Ford released a new free application for Apple iPhone, Apple iPad and Android-based devices called Destination, which works with their brilliant SYNC to provide the users with a host of navigation and traffic information. With this app they can search for and save destinations to their cloud-based SYNC Services account for easy access when back in the car.

Of course to benefit from this service, you must have a 2010-2011 SYNC-equipped, TDI-capable vehicles who have a registered and active TDI services. It offers some great features such as recommended departure time, travel time and ETA based on current and expected traffic conditions along their route.

A maximum of 25 Saved Points can be accessed through the app. Locations added via SYNC Destinations are immediately accessible through SYNC Services once in the vehicle, with turn-by-turn directions delivered to the car only a few simple voice commands away.

“With SYNC Destinations, you can be standing in line for a coffee, making impromptu plans with a friend or sitting at the ballgame, and conveniently add a new address to your Saved Points – without ever stopping to log into your account at a personal computer,” adds Gersabeck.

With SYNC Destinations, SYNC TDI users can also better plan the when and where of their commutes, accessing real-time traffic information, reliable traffic forecasts and other time-saving features powered by INRIX, a leading provider of traffic information and driver services. Key benefits include:

• Traffic maps with real-time speed, accident and incident information for all highways, interstates, arterials and city streets in 126 metropolitan areas across North America

• Reliable traffic forecasts that predict how travel times are expected to change over time, based on sophisticated analysis of current traffic conditions, day of the week, season, holidays and related days, current and forecast weather, accidents and road construction, as well as other unique local events such as school schedules, sports games and concerts

• Fastest routes based on current and expected traffic conditions as well as recommended departure times, expected travel times and ETAs that make navigating to daily destinations, whether across town or cross-country, easier than ever

• Easy look-up of addresses for new destinations through local business search and address book integration

“SYNC Destinations is an easy-to-use mobile tool that gives busy, on-the-go SYNC users the flexibility to search and save locations for quick access in the car, plus, with features such as predictive traffic, users can take some of the guesswork out of their daily trips by preplanning the best estimated time of departure to get around town quickly and easily,” said Gersabeck.

Also specific to SYNC Destinations is a 5 mph lockout feature, which automatically halts the app from running on a smartphone once it is detected to be traveling in excess of 5 mph, helping drivers stay focused on the task of driving.

Ford, Lincoln and Mercury owners of 2010 and 2011 SYNC-equipped, TDI-capable vehicles can download the SYNC Destinations app for free from the Apple App Store and Android Market. To activate it, the user has to enter his or her www.syncmyride.com login credentials. Once those credentials are submitted, the app confirms the user’s TDI subscription status, and is then unlocked and ready for use.