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Wayfinder Systems AB

Type	Subsidiary
Industry	IT
Genre	Mobile Navigation
Predecessor(s)	Itinerary systems
Headquarters	Malmö, Sweden
Key people	Tommy Ahlers CEO[1]
Products	Navigation Software
Parent	Vodafone
Website	http://www.wayfinder.com

Wayfinder Systems AB was a wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone ^[2] specializing in creating mobile navigation systems for a number of platforms such as Symbian 2nd and 3rd edition, UIQ, Windows Mobile and some other smartphones. An external Bluetooth GPS receiver is required for non GPS enabled phones. On March 12, 2010 it was announced that Vodafone is closing the company and all employees will be let go.^[3]

The 13th of July 2010 Wayfinder announced^[4] that they would open source their software under the BSD 3-clause license.^[5][6] Source code for both the server (with import tools for map data from OpenStreetMap) and client software for various phone operating systems (including Android, iPhone and Symbian S60) is available at GitHub.

Wayfinder Navigator [edit]

Wayfinder Navigator is a mobile GPS application that provides turn-by-turn directions through a mobile phone. By downloading pre-loaded maps, Navigator can provide directions and different points of interest without Internet connection.^[7]

In May 2008, Wayfinder Navigator was updated to include pre-loaded maps, social networking and map coverage of 150 countries world-wide.^[8]

Wayfinder Earth [edit]

Wayfinder Earth is a mobile application that displays a 3D globe. The application contains over 3 million Points of Interest (POIs) including restaurants, train stations, bars, museums, gas stations and hospitals. Another international application, map coverage includes Europe and North America. Wayfinder Earth can set favorites, save address searches and show GPS information such as speed, position and heading as well.^[9]

As the maps are downloaded from the internet on the fly so the phone requires a GPRS/UMTS connection. Maps are cached on the phone memory or memorycard. According to the site, maps can even be downloaded from the site and stored on the phone, once you have registered. A half an hour of navigating uses approximately 200 kb of data or only 8 kb in the so-called Guide view.

Wayfinder Active [edit]

Wayfinder Active was a mobile phone GPS application to track physical outdoor activities. The application calculated exercise statistics such as distance, calories burned and altitude info, so that people could set and track specific exercise goals.^[10] Through an online community, activeoutdoor.com, people could track and share local routes within the community. The product was discontinued spring 2009.

Speed Cameras [edit]

Wayfinder launched the Wayfinder SpeedAlert application in December 2006. The application runs on Java and Symbian 3rd edition only. It warns the user of 15,000 speed cameras around Europe as well as when exceeded a manually set speed limit.

References [edit]

1. ^ "Extraordinary General Meeting of shareholders in Wayfinder Systems AB (publ)"|Wayfinder press release|2009-02-16
2. ^ "Vodafone completes its recommended cash offer for Wayfinder", Wayfinder Press Release, 2009-01-28
3. ^ "Vodafone lägger ner Wayfinder", March 12 2010
4. ^ Welcome to Vodafone Wayfinder OSS, published July 13th 2010, read July 15th 2010
5. ^ Vodafone Wayfinder OSS docuwiki
6. ^ Vodafone Press Release, published July 15th 2010
7. ^ "Multisport: State of the art mobile navigation – Wayfinder launches improved version of Wayfinder", Runner's Web, May 06 2008.
8. ^ "Don’t lose your way - Wayfinder Navigator", Thinking Aloud, May 13 2008.
9. ^ "Wayfinder Earth: navigation on a phone without GPS", Avec Mobile, June 05 2006.
10. ^ "Wayfinder Active is a way cool GPS app", CNET, April 04 2008.

External links [edit]

• www.wayfinder.com (Official Website)
• "Wayfinder Updates Wayfinder Navigator". Locations Magazine. 2008-05-07. Retrieved 2008-05-07. 
• "Wayfinder Navigator review". Locations Magazine. 2008-08-21. Retrieved 2008-08-21. 
• "A Conversation With Jonas Sellergren, VP Of Innovations For Wayfinder". GPS Obessed. 2008-06-10. Retrieved 2008-06-10. 
• "Location is the Ultimate Context: A Review of the Major Developments from Three LBS Conferences in San Francisco - CTIA, SiRF Location Summit & NAVTEQ Connections". Directions Magazine. 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2008-10-01.