GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
New York Senator Charles Schumer says too many trucks and buses are hitting bridges and that the government should do something about it. He may want to talk to Apple; they seem to be finding out that the mapping business is pretty complicated. Seriously, there are always going to be map errors, but perhaps it should be illegal for truckers and bus drivers to use consumer GPS, as opposed to a device that at least attempts to consider height and other restrictions. read more
Here’s a list of posts covering a wide range of frequently asked questions (FAQs) about auto GPS receivers: read more
A GpsPasSion forum member has posted an excellent piece on the state of live traffic reporting in the US, with historical background, a look at the various ways traffic is reported, and even a ranking of number of probes for the key players. Google tops the list BTW, thanks to their Android coverage. There are a couple of pieces missing (NAVTEQ sources, iPhone probe data sent back to Apple – and no, I don’t have the answers to those), but overall this is the best summary of its sort I’ve seen. There are a few shoes left to drop – Apple’s predicted mapping solution, the fact that Garmin will soon have a lot of probe data as their mobile apps take off, and (as the article notes) RIMs massive network of probes.
The Motorola Motonav TN765t
UPDATE: Read my hands on Motorola MOTONAV TN765t review.
Motorola is planning to update their GPS line this fall, and they are dropping hints that they may venture into the manufacturing connected PNDs. According to Blake Bullock, who heads up their navigation products operations:
"We’re absolutely making a bigger play," said navigation product line manager Blake Bullock. "We believe we can bring something new to the table with Motorola’s vast experience in wireless connectivity. We have aspirations to do just that, combining the best aspects of 3G smartphones with PNDs and creating optimized experiences for consumers."
The Insignia NS-CNV10 is a connected GPS navigator available exclusively from BestBuy. It includes a one year subscription for connectivity which gives you access to Google Local search, live traffic, and gas prices. The CNV10 is a 3.5” model with text-to-speech, so you’ll hear “in one mile, make a left turn on Main Street,” rather than just “in one mile, make a left turn.”
UPDATE: Read my full Insignia NS-CNV10 review.
I've been spending the past few days getting to know the Best Buy Insignia NS-CNV10 GPS. This 3.5" model, like its bigger brother, sports text-to-speech, a cellular connection, Google Local search and no connection fees for the first year. The 4.3" model is pictured above, but except for the phone button (Bluetooth is found only on the NS-CNV20) it gives you a good idea of what it looks like.
The Insignia appears to utilize deCarta's Connected Navigation (CNAV) service. So far, the device has been fairly intuitive and has done a good job of navigation, recalculating quickly whenever necessary. And I love having Google Local search at my fingertips. I also like being offered multiple route options, though it sometimes takes a couple of steps to get to them.
There isn’t a lot of information to be had yet about the forthcoming connected GPS units from Best Buy, but I do have a couple of things for you, including the promo photo above. It shows multiple route options, ala the Dash Express. There’s no indication that they’ll use crowd-sourced, anonymized cell phone data for traffic though. Of course it’s always possible that they’ve struck a deal with Dash or IntelliOne; I’ve been waiting awhile for someone to announce a partnership with the latter.
UPDATE: Read my full Insignia NS-CNV10 review.
Best Buy will launch their first house label GPS units on October 19, under their Insignia brand. But the big news is that these devices will sport a cellular connection and local Google search, as well as real-time traffic.
Priced at $499 for the 4.3" Insignia NS-CNV20 and $399 for the 3.5" NS-CNV10, the PNDs will carry no service fees for the first year.
Via TWICE.
The Dash Express is getting a couple of voice applications this morning — free services provided by Tellme and Dial Directions. The only configuration required with either is to register your mobile phone numbers with Dash Navigation at my.dash.net.
GPS Tracklog is written by Rich Owings, author of GPS Mapping.