GPSToday
Apr 30, 2009 gps navigation, software
GPSToday is a free GPS application. It works on all resolutions of Windows Mobile 5 or above.
Some features – in addition to providing turn by turn directions – include the ability to send and receive locations to and from friends, keep an address book for locations you may want to save and geotag photos automatically or upload pictures during your journey. It even works with Weather com to grab the weather info for your current location.
Make sure to checkout the really nice demo done on a Sony Xperia. Read the rest of this entry »
Mio Moov S501
Apr 30, 2009 gps navigation, mio
Mio Moov S501 was announced today, alongside Moov S401 which we just mentioned.
All the features are almost identical between the two units, except that Moov S501 has a bigger screen that measures 4.7″, and a bigger memory that holds about 12 million points of interests. The device will have North America maps, offer lane guidance, gas price search, a sample Wcities guide loaded, and Google Send to GPS.
Optional stuff are TMC receiver, more Wcities guide, and more maps.
You can expect to see them at Radio Shack store says Engadget for about $169.
Mio Moov S401
Apr 30, 2009 gps navigation, mio
Mio is coming up with a couple of new models for their Moov series. One of them is called Mio Moov S401.
Moov S401 will have a 4.3″ widescreen and carry about 4 million points of interests. It will feature the new Spirit interface Mio has been advertising lately.
A couple extra features are the ability to search for gas prices in your area, and the ability to use Google to send addresses to your unit. Though we’re not sure how it accomplishes these without the mention two way connectivity… Expect to pay about $130 for this unit.
Read the rest of this entry »
Pioneer NavGate AVIC-F9110BT
Apr 29, 2009 gps navigation
Pioneer in UK just announced a new in-dash GPS navigation + entertainment system called Pioneer NavGate AVIC-F9110BT. The unit is specifically designed for VW, Skoda and Seat vehicles.
AVIC-F9110BT has a high-resolution 5.8-inch WVGA touch screen, 2GB internal memory that stores maps of 44 European countries by TeleAtlas, and also includes 1.7million Points-of-Interests (POIs). The device has text-to-speech feature; not only for street names but even for traffic events that it receives via the TMC receiver.
Some multimedia features include the ability to watch videos from DVDs, CDs, SD cards, USB devices, control your iPod or iPhone using a special cable, and support for various audio formats. It also does bluetooth so you can relay phone conversations to your car’s stereo.
Another neat feature is the ability to customize the POI database from Google Maps using the SD card and their NavGate Feeds application.
Pioneer NavGate AVIC-F9110BT will be available starting July in 18 different vehicles:
Volkswagen
Caddy 07/2004
Eos 05/2006
Golf V plus 09/2003
Golf V 09/2003-2008
Golf VI 2008
Jetta 08/2005
Passat CC 03/2005
Passat 2008
Scirocca 2008
Tiguan 2007
Touran 03/2003
Polo 2009
Seat
Altea 05/2004
Altea XL 09/2005
Leon 12/2004
Skoda
Fabia 2009
Octavia 2009
Superb 2008
concept device: GPS PathQuest
Apr 29, 2009 gps navigation
Here is another concept device that you won’t see on store shelves. Ever.
This none-existing gadget, called GPS PathQuest, features dual screens that slide over each other and uses E-ink technology to conserve battery. We see no reason why the screens have such an odd shape, or how google maps gets in the device without mention of a GSM or similar module.
Well that’s the whole idea behind “concept”. It doesn’t have to make sense…
iPod Nano GPS hack
Apr 28, 2009 gps navigation, hacks
We haven’t been talking about any decent “hacks” lately. Well we just found one thanks to hack-a-day. Even though the hacker claims this is not all that complicated we advise you take his words with a grain of salt. After all the guy did end up writing a “graphics driver” to display the latitude and longitude on iPod’s screen.
Combining a reference design board containing a Nemerix GPS with an Atmel ATMEGA324 micro-controller (and of course assorted supporting components), I had the hardware tools to spit-out data to the iPod. However the iPod will not accept just any serial data stream. The data has to be formatted to display on the iPod screen, which made this project a challenge and appealing to me.
For all the details please check out this site.
Samsung i7500 powered by Android
Apr 27, 2009 gps navigation, phones, samsung
Samsung i7500 is the first Android phone by Samsung. Announced today by the company, Samsung i7500 is set to be released by June of this year in major European countries.
We have some good and bad news. Bad news first: No mention of North America release. Good news: The phone supports 1700Mhz which is what T-Mobile uses for 3G. So there is some hope for us in the U.S. for a future release.
Here are the full specs for Samsung i7500:
- 3.2 HVGA(320×480) AMOLED display
- 5 MP Camera (Auto Focus), Power LED
- HSDPA 7.2Mbps / HSUPA 5.76Mbps (900 / 1700/ 2100MHz)
- Video: MPEG4, H.263, H.264, WMV
- Audio: MP3, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+, WMA, RA
- Full Web Browser
- Bluetooth 2.0, USB 2.0, WiFi, MicroUSB, 3.5mm ear jack
- Internal memory: 8GB
- External memory: Micro SD (Up to 32GB)
- Battery: 1500 mAh
- Size: 115 x 56 x 11.9mm
You Are Here
Apr 26, 2009 gps navigation
It is always gadgets gadgets gadgets here at Navigadget. Except today. We’re actually going to talk about a book now. Written by Colin Ellard- University of Waterloo psychologist – You Are Here: Why We Can Find Our Way to the Moon, but Get Lost in the Mall is a book about the sense of direction in humans and how it works (and fails):
We live in a world crowded by street signs and arrows. With the click of a computer mouse we can find exact directions to just about anywhere on earth, and with a handheld GPS we can find our precise latitude and longitude, even in the remotest of places. But despite all our advancements, we still get lost in the mall, can’t follow directions to a friend’s house and, on camping expeditions, take wrong turns that can mean the difference between life and death.
In Canada the same book is released under a different name: Where Am I?: Why We Can Find Our Way to the Moon but Get Lost in the Mall.
It is in stock for Canadians for 20 CDN but Americans will have to wait until the July release date to get the book for about 16 USD.
GPS navigation on buses in Lisbon
Apr 25, 2009 gps navigation
Some city buses in Lisbon, Portugal are now equipped with GPS navigation systems. This particular one takes you from the airport to the city center has two displays; one near the front and another towards the middle. We really doubt a bus driver needs such an aid so it must be designed for the passengers in mind. It does have a somewhat custom interface which lists the next stop near the top of the screen, and a list of hotels in the area on the right sidebar.
The system however is not very solid as it loses satellite reception in narrow roads with buildings on each side and other areas where there was no view of the sky. Also according to our source the interface wasn’t quite perfected yet:
The shallow interface of this GPS display. The map itself is highly limited as shown by the crude representation of blocks. So far, the information printed there (apart from the list of bus stops) is mostly targeted at a driver (who would need to look for information about the street he/she has to take) and not at the passengers.
Navteq says GPS navigation systems save fuel
Apr 23, 2009 gps navigation, misc news
One of the biggest digital map makers; Navteq; revealed the results of a “proprietary” (they paid for it) research study that focused on impacts of using a GPS navigation system. According to the study which was conducted by NuStats:
drivers using navigation devices 1) drove shorter distances and 2) spent less time driving. Conducted in two metropolitan areas of Germany – Dusseldorf and Munich – the study also showed that drivers with navigation devices had a 12% increase in fuel efficiency, as measured by liters of fuel consumed per 100 kms. Fuel consumption among those drivers using navigation fell from 8.3 to 7.3 l/100kms.
If you drive 12K miles per year in a vehicle that gets 30MPG – your fuel cost would be 400 gallons x ~$1.90 = $760. Savings of 12% would be $91/year. Do you buy the results of the study? If you do – would this make you a buy a GPS navigation system?
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