1. Gowalla 3.0 Unifies Check-Ins, Places With Facebook, Twitter, And Yes, Foursquare

By MG Siegler on TechCrunch

Gowalla made a major move this week when it unveiled Gowalla 3.0 for the iPhone (an Android version is coming soon), which allows users to perform unified check-ins across services. Integration with Twitter is nothing new, but now Gowalla users on the iOS platform can check into Gowalla, Facebook Places and Foursquare from one application.

Takeaway: If you’re a Facebook Places or Foursquare devotee, Gowalla is not worth another look. On the surface it may seem as though Gowalla is tossing its hat into the ring as mobile applications and social networking tools vie for world domination, but really, Gowalla is simply responding to user needs. If you’ve ever tinkered with Gowalla, you know that its UI is pretty lovable, but it’s a hassle to have one more place to check in while your friends are using Facebook and Foursquare. Gowalla is bringing them together to address that complaint. There are other enhancements brought by Gowalla 3.0 that create a richer experience for its users, including better picture integration, a new UI, a new location bookmarking feature and the ability to leave personalized notes for other Gowalla users at any location around the world.

1. Facebook Places: What It Is, What It Isn’t, And Why It May Change The World
By Augie Ray with Forrester

On August 18 Facebook announced its long-anticipated geolocation offering called “Places,” and the Internet went crazy. In what was the most popular post we tweeted this week, Forrester’s Augie Ray argues that “the most important contribution Facebook is making to the geolocation social space is not in form but scale.”

Takeaway: First of all, Places is neither evolutionary nor new. Foursquare and Gowalla beat them to the punch eons ago in tech time. While foursquare counts around 2.5 million users in its base, Facebook has 500 million. This means that Facebook is positioned to introduce the benefits of location sharing to a new and much wider audience. But the rub is in the very first paragraph of Ray’s post – while the popular Foursquare counts around 2.5 million users in its base, Facebook has 500 million, meaning Facebook is now positioned to introduce the benefits of location-sharing to a new and much wider audience. Facebook has an opportunity to change the way people approach social networking without even creating something new. How this will play out has yet to be seen, but the potential significance of this new feature is undeniable.

Have you given Places a try yet? Let us know what you think in the comments.