Fotopedia Heritage

UNESCO’s Guide to Our Wonderful World: Fotopedia Heritage Posted in Travel on 09 Aug 2010

Reviewed by Allison Wahl

User’s rating: (3 votes, average: 3.67 out of 5)  Loading ...

Editor’s rating:

The world is a vast place, and no history, geography, encyclopedia, or photography book can hope to encapsulate all of its wonders in one succinct place. Fortunately for visual learners, curious minds, and appreciators of aesthetics, there is an app that, in imagery and content, captures a majority if the majestic places and wonders that make our Earth so special. That app is called Fotopedia Heritage.

By looking on a map, which you can either set to pinpoint your current location or choose to display any place in the world, you can see where Fotopedia’s notable sites are and choose which to learn more about. Once you find a place to delve deeper into, you are taken to a picture slideshow which you can easily scroll through and utilize a simple tap to eliminate the clutter of the surrounding options (for optimal picture viewing). If the place intrigues you, all you need to do is press the information button for further details on the desired destination. You are then presented with descriptions from UNESCO’s World Heritage site as well as the Wikipedia synopsis we know and love.

However, the Fotopedia Heritage adventure does not stop there. The app also links you to Trip Advisor in case you wish to plan a vacation to your selected spot or write a review about it, enables easy access of UNESCO’s Fotopedia Heritage website, and allows you to share your interesting findings with all of your Facebook, Twitter, and email contacts.

Finally, the app also includes the small, key details that make it so well-rounded and easy-to-use. For instance, you can elect favorites so that you can easily revisit them. Another interesting feature is the scrollbar at the bottom, which allows you to see some sites near or related to the one you are checking out. You can also tap the small copyright button to see who the photographer was and read his or her biography and see other photographs he or she has taken.

Fotopedia Heritage is a great way to glimpse the world without having to leave the comfort of your home or pick up mounds of heavy books. While the app did have minor issues, like slow loading time for the links to UNESCO’s webpages, I found it to be a very comprehensive app with great functionality. I think it would be great to integrate something like this with apps like Foursquare or even enable Fotopedia Heritage users to upload their own pictures they have taken of the various featured places. Fotopedia Heritage is for any person who loves to travel, embrace the earth’s intricacies, or simply enjoy stunning pictures and scintillating information. Thanks to UNESCO, with this app, you can place the world in your hands.