iPad App Review: Dash Four

With the iPad having been out for a week, users may still be trying to figure out where it fits into their day to day use, and developers are trying to tweak/create applications that take advantage of everything the iPad has to offer.  Immediately after getting my iPad I started to look for the same apps that I use daily on my various devices (BlackBerry Tour, Nexus One, iPod Touch).  I am an avid Twitter and foursquare user, so that is where I started.   One of the first apps I found and purchased was Dash Four, a foursquare application made specifically for the iPad. Read on to find out more about Dash Four. 

At the time of this post the official foursquare application for in the App Store has not been updated for the iPad, Dash Four offers a great alternative.  The application centers around showing you a large map of different venues that have been added to foursquare.  Each venue is indicated with the all too familiar map pin.  Once you press on a pin it will give you the venue name, which can also be touched to open the venue details.

From this screen you are able to via the foursquare venue page, see who is the mayor, how many people are currently there, and of course checkin.  One thing I wish the developer would add or change about Dash Four is during the checkin process the user is not prompted to enter a shout and also is not given the option to keep the checkin private or to send it to any social sites (Facebook, Twitter).

In the application you are also able to view your mayorships, badges, and friends.  There is a glitch right now for some users and their mayorships not showing up in Dash Four.  As you can see in the screen shots according to Dash Four I have zero mayorships, when in reality I have 29.  The developer is aware of this issue and has submitted an update to Apple to correct it.

With the Wi-Fi version of the iPad this application is only useful when you are connected, but with the 3G iPad coming soon this application will be great to use while out and about.  The simple fact that it shows great looking maps of the venues and is very straight forward to use is great. This is just the first release of this application and it can only get better from here, I look forward to seeing what else the developer can integrate into Dash Four.  I can see Dash Four becoming an application that makes it feel as if you are actually looking at a live foursquare map.   Dash Four, developed by Project Zebra, can be found in the iTunes App Store for $1.99.  Below are some more screen shots of the app in action.