NaviGadget

Garmin EcoRoutes ESP

Nov 5, 2009 garmin, gps navigation 4 Comments

By next year Garmin nuvi’s will be able to get diagnostic data from your vehicle with the EcoRoutes ESP module. This module will be a small unit that can fit somewhere behind your dashboard if necessary and talk to your nuvi via Bluetooth so you don’t have to worry about too much wiring.

The ESP module connects to and is powered by your vehicle’s OBD-II diagnostics port.

The new nuvi’s will have the software to let you customize which gauges you want to see and even set alerts for each one. Things you can keep track of are things like check engine light, real-time fuel economy, emissions, intake air temperature, coolant temperature, RPM, throttle position, and more… Read More …

Garmins between $100 and $120 for Black Friday

Nov 5, 2009 garmin, gps navigation Leave a comment

Garmin is expected to have a few models specially designed for the American Black Friday madness. These GPS navigation systems will cost somewhere between $100 and $120 according to Twice. Also according to Cliff Pemble who is the president and COO of Garmin the sales of nuviphone were “slow” so a TV ad campaign was just launched. Reporting on the Android based nuviphone – he said it is slated for 2010.

Garmin doesn’t sound like they are too concerned about this new generation of competitors coming from GPS enabled smart phones. These new navigation apps still require a costly data plan and usually a higher end phone.

Garmin Aera

Nov 3, 2009 garmin, gps navigation Leave a comment

Garmin Aera is the new GPS navigation system from the company for those who own both an aircraft and a car. It runs in two modes, so you can easily switch between air, and road.

The new Garmin Aera series will have a 4.3″ screen, much like the nuvis, but when in air mode it will provide the pilots with map, weather, terrain, direct to, HSI/panel, active FPL, numbers, nearest, WPT info, position, XM radio, and tools.
There will be four new models:

• aera 500: base model
• aera 510: add XM WX capable and GXM™ 40 antenna
• aera 550: add high resolution 9 arc second terrain/obstacle data, SafeTaxi, AOPA
• aera 560: add XM WX capable and GXM™ 40 antenna

Here is how much they’ll cost you – yes a bit too much – but you own a plane after all, you can afford it:

• aera 500: $800
• aera 510: $1300
• aera 550: $1500
• aera 560: $2000

MSN Direct service to shutdown in 2012

Nov 2, 2009 gps navigation, misc news 2 Comments

That MSN direct service you may have paid for (possibly with your Garmin Nuvi) will be shutting down on January 1 2012.

I guess in this era of 3G connectivity having to pay for a wimpy service over FM signals to get movie time updates and gas prices isn’t that lucrative. Of course there was the traffic service too.

For decent live traffic updates you can use crowdsourced Google Maps, Inrix apps, and probably bunch of other services.

nuviphone now only $99

Nov 1, 2009 garmin, gps navigation, phones Leave a comment

Oh nuviphone… Now you’re only $99. Remember the days when we thought you’d cost $300?

Amazon knows what the true value of nuviphone is these days. It has to compete with many other smartphones which are much better at many other things and can expand with apps. Nuviphone on the other hands does not do apps, had some bad reviews, but but.. does a great job at navigation.

Grab the Garmin nüvifone G60 for only $99. Of course these prices are after a 2 year contract still…

garmin nuvi 1450 GPS navigation system

Oct 17, 2009 garmin, gps navigation Leave a comment

If you remember Garmin Nuvi 1490T you’ll immediately feel close to the new Garmin Nuvi 1450.

Garmin Nuvi 1450 is a new GPS navigation system from the company that features a large 5″ screen, text-to-speech, lane assistant at big junctions, and the kind of recent ecoRoute. ecoRoute supposedly helps you save the environment by calculating fuel efficient routes, tracks your fuel usage, and provides mileage reports.

nuvi 1450 costs $450 – quite a bit – but that’s the price you need to pay if you need a 5″ Garmin.

Garmin nüvi 1310

Oct 8, 2009 garmin, gps navigation 4 Comments

Back in March we mentioned Garmin nuvi 1300 series but never talked about the European version – nuvi 1310. Just like its American counterparts nuvi 1310 also shares slim body design that only measures 15mm thick, offers bluetooth connectivity, lane assist feature, and even speed camera warnings that are updated daily.

Garmin nuvi 1310 has the wide 4.3″ touch screen, battery that can last up to 4 hours, microSD card support, and text to speech feature.

It has different version for different areas such as nuvi1310T for Nordics, Alps, Spain/Portugal, Eastern Europe and finally UK/Ireland.

Suggested retail price for it is £ 180 but Amazon carries them for £ 143.

garmin nuvi 1690 shipping from Amazon

Oct 8, 2009 garmin, gps navigation 11 Comments

Two way connected GPS navigation system garmin nuvi 1690 is now shipping from Amazon. As expected it is going to cost $500. Yeah, that’s a lot. But at least no service charge for two years.

Do you think nuvi 1690 is worth $500?

nuviphone G60 reviews

Oct 7, 2009 garmin, gps navigation, phones, reviews 3 Comments

A couple of reviews already came out about the nuviphone G60 we waited for years. One from pcmag, and the other one from Gizmodo. Neither of them look that good but if you have your heart set on this device you should really read the reviews and look for specifics that would actually change your mind.

pcmag: You can search for points of interests with your voice, great map detail, no DC power adapter for charging, voice directions not very loud, comes with document viewer, no MMS, bad camera, no video recording or playing, good battery life.

Still, the G60 is the best cell-phone-based GPS navigation device I’ve ever tested.

gizmodo: bad touchscreen, bad camera, bad accelerometer, $5 extra to check weather, traffic, etc, no car chager, good navigation.

I didn’t mean to be this harsh, but I also didn’t expect the G60 to be so bad.

Have you seen any other nuviphone G60 reviews? Please share URLs in the comments section.

UPDATE (Oct 14th 2009):

Engadget: Great for navigating but not as capable as a smartphone.

At $299 on contract, you’ve got a lot of smartphone options, and unless navigation is your number one priority, almost any of them are superior to this. This phone just isn’t a smartphone; it’s an amazing navigation machine that makes calls and attempts to browse the web / dabble in integrated apps.

David Pogue: A video review. He calls it “too expensive two trick pony”

nuviphone

Sep 30, 2009 garmin, gps navigation, phones Leave a comment

Couple of days ago we mentioned that nuviphone would cost $300 and be offered by AT&T. Well we were correct. The news is now official. Finally. It is here. Nuviphone is here!!!

AT&T Garmin announced the Garmin nüvifone G60 will be available beginning October 4.

Garmin’s president and COO Cliff Pemble said:

The nüvifone has Garmin’s easy-to-use interface, so navigating to a meeting directly from its calendar or contacts pages, or geotagging an email or photograph with a location stamp, is intuitive, useful and fun.

nuviphone G60 will be as functional as a high end Garmin nuvi, and will come with necessary hardware to be used in your car. The maps of nuviphone are locally stored which means you can still get directions in the middle of nowhere where there’s no AT&T. However if you’re somewhere near a cell tower it is almost guaranteed you’ll get a satellite fix sooner because the G60 utilizes A-GPS.

Other features of nuviphone include full web browsing via AT&T’s 3G network, or good old WiFi. There are connected services of course which include access to real-time traffic information, fuel prices, White Pages, weather and more. You’ve got a 3.2MP too which can automatically geotag your shots.

nuvifone G60 will cost $300 with a two year contract after a $100 mail-in-rebate. Nuvifone Premium Connected Services which includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movie, local events and fuel price content are available for $6/month after a 30-day trial. This is on top of the data charges you’ll have to pay AT&T. What’s up with that….