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The Olympics are coming soon and the best way to enjoy them is with tech! Whether you’re attending the Games in person or enjoying them from afar, tech can enhance the experience of the XXX Olympiad.
The London 2012 Olympics might be the Games that are remembered for their use of tech and social media. Twitter has been named the Official Narrator of the Olympics and even the Games’ mascot has his own Facebook page.
If you’re wondering how you can best use tech with the Olympics, wonder no more. The Wonder of Tech has you covered.
Websites
Official Olympics Website
The International Olympics Committee has an official website that gives you information about the Games, athletes, events and more. Learn about the history of the Games and see highlights from past Games. You can search for past medalists or study up on Olympics trivia at this site. The shop has items from past Olympics as well as the 2012 London Games.
London 2012 Olympics
The London Olympics Committee has been busy not only getting ready for the Games but also preparing tech in anticipation of the big event. The Official London 2012 website contains schedules, results, photos, weather and travel information for visitors to the Games. You can search by the date or the sport to find out when the events are scheduled.
NBC Olympics Website
Get information on the games, TV schedules, photos, results and medal counts from the NBC Olympics website. If you have an account with a US satellite or cable TV company, you can watch live streaming video of the Games from this website.
Apps
Whether you’re out and about or sitting on the sofa with your smartphone in front of you, you can find out lots of information from apps. Olympics apps can give you instant in-depth information about events, sports, athletes, travel and teams.
Official Olympics Apps
The London Olympics Committee has issued three different apps ahead of the Games. These official Olympics apps can be downloaded free from the official London 2012 Olympics website. The Olympics Results app is available for Android, iOS and Windows 7 devices and, as the name suggests, gives you easy access to results, schedules and more. You can filter the information for countries, athletes or sports.
The Join In app, available for Android, iOS and Blackberry devices, is a guide to both Olympic events and to other events in the London area during the Olympic Games.
If you want to see what it’s like to train as an Olympic athlete from the comfort of your sofa, grab the official London 2012 Mobile Game app, available for Android and iOS devices. Train your athlete in Training, Olympic or Challenge modes in nine different sports. The competitions take place in arenas that are based on official London Olympic venues.
NBC Olympic Live Extra App
If you want to watch live streaming of the games from your mobile device, check out the free NBC Live Olympics Extra app. This app shows live streams of games as well as highlights and On Demand programs. You can also schedule alerts for upcoming events.
The app is free, but you need to register using your satellite or cable tv account to watch live streams. The live streaming video can only be viewed within the US.
The NBC Olympics Live Extra app is available for the iPhone and iPad in the iTunes App Store and for Android devices at Google Play.
NBC Olympics App
The NBC Olympics app gives you background information about the sports, athletes and events. Track Twitter, get news and see photo galleries from the Games. On Demand video is also available from this app.
This app is not currently available.
BBC Olympics App
If you’re in the UK for the Olympics, check out the BBC Olympics app which provides up to 24 live video streams of Olympic events. You can see pages for each Olympic sport and each athlete competing in the Games. Get breaking news and watch video highlights as well as interviews with the athletes.
This app is not currently available.
Note, this app was originally launched worldwide, but is now only available in the UK.
PlayUp
PlayUp, one of my Sweet (16) Sport Apps, was updated this week to include Olympics coverage. With PlayUp you can get information about events, news, medal tallies and schedules. The Buzz section will show you Olympics-related tweets.
In this app you can start chatrooms with your friends or join in chats with everyone. Discuss the Games, root for your country and make predictions so that every Olympic event becomes a social event!
PlayUp is free for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch in the iTunes App Store and for Android devices at Google Play. If you already have the app, make sure to update it to get Olympics coverage.
Tube Exits
Bonus App: If you’re visiting London, check out Tube Exits which helps you navigate from station to station on the London Tube. If you’re going to transfer between Tube lines, this app will show you which car to be in and which doors to stand near for easiest access to the next line. If the Tube stations are as crowded as they are anticipated to be, knowing which car to be in could save you time and hassles during the Games.
Other than watching the Games live, the quickest way of getting results may be Twitter. Be sure to follow the official Olympic Twitter feed: @London2012 and #London2012. Follow the US Olympics team’s Twitter feed @USOlympic.
The London Eye
The London Eye will be joining in the tech fun during the Games. Beginning at 9:00 pm BST each evening during the Games, the London Eye will light up to reflect the sentiments of tweets using the hashtag #Energy2012. MIT engineers in the US developed an algorithm to measure the intensity of positive and negative sentiment of tweets surrounding the Games to color the Eye.
Europe’s Largest Ferris Wheel will become a high-tech pie chart/mood ring, colored according to positive or negative tweets. The London Eye will be colored yellow for positive and purple for negative. Also look for the London Eye to display gold, silver or bronze light shows to celebrate the medals brought home by Great Britain.
Wenlock – The London 2012 Olympics Mascot
The Olympic mascot Wenlock is active on social media. Check out his Facebook Page and Twitter feed @iamwenlock to stay in touch.
Will you be using tech to enhance your enjoyment of the Olympics? Have you visited any Olympics sites or downloaded any apps yet? Let us know in the Comments section below!
* London Eye image by Alexis Soon via Flickr and Creative Commons
Hi Carolyn,
Here is my tech tip for anyone in the UK or coming here for the Olympics and driving and it’s to get the app PetrolPrices Pro from the Iphone app store. It’s also available for the Ipod touch (whatever that is). It will tell you that the cheapest petrol station selling gasoline near me is Tesco at 127.9. Yes, they price it in fractions of a penny and that is per litre! I think it works out to about $10 a gallon.
You can also check out petrol prices on petrolprices.com
On the same day as the Olympics start 100 people in the UK will become millionaires thanks to the Euromillions lottery raffle. Someone could even win the jackpot which will be around 100 million too. It would change the world of blogging if I won! 🙂
My Neodigital Art blogs feature pictures of a tudor manor house this week and I even used the flash to photograph the inside. Next week, I will probably use some of Simon’s pictures. They are are bit dark after the rain, but were taken on his travels. We have been spoiled this week with a few days of sunshine. I’ve even phoned my gardener!
Hi Mike, That’s a great tech tip! Thanks so much for that. Yes, we Americans get sticker shock when we arrive in the UK and see petrol prices, though many Americans are reluctant to drive in the UK.
I hope you do win, Mike, but that you keep blogging too! I saw your blog but I need to go back and leave a comment and share it. Your use of angles in photography is amazing! (*)
All things Olympic, huh? Sounds like you can really be plugged in with your suggestions which is helpful because of the time difference.
I have been in the ‘tube’…………Interesting history, especially w/ World War II and all that was going on in London at the time.
Hi Bill, Yes, the history of London during World War II fascinates me. Look forward to an upcoming post about the role tech played during that time! 🙂
This is perfect Carolyn. I’ll be camping during the Olympics and I need all the help I can get to watch it. I’m especially going to focus on Michael Phelps and maybe the US basketball team.
Thanks.
Hi Jens, I’m glad you found this helpful. It was fun putting this list together as these apps and websites will be a great way to help us enjoy the Olympics even more! Yes, you might be a bit challenged in following the Olympics from a tent, but if you can get reception on your Kindle, then you can at least follow Twitter streams! Enjoy, Jens!
There are just so many of them!
I have been to their websites but the local channels do a good job of covering them really well. And I ain’t really into downloading apps to keep up! But yes, I can see the appeal!
Hi Hajra, Yes, the traditional way of viewing the Olympics is to watch them on TV, but these games should be different with various Twitter streams, apps and websites providing broader coverage than ever before! 🙂
It’s surprising that there are that many helpful apps. I was not counting on an app that compare Petrol Prices :))
Hi Radu, Yes, it’s impressive that Mike suggested a petrol pricing app when he doesn’t even own a smartphone. Well done! :-bd
There’s an app for everything nowadays, especially world wide events, I’m pretty sure this will be the norm from now on…
I personally can live without certain apps but what thing I will always need would be checking, reading and sending e-mails from my smartphone, this is the main reason I bought a smartphone.
My bad… I haven’t even been paying attention Carolyn. I just don’t have time for a lot of TV at the moment and my weekends are full right now helping my Mom pack. She’s moving next month so I haven’t see the light of day all month and won’t until mid August.
But still, you’re to the rescue for anything tech that can make our lives easier. Bravo Carolyn!
~Adrienne
Hi Adrienne, I know you’ve been very busy with your mom’s big move but it will all be worth it when she’s settled. I hope you get to enjoy at least a bit of the Olympics. You need a break sometimes!
Hi, Adrienne ~ Great to see you here. Bless your heart. I hope you ‘do’ get a chance to relax as well and get your mom settled. Hope she is doing fine as well. All the best!!
-Allyson
I guess BBC Olympic app is suffiecient enough. If I’m not wrong then it is the only app that will stream live videos from Olympics. Too bad it will work only in UK. There are two apps 1) London Olympics Join in— to get location info and related stuff and 2) London Olympics sports — to get latest sports updates.
Hi Ricky, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! The NBC Live Extras app will stream live video from the Olympics within the US for those who have a subscription to cable or satellite TV. The BBC Olympics app was originally worldwide but they changed it to be UK only, probably because of the digital rights.
Enjoy the Olympics, Ricky!
1 2 3 4 5…………..oh my god will this list of apps going to end Carolyn…..?? 🙂 🙂
I hope its not …these are lots of apps and everyone can had a close watch on Olympic games anywhere if they are smart enough to have a smartphone with them.Because watching TV while working is not at all possible.
The best app i like is NBC Olympic Live Extra app.I have downloaded this app just waiting for Olympics to start soon. 🙂
Nice collection of apps Carolyn…
Hi Aditya, I’m glad you like these apps. Make sure to check out the websites and Twitter streams too. If you’re a fan of the Olympics, you will have plenty of tech to keep you busy! 🙂
Again with Very impressive one,
I am at your side that watching TV is not good at every time with work so apps seems good.
These games with various apps are really seems very interesting. Going to check and download.
Thanks for this helpful post which gives us fun a lot.
Hi Bhusan, Thank you for your kind words. I am very happy that you found this post helpful. I hope you enjoy the Games!
Not to say so much but i have surrender in front of you. ^:)^ :-bd
good luck with your work and thanks for this.
Bhushan
Anyone heard of those official guidelines that make it illegal to post something negative about the Olympic Games via Social Media? Stupid.
Hello Holzprofi, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Yes, there have been some controversies surrounding the game already. Are we more offended by what is said or the inability to say what we want?
It is nice to know about all these. It will really mean a lot to a sports fan like me who will likely miss all those live games.
Hi Karen, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! You’re right, if you can’t watch the Games live or on TV, these apps and websites can be a big help to let you follow the events. 🙂
I’m looking forward to the olympics and I’m going to check out these apps! I can’t help but think that nowadays, every event presents an opportunity for a new app! Every sporting event, celebrity engagement, political development! It’s a new world, that’s for sure!
Hi Carolyn
Thank you for the list. It is great to be able to follow the Olympic when the weather is great and you don’t want to stay indoor all day. I will go and check out some of them.
I am using the NBC App, thus far it seems to be pretty good. I just wish they would show the events in real time. It is kind of frustrating to get all the results online and then watch them 6 hours later.
Hi, Carolyn
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like watching the Olympics, myself included. There’s a sport for everyone.
I’m really glad you shared these apps. In fact, just yesterday, I was searching online to find the schedule of my favorite games, as I truly hate missing them. And low and behold, I see you’ve posted about some wonderful apps that can help! How very timely. Needless to say, I love these apps, particularly the NBC Olympic Live Extra app. What a great option for those who, like me, don’t want to miss their favorite sport. So, thanks so much.
Have a good one, and see you again, hopefully soon.
Allyson
Wow, so of apps to keep track of Olympics!
I just watch news (or read online editions of newspaper) and look on FB for news related to Olympics (never thought about visiting actual Olympics site for the results – that should be the best way to see the results, right? Since they must have everything organized?).
Hi Jeevan, Sorry I’m late in getting back to you after my holiday. I hope you enjoyed the Olympics, Jeevan! 🙂
Using these kind of apps for Olympics is fun… But it feels great when you are in front of the TV screen with popcorns in your hand… 🙂
Hi Zainil, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! I’ve never attended the Olympics in person, but I do enjoy watching them on TV and popcorn always enhances any viewing experience! :-bd
good piece of writing and great list of Olympic apps. 🙂
Thank you, Jessie. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Wow … This page is very informative in explaining things about the Olympics in London 2012. I honestly loved it. Indeed, I know that the Olympics is not just a championship, but in fact it was unexpected to me. I was very impressed after seeing the various technologies used to support the event.
There also a wonderful app called “London 2012 Results” which keeps one updated about all the latest happenings in the olympic games. I’ve installed it and am quite satisfied with it.
Hi Harshit, Thanks so much for sharing that app with us! 🙂