Verdict: I'm not giving up my Garmin just yet...

Sure, personal navigation devices are great, but they cost hundreds of dollars and require specialized hardware. What if you could take the cell phone you already own, and turn it into a fully functioning GPS device with turn-by-turn voice guidance?

That’s the promise behind TeleNav’s GPS Navigator application, currently available on select phones from Alltel, Boost Mobile, Cingular, Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon for $9.95/month.

Continue reading "GPS on Your Cell Phone: GPS for $9.95? TeleNav Navigator Mini Review" »

Posted by Fletch at 11:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

Happy Holidays to all our loyal readers! Hopefully everyone had a safe, fun, GPS-enabled holiday weekend. Got a story of how GPS saved your Christmas, travel plans, marrage, etc.? Drop us a comment and share the GPS love.

Posted by Fletch at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

TomTom has updated its mapping data for the U.S. and Canada, and claims to have the "most accurate and detailed maps in the industry for the US and Canada." The update is free for all existing GO x10 and TomTom ONE customers (you have to validate your serial number to qualify), $49.95 for all GO 300, 700, Rider, and Navigator 5 customers if you purchase by March 31 2007, $149.95 if you buy after March '07 when the "promotional" pricing ends.

Continue reading "TomTom Updates Its Maps, Claims to Have "Most Accurate" Maps" »

Posted by Fletch at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Starting January 1st 2007, TomTom will switch GPS receivers in their ONE product line from SiRF's StarIII receiver to a new chipset made by Global Locate, dubbed "Hammerhead". The ONE is currently TomTom's best selling GPS. According to TomTom, the decision to drop SiRF will allow them to manufacture their ONE units at a lower price, thereby allowing TomTom to drop the price of the ONE in 2007. SiRF's StarIII indoor/outdoor high sensitivity receiver is largely responsible for the major leap forward GPS navigation has made in the past year, so a decision to move to a new receiver solely for financial reasons worries me.

Continue reading "TomTom's Risky Move: Drops SiRF on the ONE" »

Posted by Fletch at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Have you driven a [Microsoft] Ford lately? Starting in 2007 Ford will begin offering Microsoft's in-car computing solution (insert favorite Microsoft blue screen of death joke here). The system, currently called "Microsoft Blue&Me" will offer cross-platform smartphone support, Bluetooth, SAP (SIM Access Profile), car diagnostics, entertainment, and, of course, GPS navigation. If the idea of running Windows in your car gives you the Heebie-Jeebies, you'll be even more surprised to learn that Microsoft's Windows Automotive is already found in 18 different automakers' cars, including those from BMW, Citroen, Clarion Co., DiamlerChrysler, Fiat, Honda, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, NexTech, Subaru, Toyota and volvo.

Posted by Fletch at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

What do you get what you combine Garmin's nuvi 660 (currently the reigning editor's choice GPS) with Microsoft's MSN Direct service? The Garmin nuvi 670 and 680. Up till now, MSN Direct has been pretty useless (remember those crappy SPOT watches?), broadcasting stock prices, weather, and news to various devices. Looks like Garmin will use the service to send "live" information to the nuvi, such as weather forecasts, move times, and most importantly, POIs. Maps will remain locally stored, however, and don't appear to be updateable via the live service. Too bad, as that would have really made the otherwise useless MSN Direct service worth while... Look for it early next year. No word yet on pricing, but I'd guess it'll be somewhere around the $900 mark.

Posted by Fletch at 12:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Next time you step into a New York City taxi cab, you might think you’ve been sent from the future to save Sarah Connor. Last week the Big Apple’s Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) previewed the next generation of NY taxi cabs, complete with GPS tracking and steaming TV. As part of the city’s larger effort to attack your senses from every angle, you’re ride with the yellow fleet will soon include a touch-screen display that lets you watch TV, make online purchases, or follow your progress in real time on the map.

Continue reading "New Yorkers to get Futuristic Taxis with GPS Tracking & TV" »

Posted by Fletch at 8:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Let’s face it – when it comes to GPS receivers, size matters. Talk to anyone in the GPS space, and they’ll tell you the next big growth area for GPS is cell phones. Epson, the company you probably already associate with printers, is looking to get into the booming GPS sector. The company  claims to have manufactured the “world’s smallest” GPS chip. The module is specifically designed for application where smallness is key, such as cell phones. Measuring 7 x 6 x 1.28 millimeters, Epson’s teeny tiny GPS is already being massed produced and already found its way into NTT DoCoMo’s FOMA 903i series.  According to Epson’s marketing mumbo jumbo, the tiny size of the receiver has sacrificed nothing in performance. Epson is claiming “3GPP-compliant positioning modes (MS-Based, MS-Assisted and Autonomous).” Now if only they could make it so I can print up a sheet of these things using my old $79 Epson dot-matrix…

Looks like there’s finally going to be some competition to SiRF’s mighty StarIII chipset. More technical details available HERE

Posted by Fletch at 7:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Verdict: Good

What a year it's been for Magellan! Several months ago they released the RoadMate 3000T, 3050T, and 6000T, only to discontinue the 3000T a few months later, and replace it with the RoadMate 2000 and 2200T. Oh, and along the way Magellan was acquired by Shah Capital Partners (SCP).

The 2200T improves slightly on the RoadMate 2000, offering text-to-speech, optional real-time traffic data, a longer battery life, more rugged (and water resistant) case, a photo viewer, and a music player.

Continue reading "Magellan RoadMate 2200T Review" »

Posted by Fletch at 1:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (81)