Vegas Mate - Las Vegas Interactive City Guide App for iPhone [Available on Apple iTunes App Store]

Vegas Mate 1.1.4 Available

2008-12-31T23:49:24Z

Vegas Mate 1.1.4 has been approved for sale and will start showing up in iTunes soon.

1.1.4 includes several content updates, namely Encore's final details, new Downtown Las Vegas info and some other corrections for new content.

1.2.0 will be our next release and includes new functionality, including sorting options and a few other new treats.

Vegas Mate 1.1.3 Available / Free Copies for Vegas Publishers

2008-12-02T23:22:28Z

First off, Vegas Mate 1.1.3 will be in the App Store this evening. This is a recommended free update as it fixes a bug related to viewing maps.

Second up - if you are a publisher of a Vegas blog or Web site, we're happy to offer you a free copy of our application. Contact us via email at vegasmate AT ratevegas DOT com for more information.

Vegas Mate Screen Cast

2008-11-29T21:11:54Z

Enjoy a new screen cast covering the latest version of Vegas Mate, below.

Vegas Mate 1.1.2 Submitted to Apple iTunes App Store

2008-11-25T23:14:51Z

Version 1.1.2 has just been submitted to Apple for their approval.

1.1.2 includes:

* Added Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas

* Easily navigate between user reviews with up and down buttons.

* Map view supports horizontal mode.

* Other content updates.

Please let us know what features you'd like to see in upcoming versions by emailing us: vegasmate@ratevegas.com

Vegas Mate 1.1.1 Released on Apple iTunes App Store

2008-11-10T19:13:27Z

Vegas Mate 1.1.1 has been released on the iTunes App Store. This, as with all updates, is free for existing customers.

The update includes several small bug fixes, improved scrolling speed and some updates to the database, most notably to include Aliante Station.

Thanks to everyone that has purchased the application and feel free to send suggestions for future features to vegasmate@ratevegas.com.

Vegas Mate 1.1.0 Released Vegas Mate 1.1.0 Released on Apple iTunes App Store

2008-10-21T19:48:22Z

I'm happy to announce that Vegas Mate 1.1.0 has been released (opens in iTunes).

As with all updates, this is free for existing customers.

The biggest new feature in this version is the ability to read, write and share reviews and ratings for everything we cover, right from your iPhone or iPod Touch. No more waiting until you get home to rant about how great (or terrible) something was.

The reviews are sent to our RateVegas.com database and shared with other Vegas Mate users.

Along with that, there's a ton of other little tweaks and improvements.

Are you a Vegas Mate user (thanks)? Has it been helpful for you? Feel free to submit a review in iTunes - it helps quite a bit when users do this.

Vegas Mate 1.1.0 Videos

2008-10-20T00:55:37Z

Here's a quick video that shows a few features of Vegas Mate 1.1.0:

http://media.ratevegas.com/vegasmate_1_1_0_overview.mov

Enjoy!

NOTE: Vegas Mate 1.1.0 has been submitted to Apple for review. That means we should see it in the App Store sometime in the next week.

Vegas Mate 1.1 in Final Testing / Released Soon

2008-10-11T04:15:14Z

Vegas Mate 1.1.0, the next major version of the program, has entered the final testing stage. Soon it will be submitted to the iTunes App Store for review and then publication. This, along with all other Vegas Mate updates, is totally free.

This new version is very exciting.

The biggest new feature is the ability to read, write and share reviews of everything with other Vegas Mate users. The new user review system comes pre-loaded with thousands of reviews from our site, RateVegas.com.

Along with user reviews, the new release includes some updated data, some new user interface improvements, performance improvements and more.

Look for it soon.

Lastly, I recently discovered that at least one of the negative reviews for Vegas Mate in the iTunes App Store was written by a casino employee that wasn't happy with the rating for their property. That's just lame.

Vegas Mate 1.0.3 in App Store / 1.1 in Development

2008-09-30T08:06:02Z

Vegas Mate 1.0.3 has been published to the iTunes App Store - it's a free update for all existing owners that includes some content fixes.

In the meantime, I've been hard at work at version 1.1 - the biggest new feature is writing and sharing of user reviews and I'm happy to say that the feature is working quite well.

A few screen shots are available after the jump...

]]>

Vegas Mate 1.0.3 Submitted to App Store

2008-09-24T18:27:18Z

Development on version 1.1 continues (very excited about the new features!) but we did track down a couple of content errors on a recent 'research mission' that seemed important to fix right away.

Thus, version 1.0.3 has been submitted to Apple for review and should be on the App Store in about a week.

A Note on iTunes Reviews

2008-09-14T00:20:41Z

Updated: October 10th, 2008

Thanks to everyone that has purchased Vegas Mate - it's very much appreciated. My goal is to create a truly useful resource and when it comes to features for the app, we're just getting started.

Keep reading for a response and followup to some of the questions posted in our iTunes App Store reviews.
]]>
Along with the helpful bits, there have been a few comments in the App Store that made me want to respond. Unfortunately Apple doesn't give a developer any way to do so, other than posting a review for their own product which doesn't seem ethical to me... so I'd like to respond a bit here.

Regarding the fear that we may 'lose interest at any time', that's not likely. I've been doing the Web site for 10 years now - it's a fixture in the Vegas Web community and it's not going anywhere and neither is Vegas Mate. Hopefully that track record will help to inspire some confidence that the updates will come - we've released two already in the past 3 weeks, mostly to add additional content.

We are always updating our content - it comes from several sources including the LVCVA (Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority), company PR info, personal experience and other sources. Keeping on top of it can be tough, yes... but not impossible and we've been doing it for a long time. The next year or so will bring several new projects online such as Encore, City Center and others. They'll be part of Vegas Mate as will everything else in the pipeline for Las Vegas.

Another reviewer bemoaned the fact that we cover casinos, along with their restaurants and other amenities. That is absolutely correct - that is what we cover and that's what the application description says. We've never given any other impression and we have no plans to include anything that isn't part of a casino project. Vegas Mate is designed primarily for tourists visiting The Strip, Downtown or some of the off-Strip casinos that we cover.

One of the biggest new features we are working on right now is the ability for you as users to submit, read and share reviews of anything in the database. This should be an exciting way for everyone to participate and share their own experiences. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with.

My goal is to create a great app that helps people - something that I would want to use myself. With your feedback and support, Vegas Mate can only improve.

Update: A user posted a review that indicated they had some problem with 'wrong numbers'. I don't know what this refers to specifically - if that user reads this, please drop us a line. We re-verify all of our phone numbers at least quarterly. In my own common usage of the app recently, of the places I called, I did not have any incorrect numbers. If there are errors, our top priority is to get them fixed so please let us know. We will be re-verifying all of our numbers again for v1.1, to be released in late October 2008.

Vegas Mate 1.0.2 Released on App Store

2008-09-13T18:24:56Z

The 1.0.2 release has gone live on the App Store. Head over there to pick up your free update.

Next up is the 1.1 release. The feature list is somewhat in flux - several new things are planned. The most important new feature is something we think will have a big impact - the ability to read, write and share user reviews of everything in our database.

We will be linking into the user reviews on RateVegas.com and allow you not only to view them in Vegas Mate but to write reviews as well.

There are some other ideas as well as some good suggestions garnered from some of the iTunes reviews that will make it into the 1.1 release and further updates.

Vegas Mate 1.0.2 Submitted to App Store

2008-09-08T04:35:34Z

Vegas Mate 1.0.2 has been submitted to the App Store. This is the second point release of Vegas Mate.

This free update includes:

* Restaurant Content Updates
* Hotel Content Updates
* Show Content Updates
* Hide 'More Info' button if it is not present.
* Add marker for current location when showing a 'Quick Map'

Hopefully Apple will make it available soon. Thank you for supporting Vegas Mate.

We have also started working on Vegas Mate 1.1, a new version that will feature several all-new features that we think you'll love. If you have suggestions for Vegas Mate, please share them.

Vegas Mate 1.0.1 Approved - More to Come

2008-09-05T06:23:37Z

We got notification that Apple approved version 1.0.1 of Vegas Mate (it only took a week).

This update includes a bunch of content updates and a few bug fixes - we found some problems in the dialing code right before release. The update is free to all owners and the first of many.

1.0.2 is in the late stages of development. It includes more content updates and a few other tweaks.

After that, work will continue on 1.1 and adding several major new features. We'll talk more about those when a firm feature list is in place.

Thanks for supporting Vegas Mate.

Vegas Mate 1.0.1 Submitted to Apple App Store

2008-08-30T03:49:06Z

We have submitted Vegas Mate v1.0.1 to Apple for approval to the App Store.

This update includes three dozen new restaurant reviews, some hotel updates and several bug fixes related to dialing restaurants and shows.

Thank you for your continued support of Vegas Mate - we are already working on 1.0.2 which will include more content updates as we re-check our database for any inconsistencies.