Looking at the official list of apps made by Google and their affiliated teams, you’re more than likely to end up scratching your head when you come across Field Trip on the list. One of the lesser-known Google-developed apps in the Play Store brings you notifications and information on interesting sites to see near your person. Field Trip is developed by Niantic Labs, Google’s own in-house team that specializes in location-aware apps and games like Ingress, so it’s not surprising to see that the app uses your location to show you some pretty special things you might not be aware of.
Field Trip works by giving users notifications of sights to see in the area, whether it be a historical site, scenic view or another point that you might not otherwise notice while simply driving by. The biggest problem with phone notifications is that you actually have to look at the device to know what it’s trying to tell you; a big no-no in many states around the US. Thankfully that Android Wear watch is there to keep you informed at a glance and is ready to assist when needed, and now Niantic’s latest Field Trip update takes those notifications straight to your wrist.
Richer notifications are the idea behind the latest Field Trip update which will now provide snippets of information about points of interest around you, giving you the option to open it on your phone if you’d like to know more information. Besides this functionality Field Trip will even read out the information when placed in “field trip” mode, allowing you to completely keep your eyes on the road and still be able to take in all the sites and information around you. Field trip received a significant user interface overhaul just a few months ago that brought it into the world of Material Design and made it feel right at home in an Android 5 Lollipop ecosystem. Niantic also redeveloped the UI to provide more and better information, with a Google Maps visual as the main view with information cards waiting below for you to swipe through. It’s no surprise to see Niantic building in Android Wear support after Ingress’ own update not too long ago, and we hope to keep seeing this trend as the smartwatch race heats up!