Reviews September 1, 2009

Palm Pre App Catalog. 30 Apps in 30 Days. Day 30: Yelp

When I started this series, my hope had been to tackle all of the apps in the Palm Pre App Catalog before its official launch, later this month. But the developers turned out to be too fast for me. In the month since I started this series, the App Catalog has grown from 30 apps to 45, and is really starting to gain momentum. So, a slight change of plans will see the series ending today, with an overview of 30 apps.

As a finale to the series, I thought we would take a look at Yelp, the location based search tool. But don’t worry, this will not be the end of our look at apps for the Palm Pre. There are plenty of new apps showing up every day, both in the official App catalog and in the unofficial homebrew app lists. And we will work our way through many of the apps in both locations. For now, though, let’s take a look at Yelp.

Yelp is a multi-platform tool, which can help you find local businesses and restaurants in your area. You can search either by selecting one of the preset categories or by entering your own search term. Yelp will then find any matches in your area.

One thing I thought was odd, however, was that you could not adjust the search radius. Additionally, there is no way to change the location of your search. It will use your GPS to find your current location and search in that area only. Which makes it an ineffective tool for planning an evening out or vacation unless you are planning to stay within the vicinity of your home.

Once you have completed your search, Yelp will provide a list of the results, organized by distance from your current location.

Just tap any one for more information, such as address, phone number, and even reviews. My favorite part, however, was the picture of every establishment. This is fantastic, and will really help if you are trying to find a new business or visit a restaurant in a new city.

I really liked this app a lot, and I think it is a fantastic way to quickly find what you need in your area. However, I found the service to be a bit inflexible, with no way to change your location or adjust the search radius. Because of that, this turned out to be a good app, with plenty of room to grow.