every remaining minute, though, to work on the slides for his Berkeley presentation.

He still hadn’t inserted the Bump recruiting video, and now he went looking for the file. Sitting at his MacBook Air, with a few scattered business cards, a conference badge, two water glasses, a green Mead notebook, two iPhone chargers, a pair of iPhone earbuds, his wallet, sunglasses, and keys also on his desk, Lieb found the file, and popped it into his deck. “God, I love Apple,” he said. “You just drag the file in and it works. That’s how things should work.”

A few desks away, the dog suddenly barked. Lieb got up and walked over to see what’s up. “Austin, buddy, what’s wrong,” he said. “Shhh, shhh, shhh.”

Lunch It’s now lunch time, and Lieb wandered over to where several tables were set up with food, a group of Bump employees already in all the available seats. He filled his plate up with Chinese food and sat down by himself at an empty table. an employee teased him for eating alone, so he grabbed a chair and moved to the head of one of the full tables.

Near the food there’s a ping pong table, and as most continued eating, two employees energetically hit a ball back and forth. Lieb picked up his plate and moved next to the game.

Lieb plays ping-pong with a co-worker during Bump’s twice-weekly team lunch.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

When they finished, Lieb stepped in to challenge the winner. Quickly, sending smart shots spinning across the table, the former Princeton pitcher was up 7 to 2. his opponent was no quitter, though, and the score was soon 8-8. But Lieb regained the lead and didn’t let it go. He won 21-17, eliciting a “Nooooo” from his vanquished employee.

Walking back toward his desk, he stole a glance at the monitor on the wall. It was up to 59,971,720: Close, but not enough to hit 60 million–which it did that night–before Lieb had to leave for Berkeley.

Partners?Sitting in “The Final Countdown” conference room, Lieb and Bump’s third co-founder, Jake Mintz, listened to hold music while waiting for people from a potential partner to join their conference call.

If it pans out, this would be a significant deal for Bump, a foray into a new field, one that makes a ton of sense for a service that already lets users easily transfer information between devices.

It was time, and Lieb began the call: “Hello, hello, New York. this is Mountain View.”

Lieb and Mintz began by explaining Bump to their potential partners–a major company with a very famous name. Lieb said that Bump is the seventh most popular iPhone app ever, with 60 million downloads to date.

One caller wanted to know if the “Bump experience” is trusted or untrusted. “Am I bumping with strangers, or with trusted associates,” the man asked.

“It’s both,” Lieb explained. “A large fraction of usage is with people you already know: You’re sharing family photos with folks, or you’re recommending an app to a buddy.”

For about an hour, the Bump leadership and the team on the phone bounced questions back and forth. The idea was to see if a partnership made mutual sense. It will be some time before anyone knows the answer, but for Lieb, the crucial point is “whether we can make the user experience really great…because usually partners want to force you down their path.”

Afterward, he and Mintz didn’t seem all that optimistic about the answer.

Off to Berkeley Lieb planned on leaving early enough that he would have no trouble making the 5 p.m. Berkeley event, regardless of traffic conditions on the notoriously awful I-880 connecting Silicon Valley and Berkeley. But when he arrived at UC Berkeley’s Bechtel Engineering Center, the auditorium is locked. still, there aren’t very many people gathered around. It looks like it’s going to be a quiet event.

I asked him how he used the drive time–did he make more business calls? Think about product? Actually, he said, he called his mother and his sister. “Really, the only time I talk to people on the phone is in thecar,” he said.

Soon, there’s a boisterous crowd waiting to get into the auditorium, and finally, someone figured out how to get inside. Dozens of students began flooding in.

Quickly, Lieb began his talk. his notes wouldn’t come up on his computer, but you’d have never known. He’s explaining Bump’s history to these would-be entrepreneurs, as well as how a former business school student with no clear direction came to start a company with millions of users.

Lieb speaks to an auditorium full of would-be entrepreneurs at UC Berkeley on October 11, 2011.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

“I’ve only been doing this for three years,” he said, “and I don’t know if I’ve learned all the lessons. I’m just going to run through how I got from where I was ten years ago…to standing in front of 200 students.”

The students had come for the wisdom of a success story, so Lieb tailored his talk around what he could teach them: find great people in your life and stay in touch; stop planning and start building; assumptions are probably wrong; work on the things you want to work on; if you want your product to spread virally, get it to the point where people are compelled to tell friends about it; network with smart people; and so on.

He also talked about Bump’s first funding, and what it had been like to call Bank of America and ask if it was possible to wire in $3 million. and he explained why Bump had decided to take a pre-emptive $17 million investment from Andreessen Horowitz. “We didn’t really need money,” Lieb said, “but they really understood what we were trying to build.”

The talk was over. But before he could leave, the students peppered him with questions for about 20 minutes. and when it was time to exit the auditorium, a group of about ten students stood outside with him until he’d answered all of theirs. and then it was time to go.

After his presentation, Lieb was besieged by students with questions about how to be a successful entrepreneur.

(Credit:Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

As he walked away from the building, I asked him if any of the questions had surprised him.

“Not really,” Lieb said. “Half of those questions, we heard from investors.”

If your company is interested in being featured in Day on the Job, please send a note to daniel-dot-terdiman-at-cbs-dot-com. unless given specific permission, I will not reveal any proprietary information or forward-looking business plans I encounter during my time at the companies I visit.

Custom iPhone App Development

The launch of the most-awaited Apple iPhone 4S, completely surprised the mobile world. the latest iPhone 4S smart-phone comes with many new features that the iPhone4S software and hardware.Apple has also launched the IOS 5 – the most advanced OS available in the combination of the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4S and iPhone 4S gives enormous opportunity to deliver the developer use with extra ordinary features. our team has adapted the technology to provide the best service in the Custom iPhone App Development services to elite customers.

Custom iPhone applications Development is offered in the next segment by the iPhone Application Developers to bring your business to level after his last experience giving clients’:

1. Business app Development to manage projects, employees and customers measure the time. Applications can be helpful in booking orders, sales force management, time management, management of customer relationship, HRM systems and more.

2. IPhone Application Development Travel – HD video recording, flights follow maps of city transport, alternative paths, finding hotels / resorts.

3. IPhone Application Development Finance 4 – uses of the company, money transactions, mobile banking and personal support and so on.

4. learning – for both students and parents iPhone applications can be developed

New on the iPhone 4S:

Is expected to launch on Verizon iPhone 4S lift the prospects of Apple and the iPhone 4S application developers to make the various uses for IOS devices. According to a study by IDC, the iPhone application market could grow double with Apple-Verizon deal, bringing revenue of $ 6 billion apps for $ 2.8 billion last year.

Why iPhone App Developers for iPhone app development?

Many years of extensive work in the mobile application developmentWe have 20 expert teams of  iPhone App Developers working for different Categories.24 x 7 availability of equipment for constant help and support to customers via email and chat.Provide the right of authorizing the transfer and the source of knowledge to the owner of the website.Perfect the cost in context to the time and effort.We provide service to the iPhone developers of rent for the same purpose.therefore, look no further for a full-service development of the iPhone 4S Application. We in the cost-effective solution offering OpenXcell for the development of mobile applications including iPhone App Development 4. You may also prefer to see our iPhone app development of examples of work . Customers can also avail the services of the iPhone developer hire us.

Choosing the perfect Newest i phone Components « theurbancatwalk.com

It doesn’t matter how you’ve got bought the particular iPhone online store or local retailers, it’s going to feature some basic group of i phone accessories, like Universal series bus cable, polish fabric, electric battery, connect plus a probable mobile phone case using the iPhone company logo.Shortly occasion as soon as you get a apple iphone, there will be new i phone components turn out for bettering the characteristics significantly. It’s about time so that you can buy some new phone using the newest iPhone accessories as opposed to updating a new one. you are able to stick to the newest manner quickly through seeking the accessories regarding iPhone improving.You ought to come up with a obvious formula in which i phone equipment you’re going to buy. Be sure you pick the helpful accessories to your phone and make up a list for the children. When the gizmos functions are very important for you when using iphone 3gs, buy them without hesitation. any kind of cell phone without having Wireless isn’t complete. And the Bluetooth-enabled bluetooth headset gets one of the necessary iPhone add-ons obviously.

Should you not much like the unique normal installations, you may also substitute them with the latest enhanced apple iphone accessories. you will get much better selections with the new devices. Probably the device dual connect has to be your essential accessories to put your apple iphone and also Wireless bluetooth.

A high level driver plus your iphone 3gs should go with anyone in the vehicle, give up wall charger and phone auto case are the add-ons with regard to iphone 3gs you should consider. you ought to shield the i phone safe and sound entirely whether or not the method is okay or otherwise not.

Irregardless you have bought your iPhone via community retailer as well as web store, it is better to purchase i phone equipment coming from Apple right. This way, you can guarantee the agreeable accessories includes the highest quality. if you find the brand associated with “Works with iPhone” about the group of the system, it is possible to go on it directly with the appropriate specification. the emblem signifies the actual devices are licensed through the apple company also it helps your consumer to find the appropriate products regarding apple iphone.

Price Watch: Refurbished iPhone 3G now $99

The mythical $99 iPhone is finally here.

(Credit:Apple)

Hey, remember the refurbished iPhones I wrote about a couple weeks back? Many of you commented that $149 wasn’t a good enough deal when $199 would buy you a brand-spankin’-new unit.

Well, what about $99? That’s the new price point for an 8GB refurbished iPhone 3G from AT&T. Want the 16GB model? It’ll run you $199, down from the previous price of $249. (Find all the current refurbished-iPhone deals at AT&T’s site.)

Everything else is the same: you have to sign up for a two-year contract, and you get a 90-day warranty instead of one year. (I haven’t been able to determine if you can purchase an extended warranty like you can with new models. anybody know for sure?)

So, how about it? Is a $100 savings enough to get you to pull the trigger? (If so, act fast: This offer expires December 31.) or is the $70-minimum monthly subscription just too steep? Hit the Comments and let fly.

In the meantime, I know where you can get some great freebie e-books to go with a new iPhone…

Innovative Ray Solar Charger Juices Up Your iPod, iPhone or Other Gadget Using Sun Power

Sunlight = free, electricity = not free, so doesn’t it seem like a no-brainer to charge up your gadgets and small electronics using a solar charging device? That’s exactly the thinking behind the Ray , which uses the sun’s rays to juice up iPhones, iPads, iPods, most cameras, and a plethora of non-Apple cell phones. the popular item has not even technically been released yet (it’s available for presale) but in just 1.5 days, it has already amassed 400 pre-orders. the ray operates via a standard USB cable and can easily be used while hiking, camping, hunting, fishing, on a plane, or just in the car as a cell phone battery backup. + Ray Solar Charger Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg Post tags: brandon craven , eco design , eco gadget , green design , green gadget , ray , ray solar charger , solar charger , solar iphone charger , solar iPod charger , Solar Power , sustainable design

More here: Innovative Ray Solar Charger Juices Up your iPod, iPhone or other Gadget Using Sun Power

Popular Automotive-Related Mobile Apps

Supplying 21st century with once-unobtainable access to a vehicle, a dizzying assortment of smartphone and tablet apps provides the driver with an out-of-car experience. Over the course of the past two years, virtually every automaker is now engaged with a brand-specific mobile application making their automotive products more accessible than ever before. Managing fuel consumption, connecting car breakdown cover companies or customizing a virtual car to the liking of a potential buyer, today’s merger of automotive and computer technology has spawned multiple apps worth highlighting.

OnStar RemoteLink

Developed as one of the early widespread adopters of vehicle telemetric technology, General Motors launched OnStar on 1997 model year Cadillacs. Becoming a technology that would be credited for saving lives in crashes and recovering vehicles through Stolen Vehicle Tracking, OnStar handed smartphone users their own free app designed to work in conjunction with existing plans.

Working on most Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick and GMC vehicles equipped with OnStar, their RemoteLink mobile app feeds real-time information including fuel tank contents, oil life and tire pressures. Also available on the OnStar RemoteLink app is the ability to remotely lock or unlock a vehicle from anywhere within phone signal. for Chevrolet Volts, the OnStar RemoteLink app allows the user to monitor battery capacity and dictate electric charging times. a new feature available through the OnStar RemoteLink app relates to navigation. a mobile app use of OnStar RemoteLink can refer a destination to the OnStar center and will receive directions immediately on an in-dash navigation system or through the OnStar Turn-by-Turn service.

Rolls-Royce Ghost App

While even this so-called entry level Rolls-Royce Ghost’s six-figure price tag is beyond the means of many motorists, an Apple app allows practically anyone to bask in the glow of excess glamour. Designed for use on the Apple iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad, the Rolls-Royce Ghost app operates as a sales tool for the lucky of us who can even consider the super-luxury sedan. Providing a photorealistic virtual model of exterior as well as interior surfaces that can be tailored to an assortment of available colours and materials, the magnificence of Royce-Royce’s Ghost sedan is obtainable for all in the app world.

BMW i DriveNow and MyCityWay

A bold undertaking for the Munich, Germany automaker BMW, their radical sub-brand will become an epicenter of innovation. Presenting distinctive electrified vehicles to the marketplace by 2013, BMW i is also involved in spearheading several indirect ventures. the mobile apps DriveNow and MyCityWay fit into the planning for rethinking the way people commute.

Operating only in Munich and Berlin at this time, DriveNow is a vehicle by-demand service that allows users to quickly rent a car. Similar to several drive-sharing services set up in major cities, the BMW i supported business of DriveNow uses the mobile app to direct customers to available BMW and MINI products. Drivers will be billed by the minute for vehicle usage through the service.

MyCityWay is a comprehensive mobile application providing a complete collection of information relating to specific city areas. Merging as many as 50 Apps or more, MyCityWay provides mobile users everything from locating the nearest public restroom to the hippest events in town. Transit, weather and traffic alerts are also part of this extensive mobile app intended to minimize time traveling between destinations. available for 40 cities at the end of 2011 on continents in Asia, Europe and in the Americas, MyCityWay is preparing for greater expansion in the near future along with the DriveNow service.

Ford Mustang Customizer App

Introduced in mid-September, Ford conceived a fun and interactive way for the tech world’s young citizen to relate to a vehicle that caused such uproars in the mid-1960s. Appearing first as a web-based program for desktop and laptop computers, the Mustang Customizer experience has migrated to the an app available through iPhone and Android supported devices. Providing an assortment of exterior dress-up equipment, 2012 Ford Mustang products (including the Boss 302 edition) can be customized to countless colour and factory available accessories.

Audi Roadside assistance App

Designed to work with Audi Roadside assistance coverage packages, the new service app available on Apple iPhones, Android and select Blackberry phones is free for use by covered motorists. Providing expedited breakdown coverage, owners in need of jump-start, fuel delivery or tire repair will have help arrive even in hard to distinguished locations thanks to a phone’s GPS capability. a great companion with Audi’s breakdown insurance plans, the Audi Roadside assistance App can also allow owners of the luxury brand vehicles find the closest service center.

MyFord Mobile App

Prepared for the upcoming Ford Focus Electric vehicle, the MyFord Mobile App was devised to help future owners navigate with their zero emissions lifestyle. Relaying information pivotal for allowing users to optimize the capacity of the lithium-ion battery pack, MyFord Mobile App provides a driver the ability to calculate routes in relations to the available battery power storage. Recording your recent driving, the MyFord Mobile App allows you to download your vehicle’s data. Users can also share ownership milestones over social media networks Twitter and Facebook. other basic features presented through MyFord Mobile App also includes door lock/unlock capability as well as GPS location of the Ford Focus Electric vehicle.

Information and photo source: Audi AG, BMW, Ford Motor Company, General Motors

Filed Under: Audi • BMW • Car News • Car Tech • Cool Stuff • Ford • GM • List • Misc • Mustang • Rolls-Royce

The Next Generation of Onboard Navigation Apps: NAVIGON 2.0 for iPhone Lets You Download Maps by State

HAMBURG, Germany–(BUSINESS WIRE)–NAVIGON GmbH, a subsidiary of Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN), the global leader in satellite navigation, today launched the second generation of its award-winning iPhone navigation app, NAVIGON 2.0 for iPhone. the new version completely redefines core elements of iPhone navigation, including a new and unique map management function and an in app purchase option for quarterly map updates, both not found in any other onboard navigation app. also included is a very simple and intuitive user interface. Existing NAVIGON for iPhone users receive the update to the new version at no cost.

“Navigation systems have become more complex over the last years. We’ve added over 30 new features to our app since it first launched, ranging from traffic and parking information to advanced lane guidance, and our challenge with this new version was to not just add new functionalities but take the overall user experience to the next level,” said Gerhard Mayr, NAVIGON vice-president of worldwide mobile phone business. “We completely rethought the way the app interface is structured and as a result, NAVIGON 2.0 is more intuitive and easier to use than ever before. We’re also the first ones to solve the problem of having to save large amounts of map data on the phone to be independent of a data connection. the new version allows users to pick exactly which maps they need on their iPhone, leaving more room for other apps or photos and videos, for example.”

Map Management and Update Capabilities NAVIGON 2.0 is the first iPhone onboard navigation app that separates the app from the maps, allowing users to choose which map regions to download to their device. Users who, for example, own the USA version can pick the states they want immediately and download additional regions at a later time1. This ability prolongs internal phone storage, since users save only the maps they need on their device. Separating the app and maps also simplifies future updates, as users can update the app (about 40MB) without reinstalling the maps multiple times.

NAVIGON 2.0 is also the first iPhone navigation app to offer quarterly map updates. the FreshMaps service uses trusted, field-verified, and quality-controlled map and points of interest updates from NAVTEQ® to ensure the most accurate data possible. Users can keep their maps accurate and reliable by receiving quarterly updates for a one-time fee. FreshMaps also upgrades the USA or regional versions to the full North America map. NAVIGON’s new Latest Map Guarantee provides customers the latest NAVTEQ map available when purchasing NAVIGON 2.0 for iPhone.

New User Interface The new user interface is much easier to use, allowing to easily switch between different pages with animated menus and new multi-touch user gestures. it is now possible to access the start screen during navigation to enter a new address without having to first stop the current route. In addition, NAVIGON separated the app options into two menus, differentiating between settings and actions. the new Settings menu allows users to easily customize functions and change preferences, for example when to receive speed warnings, while the new Actions menu lets you use functions that are needed while navigating such as points of interest search and social network postings.

NAVIGON 2.0 for iPhone also has a fresh new look that displays the map in the background even when accessing menu pages. Furthermore, it is very easy to rotate and zoom maps in any direction when in 3D mode and tap points of interest on the map to instantly add them to a route.

Pricing and Availability The NAVIGON 2.0 upgrade is available at no cost for all existing customers. NAVIGON’s North American apps and selected in app purchases are up to $25 off until November 30, 2011. the promotional offerings are below next to the regular prices.

Applications

NAVIGON for iPhone North America: $39.99 instead of $59.99

NAVIGON for iPhone USA: $29.99 instead of $49.99

NAVIGON for iPhone Canada: $29.99 instead of $49.99

NAVIGON for iPhone East, Central or West: $19.99 instead of $29.99

 

In App Purchases

  North America: $14.99 instead of $19.99 USA (upgrades to maps of North America): $19.99 instead of $39.99 Canada (upgrades to maps of North America): $19.99 instead of $39.99 MyRegion (upgrades to maps of North America): $24.99 instead of $49.99   Safety Cameras: $4.99 Traffic Live: $19.99 ZAGAT Survey® Ratings and Reviews: $7.99 Panorama View 3D: $9.99  

Accessories NAVIGON Design Car Kit for iPhone: $49.95, available at BringMobi.com

NAVIGON for iPhone is compatible with iPhone 4S, 4, 3GS, 3G iPad 3G and iPad 2 3G. the app also runs on first generation iPhone and iPod Touch, but third party accessories for GPS reception are required for these devices.

Check out a video of NAVIGON 2.0 for iPhone here. for more information, please visit: navigon.com.

Find NAVIGON on:

Twitter: twitter.com/NAVIGON_US

Facebook: navigon.com/facebook

Flickr: navigon.com/flickr

YouTube: navigon.com/youtube

 

About NAVIGON GmbH – a GARMIN company: Germany-based NAVIGON GmbH was founded in 1991 and is a leading supplier of satellite navigation products. In July 2011, the company was acquired by Garmin ltd. and operates as a fully-owned subsidiary. the NAVIGON brand offers mobile navigation devices (PNDs), smartphone navigation applications, and solutions for the automotive OEM industry.

______________________________1 Map downloads require an internet connection.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50076846&lang=en

3 Ways Shopping Apps Will Save You Money

posted by Suzanne Kantra on November 17, 2011 in Phones and Mobile, Mobile Apps, Android Apps, iPhone/iPad Apps, Guides & Reviews, Shopping, Money Savers :: 0 comments

Whether you’re planning on shopping in stores on online, apps for iPhone, iPad and Android devices can give you peace of mind when it comes to making purchases. find out when to buy, get alerts when prices drop, price comparison shop from within stores, even browse the Sunday circulars for coupons and deals. here are my favorites.

Compare prices

I always question whether I’m getting the best deal when I’m shopping in a store. but with a price comparison app like ShopSavvy (free in iTunes and Android Market and iTunes), I can check the price at local stores and online retailers easily. I simply input the product name or scan its barcode and the app will pull up pricing at local and online retailers (including Amazon, which is key for me since I get free 2-day shipping with my Amazon Prime membership). For local retailers, I check to see if there’s a blue dot, which means the product is in stock. And if I’m just browsing, I can always go back to a list of the products I’ve looked up. Listings have the price and a photo.

RedLaser (free in Android Market and iTunes) is another great choice. I find its barcode scanning works better in challenging lighting conditions than ShopSavvy, but it doesn’t pull in regular Amazon pricing, just Amazon Marketplace. but you can always download Price Check by Amazon (free in iTunes and Android Market) to supplement.

Decide when to buy

I hate to see a product I’ve just bought go on sale. And with Black Friday and Cyber Monday right around the corner, it’s easy to second guess when the right time is to buy a product. the best protection is to use an app that helps you decide when it’s the right time to buy.

My favorite app for electronics, use the Decide.com app (free in iTunes). it shows price history, lets you know when prices drop, alerts you when there’s a new model and predicts if the price will rise or drop. For other product categories, check out LetShop ($1.99 in iTunes), which provides price history, price comparison (including Amazon and eBay) and price drop alerts.

Find deals and coupons

This time of year, I don’t like to buy anything without checking to see if there’s a coupon or deal to be found. And makes it easy Dealnews (free in iTunes  and Android Market) for online or offline retailers. Keep tabs on favorite product categories, like toys or electronics, and even narrow it by retailer. if I find a particular item I like, I can save it to “my deals” for future reference or even buy it from within the app.

For Sunday circular browsers, I suggest GeoQcops (free in iTunes). it shows the scanned pages along with text describing the deals.