Probably one of the aspects of ride-sharing where we, both the rider and the driver, need help the most is actually finding each other, especially in crowded or maze-like, high-traffic, and confusing areas. We’ve all probably had rides where it took the driver a while to actually find you, or worse, you even got into the wrong car. So now Uber is introducing (and in some cases, re-introducing) some features that can help you out with those “tricky pickups” (and no, that phrase doesn’t have the same meaning from a few years ago).
Your Uber app will now have something called Spotlight which will be useful for when your waiting area has a lot of people also looking for their rides or when it’s nighttime and you need a bit of illumination. You will be able to choose a color to light up your phone and your driver will then receive a message telling what color to expect. So just hold your phone up in the air and hopefully, the driver will be able to spot you. And hopefully, there aren’t a lot of other people who also have the same color.
You can also schedule your ride in advance when you know what time you absolutely have to leave the house (just make sure you’re really ready at that time). Uber also now has an on-time guarantee which means your scheduled ride should arrive at the time period and if not, they will give you Uber credits that you can use during your next ride. So if you’re catching a flight to the airport or going to an important meeting or you leave the house the same time every day for work, scheduling a ride should be your best friend.
You will also now be able to give your driver messages without necessarily having to distract him from driving. If you want to tell him what color top you’re wearing or where exactly you’re standing, send him a Pickup Message. There are also pre-populated messages like “be right there”. The message will be read aloud by the app so the driver will not have to read it and they can respond with just one tap.
Previous features that Uber added include being able to edit your location, sharing your live location in relation to your pinned pickup spot, and using a Beacon to find your driver in dark places. Just update your app to the latest version to enjoy these new features.
SOURCE: Uber
