NaviGadget

The Nokia 500 GPS navigation system we mentioned before is already on the market in Europe and today we have review of this gadget for you from yournav.

One of the nice things about Nokia 500 is the sound quality:

…when playing MP3 files, the sound quality of this navigation unit is far above average. We’re also very pleased with the quality of the sound when the built-in FM transmitter is used to play the music or navigational instructions through the car stereo. The software allows the storage of up to five fixed frequencies for the use of the FM transmitter. This prevents constantly having to look for, and tuning to, available frequencies.

Also the hands free bluetooth function which is sometimes sketchy with other brands works without a glitch with the Nokia brand.

Overall Nokia 500 got a really good review:

In general we’re very happy about the way the most important features for this unit have been implemented. The sound quality is excellent, RDS/TMC traffic info performs as expected, hands free phoning works without a glitch and –last but certainly not least- navigating with this unit is really a piece of cake. The GPS fix is stable and very prompt.

Just a couple of days ago we talked about a Nokia 6210 Navigator review. Today we have another short review about this new Nokia phone with an internal compass.

First off is the fact that Nokia 6210 Navigator comes with Nokia Maps 2.0 and all the subscription services that would normally cost 69 € per year.

And then there is the famous compass:

The groundbreaking technology that is integreated is a full magnetic compass that even auto corrects for you location on the planet where magnetic swignals vary. You simply do a few figure eights with the device to calibrate the compass. Then when you are in pedestrian mode, which I am in on every business and personal trip, the compass works with the integrated accelerometer to have the maps orient to your true heading so you should never get lost coming out of the metro again!

There’s also this video:

The review is quite positive for Nokia 6210 - they like the breadcrumb feature too which leaves little red dots on your path so you can trace back to your hotel or car.

The sad part is we do not know when 6210 will come to U.S.

Nokia 6210 Navigator got a short review from CNet yesterday which also mentions the new Nokia Maps 2.0 service. 6210 Navigator is the new release from Nokia that is designed for pedestrian navigation. With the help of a digital compass (embedded accelerometer) it points in the direction you’re headed and shows the map in correction orientation.

This staff writer doesn’t mind sharing useless information such as how she has lived in New York (Manhattan to be exact) while browsing in Barcelona and can’t even get the model number right (it is 6210, not 6120). So I wouldn’t say it is the most trustworthy review. But if you are looking forward to spending some cash on this phone it is still worth a look at:

The 6210! Navigator uses GPS and assisted GPS tracking to pinpoint the location of the phone. We were navigating through El Born in Barcelona to the Picasso Museum. The accuracy of the navigation was very impressive, especially as we walked through narrow streets among tall buildings.

But it’s not just the navigation that makes Maps 2.0 and the 6210! Navigator a perfect device for travelers, it also comes with lots of useful information. On each city map, Nokia has indicated points of interest, such as tourist sites and restaurants. You can click on the mapped icons to set your destination or get more information, such as a phone number or address.

Oh another mistake by the writer:

That said, Nokia is trying to make it a compelling sell. For example, the company is offering the navigation service on the 6220 for free.

No, it is free on this one; the 6210 Navigator, you have to pay for navigation on the 6220.

HP iPAQ 310 also got a review recently. As we expected the iPAQ 310 has the best screen out there for a GPS navigation device which is super bright and has 800×480 pixel resolution. It is also very impressive in terms processor power - how about a 600MHz dual-core CPU?

But the software… It seems to be lacking in every department. Here is a small excerpt:

We also had an issue with not being able to cancel navigation. Typically when you are navigating to a destination, and you navigate away from the screen giving you directions it’ll ask you if you want to cancel the route planning, but that is not the case with the 310; it keeps navigating, no matter what. In fact, if you choose a route and then decided to just cancel, it won’t, even if you go back to the home page. From there, pressing the “map” button takes you back to the route you were previously navigating. One time we even turned it off because we were tired of hearing it tell us to turn here and go there, and it magically turned itself back on a few minutes later to tell us to make a turn. It’s literally like the Terminator as far as navigation goes.

And there is more like this in the review. It seems like it would be wise to wait for a second generation iPAQ 310 which hopefully will be more user friendly. Currently iPAQ 310 sells for $320 on Amazon.

The mini GPS tracker from Holux which we announced back in December 2007 is apparently called M241 and it just got an extended review from Richard’s Tech Reviews.

Holux M241 seems to have performed well but the reviewer had some issues with the battery life and the software that is provided with this GPS receiver / data logger.

Holux M241 is available for only $76 on Amazon. Not bad for a such a GPS receiver with an LCD screen.

CNet has a nice review about garmin nuvi 270 that includes a short video. Even though the review only talks about nuvi 200 keep in mind that 200, 250, 260, and 270 are all the same devices with different map options. (see our nuvi comparison chart)

At 3.8 inches wide by 2.8 inches high by 0.8 inch deep and 5.2 ounces, the Garmin Nuvi 200 isn’t that much bigger than today’s latest smart phones or PDAs; in other words, it’s pretty compact. It helps that the GPS antenna is now integrated into the device, unlike older Nuvi models like the Garmin Nuvi 350, which had a flip-up antenna. And while the Nuvi 200 is probably a little too bulky to fit into a pants pocket comfortably, you’ll have no problem carrying it in a bag, using it on foot, or transporting it between vehicles.

nuvi 270 overall got a really decent review but a few negative points for lack of a volume button on the side instead of having to use the touch interface for everything.

The review also talks about how the nuvi 270 only has the most basic features (even lacking text-to-speech) but still has a high price (back then $600) which we had to agree but the price has gone down considerably since then. You can now pick up a nuvi 270 which has maps of the whole western world (North America AND Europe) for only $320.

As far as ‘pros’ for nuvi 270, the review mentions the compact design which has improved with these series since there’s no longer a flip-out GPS antenna, and the easy to use windshield mount.

Magellan Maestro 4250 got 4 out of 5 from the editors of PCMag.com on a recent review. Maestro 4250 really excels in terms of voice control which doesn’t need any training and can easily direct you to the nearest gas station or a coffee shop when not actively in a route.

The maps on Maestro 4250 are quite up-to-date:

The street-level-detail maps showed recently opened roads and a new New Jersey Turnpike exit ramp. The large POI database also came in very handy. I was curious to see whether the database had an entry for my local “Zap Lube” oil change shop, and there it was, as were several other shops I searched for.

Another positive side to Magellan 4250 is its super slim body that measures 3.25 x 4.88 x 0.7 inches making it the thinnest personal navigation device on the market.

The only negative side to the Maestro 4250 is that it didn’t read the contact off the phone when tested and failed to pair up with the phone when returned to the car after an initial setup.

Maestro 4250 currently sells for $357 on Amazon… read »

The latest and greatest TomTom is of course the new 920T as can be seen from the chart above. It offers voice commands, currently only available on the 920 series, and the “T” adds traffic compatibility into the mix.

We’ve had a lot of interest in our comparison of TomTom 920T to the Garmin 770 and since both products are relatively new in the market there are not very many reviews. Thanks to Amazon though we can now hear from real people who own the 920T:

review 1

…Here is a list of things that I noticed: The light sensor gone from the top and now sitting very discreetly in the front. The remote control has been improved and is now Bluetooth. It seems to me that it is somewhat faster in performing any commands faster than its predecessor. Accepting spoken directions is a plus and has worked well for me so far, no complaints. The screen is huge and seems to have been improved, because I now can see everything much better than on the previous model in bright sunny days. ..

review 2

…I cannot speak for Windows users as I am running a Mac, but if you are a Mac user run away as fast as you can from this company and their products. Not only do the not have anyone knowledgeable about how their products interact with the Mac but their only advice was to try and run it from a Windows machine…

read »

The Satmap GPS handheld which we talked about back in August just got a review from PCW. It received four stars out of five and got praised for its smooth mapping, rugged design, and simple to use interface.

However it didn’t receive good grades in terms of cost since OS maps cost extra on top of the already pricey hardware, and the unreliable battery indicator wasn’t helpful.

Magellan Triton 1500, new from the Triton series got a short review recently and apparently the reviewer was not wow’ed with this GPS receiver handheld. The hardware wasn’t all that bad except the not-so-bright screen. But the software could be improved in many ways the review says - specially when it is faced high amounts of data:

…I transferred 120 geocaches near my sister’s house to the unit yesterday. This was apparently enough to bring the Triton to its knees, resulting in very sluggish behavior and then the screen locking up…

However if you were lucky enough to receive the sync cable in your box you would probably really like the National Geographic TOPO maps this device can display:

This is where the unit really shines. Despite any problems it may have, it’s awesome having USGS topos on your GPS screen. Compare the images below [right], showing roughly what you would see on a Triton with National Geographic TOPO! maps (left) versus what you would see on a Garmin 60CSX running Garmin MapSource TOPO U.S. It’s not quite at the same scale, but it should be enough to give you an idea of the difference.

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