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Sree Tips: Summer Travel Apps

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - If you're going on a trip, there are plenty of useful apps for both Apple and Android smartphones.

Sree Sreenivasan, tech expert from our partner network CNET and Columbia University's chief digital officer, stopped by Wednesday morning with a few you should check out.

The first was RoadTrippers (web/iPhone, free).

Roadtrippers Screenshot
Roadtrippers Screenshot

This is a fun travel planning tool made for the iPhone as an app, but also available via mobile web. So you can use it Android, Blackberry, etc. You type in your starting and destination points and it tells you distance, time and estimated gas costs.

That's not so impressive.

But then it tells you about all of the attractions worth seeing - some obvious, some ridiculous.

Then there was Google Field Trip (iPhone/Android, free).

Google Field Trip
Google Field Trip

This app runs in the background and when you are near something interesting, it tells you so you can visit if you like or come back another time. It's a great way to find new places to visit.

Until the end of the month, 23 museums and zoos across the country are free if you use the app. In our area, that includes the Bronx Zoo ($30+ value), Central Park Zoo ($18 value), and the Museum of Arts & Design ($16 value). Click HERE for the full list.

Finally, there's Postagram (iPhone/Android, free).

People still like getting postcards, but not many people send them anymore.

Postagram
Postagram

This produces postcards for the digital age. Using this free app, you take digital photos with your smartphone camera, then you send postcards that cost 99 cents, including shipping. If you want to use photos on your computer, you can do that, too, from PostagramApp.com. You can also send from your Instagram and Facebook photos. International postcards cost around $2.

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Sree Sreenivasan is CBS2′s technology expert, appearing every Wednesday morning at 6:50 am to discuss ways to save you time, money and aggravation. You can find him on Twitter and Facebook  and on his personal siteE-mail your questions with "CBS New York" as the subject line.

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