The Gowalla location-based social network has significantly expanded their previously flimsy BlackBerry app with the ability to add pictures to spots, keep track of virtual items, and of course check in to and share your favorite locales with Facebook and Twitter friends like usual.
Gowalla differs from the current check-in leader, Foursquare, by offering a kind of virtual geocaching game to participants. There’s a random chance you can find something when checking in, which you can then trade for items left at spots where you check-in. There are also signature stickers you can earn by checking-in to famous spots or completing trips to specific collections of spots.
Foursquare’s app has had a lot of time to get comfortable on BlackBerry, winning over many who were looking to get in on the new check-in fad. Now Facebook Places is bringing a lot more mainstream attention to the idea, and apps are the only way for anyone outside the U.S. to use it, leaving Gowalla with some catching up to do. Other apps, like MyTown, Yelp, and even Google Buzz are offering increasing competition.
If you’re interested in giving it a shot, you can download Gowalla for BlackBerry directly from your device.
[via Gowalla Blog]