How your mobile phone apps can help you have a stress-free Undas

Apps for stress-free Undas: Waze, PinoyTravel, NLEXAssist and Project Noah for Mobile

It's that time of the year again, when you have to brave the thick mass of people in cemeteries to pay your respects to departed loved ones. The experience can be taxing, but you can still have a stress-free Undas with the help of your trusty mobile phone. Here are some useful tips from Smart Communications (Smart) after the jump.

Avoid traffic jams using Waze
Download the crowd-sourced navigation application Waze from the App Store or Google Play so you can quickly identify the fastest route to the cemetery. Smart has a suite of packages that will allow you to use the app at affordable rates. For instance, you can get unlimited use of Waze for three hours for just P2! Simply text Waze2 to 211. More details can be found here.

Reserve bus seats via Pinoy Travel
If you’re commuting to Baguio or Tuguegarao, there’s no need for you to queue for hours in a crowded bus station to book a seat. Download the free Pinoy Travel Android app to check provincial bus schedules and reserve your seat.

Pinoy Travel was created by one of the startups supported by IdeaSpace Foundation, Inc., a business incubator backed by Smart and other leading companies in the country.

Check expressway advisories and traffic conditions with NLEX Assist
For motorists who will travel via the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) to visit their provinces, check out the NLEX Assist App from Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC) and Voyager Innovations, Inc. (Voyager). The app displays a user-friendly color coded traffic status for each section of the expressway. Those using it while driving in NLEX can also receive push-notification public advisories. A convenient NLEX hotline dial button is also available, making assistance convenient and hassle-free.

Moreover, this app will feature rewards, deals, promos through a mobile advertising platform as well as a toll fee calculator and a way to check the balance of your Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) Card. Users may download the NLEX Assist app for free via the Smartnet app update. Alternatively, it can be downloaded from the Google Play store.

Be ready for the weather
Project Noah Mobile for Android, which is downloadable for free from the App Store and Google Play, can give you real-time weather updates and show the probability of rain in different areas. Get the app so you’d know whether to bring rain gear or dress for warm weather.

Smart collaborated with the software developer community to produce this mobile version of the Project Noah website of the Department of Science and Technology and the PAGASA Weather Bureau.

Stay connected with your companions
When you’re in a crowded cemetery, it’s easy to lose track of your companions. But you can easily get in touch with them using your phone. With the recently launched Smart Unli Call and Text 25, Smart Prepaid subscribers can enjoy one whole day of unlimited calls to Smart and Talk ‘N Text subscribers, unlimited ‘tri-net’ texts or to over 70M subscribers of Smart, Talk ‘N Text and Sun Cellular, 50 texts to other networks, plus online chat and browsing of up to 15mb – all for only P25.

For subscribers using their favorite apps on their smartphone, Smart has a suite of mobile messaging data plans, which includes an all-day chat offer for as low as P10 a day on WeChat and LINE. With the promo, all Smart and Talk N’ Text subscribers can enjoy chatting with their relatives and friends all over the world (who are also users of the same app) even without connecting to a Wi-Fi hotspot and incurring additional data charges. To register, just text the WECHAT10 or LINE10 to 2200 (for Prepaid users).

It would also help to remember the Philippine National Police Hotline, in case of emergencies. You can call 117 or send TXT PNP to 2920.

Make sure your phone is fully charged
Plug up your phone before leaving the house and bring a portable power bank to make sure your phone lasts the entire day.

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