The Android version of Gigwalk appeared towards the end of last summer, and all the Android users who'd been waiting over a year for this breathed a sign of relief.
Sad to say, my experience has been disappointing. As originally released for iPhone in 2010 (and it was very briefly available for Android back in 2012, it worked on an opportunistic basis in that you could claim a gig and do it just because you were in the area. Any approval or disapproval was exercised only with respect to the finished work. Gigwalk 2.0 is an entirely different animal, and this is one reason the Android users had to wait so long. It's now necessary to be approved to *do* the gig at all, just like you would have to at a traditional temp agency. You have to apply, stating in 140 characters why you're a perfect fit for the gig, without necessarily knowing what kind of business it is. I have applied for many gigs, but withdrawn from most, due to not being selected or otherwise notified in time for me to plan my schedule on the day when the gig was actually due.
Nearly everybody says they hate the Photosynth gigs, but those are only available on iPhones. What's left for Android is skewed very heavily towards merchandising and stock handling in exurban big-box retailers (read Walmart) who are looking for a cheap way to get someone to stock and audit their shelves. Read the Google Play Store reviews, and you see many variations on "I live in the middle of LA/Manhattan/SF/Chicago but all the gigs are at least 30 miles away in small towns!" I can't help thinking that there's a business reason for this--the exurban retailers use GW to get you to spend the time and gas to drive all the way out to their site, and then *maybe* pay you on a piecemeal basis--instead of having their own merchandising staff driving around in company trucks, receiving a steady wage.
So, it's totally not about snapping a picture of the coffeeshop menu while you sip your latte, or about photographing the offerings of Pinot Noir while you're grabbing a couple bottles to serve your guests tonight. And it's certainly not about earning a few bucks while you walk. Gigwalk is a misnomer: it should be Gig-Drive, or Gig-top-off-your-tank-before-hitting-the-road-to-get-to-the-client.
it's about doing grunt work in places that are likely many miles from where you live.
There are other types of gigs, including business audits where you have to call them up and ask a few questions about their services, check out the website, and write reviews. You also will very occasionally find static display audits--basically take pictures of certain supermarket displays and answer some questions, but you don't have to haul stock out of the stockroom or arrange it yourself. I've done a few of each, and found them to be well worth the time and effort.
Honestly, I thought a lot of the gigs would be based on someone needing a picture of something where you happen to be, right now this minute. I never expected that something like that would be worth $12 or $20. Rather, I thought it would be like a buck or two for something like that, but that such gigs would be much, much easier to get.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/24/2014 06:07AM by The_Furious_Cheese.