Grocery iQ has been a mainstay in the App Store since its initial release, but a recent update—designed to add support for a host of features—has caused a bit of an uproar among dedicated users of the universal app.
What caught my eye initially about Coupons.com-powered Grocery iQ’s newest release is its new integration with Nuance Communication’s Dragon voice support. This functionality means that your shopping lists can now be populated by text, barcode scan or through speech.
I think this feature is the best of Grocery iQ’s new offerings, but, according to enraged App Store reviewers, its presence came with a price. What seems to be most upsetting is that the upgrade wiped a large amount of user data, including carefully crafted favorites lists. Favorites can still be added, but now they can’t be connected to a store. More upsetting to users, however, is the complete omission of aisle customization. Although Grocery iQ says the feature is returning in a future update, it’s surprising that the developers opted to strip out a much-loved feature entirely.
I also wasn’t impressed with the store locator, powered by Foursquare. Despite living, literally, across the street from a larger supermarket and around the corner from Target, the app would only find destinations more than a mile away—and there’s no way to manually enter a location.
Grocery iQ still offers syncing with other devices and a direct link to Coupons.com. When you add items to your list you’ll be able to see available savings. Coupons can be directly printed over Wi-Fi to certain printers, added to your loyalty card at select stories or emailed for later printing.
If you’re new to Grocery iQ, the app should offer you a fair option for managing your shopping lists—after all, you won’t fully know what you’re missing out on.
