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Tech Edge: The Waze App

What Is It?
Waze is a community-based driving navigation and traffic app. Drivers receive real-time traffic and road information that is shared directly by other motorists in their area. The idea is to save Waze users time and money on their travels by always providing them with the best route – and cheapest area gas prices. The app is compatible with Android and iOS.

Features
With Waze, you receive turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation, automatic rerouting when road conditions change, and the ability to send your expected-time-of-arrival and real-time drive information to update people you’re meeting. You can also check the ETAs of friends, colleagues, clients and others who are driving to the same destination.

Fortunately, the app is easy to use, and you get the sunny feeling of contributing to the common good through data you provide. By typing in your destination address and driving with the app open, you passively produce traffic and other road data. Additionally, you can actively share reports on accidents, police traps, road closures, and more. Of course, the massive upside for you is that you benefit from the data that other Waze users are sharing about such things – information the app uses to plot your fastest route. The helping hand is extended even further by Waze’s community of online map editors, who work to ensure data in their areas is as current as possible.

Price Tag
FREE!

Why You’ll Like It
Waze has the potential to save you time, frustration and money, including speeding ticket fees, every time you get behind the wheel. Indeed, you stand to reach work, the airport, clients’ offices – pretty much anywhere – faster and with less hassle. Plus, if you still use traditional taxis, the app empowers you to direct the driver on the most efficient route to take, leading to minimal spending on fares. The Waze community also reports on local gas prices, helping you find the cheapest nearby charge at the pump – something every driver will love.

Why You Won’t
Literally millions of Waze users have heaped complements on the app, saying it is absolutely all it’s cracked up to be. On Google Play, for instance, more than 4.1 million people have given Waze the most positive rating possible. Even so, the app has its detractors. You might agree with complaints that include: Not enough advance warning is provided for things like police traps and which way to go on interchange ramps; the app doesn’t always identify the precise location, which sometimes results in wrong turns; in-app advertisements are annoying; and Waze occasionally fails to show the fastest route.

Our Advice
Download this app today. It won’t cost you a cent, so why not give it a go? Sure, Waze is not perfect and it hasn’t won over everyone. But based on our personal use, plus the millions of users singing its praises, we’re convinced that Waze is a useful, efficiency-enhancing tool. We think you will too.