Google+ is now available for the iPhone!

Google+ for mobile makes sharing the right things with the right people a lot simpler. Huddle lets you send super-fast messages to the people you care about most. And no matter where you are, the stream lets you stay in the loop about what your friends are sharing and where they’re checking in.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/google/id447119634?ls=1&mt=8#

Features:
* Circles let you share the right things with just the right people.
* Stream is where you can get updates from your circles or see what people are saying about things nearby.
* Huddle is super-fast group messaging for everyone in your circles.

New updates to Google Sync for iPhone and iPad

We don’t have to tell you that the workforce is increasingly mobile, and that workers on the go expect to be fully productive on email and calendar from their mobile devices. But we do want to tell you that we have a few new features for Google Sync users that will help employees work efficiently from anywhere on their iPhones and iPads.


Google Sync keeps your phone’s native mail and calendar apps in sync with your Gmail, Calendar and Contacts. Today, three new updates to Google Sync for iOS will allow you to:

  • Search all your emails in Gmail, not just the emails stored locally by the iOS mail app.
  • Accept, decline or edit calendar events from the iOS calendar app.
  • Send email from the address you want. We recognize that some of you manage multiple email addresses from a single Gmail account.Gmail’s “Send Mail as” feature lets you send messages with another email address listed as the sender instead of your Gmail address, e.g. joe@altostrat.com instead of joe@gmail.com. Now the iOS mail app will respect these settings.

These three updates are available to both Gmail and Google Apps email accounts.
For more information, visit Setting up Google Sync with your iOS device

The most-popular iPhone navigation apps

TomTom U.S.A. navigation app.

The most significant development in portable navigation this past year has been the rapid advance of smart-phone navigation apps. Apple has led the charge with several brand-name companies developing conventional nav apps.  Apple presents a year-end score card showing which are the most popular by three measures: Top Grossing, Best-Selling Overall, and Most-Popular Free.

Top Grossing Navigation App
TomTom has earned the title as the Top Grossing navigation app with its TomTom U.S.A. application (currently $49.99), followed by Navigon MobileNavigator North America ($59.99). Both applications faithfully mimic the experience of using a dedicated navigation device, while integrating into the iPhone well with their latest iterations.

MotionX GPS Drive ranks third with a 99-cent app that offers 30-days of voice guidance for $2.99 and a full year for $19.99.
 


 
Geocaching from the group that popularized this form of electronic treasure hunting, Groundspeak, provides a paperless way to enjoy the hobby. At $9.99, the Geocaching app provides a way to access information on more than a million geocaches around the globe, download their coordinates and tips, track down treasures, and log your finds.

The final Top 5 grossing nav app is TomTom U.S. & Canada. As the name implies, this $59.99 application expands on the lower-priced U.S.A. version with broader maps and points of interest.

MotionX GPS Drive

Best-Selling Navigation App
In this category, we see similar players to Top Grossing, though the order has been shuffled. The best-selling nav app for 2010 was the MotionX GPS Drive, followed by MotionX GPS ($2.99), an outdoors-focused navigator for walking, hiking, cycling, skiing, geocaching, and more.

With a clear brand advantage as the defacto site for geocache enthusiasts, Geocaching ranked third.

TomTom U.S.A. made the list, but Navigon did not. Instead, “Where To?” ($2.99) made the cut, an application focused on finding points of interest, such as the nearest restaurant.  It can share locations by email, text, and a variety of social networks.

MapQuest 4 Mobile

Most-Popular Free Navigation App
The top free applications are a diverse group. Before Google Maps entered the scene, MapQuest.com was the go-to site for printing directions, and now the site has a popular, free iPhone app called MapQuest 4 Mobile with voice guidance.

While most apps focus on going from point A to point B, Trapster uses crowd sourcing to share the locations of speed traps.

Proving free often comes at a price, the AT&T Navigator is a popular download with a $9.99 per month fee, or $69.99 annual subscription. While there can be appeal in the flexible pricing plan, most users who will want turn-by-turn guidance would find more affordable options than this so-called free app.

A free version of its MotionX GPS ($2.99), MotionX GPS Lite has a lot of guidance features for active lifestylers and a broad map set that includes, Google and Bing road, satellite, and hybrid maps, along with topographic maps.

Not to be confused with Where To?, Where is a points-of-interest guide that helps you find nearby places, share recommendations, and receive suggestions on where to go next. Local guides add depth to the app, and businesses offer deals to encourage visits.

Bottom line
Popularity doesn’t ensure quality. Be sure to check our ratings on lead iPhone Navigation Apps to see how they compare, as well as check the user ratings and comments on any app before downloading. We have found the iPhone nav apps can be quite good, but they trail dedicated devices in sound quality, GPS precision, screen size, and often controls and routing options.

And the most-popular app of the year? Angry Birds. It also came in second place for top grossing and free, in a “light” version.