Unless you’ve been under a rock for the past few years, chances are you’ve used some sort of geolocation-enabled app that serves up suggestions, deals and advice based on your current location. Facearound is the latest addition to the growing category that includes powerhouses such as Yelp and Foursquare … two popular options and are the two I regularly use. What differentiates the newcomer from the others is that it’s specifically pulling information from your Facebook friends.
This way of search, I believe, might make Facearound a viable option for exploring the world around you based on like-minded reviews of shops, coffeehouses, restaurants and other spots you might be interested in. There is one caveat, if you have friends that aren’t very interactive with the places around your locale, then there might not be a lot to explore.
However, this will provide an opportunity to offer up the first review on said app. I remember when Yelp first started and I was able to rack up the “first to review” badges. Now, it’s fairly difficult to find anything that hasn’t been checked into, reviewed, starred or has a current mayor. Of course, the app pulls in reviews from other Facebook users as well so you won’t be high and dry.
The deals section might also break Facearound apart from the others as it pulls directly from Facebook. This could be helpful, especially if you don’t have Foursquare, as it’s automatic so you see the deals as they appear on Facebook.
I do have some reservations on the user interface of the app. Most of it is fairly straightforward and easy to navigate, but the deals section, which could be the best use of this app is a bit cumbersome. It might just be that I’m in an area that doesn’t have a lot of deals to view. Otherwise, I love being able to pull up a destination and view how many stars it has, how many people like it on Facebook and how many checkins it has. Great info for making a decision on to go or not to go.
Overall, Facearound has a lot of potential. Checking out points of interest around you or in other locations with quick access to reviews, likes and checkins makes it a very useful discovery tool. Once more organic reviews are populated within the app it will be even more useful. Definitely check it out if you’re into adventures.