Test Drive: Outside Lands Mobile App
As the countdown on their mobile app attests, there are only seven days left until Outside Lands kicks off in San Francisco. With a week to prepare for these three days of music, food, and art, it's time to download the official Outside Lands app on your iPhone, Android, or even your BlackBerry (mobile web) today.
This year's comprehensive and interactive app features everything you need to help navigate your weekend. The useful festival map provides a layout of the grounds that helps you find your way around, identify your exact location, and easily search for food, drinks, ATMs, and other amenities. Filters allow you to distinguish which items you want located on the map - but, as of now, only the "Venues" and "Eat & Drink " icons appear. The only concern with the map is its relatively small size. When opening the map, a tiny image of the festival ground is layered on top of a grid map of the city. Users must zoom in on limited sections of the map, making it somewhat difficult to orient oneself on the grounds.
For a look at which artists are playing and where, the app organizes the musicians alphabetically, by day, or by stage. Click on any artist and you are presented with their personal website, a bio, set time and stage, and videos. Also included is the embedded iTunes scroll that has been popping up more frequently lately on other festival apps. This feature allows you to sample or buy music on the go. Users have the option to "Like" their favorite artists and add them to their own personalized festival schedule. Your schedule can be seen by day or in grid view, which allows you to see whether or not you are suffering the misfortune of overlapping set times.
Outside lands puts just as much emphasis on their food and drinks as they do the music. An extensive list of food vendors will be present over the weekend, and the mobile app guides you in making savory decisions. All of the vendors are listed alphabetically or by food type. Select a vendor and you are presented with a bio, reviews, its location, and even the menu.
The most attractive and handy feature of the mobile app is the promotion of user interaction. By way of users liking and scheduling their favorite artists, the "What's Hot" tab allows you to see which artists are most liked and most scheduled. The same goes for the vendors. Based on user reviews, the app organizes which vendors are most delicious and which are the best. By the look of it, a lot of users are participating and contributing to these useful attributes; people are excited and ready to take part in the great weekend ahead.
News and social media links are also available through the app, and friends can create a group chat to keep in touch. Keep on top of Outside Lands updates on their twitter feed, and use the Ranger Dave Camera to take filtered shots over the festival. Download the helpful app and join others in preparing for the fun. Also, don't forget to check out our Outside Lands Festival Travel Guide to find more events, attractions, and hotspots in San Fran during your stay.
