November 02, 2006, 3:57 PM PST
EveryTrail records every step you take
Posted by: Rafe Needleman

Several very interesting location-recording Web sites are online right now, such as Platial, 43 Places, Wayfaring, and Flagr. They all record locations and let you tell a story about them. EveryTrail, a new site in early development, adds a wrinkle: It will record your path between waypoints, not just the stops you make.

Why would you want this? To record a favorite hike or bike ride, perhaps. This site lets you share your route with others, for those trips where the point is the journey itself.

EveryTrail requires that you have a way to record your movements, of course. You'll need a recording GPS device--a hiker's gizmo like this Garmin, a GPS watch, an airplane navigation system, or perhaps a GPS-equipped phone. And you'll need to download an app from the EveryTrail site, which can then take your GPS data and transfer it. I don't have a suitable device, so I was not able to test this.

Once you have uploaded your trail, you can add placemarks, notes, and photos. The photos feature, in particular, is very cool: The service correlates the time stamps on your photos with your GPS trail and automatically places photos along your route (if your camera's time is set incorrectly, you only have to tell EveryTrail where one particular photo was taken, and it will calculate the positions for all the rest).

You can see your trails on the site's Google Maps mashup page (EveryTrail also includes a topographical map option, a nice bonus), or on Google Earth. You can also upload the trail to another portable GPS device. There's still no good way to print the trail, though, which is kind of a bummer, because being able to output your path overlaid on a topo map could be extremely useful.

While I was watching the EveryTrail presentation at the New Tech Meetup last night, the fellow sitting next to me said to me, "This looks like MapMyRun." That site does pretty much the same thing as EveryTrail, although it's designed with a laser focus on recording runs and jogs. So if you find yourself in a new city and want to go for a jog, check it out. MapMyRun doesn't have the photo feature of EveryTrail, but it does offer more runner-friendly features, such as a workout calculator. The MapMyRun team has also launched a new site, MapMyRace, a simplified site where runners can scope out race routes (including elevation maps).

Permalink | 4 comments

• Read also: Web 2.0, GPS, mapping
• Email to a friend | Print this post

September 28, 2006, 1:33 PM PDT
TomTom offers GO 910 and GO 510 owners a sturdier mount, free of charge
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

If you own a TomTom GO 910 or GO 510, you'll want to read this. We had a nice chat with TomTom reps this morning, and they let us know that they're offering replacement vehicle mounts for the two models after determining that a number of units were shipped with substandard docks. There have been numerous complaints about loose power connections and the dock being unable to support the full weight of the device, causing the GO 910/510 to droop down to the dashboard (we actually experienced the latter during our testing). However, the company is hoping to right this wrong with this replacement program. Just go over to www.tomtom.com/newmount--have your product serial number handy--and fill out the required fields. The best part? It's all free.

Permalink | 6 comments

• See product information for TomTom GO 910
• Read also: GPS, car tech
• Email to a friend | Print this post

September 26, 2006, 8:20 AM PDT
Dash unveils Dash Express nav system
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

After weeks of secrecy and some lofty claims, Dash Navigation blew the lid off its mysterious navigation solution at DemoFall this morning. The Dash Express is the first portable nav system to have built-in two-way connectivity (cellular and Wi-Fi) so that you can access real-time traffic information, perform more specific local searches, and do more, via the Internet and the network of other Dash users. Dash actually stopped by our offices late last week to give us a preview of the device. Unfortunately, we didn't get a working demo of the unit and service (it's still all in alpha testing), but we can give you a rundown of how it works and what it has to offer.

First, the device itself is nothing spectacular (though color and some design elements are subject to change). It has a standard 3.5-inch touch screen, and the device includes a nice set of shortcut buttons to easily access the most essential functions, such as main menu, volume, and repeat direction. What counts, however, is what's inside. With the integrated connectivity options, the Dash Express can use cellular networks or Wi-Fi (the unit will search for and connect to hot spots whenever possible) to connect drivers to the Internet so that they can take advantage of the following features.

Dash Network Traffic: The Dash Express takes a two-pronged approach to traffic information. First, the system comes preprogrammed with historic traffic flow data for all major roads, so it has an idea of what the road conditions are like in the area during all times. The real-time traffic data comes from the network of other Dash drivers out there who anonymously report their traffic conditions to other devices in the area. With this information, Dash Express can select from the best of three recommended routes.

Destination Search: Sure, all in-car GPS devices today have a points-of-interest database, but the advantage of the Dash Express system is that you have access to all the resources of the World Wide Web, and you're not limited to just what's preloaded on the device. So, you can input a generic or specific term such as surfboards, and you'll get a list of shops in the area that sell surfboards. Plus, the Dash service will also be able return up-to-date information, such as gas prices at all the gas stations and movie times.

Send to Car: With this feature, you can send an address from your computer's Web browser or Microsoft Outlook, eliminating the need to manually enter addresses on the device.

In addition to these functions, you get all the standard navigation features, such as turn-by-turn and text- and voice-guided directions (no text-to-speech functionality in the first iteration), and as a bonus, all map and POI updates are done automatically and over the air, so you don't have to do a thing. It all sounds cool, right? We think so, too, but until we see a live demo or try it out ourselves, we're a bit cautious with our optimism. Plus, it sounds like the traffic info relies heavily on the fact that there will be a number of other Dash drivers out there. (But what if there isn't?)

Dash did not make any official announcements as to pricing or partnerships with carriers and search engines. However, the company did say the Dash Express will cost around the $600 to $800, while the Dash service will be similar to satellite radio subscription rates ($10 to $15 per month). California drivers will be able to get the product first as it hits select retailers in early 2007, while a national release is expected in summer 2007. Stay tuned as we get more details and take one out for a test-drive.

Permalink | Post a comment

• See product information for Dash Express
• Read also: GPS, car tech, DemoFall2006
• Email to a friend | Print this post

September 20, 2006, 11:26 AM PDT
Rand McNally introduces portable nav system
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

Longtime mapmaker Rand McNally may have taken the long route, but it's finally made its way to the land of portable navigation systems. The Rand McNally GPS Navigator is the company's first in-car GPS device and includes many of the standard features of other nav systems, such as text- and voice-guided driving directions, automatic rerouting, an extensive points-of-interest database, and a 3.5-inch touch screen with 2D and 3D map views. The company does throw in a couple of extras, though, such as a hard copy of Rand McNally's Road Atlas and Travel Planner and 26 "Best of Road" trip itineraries with staff-recommended attractions, restaurants, and shops. The unit costs $499.99 and is available for preorder now with an expected ship date of September 22.

Source: Gizmodo

Permalink | 2 comments

• Read also: GPS, car tech
• Email to a friend | Print this post

September 12, 2006, 12:09 PM PDT
MaqQuest finds its way to Sprint Nextel phones
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

GPS navigation on cell phones is quickly becoming a hot ticket, and carriers and map providers alike are wanting to get onboard. Case in point: MapQuest has launched a new mobile app called MaqQuest Navigator to deliver voice-guided, turn-by-turn directions to GPS-enabled Sprint and Nextel phones. Available as a downloadable app and at a cost of $9.99 per month (you'll also need a data plan), MapQuest Navigator offers full-color maps with zoom in and out, optimized route creation, automatic rerouting, access to 15 million points of interest, and more. We're anxious to try it out and compare it to Verizon's VZ Navigator service, so check back soon for a review. In the meantime, check out www.mapquest.com/mobile for more information.

Permalink | 1 comment

• Read also: CTIA fall, cell phones, GPS
• Email to a friend | Print this post

September 01, 2006, 3:10 PM PDT
Garmin announces wide-screen Nuvi 660
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

And the GPS hits just keep on coming. Today, Garmin officially announced its Garmin Nüvi 660. It's a souped-up version of the company's previous all-in-one travel assistant, the Nüvi 350, adding a 4.3-inch touch screen, integrated traffic capabilities, Bluetooth, and an FM transmitter. It comes preloaded with maps of the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico, and you can add Garmin's travel-friendly apps, such as foreign language dictionaries. The Nüvi 660 is expected to ship sometime this month for--gulp--the hefty price of $1,076.91.

Source: Gizmodo

Permalink | 5 comments

• Read also: GPS, car tech
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 29, 2006, 1:43 PM PDT
Dash Navigation's mystery in-car GPS machine
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

Start-up company Dash Navigation is making quite a lofty promise with its upcoming in-car navigation system. If you take a trip over to Dash's Web site, you'll see a flashy little intro that proclaims that the Dash will do for driving what TV did for entertainment and cell phones did for communication. All right, Dash, you have our attention. Details are pretty sparse at the moment, but John Biggs over at CrunchGear had a nice chat with Dash CEO Paul Lego and got some more info. The most interesting bit is that the GPS device will have an always-on connection (via Wi-Fi or cellular), so you can get real-time traffic information and weather and even chat with other Dash users. Lego added that the software will have a "55mph user interface" so you won't be able to e-mail or surf the Net--for now, anyway. The first unveiling of the mystery machine will be at the DEMO Conference in San Diego, September 26 and 27.

Sources: CrunchGear, Engadget, The Mercury News

Permalink | 3 comments

• Read also: GPS, car tech
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 02, 2006, 11:25 AM PDT
Sony's new digital camera GPS
Posted by: Will Greenwald

Users can now organize their photos by place as well as time, with Sony's new GPS-CS1 device. This small, keychain-size GPS unit clips to your bag or belt, or slides into your pocket where it silently tracks everywhere you go. Once you're done wandering and shooting, upload both your photos and the GPS data to your computer. The GPS-CS1's included software checks when every image was shot, and syncs it to the GPS data recorded at that time. The Picture Motion Browser software included with most recent Sony cameras and camcorders can then take that information and organize your photos on an online map.

At heart, it's just a small GPS device that you sync up to your computer via USB. It still seems like a nifty device to let you organize where you've been and what you've shot. Instead of flipping through dates, times and thumbnails, you can just check out all of the photos you shot in Chelsea or Central Park, or the Grand Canyon. These camera-oriented GPS devices have been available as accessories to certain digital SLRs, but this is one of the first times we've seen such a device directed towards the snapshot crowd.

With a suggested retail price of $150, the GPS-CS1 won't be the cheapest gizmo in your pocket. Still, users interested in a tiny GPS that can work with their digital camera might want to check it out when it hits stores next month.

Permalink | 2 comments

• Read also: digital cameras, digital imaging, GPS, camera accesories
• Email to a friend | Print this post

August 02, 2006, 8:36 AM PDT
Porsche gets into the GPS game
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

We have Ferrari-inspired laptops, so why not Porsche-designed portable nav systems? Porsche has partnered with navigation software developer Navigon to bring you the P9611. The unit runs Navigon Mobile Navigator 6 software and is powered by a 520MHz Intel XScale processor. The P9611 is also said to sport a 480x272-resolution screen. Other details are pretty sparse at this point, but Gizmodo has a picture of it. I don't know; the design looks pretty sleek, I guess, but is worth the $955 asking price? Maybe if you're a high roller or a brand-name shopper. It's hard to say without knowing what else it has to offer, but I can't imagine that it'll have anything that the rest of the nav systems don't at this point. The P9611 is expected to start shipping in October.

Permalink | 1 comment

• Read also: GPS, car tech
• Email to a friend | Print this post

July 25, 2006, 2:14 PM PDT
Google Maps adds traffic info
Posted by: Bonnie Cha

Oh, that clever Google. Today, the company announced the addition of real-time traffic features to its Google Maps application for mobile phones. With it, you can see congested areas and estimated delays in more than 30 major U.S. cities. This is in addition to detailed driving directions, integrated search results, interactive maps, and satellite imagery. The only catch is that your mobile has to be Java-enabled (you can check for compatible phones here), and you'll need some sort of data plan. We're busy working on a review of Google Maps, so check back soon for our verdict; in the meantime, you can find out more details on CNET News.com.

Permalink | 3 comments

• Read also: Cell phones, smart phones, PDAs, GPS, Buzz
• Email to a friend | Print this post