In a very crowded (and sometimes pricey) market, Scout GPS offers solid navigation at no cost. It also has traffic camera, speed trap, and incident alerts. And you can upgrade to Scout Plus (for $4.99 per month or $24.99 per year) to download offline maps, though in that case, it isn't quite a free GPS app. Still, Scout is a much better app than paid options like Magellan Roadmate, Navigon, and TomTom. It's also a solid competitor to our Editors' Choice Google Maps. That said, you can't rely on its pedestrian mode, and its POI database is home to occasionally distracting ads.
Interface and Points of Interest
When you first launch the app, you're asked to input your phone number to get a verification code. You can then opt into or out of push notifications with app updates, badges, and other information. Next, you agree to the terms of service, enter your name, choose whether you want the app to access your contacts for navigation and for sharing your ETA, then set up your home and work address. Finally, you can set up traffic reports for your morning and evening commutes to and from work by choosing the time and days of the week that you commute.
One of my pet peeves, when it comes to GPS apps (and GPS devices for that matter) is that many make you first input a city, then the street, and then the house number, which can be tedious. Scout, unlike Magellan Roadmate and Navigon, simply lets search by business name or input the address in the logical order (for example, 28 East 28th Street, New York, NY 10016).
Scout by Telenav (for iPhone)
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I gave it a test by searching for several nearby businesses, including a few restaurants, parks, museums, and others points of interest, and it found all of them, including a theatre in Staten Island and a supermarket in Harlem that stymied other apps.
Car Navigation
When driving, you can set the app to avoid highways, tolls, ferries, and even carpool lanes, which is handy, since I've often found myself accidentally merging into HOV lanes due to poor signage. I also appreciate that you can tap the screen to view all turn-by-turn directions, which is a feature some apps don't provide; I like to get a feel for the entire route before I start driving.
I took Scout on several trips around town, and it always offered the fastest routes. As per my usual testing, I made a bunch of intentional wrong turns, and Scout was able to keep up most of the time with timely route recalculation and voice prompts. However, after one too many wrong turns, the app sometimes seemed to get frustrated and would direct me to "go to X Street," but it wouldn't offer specific directions for how to get there.
At one point, when I searched for a local café, I accidentally tapped the top search result, which happened to be an ad for Dunkin Donuts. I was surprised when Scout told me I had arrived at my destination after driving just a few blocks. That was annoying. While I understand that ads can help keep the app free, in this case, it interfered with the user experience. Once I hit the back button and selected the second, correct search result, I was on my way.
The app suggests nearby parking garages when near your destination, and you can use voice control to navigate directly to a specific garage. That's very helpful in urban areas. It also has a pedestrian mode, but I wasn't able to use it. Scout continued to prompt me to drive, even when I searched for walking directions to a destination less than a mile away.
Good for Your Daily Commute
Scout outdoes paid navigation apps with its free traffic alerts and accurate directions. Despite the ads, its solid POI database and fast recalculations after a wrong turn make it a good companion while traveling by car. However, its iffy pedestrian mode and lack of transit navigation mean it's best for frequent drivers, like daily commuters. Those who prefer other modes of transportation should stick with our Editors' Choice, Google Maps.
The Scout GPS app is a solid choice for drivers who need daily traffic information, though its free price comes with irritating ads.
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