For our third installment of 180 days of change at Uber, we have August, which is highlighted by flexibility. So far, this is the least exciting and most underwhelming month for Uber's big change campaign, because honestly, nothing but long trips have really been added. Check out my review of the four features that have been added to Uber's driving platform for the month of August:
August 2017: Flexibility
I have yet to receive a Long Trip request, but I'm sure if/when I do, I'll be one happy guy, especially if its during a surge with UberSelect! Any-who, it is a nice addition, but I'm sure if you are someone who has ever received one, you didn't notice it right away because most of us are accustomed to hitting the first trip request that comes our way. Also, as I'm sure many of you have heard from those crazy stories of multi-hour long Uber drives, you do always have the option to decline taking the rider if it is further than your metro zone.
Verdict: Me like
The only added feature here is that you set your destination and the time in which you would like to arrive, and the destination mode doesn't "engage" until you actually have to depart for your destination. Simply put, the top blue line that used to turn orange when you put in your destination originally, won't do so now until your current location dictates that you should leave for your destination. While this is handy, there isn't much point to this because all drivers will start going towards their destination regardless unless you put it in 3 hours out, in which case, this is a nice feature, I guess.
Verdict: Orange is the new... Blue?
The Trip type preferences is a very welcomed change as it was very annoying to log off and log back in to switch between different driviing profiles (if you had multiple ones). For myself, I have three options: UberEATS, Uber x / POOL, and UberSelect. I always have UberEATS turned off because I just don't want to do it, but the ability to easily toggle between having Uber X / POOL turned off and on is awesome during events because I know that I can hang out for a few minutes with only UberSelect on and wait to get a ping; I also know that the surge will be the same, so I am essentially doubling my earning potential by being smart about what is turned on and what is turned off.
Verdict: Thank you for being smart
While it is important to still have a higher acceptance rate for nightly or weekend goals, the more lackadaisical stance on acceptance rates towards quests is great! Previously, if you had a quest available to you that was "complete 3 consecutive trips" but after doing 2 trips, you get a ping that is 20 minutes away, you would have to go to it; now, you can decline it and it won't count against your progress. While declining will still hurt your overall acceptance rate, you can make it up later!
Verdict: Decline away