Category Archives: android

Quickly switch language in ExploreMetro apps for Android

We’ve added a handy new feature to our Android apps. Previously the apps would use your device language, for example if your phone is set to Chinese, then Explore Shanghai will show the map and station names in Chinese by default. Now you can manually override this by choosing Language in the dropdown settings menu. Here’s how it works:

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You’ll need to update to version 7.0.6 or higher of the Android apps to see the new menu option. You can download our apps from Google Play or if you don’t have access to Google Play, you can download the APK files directly.

Introducing Material Design for our Android metro maps

We’ve just updated all of our ExploreMetro Android apps with a style update inspired by the new Google Material Design patterns.

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You’ll see more consistent use of colour throughout the apps: for example Shanghai uses a blue theme with a blue icon, blue toolbar and blue highlights, while Singapore is purple and Beijing is red.

It’s also even easier to plan a route, just tap the big circular Plan Route button (in orange in the screenshot below) to start planning a route.

We’ve also taken the opportunity to roll out some other updates, with station and first/last train time updates for Shanghai, and updated journey prices for Singapore. Find any issues with the latest updates? Get in touch

New apps for 2013 for Beijing Subway and Shanghai Metro

We’re fast approaching the end of the year, and the Beijing Subway and Shanghai Metro are making final preparations for the new lines opening.

In Shanghai, Line 13 is undergoing testing, and three new stations on Line 9 should also open shortly, around December 28th. The Shanghai Metro company have announced that two stations (Daduhe Road and South Qilianshan Road) will not open in the initial phase of Line 13 however.

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Meanwhile in Beijing, 4 new lines are getting ready: Line 6, plus extensions to Line 8, Line 9 and Line 10Screen Shot 2012-12-27 at 23.30.05. All are planned to open on the afternoon of December 30th. One caveat is that the interchange station between Line 1 and Line 9 at Military Museum is not open yet, so trains will not stop at this station on Line 9. Our maps will show Military Museum on Line 1 only for the time being.

We’ve just launched updates to our online interactive maps at ExploreShanghai.com and ExploreBJ.com to show you the latest lines. This includes station names in English and Chinese, and an updated route-planner. Do check out the Metropedia pages for the new construction like Cishousi and Songjiang South Railway Station.

Screen Shot 2012-12-27 at 23.40.34

Some information like first/last train times and prices for Shanghai are not yet available and will be added soon. If you see any missing information, please do contact us with links or data to fill in the gaps!

We’ve also updated our Android app for Beijing and Android app for Shanghai with the new lines. And iPhone users, we haven’t forgotten you! Due to the App Store approval process, it will take around 1-2 weeks to get the new versions of our iPhone apps approved. We hope to have them ready for you by early January!

Zoom in with our latest Android metro map updates!

The most popular request on our feedback forum has consistently been to add zooming to our metro map apps for Android. Today, we’re making that happen with version 2.0 of our maps for Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei and Hong Kong.

There are three easy ways to zoom:

  • Use the zoom buttons to zoom in or out
  • Double tap to quickly zoom in by one zoom level
  • Make a pinch gesture to zoom in or out

 

We’ll continue to make improvements to the map based on your feedback.

And we have a bonus feature for everyone running Android 3.0 or higher! When you tap on a station and choose a street map, you can now choose between a Google Map, and a offline street map, provided by OpenStreetMaps. So now, even if you’re offline, you can still quickly check the area around a station.

If you like the new features, we’d really appreciate your reviews in Google Play!

 

Introducing Taxi Crab: rate and review your Shanghai taxi driver

We’re delighted to announce our new free app Taxi Crab which lets you rate and tag taxi drivers in Shanghai, China. It’s available today for iPhone and Android.

How to use the app

STEP 1 – Enter your taxi driver’s 6 digit code, which should be visible at the front of the taxi.

STEP 2 – give your taxi driver a rating out of five crabs, and add tags!

STEP 3 – see the results from other users, including average rating and popular tags. We’ll even tell you if you have driven with the same taxi driver before!

Available tags

ORDINARY ZHOU
Safely gets you from A to B

MR STINKY
Hold your nose, this driver smells

SPITTER
Extra points for distance

SCENIC ROUTE
Taking you the long way round

NEWBIE
Doesn’t know where anything is

ALL DRESSED UP
Uniform and white gloves

SCISSORHANDS
Those fingernails are scary

RACECAR DRIVER
Wants to be in Formula One

GRANDMA
Why is everyone overtaking?

CHATTERBOX
Can’t stop talking

KTV STAR
Can’t stop singing

CASANOVA
‘So, do you have a boyfriend?’

Download now (it’s free!)

Taxi Crab is available now on the App Store (requires iOS6) and Google Play (requires Android 4).

Go ad-free with ExploreMetro VIP on Android

Since we launched our apps for Android on Google Play they’ve been available free, in order to reach as many people as possible! To help support the costs of development, we included an ad banner at the bottom of the screen.

Lots of people sent us feedback to let us know they wouldn’t mind paying a few dollars to remove the ads. So we’ve launched Explore Metro VIP for Android! It’s really simple to use:

1. Update any existing ExploreMetro map map apps you have already downloaded from Google Play to the latest version, that’s version 1.1

2. Visit http://exploremetro.com/vip or go to Help > Remove ads to download our VIP app.
3. Now you’re a VIP!

One purchase means you can enjoy all seven of our metro maps ad-free (Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Seoul, Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore) for one low price!

How do I become a VIP?

Download the app from Google Play at exploremetro.com/vip

Once I’ve installed the VIP app, what do I do?

Bask in your awesomeness. You can then download and install any of our Android apps, and the ad banner will be gone! Please leave the VIP app installed so we know you’re a VIP!

I can’t download the VIP app from Google Play?

The VIP app is a paid app, and Google restricts which countries are allowed to download paid apps. For example, the United States and Singapore are OK, but China doesn’t currently allow paid apps.

I installed the app, but there are still ads?

Make sure you have version 1.1 installed of the metro map apps (Help>Version to check). If you uninstall the ExploreMetro VIP app, we won’t be able to detect that you are a VIP. You’ll need to download it again.

Explore Singapore, now with route-planning for the LRT!

We’ve just pushed an update to our Explore Singapore map, which adds route-planning for the LRT (Light Rail Transit) system in Singapore. There are currently three LRT lines: Bukit Panjang LRT, Sengkang LRT and Punggol LRT. You can plan a route between two LRT stations, or from an MRT to an LRT station. The map will show the fastest route, and the total journey cost.

The updated routeplanner is now live on Explore Singapore online at exploresg.com and our Explore Singapore Android app (v1.0.5). An update for our Explore Singapore iPhone app will be available in the next couple of weeks.