Manchester-based Locify is a project about GPS on java-enabled mobile phones which enables a web service to offer location relevant services.
Users can explore what is “here” or “there”, can tweet their location, explore nearby Wikipedia articles, update their location on Fireeagle, show a map where they are or seek for “caches” about their current location. It also has offline support as a main new feature. Founder David Cizek says developing location based services for mobile phones is now as easy as writing XHTML pages. Planned features inlcude a full map and route support and native versions for iPhone and Android. It works with both GPS-enabled and non-GPS devices, and can be accessed by going to www.locify.com/m or downloading via PC.
It reminds me slightly of the Irish Locle startup, a new mobile application that lets users see where their friends and family are without the need for GPS or mobile network operator location based services. However, Locle is much more social in that it integrates with social application platforms such as Facebook, Bebo and MySpace to bring social networking functionality to the phone. Locify is much more of a platform.
There are plenty more mobile apps out there but Locify is worth checking out even if it seems a little rough around the edges. Here’s one of their videos about how it works: