• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About
  • Baseball ’19
  • Day Zero 3
  • Earl
  • My list
  • Photo Blogging Challenge

A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

untappd

Untappd: a social network/app beer lovers can truly love

November 7, 2013

It’s pretty safe to say I’m a beer guy.

I brew my own to the best of my ability, I like to try new beers and I enjoy chatting about the beverage with people. I also like to drink them slowly and savor the taste and over the past few years have really developed my own person taste.

During that time, however, I’d sometimes forget beers I tried and enjoyed. Or, worse yet, beers I tried and disliked. There’s nothing worse than disliking a beer and then trying it some time later, just to realize you had been through that song-and-dance before.

Insert Untappd.

If you don’t already know, Untappd is an application for phones and on the web where you can keep track and rate beers you try. It’s also social media as you can have friends, see their beers, follow breweries and earn badges.

Pretty sweet, huh?

I’ve been a member since late 2011, but I kind of ignored it for a while. Then, as I saw others utilizing the app through posts on Twitter and such, I dug into it more. I then wondered what the heck I hadn’t been using it for. (Feel free to check out my profile and add me, if you want!)

It’s an extremely user-friendly app with a nice interface. There are plenty of brews to discover and find on there, all while checking into the beers you sample. You can even check into locations, such as bars, breweries etc., when logging in with your beer.

You can see many things, including ratings and comments from others to places where people are drinking it. Checking out brewery pages gives you information about the brewery and its beers.

Heck, if you are a homebrewer, you can have your own brewery on there so you can have your beers there, which allows friends and family to check in and rate the beers! I have my “home brewery” listed on there.

My profile on Untappd.

Untappd has been live since Oct. 22, 2010 and was created by two people — Greg Avola and Tim Mather. The two are on opposite coasts — Avola in New York City and Mather in Los Angeles, but that is likely what helped the two bring this app to the masses.

Avola said Mather came up with the idea of checking into beers and sharing with friends.

“Since we are on opposites of the coasts, we though it would be a great tool to facilitate the sharing and discovering of beer in a Foursquare-like setting,” Avola said. “The idea behind the  app was to help connect people with beer. Right now, beer is a very social activity, but had never been presented in that way on the web before. With the app, we encourage users to try and discover new beers, venues and people to enhance their beer experience.”

And with microbrews, craft beers and so many others involved in beer, beer conventions and all things beer related, this app appears to have come along at the right time.

Avola said there are about 850,000 users at this point, which, considering it’s the two of them working part-time without an advertising budget, is an extremely solid number. Untappd is on iOS platforms, Android, Windows Phone 8, Blackberry 10, Mobile Web and, of course, on a desktop. So it’s easy enough to use the app from almost anywhere.

Checking in.

So, let’s dig into the app a little.

First and foremost, Untappd is a place where people can not only keep track of their own beers, but it’s also a social app where people can view, comment and toast friend’s choices. Checking in will also allow you to earn badges, much like social apps Foursquare and GetGlue.

There are many badges to earn, from the amount of beers you have tried, to the types of beer, the times you’ve had them and many other things. There are special badges as well, such as checking in with certain beers at a beer festival, or checking into a beer on selected holidays. Some of these badges are only out for a limited time.

“Most of all the badges come from users,” Avola said. “We believe that if users are requesting them, we should make them! We review all badge submissions and find out what badges work the best with our platform and then go from there.”

Though Avola said Untappd doesn’t usually provide data about what badges are tops on the claimed list, he said many of the style-based badges are tops. As for the ones that are the rarest? Many times, he said, it’s badges that were made early in the process, such as “Frat Party” or “Risk Taker.”

Badges are a big part of the app and users can earn many different ones.

Outside of the special ones, most badges stick around, unless there are certain issues.

“We only retire badges if they are not doing well, or cause technological issues,” Avola said.

Take for example the “Above the Clouds” badge. It’s hard to add your location as a plane when you are 30,000 feet in the air.

The social aspect is taken extra steps, too, when there are Meetups. Though there aren’t numbers as to how many of these have been done, Untappd does have a Meetup page where users can organize their own events.

“I haven’t (been to one of these events), but we have had parties to celebrate our anniversary and they have been a big hit with connecting users with each other and discovering and talking about beer,” Avola said.

One thing to remember is the app is free to use. Therefore, there are ways for users to give back, should they choose to do so. One way is by being a supporter, which costs $5 per month, $25 for six months or $50 for the year. By doing so, you not only help the app but you get some extra perks, such as personalized stats, exportable data, a support banner on your profile, and a supporter only badge.

Supporters get perks, such as statistics.

Eventually, Avola said, the Untappd crew hopes to add some extra benefits for supporters.

“As we continue to build the services, we will offer more features for supporters,” he said. “Basically, we have had this program so users can help us grow. Since we are not funded, and working part-time, we need capital to keep the service up and running at a high volume. This program helps us do that.”

They also sell some merchandise, including t-shirts, which sold out within 36 hours for the latest batch. Avola said he is hoping to have more soon, as well as new logo shirts by the end of the month.  While the focus now is shirts, Avola said they’d like to eventually have items such as coasters and glassware in the store.

So Untappd is a great social network where people can keep track of beers, but there’s one other item — breweries.

Whether a major brewery or a craft brewery or a home brewery, you can be listed on the site. And if you are somebody with the power, you can “claim” the brewery and make it official. Giving this option allows breweries to connect with users, manage the brand and analyze statistics.

You can check in with photos, rate your beer, check in at a location and your friends can toast/comment on your check in.

“The key thing is the ability to directly communicate with their fans,” Avola said. “This usually exists on Twitter now, but by pulling it into one platform, it gives them the opportunities to do so much more.”

And having home breweries on there is important as well.

“Home breweries sometimes turn in to a real brewery, so why not give them the same features?” Avola said. “People love to categorize their brews, so we think Untappd is a good spot for that.”

So if you’re a beer drinker and like to keep track of things, Untappd might be the way to go. The userface is easy and fun and you can find some great things with the app.

There are social media apps for so many things, so why not beer?

The best part is Avola and Mather don’t seem to be resting on what they have. Avola said they plan on continuing to grow the app.

“Our goal to complete change the beer industry with technology,” Avola said. “We want Untappd to be a tool for breweries, venues and consumers to help breweries find their customers, users to find the beer they want to try, and venues to tell users where that beer is.”

Online:

  • Untappd website
  • Untappd Twitter
  • Untappd Facebook

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Filed Under: blogging, cell phone, iPhone, My world Tagged With: android, android apps, beer, beer app, droid, ios applications, ios apps, phone, phone applications, phone apps, untappd, untappd app

5 Comments

… and I’ve jumped to the iPhone

October 20, 2011

What a sweet screen this is. Very nice!

I had an upgrade available with Verizon.

So, a discount on a new phone. And with this new iPhone 4s out, I was curious. I read things. I solicitied opinions. Was it worth tossing my Motorola Droid X aside and go with the iPhone.

Yep.

What a world of difference!

I’ve had the phone since Sunday. I think I got a bit lucky, actually. I called a Verizon person I knew, who unfortunately wasn’t working at his place (which was in Binghamton, where I needed to go to pick up a suit… ya know, for the job search, interviews etc.) Alas, it didn’t matter because he knew his store didn’t have any left.

Shocker!

He did note that I should call the Oneonta (which is much closer to me) store to see. I did that. But apparently the person I talked to wasn’t supposed to tell me whether they had any in stock or not. I guess it makes sense. After all, if he tells someone they have the iPhone in the store, then that person comes in and the phones are gone… well, ya know.

So I said to the guy, “Look, if I come in and you are out, that’s my fault. But I want to know I have a fighting chance if I come over.”

He whispers that they have a few.

The new iPhone's box (created with Instagram)

Now I had to make the choice. Go with the iPhone or stick with the Droid and wait for something else down the line. Ahhh, what the heck.

Shower up, get dressed and head over. I find the guy I had talked to on the phone, he asked what I wanted (16gig, black phone) and he went to the back and came out with one.

The last one.

Sweet!

Forty-five minutes later, I was walking out with an iPhone 4s in hand — starting my journey into the world of the iPhone.

Boy was it different.

I didn’t get the chance to mess with it too much as I had to bolt to Binghamton to grab my suit. But I messed around with it that night. I looked at apps. I downloaded a few. I played with a few others and saw how the phone worked.

My first impression?

Awesome. Better operating system. Sharper image. The camera? Oh my. This camera is absolutely amazing. As someone who is a photographer, I wanted a phone camera where the images were sharp and came out nice. When I am going to do serious shooting, nothing will beat my Canon 7D. But when I am with friends or just tooling around, the iPhone will be a very nice piece of equipment to have.

Photo shot straight out of the camera.

In fact, I started a slight 365 project on my Tumblr account the day I got the iPhone — My first 365 days with the iPhone! I don’t know if I’ll complete it and if I don’t, no biggie. But I will be putting my images from the iPhone on my Tumblr account as it’s quick to upload there. Most of the images will be done with Instagram.

I still have thoughts of doing a true Project 365 (well, it will be 366 because 2012 is a Leap Year) starting Jan. 1, so who knows if this project will fully go on as I don’t know if I’ll be working on two of these projects at one time.

If you are on Tumblr, feel free to follow me to check out the photos I’ll be posting.

Here’s one thing I’ve really found out about the iPhone — it’s so much better than my Droid X was for doing social networking things and games.

I’m hoping I can connect with a few people through this post and, in some cases, learn some things.

Instagram's app page

Take, for example, Instagram.

I’m really loving this app. It’s almost worth switching to the iPhone to have this. The ability to mess around with photos taken on the iPhone and post some really cool stuff is wild.

But it’s hard to connect with people, it seems.

It will search your Twitter and Facebook accounts and your contacts list. That’s good. But it apparently doesn’t tell you that you are being followed or if you follow someone etc. I’ve talked to a few people who I followed who hadn’t even realized it. One who I needed to request to follow!

That doesn’t take away from the app. I love it. But there could be some cool things to have to make it a little more user friendly. Possibly a search for topic, too. It doesn’t appear you can search for direct subjects, rather just people.

The same leaf photo from above, fixed up via Instagram.

If you are on Instagram (name: hoohaa29), feel free to follow me. I check my followers and will follow back as well. I like finding new people and see how they use the program. It’s really wild.

I’m really starting to dig some of the other programs, too. Some of the other camera apps are really nice. They give you the chance to do some cool things with processing on the phone.

There are some cool foodie apps, too, such as Foodspotting and Epicurious. There’s apps such as Untappd, which help you rank and talk about beers.

Way too cool.

Though some of these apps are available on my former smartphone, the Motorola Droid X. I did love that phone. It was great for me for nearly two years.

There were things about it that really bothered me. Like, for example, it shut off at odd times all on its own. In the middle of phone calls even. I’d hate to be on an important call and have it turn off. Then it took a long time to start back up. The browser was decent but choppy. And many times the apps and such would go all haywire and require them to be forced closed. The thing that turned me though is that there’s no real checks and balances with their apps. I’ve read a bunch about the Droid’s marketplace having some bad stuff. And that’s not just the Droid X — that could happen to any phone operating the Droid system. So, it was time.

But this iPhone. Amazing.

The screen is crisp. The camera is awesome. The internet moves quick. It’s everything I read about it.

It’s funny because a Twitter friend noted that I needed to get it. And, if I didn’t like it, she’d buy it off me.

She doesn’t need to worry about that.

I’m keeping it.

***

Reminder! Contest going on! I am holding a contest this week for an autographed copy of Bill Walker’s book “Close Encounters on the Appalachian Trail”. It runs from October16- to 12:01 a.m. Oct. 28. You can see all the details on the contest page. Enter for your chance to win!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!

Filed Under: Cameras, cell phone, My world, Photography Tagged With: 4s, apple iphone, apple iphone 4s, droid x, epicurious, facebook, foodspotting, instagram, iphone, iphone 4s, iphone apps, tumblr, twitter, untappd, verizon iphone

4 Comments

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Welcome to A 'lil HooHaa!

This is a personal website covering many topics! We host a monthly photo blogging challenge, and then every January hold a fun writing challenge.

Thank you for stopping by and hope this becomes a stop for you!

Connect

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Follow

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 877 other subscribers

Instagram

hoohaa29

Tis a dreary and rainy day. What better than to ha Tis a dreary and rainy day. What better than to have a cup of tea in my new mug, which was a birthday gift from my nephew/godson Cameron!
Live life the best you can. Have experiences. Smil Live life the best you can. Have experiences. Smile. Love the world. 

#acadia #acadianationalpark #sunrise #sun #colors #sky #nature  #life #love #goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #cadillacmountain
Likely my final game of the year… but a nice nig Likely my final game of the year… but a nice night! 

#baseball #sky
Harper and Phil! #goldenretriever #dog #dogsofin Harper and Phil! 

#goldenretriever #dog #dogsofinstagram #love #iphonography #photography
Saturday was national dog day… posted on Faceboo Saturday was national dog day… posted on Facebook, but forgot here! Harper was spoiled all day!
How could we skip this? North of the border this How could we skip this? 

North of the border this weekend to get away and hit a few caching events and geocache. Dinner tonight was at @harpersburgers, especially with outdoor seating and dog friendly! @harper_dublin got to enjoy a little of my #burger, of course. And, yes, I got poutine, duh! Great service and great food! Went back later for a spiked shake. This one was a Malibu Colada (malibu rum, dark rum, vanilla ice cream, and pineapple juice) … yum! 

Good times! Looking forward to another event and caches on Saturday before heading home! 

#food #foodporn #poutine #fries #dinner #yummy
My newest #pathtag came in! A great design by @geo My newest #pathtag came in! A great design by @geofoxandthehound! This one, of course, is connected to @harper_dublin ‘s Instagram account. It won’t be easy to get! 

#geocaching #pathtags #goldenretriever #instagram
Rain on leaves … still on trees or on the ground Rain on leaves … still on trees or on the ground… is so peaceful. 

#rain #nature #leaves #leaf # water #naturephotography #photography #love #beautiful #raindrops #iphonography
Henlo. #goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #g Henlo. 

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta
Haircut day! I got mine done, as did Cameron. He g Haircut day! I got mine done, as did Cameron. He got some waves for when he goes to the shore next week! One shot of me getting the straight razor too! Nice job @studio11chris at @studio11barbersuite ! 

#haircut #barber #hair
Life is good! #goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram # Life is good!

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #doglife #life #lifeisgood #lifeisbeautiful #morning #morningwalk #walk #iphonography #iphonephotography #photo #photography #love #selfcare #outdoors #sky #bridge
Part one of the backyard work is done. New patio h Part one of the backyard work is done. New patio has been installed ... (the rock garden area is basically done, too ... but i need to put a few things up with it). The guy who did my patio did a great job... looks cool. 

I think Harper approves. 

One more step and we'll be set to really enjoy it back there with some shade!

Working on a few other landscaping things, too.
Golden hour. #goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram # Golden hour. 

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta
Waggin’ Wednesday at the @swbrailriders was a lo Waggin’ Wednesday at the @swbrailriders was a lot of fun! Hot night, but very enjoyable! 

#baseball #dog #goldenretriever #barkinthepark #wagginwednesday
Pure determination. #goldenretriever #dog #strug Pure determination. 

#goldenretriever #dog #struggleisreal
Haircut day! Cameron went after me @studio11barber Haircut day! Cameron went after me @studio11barbersuite and looks super smooth! Superb job on both of us, @studio11chris ! 

@harmm23 @dlinc27 #haircut #barber
Harper delivering some flowers to her gram. #gol Harper delivering some flowers to her gram. 

#goldenretriever #flowers #dog #dogsofinstagram #fun #picoftheday #photography #photo #iphonography
Stop and look around in life, even if you have the Stop and look around in life, even if you have the yawns. 

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta
As a @sunydelhi alum, and local, I still love walk As a @sunydelhi alum, and local, I still love walking around the campus. It’s especially nice in the morning when college isn’t in session as it’s quiet and @harper_dublin can sniff and explore her surroundings (if in session, she will want to stop and meet every student etc.). I know a lot of people local walk the campus, and it’s really nice that we have something like this in our community to be able to do so. 

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta #walking
Ok folks… barbershop experience is good times. H Ok folks… barbershop experience is good times. Hair, tend to the beard … you get it. In Oneonta, check out @studio11chris at @studio11barbersuite ! Tell him I sent you! 

#haircut #barber #beardtrim #barbershop #hair #beard #oldschool #studio11
Load More Follow on Instagram

YouTube

P.J. Harmer

P.J. Harmer
A video looking at my first year and a half of owning a golden retriever, my first dog. It's had its ups and downs, but I've truly loved the ride and look forward to the future. 

Music: Happy before we get old by Michael Shynes via Artlist. 

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow Harper on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harper_dublin/
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog

Thank you for watching. :)
When these boxes come, there usually some excitement. But this one ... is the ultimate unboxing! 

#cielovideo52 #52weekchallenge #week5 #weeklychallenge

Music: Happy to be Happy (Dapun)

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/softball29
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog
I hate being in front of the camera, but also realize sometimes it's not the worst thing in the world. So, I'm getting better with it. Week 4's theme was all about us and having us in front of the camera, so I tried to come up with a creative way to do it. 

#cielovideo52 #52weekchallenge #week4 #weeklychallenge

Music: Infinite Wonder (Ben Fox)

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/softball29
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog
Load More... Subscribe

Archives

Categories

Calendar

October 2023
S M T W T F S
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293031  
« Aug    

Search The Site

Site Information

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

A 'lil HooHaa © 2023 · Created By Coded Creative

Copyright © 2023 · Ava Mae on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in