NaviGadget

Novogo is a brand that has recently received quite a bit of press attention because of their Novogo V series that was originally presented at the 2006 CES. At the beginning of March Novogo presented a new line of products at the 2006 CeBIT, the Novogo S series. This new line of products will be powered by an Intel PXA255 processor (400 Mhz) and will have a 3,5 inch touchscreen with a resolution of 240×320 pixels. The models of the S series will have the voice activation feature previously seen at the V series. The GPS chipset used will be the SiRFstar III with an integrated antenna and the maps will be provided by Navteq. The Novogo S series will come in four different flavors the Novogo S30, S50, S70 and S90.

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Some features of the new version are:

• Updated Data: USGS topographic map and elevation data integrated with the most recent DeLorme street, trail, campground, and highway network.
• Amazing 3-D Flyovers: Newly-designed 3-D mapping engine produces lifelike views of your favorite terrain. Soar above rivers and lakes, ascend mountains, and explore new places – all from your computer.
• GPS-Ready: Exchange waypoints and Draw objects with the most popular handheld GPS models.Combine with Earthmate® GPS LT-20 for in-vehicle navigation.

Suggested Uses

• Hiking and Camping
• Bike Route Planning
• Fishing, Hunting (BLM and Wildlife Management Units data available free, via download)
• College visits
• Real Estate Property Analysis
• Armchair Exploration
• GPS on outdoor trips
• Earthmate GPS laptop usage for large vehicles avoiding steep inclines
• Coming later this year—maps and aerial imagery on a new DeLorme handheld GPS

A Chinese company called Fuzhou Victory Technology is manufacturing a $199 bluetooth GPS receiver that could fit into your jeans’ coin pocket. The stylish little black receiver, called Columbus V-700 includes a SiRF III chip and connect to up-to 20 satellites for shortest fixation time and 1.5 meters of accuracy. The device only weighs 33 grams. There is yet no US site offering the V-700.

auto translated specs:

■ receiver standard:

Outlook size: 53.5×32.5×13.9mm
Weight: 33 grams
Body: 24 cubic centimeters
Channel: The most Datong receive and pursues 20 □□stars letters ,constructs WAAS/EGNOS Xiech’i
calculates the function: Each second 200,000 stars letter calculates the ability
Receive rate: 1575.42MHz (L1 wave band, C/A □)
Receive sensitivity: -159dBm
decides the ability: 2 stars 2D localization, 3 stars 3D localization
Day: constructs the high gain by the type day

■ localization ability:

Recollects: 0.1 second
—: 1 second
—: 38 seconds
Length: 42 seconds

Samsung Korea today just showcased the Samsung SCH-V850, newest member to join its ever growing family. Some of our cynical readers out there may go, so what’s new? Well for starters, this little baby also moonlights as a GPS navigational device and features the NATE Drive navigation service. Nate Drive is a cutting edge service which provides users navigation information like driving routing guidance, via Global Positioning System.

The Samsung SCH-V850 apart from this cool feature has a 62k color 2″ QVGA TFT display, 1.3MP camera, MP3 playback, video recording and playback, EVDO data transfer, and IrDA connectivity. The SCH-V850 will be priced around ₩500,000 KRW(~ $512 USD)… via

Navman has announced three new GPS units; the iCN720 and iCN750 and iCN530 and a new web application called NavPix today.

Differing from other GPS units on the market, the new flagship models, the iCN720 and iCN750 include a 1.3 megapixel digital camera on the back allowing you to be able to take photographs of restaurants or friends and automatically store those locations in your GPS unit for use at a later date.

In connection with the new service, NavPix, users will be able to upload and download further locations or share locations with friends and family.

The new models also both feature a 4-inch wide touch-screen display, as well as coming with the new SIRF Star III GPS technology that allows you to pick up a signal (in most cases) in doors. Inside and the iCN750 includes a 4GB hard drive while the iCN720 includes a flash drive and both come with a selection of maps of Europe. The former will all of them preinstalled, the later just with the country and neighbouring areas depending on where you bought it.

Navman has also said that its priority software has also been developed from scratch to fit in with the new screen size.

In addition to the above features the iCN750 and iCN720 offers dedicated hardware buttons to find the nearest petrol station and car park.

Navman has also said that it has upgraded the postcode search capability to eight characters instead of the previous four. In addition to the iCN750 and iCN720, Navman has also launched the iCN539 which includes the new improved GPS SIRF Star III technology as well as updates to the mapping system.

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Trimble announced today it will launch its new Trimble® VRS Now™ service for Great Britain in May. The commercial service provides surveyors, civil engineers and geospatial professionals with instant access to real-time kinematic (RTK) Global Positioning System (GPS) corrections without the need for a base station.

Using data from OS Net, the nationwide GPS network operated by Great Britain’s mapping agency Ordnance Survey, the Trimble service delivers centimetre-level RTK positioning customized for each GPS receiver’s exact location anywhere in the network. The Trimble VRS Now service will supply fast and accurate GPS positioning for a variety of applications including surveying, urban planning, urban and rural construction, environmental monitoring, resource and territory management, disaster prevention and relief, and scientific research.

The announcement was made at the World of Geomatics 2006, the United Kingdom’s largest exhibition showcasing measuring, mapping and managing geospatial information technologies.

news release

auto-translated from French:

Launched on last 28 December then activated on January 12, 2006 to receive its first signals, the first satellite of test GIOVE-A of the future system of positioning by satellites competitor European of American system GPS, Galileo, is currently in the course of advanced test in England where an immense antenna was laid out 25 meters in diameter making it possible “to listen to” the signals of Galileo.

If until now this satellite of test GIOVE-A, making it possible to develop ahead the viability of the algorithms and the techniques used for its setting, reached successfully the first stages of its use, with a placing in orbit and the sending of first signals GPS at the beginning of year, it is from now on the real quality of the signals received by this satellite which is currently analyzed.

To be done, several means are implemented, of the Laboratory of Navigation of the ESTEC in the Netherlands with antenna ESA of Redu in Belgium with in particular the antenna 25 meters in diameter of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Chilbolton in the United Kingdom, making it possible “to listen to” the signals of GIOVE to make sure that they emit well according to criteria’s envisaged.

While waiting to have the results of these technical tests, in fact also the first Galileo receivers are tested and which make it possible to check which type of material is necessary to collect Galileo signals. With this occasion, the first Galileo receivers manufactured by the Belgian company Septentrio were installed with the two sites of test on orbit - Redu and Chilbolton like in Guilford at SSTL, the manufacturer of the satellite which ensures of it also control on orbit.

GPS is a nifty piece of technology. GPS hardware needs to have a clear view of the sky because it’s satellite based, so using your handheld unit can be a problem when the roof of your car is blocking signal reception. The obvious answer is to add an external antenna. The catch-22 is that many GPS units lack external antenna jacks.

If you crack open your GPS, you could extend the wire between the antenna and the internal antenna, but the loss from the extra wire would degrade the signal. But active antennas amplify the signal to get past the loss in the extra wiring; with a little bit of hacking, you can add an external active gps antenna to just about any GPS unit. Find out how in today’s How-To.

To complete this project, you need:

• A suitable GPS receiver
• 26 gauge wire (0.4mm thick)
• 100pF or 47pf ceramic capacitor
• Active external GPS antenna
• BNC panel mount connector (may vary, get one to match connector for the antenna)
• 1/8 inch mini jacks or similar for power and serial output (optional)
• Tools: Soldering iron, pliers, wire strippers, drill

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The ASUS A636 and A632 are the first Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PCs with integrated GPS to hit the US market. We’ll take a look at the full-featured A636 which offers the SiRF Star III GPS chipset, WiFi, Bluetooth, an SD card slot, 256 meg SD card with Destinator navigation software, Destinator PN navigation and mapping software on two CDs (US, Canada, Route USA) and a brilliant QVGA display (the A632 is the same but lacks WiFi and adds a mini SD slot).

In the Box

The A636 comes with a Lithium Ion rechargeable battery, charger, car charger, USB sync cable, car cradle (you can plug the car charger into the cradle), flexible arm for in-vehicle mounting (attaches to cradle), software CD, manual, 256 meg SD card and Destinator software with maps of the US and Canada on two CDs.

Design and Ergonomics

Looks-wise, the A636 has a face that only a mother could love. For those of you who’ve been long time Pocket PC users, the A636 reminds me of the old Casio E-200. Despite its unabashedly gray rectangular looks and reasonable bulk, the unit is actually extremely well designed and thought out. It works equally well in portrait and landscape modes (nice for mapping), has a slim GPS receiver panel that folds flush into the back of the PDA and sports large, easy-to-use when driving controls. It might not have the stylish good looks of the non-GPS ASUS A730w, but its ergonomics are excellent. The large 3/4″ speaker grille faces front and ensures that you’ll hear voice guidance in the car, and the A636 has both a directional pad and an application launcher pad that’s arranged much like a d-pad for easy use.

The 1″ x 1″ GPS receiver flips out toward the right side and swivels so you can keep the antenna’s flat panel facing the sky for best reception. The receiver has a socket should you wish to connect an external antenna. The recessed power button and SD card slot are located up top and the IR window is on the right side. The combined sync and charge connector are on the bottom edge, as is the soft reset button. The casing is made of plastic (mid-gray with dark gray accents) and the ASUS A636 has a 3.5″ 240 x 320 display. The mic sits just below and to the right of the d-pad, and the 3.5mm stereo headphone jack with rubber cover is on the bottom right edge. The A636 is on the big side but not terribly heavy at 6.5 ounces. It’s similar in length and width to the Garmin iQue M3 and Garmin iQue M5 but is thicker. Keep in mind that the A636 manages to fit WiFi and a user replaceable battery into that added thickness, both worthy causes. Interestingly, the ASUS and Garmin are similar in size overall but the ASUS seems bigger because of its brick-like form factor…

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Garmin today announced the GPSMAP 378 and GPSMAP 478 – two versatile and portable GPS navigators that come pre-loaded with a comprehensive set of maps and charts.

The GPSMAP 478 features built-in Marine Detail Charts of the United States coastline, including Alaska and Hawaii – utilizing elements of Garmin’s new BlueChart ® g2™ technology. These charts provide integrated maps for a much smoother presentation. BlueChart g2 has all the detail of traditional BlueChart, but with richer detail and content. Chart features include shaded depth contours, port plans, wrecks, restricted areas, and more.

For inland boaters and anglers, the GPSMAP 378 boasts 10-meter resolution for more than 3200 lakes. The vast majority of these high-resolution lakes include depth contours. In addition, 50-meter shoreline resolution is furnished for lakes across the entire continental United States. Maps depict USCG lights and a wrecks and obstructions database overlaid on the map. These lake maps are seamlessly integrated with the 378’s street maps.

For road trips, the GPSMAP 378 and 478 come pre-loaded with MapSource ® City Navigator ® NT detailed street maps of the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The industry-leading database features more than six million points of interest — including hotels, restaurants, gas stations, marinas, attractions, and more. Map data is provided by NAVTEQ – a world leader in premium-quality mapping. Each unit comes with a marine mount and automotive kit (including an integrated 12V power supply and speaker) that makes it a snap to transfer the unit from boat to car…

press release