If you needed any more signs that Foursquare really embraces their BlackBerry community then look no further than their latest app update. We told you when we announced the availability of v5.5 of Foursquare that we had a tip about the update adding Explore functionality for users without accounts. It turns out that the tip was spot on and has been confirmed by RIM and Foursquare. They have brought this new Foursquare Explore feature to the BlackBerry platform first allowing customers to find places nearby without signing up or signing in.
Here is what Pete Nofelt from Foursquare told RIM about the release:
Recently, we made Foursquare Explore available to everyone at Foursquare.com, even for people who haven’t signed up or checked in. Inspired by the possibility of making Foursquare available to as many people as possible, our BlackBerry team went to work during a company hackday to create a logged-out experience for mobile, too. Starting now, all BlackBerry users can download Foursquare and start searching for amazing places, before they’ve even signed up. Now, anyone can search for “lunch special,” “Thai,” or “spring rolls” using Foursquare Explore on their BlackBerry. Foursquare finds the best places nearby, and shows photos, tips, hours, menus and more to help people decide. Explore gets even more powerful once you sign up for Foursquare and start checking in. We can customize Explore based on what you like, where your friends have been, and show you money-saving specials from businesses you love.
By analyzing nearly 3 billion check-ins and 30 million tips, Foursquare can provide amazing local recommendations for places, even for someone who hasn’t signed up or checked in yet. To help people find the best places, we look at a bunch of signals, like what’s popular in the neighborhood, where the local experts go, the time of day and more. Plus, our search is flexible – you can search for a type of place (‘sushi’), a particular item (‘veggie burger’), or a specific place. Because Explore searches through those tens of millions of tips, Foursquare is designed to find exactly what you’re looking for.
Check out the latest version of Foursquare here
