While Uber has introduced a handful of features with the new overhauled app, there are many that are in the pipeline and the company soon plans to roll out.
Last month, Uber launched a significant update to its app, which was one of the first major design overhaul since 2012. And with the new app, Uber introduced various new features, which aim at making a user’s experience with the app simpler yet faster. The new Uber app came with changes like its destination first approach, and shortcut icons on the homepage to a rider’s frequently visited destination. Most iOS users have already received the update for the new app, but on the Android platform, the update is still in the process of rollout.
Right after the update, some people did face issues with the app, which can be pointed to the pin dropping feature in particular, and the sudden design overhaul in general. However, if you look at the larger picture, after a while, people did get used to the app and began to understand the efficiency with which that app works now.
However, besides the feature that we already see with the new Uber app, the cab-curating startup is working on a handful of new features, which aim at making a user experience a lot more fruitful. At an event, we spoke to Prabhjeet, who is the General Manager of Uber India in Delhi. Prabhjot revealed Uber’s plans of bringing some very interesting features for the riders in India. Following are some of the upcoming features we discussed.
People Search
This feature will be a smarter and evolved version of the destination-first ‘Where to’ feature, wherein, instead of places and destination, one will be able to feed in people they want to meet. Essentially, the People Search will let the riders choose people from their list of contact to visit, and the app will use GPS to track those contacts and connect the riders to their location directly.
Calendar integration
In an attempt to save time and make a user’s experience more wholesome, Uber is aiming at integrating the app with users’ calendar apps, to facilitate them to schedule their future rides according to their plans, with ease.
Trip integration
Another interesting feature in the pipelines, is Trip integration, that assimilates popular social media and productivity apps within the Uber app, so that users can everything they need at one place.
Request a ride for others
Uber talked about this new feature a while back, but it never made to the new version of the app. Therefore, we asked them at the event, if it would make it to the new app, and we got an affirmative answer.
Essentially, this feature allows a rider to book a ride for someone else from their contact. While you can still do that, but coordination and contact sharing becomes a hassle. With this feature, Uber reads your location and automatically understands that you are trying to book a cab for someone else. Therefore, it prompts you if the booked ride is for someone else, and then allows you to choose a contact. Once that is done, the details of the booked ride are then sent to the contact and similarly their contact is shared with the driver.
UberCommute
While Uber did not confirm when this feature would be released for users in India, Prabhjeet did confirm that Uber has dedicatedly been working at making the feature live, by being in constant contact with authorities to make it work. UberCommute basically allows anyone with a vehicle to be a part of Uber and share their car with other riders taking the same route as them.