Those who know me know that I have the worst sense of direction. Holding a map in front of me just makes it worse. My typical way of finding an unknown place is by several visits to a gas station…yes, I have no shame in my lost game. Or better yet, having a trusty navigator. I do have the Garmin navigator which works flawlessly, but it’s not always convenient to charge or remember to bring to Garmin GPS with me. So, what’s a lost puppy to do?
I’ve always been a fan of MapQuest for directions. If one of our NYC computer technicians is unsure of where the customer is, I punch in the start and end directions, and email it to him. MapQuest is also great at condensing 
directions for print-outs. So, this past weekend, I had to take a trip and had my Garmin GPS with me. For kicks, I decided to try out the MapQuest 4 Mobile Navigator side-by-side. It was superb. It gave the same directions as Garmin, and even had a better, more human, enunciator. The only technology issue was that it would lose connection anytime it lost AT&T satellite connection. When that happened, it would announce it lost connection and then said updated once it was back. Other than that, it was a real pleasure using it.
As you take a directed turn, it would move to the next screen for the direction and verbally tell you where to go. I would recommend getting an iPhone support car holster so you can easily see the directions. I just stuck my iPhone in the drink holder which muffled the sound and prevented me from seeing the directions.
The MapQuest Navigator is definitely a must-have app when on the go. You don’t have to be in the car. You can also use it for the subway, bus, or walking directions. You can use it on your iPhone, Blackberry, or Android. It’s free so this is a no-brainer.