NaviGadget

Clarion MiND – now a lot cheaper

Jul 31, 2009 gps navigation 2 Comments

Clarion MiND – since we last visited – has it’s own page now showing off its features. And even though it says you can grab one as low as $500, Amazon is not taking any chances and is willing to get rid of them for $250.

What do you think of this price? Are you willing to spend $250 for a WiFi enabled device with a 4.8″ screen and 4GB of flash memory? It is also bluetooth enabled which is good – but it is only way to get wireless internet when you are not close to any WiFi hotspots. You’d have to pair it up with your phone to get connectivity. Anyhow – what can Clarion MiND do for you? GPS navigation, play your tunes, new traffic updates service, and Google Local search.

Clarion MAP 690 and Clarion MAP 790

Mar 5, 2009 gps navigation 2 Comments

At CeBIT trade show which is taking place this moment in Germany, Clarion presented two new portable GPS navigation systems: the Clarion MAP 690 and Clarion MAP 790.

Both devices use the iGO My Way 8 navigation software which is capable of showing certain buildings and monuments in 3D, altitudes, realistic looking road signs, and posted speed limits.

Other features include text-to-speech to pronounce street names, and lane assistance to help you out on freeways.

Clarion MAP 690 and Clarion MAP 790 will also include an RDS/TMC receiver for traffic updates but we’ll have to wait and see if this will cost extra.

Both GPS navigation systems have a 4.3″ touch screen with 480×272 pixel (WQVGA) resolution, SiRF III GPS receiver chip, a handsfree Bluetooth kit, all of which are controlled by the 400 MHz processor. For storage you’ve got a 2 GB built-in space which also holds the maps info.

Clarion MAP 690 will be delivered with local maps and the Clarion MAP 790 will come with maps of 44 European countries.

No precise details to date on their price and their date of release…. Read More …

Clarion MiND – now on Amazon

Jan 31, 2009 gps navigation 1 Comment

We found a few new shots of the Clarion MIND in their press release kit – one of which unveils the user interface of the GPS navigation system feature. This image is slightly different than the one Amazon has on their site (oh did we mention – it is already on Amazon for $649: Clarion MiND) and misses the little icon on the top menu that says “DUN” which is dial-up networking – usually using a bluetooth device. The specs on Amazon claims Clarion MiND can connect to the internet using your phones bluetooth and data service – so hopefully this is not an issue.

Here are the specs for MiND:

• 4.8 inch WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) LCD Display with touch screen
• Intel Atom Architecture (800 MHz)
• 512MB DRAM
• 4 GB solid state drive (SSD) flash memory
• Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
• Bluetooth 2.0+EDR with DUN (Dial-up Network) profile
• SiRFstarIII GPS module with 20-channel GPS receiver
• Li-Ion battery (Small Battery: 2 hours, Optional Large Battery: 4 hours)
• Built-In amplifier and speaker
• 3.5mm external headphone connector
• 2 USB ports
• microSD card slot
• Docking Station
• RDS-TMC Traffic Ready (lifetime subscription; optional car dock required)

dmedia WiMAX G5W GPS navigation system

Jan 22, 2009 gps navigation 23 Comments

Ever seen a standalone GPS navigation system with WiMax connectivity? No? Neither have we (Clarion MIND, or Nokia N810 does not really count). Well, people at dmedia decided this was the future and designed one called G5W.

We’re not sure if this is still at prototype level or actually something you can pick up from a store in Hong Kong but here are the specs you can expect from dmedia G5W GPS navigation system:

• 5″ wide touch screen
• bluetooth connectivity
• FM transmitter
• GPRS/EDGE modules

Wouldn’t this be great if we had free WiMax coverage in our cities? Start a browser and bring up Google Maps with traffic information and maybe a few bookmarked traffic web cameras on our way and you can avoid traffic like no other.

Clarion NX509

Jan 21, 2009 CES 2009, gps navigation 1 Comment

Clarion NX509 is a new addition to Clarion’s in car entertainment line-up. NX509 is a 2-DIN system that has built-in navigation and supports media from CDs, DVDs, and USB sticks and can read MP3 and WMA formats.

It has a 7″ touch screen LCD monitor however also does 2 zone entertainment. There’s a USB port in the back fro iPod Control in addition to being ready for XM Satellite Mini Tuner, and CeNET Sirius Satellite Radio.

You can also soup up your Clarion NX509 with optional additions such as the steering wheel remote, bluetooth connectivity, and more.

We’re not sure when Clarion NX509 will hit the stores or for how much but we’ll be sure to give you an update when it does.

Clarion MIND finally

Nov 26, 2008 gps navigation Leave a comment

We’re really happy to see ClarionMIND finally hit online stores since to be honest we’ve had enough coverage for this device on Navigadget since January: See here, here, and here.

It is now selling at exclusively at Crutchfield for $650, available in black, red, and white.

If this device had WiMax it may have been worth your money but with only WiFi all we can say is to get one of those new netbooks with your money at spend the extra cash on a GPS receiver with a mount… Read More …

ClarionMIND

Aug 20, 2008 gps navigation, umpc 7 Comments

ClarionMind just made another appearance at Intel Developer Forum and apparently this is the production version – unlike other Clarion Mind’s we talked about before.

It looks like the device got smaller as sources now say the screen size is 4.8″. Of course some of the most important features never made it to this model such as WiMax and 3G connectivity. You’ll have to make do with a wimpy Wi-Fi antenna, which means you can browse the internets while you’re still in your garage. The device runs on Linux, has a 800×480 pixel resolution touchscreen, and support various media files as well as offering bluetooth features.

If the navigation system software is good enough this maybe a good alternative to a few brands that we are always used to see. ClarionMiND is expected to ship later this year… Read More …

Clarion MiND

Jun 8, 2008 gps navigation, umpc Leave a comment

Clarion MiND made an appearance at Computex in Taiwan last week and the first shots do not look like what we reported earlier this year.

MiND stands Mobile Internet Navigation Device which pretty much is just a UMPC with integrated GPS… the kind we like.

Here are some features and specs we could gather for Clarion MiND:

• integrated GPS
• 5.2-inch WVGA 800 x 480 touchscreen
• MS Office access
• bluetooth
• Wi-Fi
• various media players

It looks like this is still a prototype device but when it comes out in US before Xmas this year you can expect to pay about $700… Read More …

Clarion MAP780

May 7, 2008 gps navigation 10 Comments

Clarion MAP780 was also announced right next to Clarion MAP680 yesterday. The difference between the two models is that MAP780 has 2GB of internal memory which includes details maps of 43 European countries whereas MAP680 has 1GB of internal memory and has regional maps.

Here are the features for Clarion MAP780:

• 4.3″ wide screen LCD
• Built-in TMC tuner
• 3D display of landscapes, buildings, landmarks and places of interest
• Lane assistant
• Phonetically correct voice guidance for street names etc. (Text to Speech)
• European version for 43 countries
• Bluetooth with phone book transfer, SMS function and audio streaming (A2DP)
• Digital photo album, video and audio player
• 400 MHz microprocessor
• 2 GB internal memory

Also check out these screen shots from MAP780 showing terrain in both 2D and 3D:

The recommended retail price for MAP780 will be 349,00 EUR for Germany.

Clarion MAP680

May 7, 2008 gps navigation 22 Comments

Clarion just announced two new personal navigation devices one of which is MAP680. The device includes communication and entertainment functions in addition to navigation which is capable of showing certain buildings in 3D, and even the route in true 3D; depicting hills in the streets, underpasses, and bridges.

Other features include lane assistant and text-to-speech feature; and as far as connectivity you’ve got your TMC tuner for updated traffic information, and bluetooth for hands-free calls.

Clarion MAP680 is the regional model which will be available in 4 different versions:

• MAP680DEU (Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland)
• MAP680FRA (France, Monaco, Belgium, Netherlands)
• MAP680UKI (England, Ireland)
• MAP680EEU-Eastern Europe (BosniaHrz, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine, Czech Rep., Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovenia)

We have no info on pricing but we’ll keep you updated as we find out. UPDATE: MAP680 will go for 299 Euros.