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Amazon could let Londoners pick up their packages from Tube stations
London's Tube network is about to face some major changes that will not only affect its staff and passengers, but also -- perhaps -- Amazon shoppers. Plans are already afoot to shut down manned ticket offices across the Underground by 2015, in order to pay for 24-hour operation on major lines. Now, according to the Financial Times, Amazon is in talks with Tube bosses to find a way to turn all those abandoned little cubicles into pick-up points for packages instead. The idea seems plausible, given Amazon's other efforts to change the way deliveries are handled, but the retailer hasn't yet confirmed the FT's report. There's also plenty of scope for such a project to become unstuck -- not least as a result of promised industrial action by Tube workers, who want avoid job losses and keep ticket offices just as they are.
Happy 150th birthday, London Underground! Two great tube apps to celebrate
As of yesterday, the London Underground is officially 150 years old. Way back on January 10, 1863, London's Tube became the first mass transit underground railway in the world. And what started as just seven stops on one line between Paddington and Farringdon stations has now grown into a massive rail network of more than 11 lines and 270 stations, which carries almost 4 million Londoners a day. In honor of the Tube's birthday I thought I'd list my two favorite apps to help me navigate London's iconic railway. While Transport for London doesn't have an official app, it does make its data available to developers. In the past two years I've tried virtually every Tube app out there; the following are the ones I believe every Londoner, or visitor, should have on their iPhone. Tube Tamer: London Journey Planner (Free) By far, Tube Tamer is the slickest, fastest and most pleasing London Tube app out there. Launch the app, enter your start and end stations, choose your departure time and tap search. Your journey options are displayed in a easy to navigate list. Or, if you don't know your stations, you can get directions by entering an address, post code or point of interest. The place search is powered by Google, so you know your results will be accurate. The power of this app lies in its simplicity. It's fast and easy to use -- something that comes in handy when you want to catch the next available train. Tube Map Pro (US$1.99/UK£1.49) Tube Map Pro is another great choice for navigating London's Underground. I don't use it as much as Tube Tamer because its UI is a little more convoluted. Then again, Tube Map Pro also does more than Tube Tamer. The app uses officially licensed maps from Transport for London that allow users to easily see an overview of the entire transport network and find out how to quickly get from one point to another. Besides maps and route-planning, the app uses GPS to show you the closest station to you, features live departure boards and lets you track the balance of your Oyster card (the Tube's ticketing system) right in the app. Are you a fellow Londoner? Have a favorite Tube app? Let me know in the comments!
The best London transport app for the Olympics or anytime
A few weeks ago I wrote an article highlighting the best London transportation apps for visitors coming to the London Olympics. In my article I divided the apps based on mode of transport: tube, bus, car, boat, and bicycle. Shortly after the article went live I was having dinner with some old friends from Apple who were visiting the city; they told me about an app they've recently found that helps them get around London: the aptly-named London Transport. After using it for a week, I can say that this is the best London transportation app I've ever used and anyone who lives here or is thinking of visiting London should download it immediately. London Transport is a joy to use, and it's especially intuitive for those of you who are used to looking at search results from Transport for London's official website. Matter of fact, the app is so good, I'm comfortable suggesting that it should become TFL's official app (as they currently don't have one). Launch London Transport and you'll be able plan a journey via virtually any mode of London transportation available: tube, bus, cycle hire, DLR, taxi and minicab, boat, tram, or road. You can bookmark your favorite locations, tube stops, or address for quick access when planning routes, and set a home location so you can simply tap the "Take me home" button to see the quickest options for getting you home. In addition to the navigation capabilities and real-time departure board updates, the app also shows you your Oyster Card balance and even the closest locations where you can top up your card. I could go on and on about the myriad features this app offers, but instead I'll just tell you to check out the gallery below and then go and download it and use it for yourself. London Transport is US$4.99 in the App Store. %Gallery-161742%
Going to the London Olympics? Here are the transport apps you'll need
The London 2012 Olympics officially start in just under two weeks. From July 27th until August 12th millions of combined spectators, journalists, and the world's fittest athletes will descend upon the greatest city on the planet. During that time Transport for London estimates that there will be an extra four million visitors to the city. To put that in perspective, that's adding over 50% to the capital's normal population of 7.5 million. In addition, TFL estimates that up to one million extra people per day will be using London's transport systems. What does that mean? Chaos, basically (and a huge pain for the people who live here). But if you're going to be one of the four million visitors there is some hope. You can stock up on London's best transport apps that will help you navigate the city. Since I moved to London in 2007 I've tried virtually every London transportation app. In the list that follows, I've narrowed down the single best app from each category: tube, bus, car, bicycle, and boat. Tube: Tube Map Pro Hands down, Tube Map Pro by mxData Ltd is the best tube app out there. The app uses officially licensed maps from Transport for London that allows users to easily see an overview of the entire transport network and find out how to quickly get from one point to another. Besides maps and route planning, the app uses GPS to show you the closest station to you, features live departure boards, and lets you track the balance of your Oyster card (the Tube's ticketing system) right in the app. If you're visiting London, Tube Map Pro is the single best app purchase you can make. Tube Map Pro is discounted to US$0.99 in honor of the games. The app is universal, so it works on both the iPhone and iPad. mxData also has a free, ad-supported version of the app called Tube Map. Bus: London Bus Checker After the Tube, the mode of transport most visitors will be taking is the bus. London's bus network is excellent, and many times it's faster that the tube (when you take walking to stations into account). The best London bus app I've found is London Bus Checker by FatAttitude. The single best thing about this app is it lets you see, in real-time, when the next bus you need to catch is coming. If, for instance, your bus stop is around the corner you can check the app to see if the #55 is two minutes away and you need to run to make it, or if it's 10 minutes away and you can mosey on over at your own pace. Among the many other features, the app also offers stop alerts so you know when you're approaching your stop and lets you see full route maps for London's entire bus network. London Bus Checker is $2.99. It's also a universal app, so it works on both the iPhone and iPad. Car: Park-Up - London Parking Let me just say this right now: if you are planning to drive in the city during the London Olympics, you are crazy. Period. You'll spend more time sitting in traffic then you will seeing all the sights London has to offer. That being said, I'm sure there will be some people who will still think that driving is the way to go. In that case, iOS's Maps app is the best route planner for your transportation needs. However, just because Maps can get you there, it doesn't mean you'll actually find a place to park. That's where Park-Up's London Parking comes in. The app tracks over 10,000 places to park in central London, from single street parking bays to entire car parks and parking garages. What's really nice about the app is that you can view what kind of parking space it is before you get there. Tapping on any parking location will show you the hours and costs, and, if available, the number of spaces, height restrictions, and security arrangements. Park-Up London Parking is $4.99. It's also a universal app, so it works on both the iPhone and iPad. Boat: KPMG Thames Clippers A great way to get from one side of London to the other is by boat. The Thames is full of clipper ships that ferry people up and down the river. Many times, if you have to travel a long distance, this is actually the best way to go. Using KPMG Thames Clippers by Seligman Ventures, users can enter their start and destination piers and view the official timetables from Thames Clippers. Do note, however, that these time tables are not updated in real time. KPMG Thames Clippers is a free app for iPhone. Bicycle: Barclays Bikes Compared to cities in the US, London is extremely bike friendly (though it does have some catching up to do with its European neighbors). Chances are you won't be bringing your bicycle to London, but that shouldn't stop you from cycling around the city (which is probably the best, fastest, and funnest way to not only get around the capital, but to see it as well). Barclays Bank has a cycle hire program with the city. The program installed thousands of bicycles at spots around the capital that anyone can use. The first half-hour is free, and after that charges are relatively cheap. If you are going to be hiring Barclays cycles, you'll want to download the official Barclays Bikes app. The app shows you where the closest cycling docking terminal is, lets you calculate the cost of how much a bike hire will be (based on the time you plan to have it), and lets you plan your cycling route based on places, postcodes, or address. And the best thing about the app is it not only shows you how close the nearest cycling docking station is, but it also shows you how many bicycles are available at that station. Barclays Bikes is a free app for iPhone. Everything: Citymapper - London Transport All of the above apps are excellent for their chosen mode of transportation. But what if you want to get from one place to another and choose your mode of transportation based on time or cost? That's where Citymapper - London Transport by Citymapper Inc. comes in. The developers call the app a "Super Router" and boy, are they right! Just enter your start and end locations and Citymapper shows you a list of all your transport options including walking, cycling, bus, tube, rail, and cab. For each option, they also show you how much the journey will cost (or for cycling and walking, calories burned) and also how long the trip will take. Citymapper does note that the app is still in beta, but in my tests it works quite well. Citymapper - London Transport is a free app for iPhone. Check out screenshots from each app below and drop me a line in the comments if there's a London transport app you love that I didn't list. %Gallery-160395%
Virgin Media WiFi in London goes deeper underground, 41 stations now hooked up
While it's been in the pipes for a while, and some lucky stations got an early arrival, Virgin Media has confirmed that 41 stations in total are now lapping from the bowl of sweet, sweet free WiFi. Considering that a million tweets, Facebook updates, and emails were delivered in the first week, and over 100,000 commuters have logged on in the last four, appetite for the service is high. While use is free at the moment, and TFL travel info will remain without charge, non Virgin Media customers will have to start paying up, once the Olympic Games are over. By then the full expected 120 stations should be plugged-in and switched on. For the current list of connected stations, head past the break.
Virgin Media activates more tube WiFi hotspots, minds the gaps in its coverage
Virgin Media has flicked the switch and coated Kings Cross and Warren Street tube stations in gloriously free WiFi. The pair will be joined tomorrow by Oxford Circus and Green Park, while Victoria and Euston will do the same on the 9th. In order to use the service, which is free during the Olympics, users need to hop onto the network and register their email address. Once the summer is over, Virgin Media customers will get preferential treatment on the network, with everyone else buying pay-as-you-go minutes so they can tweet about how long we're stuck at Edgware Road... again.
Virgin Media names the first 80 tube stations to get WiFi hotspots
Transport for London and Virgin Media have announced the first 80 London Underground stations that'll receive free WiFi in time for the Olympics. By the end of July, users will be able to surf from the train platform, ticket offices and escalators -- ideal for a few extra rush-hour injuries. The partnership will offer the internet free during the games season before switching to a pay-as-you-go model, with plans to swell the network to 120 by the end of the year. If you'd like to know if your morning commute is about to get some extra connectivity then head past the break for the full list.
Virgin Media wins London Underground WiFi contract, provides conduit for tube station tweets
Remember the ten dozen WiFi hotspots London's underground said it was prepping ahead of the 2012 Olympic games? Virgin Media says they'll be free -- at least to start. By the time July rolls around, 80 stations will be rocking that sweet, sweet internet, and an additional 40 tube stops will go live by the end of the year. The service will be gratis during the summer, Virgin's press release explains, but will eventually join the outfit's broadband and mobile subscription network -- doling out only basic travel information and a pay-as-you-go option to the unsubscribed. Just make sure you finish Facebooking before your train arrives -- the tubes themselves are as dark as ever. Read on for Virgin Media's official press release.
London scraps plans for cellular coverage on the tube, bums Huawei out
Technical complexity and financial naiveté have meant that London's ambitious plans to cover its underground train network with cellular signal by the 2012 Olympics are hitting the scrapheap. In spite of Huawei's most generous offer to provide £50 million ($81m) of equipment for the project for free, the London Mayor's wish that UK mobile operators be the ones to foot the installation bill -- without a penny coming out of public coffers -- has unsurprisingly found little favor. Compounded with the logistical hellride of trying to get everything up and running by next summer, that's now led to a mutual agreement among all parties concerned to abandon the project. Mind you, the plans to get WiFi up at 120 stations in time for the Olympics are still on track, so at least we'll be able to pull down some data before diving into those dark, damp tunnels.
London Underground to get 120 WiFi hotspots in advance of the 2012 Olympics
A big announcement arrived today if you live in or around London: to prepare to the onslaught of data-hungry visitors for the 2012 Olympic games that the city is hosting, 120 WiFi hotspots are being added to various locations along the Underground subway system's stations and platforms, in addition to other measures being taken to beef up tech. No WiFi will be in the actual tunnels, mind you, but it should definitely come in handy for all those tourists trying to find their way around the city. British Telecom has already tolled out a trial run at the Charing Cross station, with further installations expected in the lead up to the games.
Huawei offers to build out London Underground cellular coverage for free
No such thing as a free lunch, is there? China's Huawei has generously offered to pick up the roughly £50 million ($81 million) tab for equipment to line London's sprawling subway system with mobile phone reception, a package it says it's extending as a gift from Olympic host nation to another (London will host the 2012 Summer Olympics, and it has said in the past that it'd like the Tube wired in time). The official line is that Huawei would make its money back over time through maintenance contracts, but some politicians are raising red flags over the Chinese firm's potential control over a critical piece of London's wireless infrastructure -- a sentiment that seemed to help kill a potential Huawei deal with Sprint in the States. Of course, the over-connected nerd in us is tempted to brush off espionage concerns if it means we can stay on email all the way from the West End to the Docklands.
London, New York on track for subway cellular coverage?
After nearly three years of setbacks, if New York City isn't careful it looks like London just might win the race to extend cellular service to its underground transit system. The plan laid out by London Mayor Boris Johnson calls for the UK's big five wireless carriers (Vodafone, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, and 3) to cover the cost (some "hundreds of millions of pounds," according to the Telegraph) for a system that should hopefully wire the Tube by the 2012 Olympics. Meanwhile, the New York plan came back to life recently when Broadcast Australia purchased a majority stake in Transit Wireless, which was awarded some $46 million to wire subway platforms and select tunnels back in 2007 -- and which apparently threw in the towel shortly thereafter. Unlike the New York plan, London's won't be limited to the platforms, which is great news for Britons who like to listen to obnoxious strangers' cellphone conversations.
Wall of Sound is loud, prohibitively expensive, and somewhat defeats the purpose
You know the problem with most iPod docks? They're too compact, too convenient. Luckily the wild men at Brothers in Drottninggatan, Stockholm, have the cure to tinny sounds that come in small packages. Hopefully a nod to the sound generated by "the bruddas" from Forest Hills, Queens (and not that of a certain homicidal record producer), the Wall of Sound is a handcrafted, 4 x 3 foot, 125 watt tube amplified behemoth. Intrigued? We bet you are. Sadly, the company has sold out of its first run, but you'll need time to save up your lunch money for one of these anyways: the asking price is $4,495 (plus shipping). Hit that read link to get started.
Grant Fidelity's $3,200 Impression II weds CD player, tube amp and overkill
See that? That's a $3,200 CD player, which will be impossible to justify for pretty much anyone not featured on Joan Rivers' newest TV show. Designed and produced by Grant Fidelity, the CD-1000 Impression II packs a high-end Sanyo CD drive, tube analog output, tube headphone amplifier and a rather basic display screen, while the "anti-vibration aluminum chassis" tries as hard as it can to look both unorthodox and absurdly expensive. It's hard to say if your burnt MP3 discs will actually sound better on this thing (okay, so they won't), but at least you can rest easy knowing that shipping on this 50 pound beast is completely gratis.[Via OhGizmo]
Video: Nearest Tube iPhone app augments reality with directions
Augmented reality applications to this point could be best categorized as tantalizing to the mind, but otherwise pointless. Thankfully, it seems as if that's no longer the case. AcrossAir, a nascent app builder for the iPhone, has conjured up a slickly executed digital guidance application that augments video with real-time distance and directions to the nearest subway station. With the iPhone 3GS pimping an improved camera, inbuilt compass and GPS, we had a hunch that it wouldn't be long before someone slammed them all together and gave commuters and tourists alike a reason to smile. Presently only capable of serving up directions in London, this app should find plenty of user interest that will hopefully drive its development for other metropolises around the world. Click through to check it out for yourself, and expect to see it ready for download as soon as someone (or something) at Cupertino decides to start approving live video programs. Any day now, Apple...[Via Tokyo-Genki]
Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic gets its first firmware update: aww!
It's always a momentous occasion when a hot-as-white-fire handset sees its first firmware update, but the latest package -- designed to get your 5800 XpressMusic up to v20.0.0.12 -- is way more than just cute. Available now for downloading, the update adds in camera photo geotagging, full device search and marginally faster operation overall. Users can opt for an OTA update or the traditional PC Suite approach, and if you're somewhat terrified about engaging in either, just take a deep breath, hit the read link, and follow the instructions. We swear it'll be alright.
Nokia ships one millionth 5800 XpressMusic, does a little dance
Okay, so we're going on the assumption that the 500,000 figure uttered by Nokia CEO Olli Pekka Kallasvuo during this week's Q4 earnings call was a touch old -- you know, considering that the outfit is now trumpeting the shipment of a cool million. Following a (very!) successful UK launch, Nokia has just shipped its one millionth Tube, which is the handset maker's first mass market touchscreen device. And to think -- it hasn't even debuted in many corners of the globe yet.
Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic bundled with Shure SE210 earphones in Hong Kong
As you can probably tell from the naming convention used on Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic, this here phone was designed with music playback in mind. Shocking, we know. That being the case, we're not surprised to see this here Nokia / Shure bundle surface in Hong Kong, and honestly, we're a little surprised it took this long. The special edition kit will come packaged with one handset and one set of Shure SE210 earphones, and it's expected to go on sale today for around $620. Too bad you'll have to jet to Hong Kong and drop by the currency conversion joint to actually snag one.[Via The Nokia 5800 Blog]
European Nokia 5800 XpressMusic now available at Chicago flagship store
Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic (or the Tube, as we prefer to say) has been on sale in certain corners of the globe for a few weeks now, but the touchscreen-heavy handset has just now made itself to US soil. Sadly, it lacks the support necessary for US 3G data, but those who simply cannot wait another day can hop a flight to O'Hare (or Midway, if you please) and snap up one of the Euro versions at the Chicago flagship store. 'Course, you'll get the US warranty and all, and you'll only be asked to hand over $349.99 to take one home. As of now, only the blue variant is in stock, and the NYC store is still waiting for shipment.Update: It's available at the New York City store as well, so get your (European) S60 5.0 on, won't you?
Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic goes on sale somewhere in the world
If you've been gritting your teeth and letting the PR onslaught of the iPhone 3G, Storm, and G1 knock you around as you waited for Nokia's entry into the widescreen, touchscreen superphone market -- that wait appears to be nearing it's end. Nokia has gone and gotten all official and release-y with it's anticipated (if somewhat disappointing) 5800 XpressMusic... or as we know it, the Tube. According to the company's PR, the device "is now, or will be soon" available in Russia, Spain, India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Finland, "among others." If you'll recall, the phone boasts a 3.2-inch, 16:9 resistive touchscreen (hey, they throw in a guitar pick stylus), a 3.2-megapixel camera, 8GB of on-board storage, and the constant assurance that you're using a phone once called the Tube. No word on price or plans, but we expect cheap, and lots.[Thanks, Pdexter]
