I rarely use a travel journal, but I have used plenty of notebook-style software over various platforms. When it comes to aesthetics and design, Trip Journal for Android is easily one of the most gorgeous I've seen, managing to strike a perfect balance between presentation and function. The winner of the Travel category in the last Android Developer Challenge, it's a complete solution for recording, tracking and sharing all about your adventures on the road, accomplishing it all very elegantly.

Instead of dumping the thousand or so pictures you took from your last vacation onto a hard drive, the app lets you document the entire experience in a format that's a real eye candy. Interface resembles a leather travel diary, with worn, browning pages where you can paste pictures and add various notes to. It runs very smoothly as well, making it a joy to use when you're on the road.

Obviously, you can imagine just how detailed of a travel journal you can come up with using a software like this. With Trip Journal, you can track your GPS route, add waypoints, get geotagging data and even view your progress on Google Maps. You can add pictures and notes for each place you visit, as well as get statistics on various information, such as the distance you've traveled, speed and altitude. Plus, you can export details of your trips into Google Earth format, as well as share them on Facebook and Picasa.

More than just a travel app, this is one of the best journaling tools I've seen and is currently my favorite on a mobile platform. They have a lite version available if you want to try it, but the full application is priced affordably enough at $2.99.

[iqApps]

This is something that could turn out big. A new iphone app called Dreamwalk provides users with a geocaching game that raises the ante a little by getting local businesses involved. Users can use the software to seek out "treasures," just like any similar game. Except, in this case, participating companies get to hide their own prizes for players to pursue, allowing them to get new prospects through the door in the process.

When you launch the app, it shows you a map that details where prizes are hidden. There are three ways to collect bounty - Instant Prizes, Collector's Stamps and Treasure Hunts - all of which require going out into the real world. For Instant Prizes, you simply have to go to the marked location on the map to get the reward added to your onscreen prize bag. Tap that and get instructions on how to redeem. Do note that these are usually simple stuff, like free fries at a local restaurant or cheap tickets to a show.

Collector's Stamps, on the other hand, require you to travel to different locations, gaining letter stamps at each one that spell out the words to the final destination. Treasure Hunts work similarly, except you gain clues instead of stamps. Since they're harder, the prizes for these two are usually bigger (e.g. videocams and gaming consoles).

Because they've only just launched, there are only a few thousand hidden treasures across the US, most of them concentrated in large metro areas (think New York, LA and Washington DC). However, developers at Dreamwalk Pty Ltd are negotiating for new businesses to come in and, potentially, make the loot more lucrative for avid treasure hunters across the country. Participating merchants, by the way, can easily upload new prizes via Dreamwalk's website, which will then turn up on gamers' maps.

Dreamwalk's beauty is that it is a win-win for all parties involved. Businesses get very hip marketing and users get a chance to win loads of free stuff around their area. An excellent concept that's totally worth the free App Store download.

[Dreamwalk Mobile]

Too cheap to pay for GPS software on your phone?  Here's your chance to get one for free.  The folks behind Telmap Navigator are looking for cell phone users who want to participate in their beta testing as part of the Telmap User Group.

The Telmap Navigator is a full-featured GPS application that supports a wide range of handsets and mobile platforms, including those without a GPS (you can use other features that don't require the hardware, like map viewing and route calculation).  It comes with both on-foot and in-car navigation, making it useful any time you need  accurate directions and travel information.

Features of the software include real-time map downloads (which requires you to have a running internet connection), voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation, an extensive point-of-interest database, real-time traffic data and multiple map views, among other capabilities.

You may want to head on over to the official beta test site to sign up if you live in one of the following countries:  France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, USA, Canada, UK, Spain and South Africa.  Unfortunately, only select cell phone models will be accepted into the group, specifically Blackberry units (8900 and 9000 Bold), Sony Ericsson (several Walkman and Cybershot models), Symbian handsets (unspecified models) and Windows Mobile phones (unspecified models).

Telmap

While everyone was expecting TomTom to debut the first turn-by-turn GPS app for the iPhone, AT&T went ahead and beat them to the punch. Earlier today, the mobile carrier debuted a version of the AT&T Navigator (Telenav) for iPhone handsets with OS 3.0.

It's essentially the same voice-enabled software running on other GPS-fitted phones from AT&T and Sprint. Features include onscreen and voice-guided directions (with 3D view), real-time traffic updates, automatic rerouting and a 10 million-strong points-of -interest database. It comes with automatic map updates, which certainly makes a good case over one-time payment apps (that typically don't come with the feature). There's also a facility to search for local gas prices, in case you need to fill up in an unfamiliar area.  The app seems restricted to US maps, though.

Download is free, although the service itself will damage you a considerably expensive $9.99 per month. Before you start fuming at the ears, do note that the subscription includes no tie-in period. As such, you can cancel and resume the service anytime you want, which should be perfect for folks who only ever use a GPS when making their way around locations they're unacquainted with.

Those who rely on a GPS religiously will probably do best waiting for TomTom's app or, if luck would have it, Navigon, both of whom will likely go the one-time payment route.