GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
A little more news is starting to creep out on the sale of Magellan to MiTAC, giving us some insight into what this may mean for the GPS market. According to DigiTimes,
MiTAC also said that the deal includes Magellan's "brand, trademark, software, intellectual properties, operating staff, client base and marketing network."
I'm seeing more refurbished GPS receivers advertised for sale these days. In many consumer electronics categories, such devices can be a good deal. But buying a refurbished GPS carries a special risk. Occasionally, some of these units come with outdated maps. Since there is no way to tell until you fire up the unit and look at the map version, I suggest you check the store's restocking / return policy if you go this route.
There's a confusing enough array of GPS units on the market, but around the holidays the major manufacturers start throwing out units you've never heard of and have never seen reviewed. Some are exclusive to one retailer, while others are bargain-basement stripped down devices. Here's what the major manufacturers have on tap for the holidays this year…
The December issue of Consumer Reports has new ratings for GPS units, including many newer models they haven’t reviewed before. 49 models were tested; the top 14 are listed in the magazine.
The voice command Garmin nuvi 880 was the top-rated unit. The following models were rated Best Buys:
UPDATE: Read my hands on Garmin nuvi 755T review for my impressions of the ad supported traffic feature. I’ve also posted a hands on Garmin nuvi 265WT review which discusses this feature.
What Garmin didn’t tell us when they announced the nuvi 7×5 series and the latest nuvi 2×5 models, is that the lifetime traffic feature would be ad-supported. PC Magazine got hold of a nuvi 755T to review and had this to say:
A U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) judge has recommended that the ITC "bar from importation into the U.S. infringing chips of SiRF Technology," including GPS devcies that have those chipsets in them. The chips have been found to infringe upon Broadcom’s patents.
The question I have is, how is this going to affect the GPS market? DigiTimes is reporting that Mitac, parent company of Mio, is going to stop using SiRF chipsets in the fourth quarter.
You’ve probably heard by now that Apple unveiled their next-generation iPhone yesterday and that it has GPS. So here’s a little roundup of what this may mean in terms of navigation and competition with personal navigation devices (PNDs) and the forthcoming Garmin nuvifone.
The Dash Express, the hot new GPS featuring two-way connectivity, has caused a paradigm shift in the GPS industry. We have yet to see how broadly the Dash will be accepted, though they seem to have had a strong launch, with high initial shipments according to the sales rankings at Amazon
There are a couple of key components to two-way connectivity:
While not a benefit of two-way connectivity, Dash’s built-in wifi will also give them the ability to push large map and firmware updates to the units.
Let’s look at the status of other GPS manufacturers as they move (or don’t move) to implement two-way connectivity:
Garmin has announced a 3.5G cell phone, the Garmin nuvifone. The touch screen device will include Google local search capability. Nüvifone users can search for locations like “coffee shops” and Google will sort the results based on the user’s current location and relevance. Information provided by Google includes a web-based rating so that users can select the most appropriate destination and route directly to it. In addition, the nüvifone also includes personal messaging functions, including email, text, and instant messaging.
UPDATE: Read my Magellan Triton 1500 review.
The long-awaited Magellan Triton series is starting to show up at e-tailers and retailers, but there are good reasons to look before you leap. The Triton 300 is available at some Sportsmans Warehouse stores according to this report. Radio Shack is showing the 300 and 1500 as available, while NewEgg lists the 1500 as out of stock.
I received a Triton 1500 from NewEgg.com yesterday, but was disappointed to find that the USB cable, VantagePoint software and manual were missing. I wasn’t the only one to receive a 1500 without all of the accessories.
Please note that this problem may be limited to the 1500s, as the one report I’ve seen on a 300 said the cable was included.
