How is using what3words different from using a PIN?

How is what3words different to sharing a pin? A location pin is impossible to describe over the phone or radio, to write down, or to enter into a speech recognition system. what3words offers a more flexible way to pass location information between people and machines or devices, online or offline.

How does what3words app work?

It starts by assigning every single square a unique name made up of three random words. All words sequences and their assigned location on the map are stored on what3words servers. You can immediately access any of them by typing either the 3 words or the traditional address of the location.

How accurate is what3words?

Compared to current street addressing systems, 3 word addresses are far more accurate, as they refer to a specific 3m x 3m area. As the entire what3words grid is fixed, the 3 word address for a particular location will never change even if buildings or streets are redeveloped.

Why is what 3 words better than Google Maps?

Google Maps is a tool for navigation, public transport and for looking up POIs. what3words has a very different function – it's an easy way to communicate exact locations, whether that's spoken over the phone or into a car voice navigation system, or typed into a taxi app or a website checkout page.

How does what 3 words work without signal?

Without phone signal, the app functions the same as when you have no data connection: you can view the location of any what3words address you enter. You can also navigate to it using compass mode. To share a what3words address over the phone or in a text message you need phone signal.

How to use What3Words

Do ambulances use what3words?

The app is available in over 45 languages, including Welsh, and can be used anywhere in the world. what3words is now used by over 85% of UK emergency services – police, fire and ambulance – and all services surveyed described what3words as 'a reliable tool to have as part of the emergency toolkit'.

How do I Navigate using what3words?

On a smartphone, simply enter the what3words address into the free what3words app, then tap 'Navigate' and select 'Google Maps' to open the location in Google Maps.

What are the advantages of the what3words system over postcodes?

what3words addresses are easy to remember and to say over the phone or radio. They're also quicker and easier to type than a regular street address. They're designed for speech recognition technology, making them easy to input correctly into voice-enabled devices or vehicles.

Is what3words better than GPS?

They are easier to remember, and quicker and easier to say over the phone, or to enter into a device or navigation system by voice or text. what3words has error-prevention technology which helps users quickly identify and correct input mistakes.

Why is what3words useful?

Many UK police, ambulance and fire services advocate the use of What3Words to report your location in an emergency. The idea is that it is easier to communicate three words than it is to read out a grid reference, and that a position is more helpful than an address in many situations.

Does what3words cost money?

what3words is free for anyone to use via our app and online map. We make money by charging some businesses that benefit commercially from using our products. For example, what3words built into Mercedes-Benz's cars improves the customer experience for its drivers.

Is what3words safe to use?

But security researcher Andrew Tierney recently discovered that What3Words would sometimes have two similarly-named squares less than a mile apart, potentially causing confusion about a person's true whereabouts. In a later write-up, Tierney said What3Words was not adequate for use in safety-critical cases.

How many words are used in what3words?

Each what3words language uses a list of 25,000 words (40,000 in English, as it covers sea as well as land).

Can Google Maps use what three words?

Tapping the Google Maps API, What3words serves up a Web, Android and iOS app, each letting you search for and identify locations based around, well, three words. It's touted as a new universal address system, designed to make it easier, and more accurate, to describe exact locations anywhere on Earth.

Does WAZE use what3words?

Navigating via the what3words app

You can also simply enter your destination's what3words address into the what3words app, then tap 'Navigate' to get directions in your favourite apps such as Google Maps, Waze or Navmii.

What three words do emergency services use?

What3Words (W3W) gives each square a unique three-word address, and the app is used by 100 UK emergency services. But a security consultant found thousands of locations with similar words less than 1km (0.6 miles) apart.

Is what3words app free?

what3words is available as a free app for iOS and Android and online map at map.what3words.com.

Does Amazon use three words?

Today, what3words introduced the what3words skill for Amazon Alexa. The skill enables Alexa users to discover where a 3-word address is and ask to be navigated there by any Alexa-enabled device.

Can you get a postcode from what 3 words?

Postcodes identify a far larger area than the 3m square identified by a what3words address. For this reason, it's not possible to accurately convert a postcode to a what3words address.

Does uber use what3words?

Uber is another company making the most of what3words. This means to order an Uber to your exact location, you simply need to say three words and you never have to worry again…

What are 3 ways?

what3words is an easy way to identify precise locations. Every 3m square has been given a unique combination of three words: a what3words address. Now you can find, share and navigate to precise locations using three simple words. - Guide people to accessible entrances.

What are the first three words you see?

First three words you see are your reality. Mine are "Creation, Love, Gratitude".

What are the three words to 911?

When a caller dials 911, the what3words address of their current location will be securely delivered to ECCs via RapidSOS. Telecommunicators will be able to see this information displayed directly on their screens on the RapidSOS Platform.

What are the three Scottish words?

What3words grids the Earth into 3x3 metre squares by encoding GPS coordinates to give each square a unique set of three words. This means that when someone contacts Police Scotland, they have the option to use what3words if they are in an unfamiliar area, rural location or one that is difficult to describe.