The perfect solution for RVers as well as homeowners

Please ignore the reviews for the earlier version, particularly my own harsh review which, I hope, will be gone by now. This version 2 is actually a completely new application with nothing in common with the original. The developer apparently only submitted this new app in the slot for the earlier app as a way to give it to those of us who had bought the original. The earlier effort was worthy of the one or two stars it got. The new app is a revolution.

This app will eliminate a major continuing frustration in the life of RVers who must locate satellites every time they move. For the first time, its easy to find a spot to park an RV where reception is not just promised, but actually possible. Hold the phone up and spin around until you see the satellites you need. If something is in the way, move to a different site. When nothing is in the way, youre done. Simple.

My wife and I not only need to lock onto TV satellites, but Internet. We hold our breath every time we raise the Internet dish; the dishs reliability is well short of 100%. For the first time, there is no question about a problem being HugesNet or just where were parked.

One of the first things I tried the app on was my roof installation at home: I found our trees are now within six feet of occluding satellite 110. That gives me more than a year to get around to either getting them topped or moving the dishes to a different part of the roof. (It took around 30 seconds of hopping around the roof to find a perfect new spot, one the original installer missed.)

DishPointer AR works best on iPhone 3G S phones because of their built-in compass. It can be used on the older phones with a manual compass, but you have to set the direction using a manual compass or a known satellite bearing. If youve been looking for an excuse to upgrade to the 3G S, you no longer need an excuse: If you have an RV and must repeatedly struggle siting and aiming a satellite dish, this app is worth the price of the app plus the price of the phone.

Where was this eight years ago when we first started our journey?

Note to the suspicious: I dont normally write rave reviews. In fact, I originally gave the first, non-AR version of this same application a single star. I personally have never seen an app improve so much between releases, but thats because the developer went back to the drawing board and started over. The app needed it, and the results are stunning.

Update: Helpful hints:

1) Wear a billed cap, like a baseball cap, when searching for a site during the heat of the day. Not only are the satellites to the south, so is the sun. (Yes, I know your mom told you not to look directly into the sun, but she never had to find satellite 110 through a hole in the trees.)

2) How to take a picture of your site survey, including the satellites in the picture: Press the power button (on top of the phone) and the home button (toward the bottom front of the phone) at the same time. Yes, its inconvenient, particularly since the power button is just above the camera lens, but Apple has yet to give developers a way to capture augmented-reality screens any other way. Blame Apple, not the developers.

Asktog about DishPointer Augmented Reality