24 February, 2021

Hi ExplorOz Reader

Welcome to all new and current ExplorOz account users. Whether you're new to the ExplorOz community, or have been a long-term user we're sure you'll pick up a hint or two in this newsletter packed full of tips to help you find your way around the ExplorOz website to assist with your trip planning, research and connection with other travellers. There's so much more to ExplorOz than you may even realise!

Otherwise, jump to the bottom of the newsletter if you want to read the big announcement about EOTopo 2021 Edition coming soon! PS: this is our 500th newsletter! See back issues here.

START YOUR JOURNEY HERE

Whether you use a phone, tablet or desktop computer the most popular parts of the ExplorOz website are easily accessible from the Home Page. The first 3 boxes will guide you to the information/support pages for each of our 3 products:-

Traveller is our premium app - it offers GPS Navigation, Mapping & Tracking.

EOTopo is the product name of our maps (pronounced: "e...oh...top...oh") - "topo" is short for "topographic". EO is short for ExplorOz. Very Aussie - everything is abbreviated, of course!

Tracker is our free "tracking" only app. Only Members can track themselves via this app. Family/friends of Members' can download the app to view your tracking.

DESTINATIONS

The Destination section of the website offers free content. Tap the images on the home page or use the Menu to open each section for inspiration and helpful resources.

Places is a free facility for finding camps & points of interest all over Australia. See locations on highly detailed maps free in your web-browser, get coordinates, descriptions, photos, reviews etc. Fully interactive allowing you to add new Places or post updates. Regularly checked and validated for accuracy. It's all available as a free download (with free updates) in the ExplorOz Traveller app too.

Treks is a free facility for finding self-drive trip plans all over Australia. There are 200 ExplorOz Treks that are curated inhouse by the ExplorOz Team and cover the entire country. Every Trek is a detailed planning guide with all the information you need to plan your adventure. All Treks are available as a free download (with free updates) in the ExplorOz Traveller app. Use any Trek in the app for guided navigation.

Track Logs is a free facility that displays "Open" status track files shared by yourself or other users. You can use the "Add to Shared" button shown on Track Logs to add the file to your online account. If you have the Traveller app, you can also sync Shared Track Logs to your device.

Wildflowers is a free facility for finding an abundance of native flowering plants in Australia. This user-generated database does not contain all species but is growing through the contributions of ExplorOz enthusiasts sharing personal images. You'll notice each Treks also feature the relevant Wildflowers (not in app, only on website).

EXPLOROZ MERCH

EXPLOROZ WHEEL COVERS

EXPLOROZ CAPS

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Membership is an OPTIONAL service offered by ExplorOz. You can upgrade your Visitor account to Member by purchasing a 12 month Membership subscription or chose the non-expiring "Lifetime" option. (NOTE: purchase of the Traveller app does not include Membership). There are additional features available in the Traveller app for "Members". You can view the Member List on the website here.

Classifieds is a free facility for buyers to browse ads listed by private sellers. Sellers can create a listing with or without photos Click "Create New Ad" to view prices. Display Ads are free if you are a 'Member', or $20 if you are a "Visitor". We're always looking for sellers and there's more demand than supply!

Blogs is a free facility for finding blogs written by "Members".

Forum is a free facility for viewing or participating in online discussions with others within the ExplorOz community.

LATEST PRODUCT REVIEWS

Some of you may already know of the independent AllOffRoad 4x4 Adventures TV channel on YouTube where you'll find video reviews on many of the available GPS Navigation apps and programs. If not, his channel is worth looking at. You can find reviews from 2019 on Hema 4WD App, Hema Explorer, Mud Map 3, Billy Goat, Memory-Map, Avenza Maps, and more recently the new Hema 4x4 Explorer App, and our app - ExplorOz Traveller.

This is his review of ExplorOz Traveller:-

For those that prefer to read - here's a couple of links to new articles we've put together reviewing and comparing popular products that have been used over the years including some not mentioned in the above reviews.

• Comparison of Offline 4WD Maps & GPS Navigation Apps
• Best Offline Navigation App for Australia

EOTOPO - 2021 MAP RELEASE NEWS

By more detail, we mean the downloaded maps will provide full zoom whether you are OFFLINE or ONLINE and every level will be at full resolution. You will be able to zoom in to 2K resolution maps for the whole of Australia (Level 18) offline!!

The new maps are fully updated throughout the whole of Australia featuring:

• all new topographic data layers (updated land use, vegetation, native title, Parks & Reserves)
• all new road data layer (updated from street level through to minor roads and 4WD tracks)
• no "sanitisation" of roads/tracks - if the data exists, it's shown
• retention of high contrast stylesheet/colours to ensure road lines are easy to see even at low zoom
• care/attention to ensure data appearing on low zoom remains meaningful but not overcrowded
• improved stylesheet for improved font/text consistency and readability and text labels rotate when map rotates

FAQS

March is the ETA for the release of EOTopo 2021. This will be available to use online free and offline via download in the ExplorOz Traveller app for $49.99.

The current version of the ExplorOz Traveller app is already vector-ready and built to support both the 2019 Raster maps and the 2021 Vector maps so this means you can use either version or both versions - the choice is yours.

People that already have an EOTopo licence may be confused about what to do, so we can clarify the rollout will proceed as follows:

Those people with an existing licence of 2019 will continue to be able to use those maps in the app into the future - no obligation to buy the 2021 edition now, or for at least 12 months. There is no disadvantage to app operation or compatibility. You can also choose to buy the 2021 maps and the app will allow download and map layer switching to both offline map sources (labelled as EOTopo 2019/2021) if that is your choice.

The EOTopo 2021 licence is the same price to all customers - whether you have a previous EOTopo licence (2018 or 2019) or are buying for the first time.

LIMITED TIME 50% DISCOUNT

So, if you don't have any offline mapset in the Traveller app yet, you can buy EOTopo 2019 now and save $25 OR wait for the new Edition.... the choice is yours.

The ExplorOz Team
David & Michelle Martin