The Maestro 4700 features 3D landmarks, such as this baseball stadium.
(Credit: Magellan GPS)Magellan has recently unveiled its newest model, the Magellan Maestro 4700 GPS device. This new unit features an updated aesthetic, a slim profile, and a 4.7-inch wide-format, color touch screen.
You can talk to the Maestro 4700 using its voice command feature; and it will talk back with its text-to-speech capability, using proper street and POI names.
A Predictive Traffic feature works similarly to TomTom's IQ Routes by analyzing past traffic patterns to predict and avoid known trouble spots. However, it looks like the Maestro 4700 does not receive live traffic updates.
The Maestro features Magellan's OneTouch user interface, with which you can store your most commonly accessed searches and destinations. In this new device, the number of available bookmarks is bumped up to 12. Bluetooth hands-free calling features a 1,000 number internal phone book and noise-canceling microphone.
The Maestro comes preloaded with AAA's TourBook guide, with detailed information about destinations.
(Credit: Magellan GPS)In addition to Magellan's standard POI database, the Maestro is also preloaded with the AAA TourBook guide. When you search for a destination, the Maestro checks both lists and displays them in separate tabs.
Other new features include an updated interface with larger fonts, 3D landmarks to help visually oriented drivers to navigate, and a Pedestrian mode with a "Find Your Car" feature that remembers the location of your car in parking lots, airports, malls, universities, amusement parks, or stadiums.
The Magellan Maestro 4700 ships at an MSRP of $299.99 with a windshield mounted cradle, 12-volt charger, and other accessories.
Did Saab just become a high tech supercar? BMW rewrites the rules for voice command, thankfully. Airbags in places you wouldn't believe. And a ride in a big, comfy, annoying Mercedes!
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Mercedes ESF 2009 safety car has airbags in goofy places and people in foil suits loving it.
(Credit: Mercedes-Benz)• Mercedes ESF 2009 safety car
• iPhone will finally get real turn-by-turn navigation
• BMW to dramatically ease voice command in cars
Conversations with most current automotive voice command systems go something like this:
You: Destination
Car: Please specify the mode of destination entry
Y: Address
C: Please say a city name
Y: San Francisco
C: Please say a street name
Y: Market Street
C: Please say a street number
Y: 101
C: To accept the destination, please press the talk button
And that's when everything is working optimally. This process is so tedious that most people opt for manual entry with the touch screen or whatever other controller the car offers.
In September, BMW will simplify voice command greatly by letting you say the entire address string at once, such as "101 Market Street San Francisco." The system is supposed to be smart enough to parse all the elements of the address you give it, matching the parts to its database of addresses.
This new system is definitely a step in the right direction, as voice command is a lot less distracting than trying to glance at an LCD while blasting down the freeway at 75 mph.
We've seen some pretty impressive voice recognition, notably with the Ford Sync system's ability to parse artist and album names from an MP3 player, so BMW's new voice command may actually deliver what it promises.
And speaking of Sync, BMW will also offer voice command for music searches. Similar to Sync, you will be able to tell the car what artist, album, or genre you want to hear, and the car will play it. For the September launch of the new voice command system, music search will only work for music stored on the car's hard drive, but BMW promises to extend that voice command to attached MP3 players by spring of 2010.
BMW offers this video demonstrating the new system. It's in German, although there are a few subtitles in English explaining how the system works.
(Credit:
Antuan Goodwin/CNET)
With the poorly selling SC 430 on the chopping block, Lexus found itself in need of a sexy luxury convertible to generate some excitement around the brand.
The IS sedan is about the same size as the SC and much better-looking. In IS 350 trim, it also extracts more horsepower from its 3.5-liter V-6 than the SC can from its 4.3-liter V-8. So, rather than update the aging SC, Lexus transplanted an updated version of its three-panel aluminum folding roof onto the IS sedan and, with a little massaging, the IS C was born.
The IS C goes from hardtop to topless in 20 seconds, which is 5 seconds faster than the SC 430.
The IS' back end has been overhauled to accommodate the new folding roof.
(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)With the exception of the new roof and two fewer doors, the IS C looks identical to the sedan. Upon closer inspection, we can see that the aesthetics have been tweaked to better fit the IS C's sporty open-air attitude. In fact, we're told that the IS and the IS C share almost no sheet metal. Of course, this is most notable around back, where the IS' tail lamps have been reworked and its rump raised to accommodate the retractable hardtop.
On paper, IS C still seats four passengers. In reality, passengers will find that the rear seats have been shifted forward by 5 inches, compromising leg room.
In the cabin, an optional Mark Levinson audio system sounds fantastic, thanks to a tweaked version of Automatic Sound Leveling that not only adjusts volume for vehicle speed, but also adjusts the equalizer to compensate for the loss of bass that comes with open-air listening. Perhaps it was our ears playing tricks on us, but the IS C's stereo actually sounds better when the vehicle is rolling than it does at a stop, which is quite an impressive feat.
... Read moreQ: I am writing to ask you about what GPS device is the best for someone interested in traffic updates (preferably free), as well as Bluetooth capability. I also like the idea of Lane Assist because I fear missing exits. Also, is the voice response option really a practical one at this phase? Hope to hear from you soon. --Alex via e-mail
A: Hi Alex. I'll start with your last question first. Voice command functionality is just starting to show up in portable navigation devices, letting you enter addresses and perform some other tasks simply by speaking to the GPS. As with any new technology, I can understand your apprehension. Is it good enough? Is it actually useful? In other words, is it ready for prime time?
In the case of voice commands and GPS, it's not quite there yet. The idea behind it is good. The ability to enter addresses and perform certain functions with the sound of your voice would seemingly save you the time and trouble of going through various menus and tapping onscreen buttons to achieve the same goal.
Being able to do things like increase system volume and zoom in on maps via voice commands is particularly useful since you can keep your hands on the wheel instead of reaching over to fiddle around with your PND's touch screen.
However, in practice, the technology still needs some work. Voice command functionality is available on a handful of GPS models, such as the TomTom GO 930 and the Magellan Maestro 4250, but of the current offerings, there are only two models where I'd consider the voice command feature satisfactory: the Garmin Nuvi 880 and Navigon 7200T.
These two systems returned fairly accurate results when dictating addresses, and the Nuvi 800 had the bonus of offering 30 voice commands to perform other functions, including volume control and activating the hands-free speaker system. Unfortunately, they're also on the pricier side ($700 to $1,000 for the Garmin and $300 to $500 for the Navigon), and I wouldn't say the voice command functionality is so great that it's worth the extra expense.
... Read more
Read the full 2009 Honda CR-V review.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CBS Interactive)The external aesthetic of the 2009 Honda CR-V mixes the Honda Civic's space-age design with the face and bulk of a bulldog. Although you may never catch us calling the CR-V attractive, its looks aren't offensive. More importantly, spend some time behind the wheel and you'll see that the CR-V manages to combine the sporty ride and handling of a small sedan with the utility of a small SUV while making few, if any, compromises.
In its EX-L with Nav trim level, the CR-V has an extra trick up its sleeve in the form of a DVD-based GPS navigation system with a fantastic voice-recognition system. Tell the CR-V where you want to go and it'll take you there. Tell it to change to audio source and it happens. Granted, it's not quite that simple--there are a few commands to be learned--but the system is surprisingly easy to use.
The trouble with the CR-V is that, while the tech present in the cabin is well executed, there are a few key features--ahem, Bluetooth--that are missing.
Read the full 2009 Honda CR-V EX-L 4WD review.Microsoft and Ford bought a lot of advertisements on NFL football broadcasts over the four-day Thanksgiving weekend. The companies are pushing Sync, which is the latest outgrowth of Microsoft's decade-long effort to provide software for use in automobiles.
(Credit:
Ford)
In this case, Microsoft might actually succeed. Simplicity is the key: unlike past scenarios floated for the Windows Automotive platform, Sync isn't intended to help control your car (leading to the inevitable blue screen jokes) or connect to the Internet or serve as the back-end for an in-car control panel. Instead, it gives you voice command over Bluetooth-enabled phones and portable music players--a scenario that any driver who's ever tried to manipulate an iPod on the road can appreciate. It also speaks--for example, it will read aloud text messages as they come into your Bluetooth-enabled phone.
Sync could also be helped by the fact that Ford's pushing it as part of its relatively inexpensive Focus line, where it'll come as part of the high-end Focus SES (which lists for under $17,000) or be available as a $395 option for other models. Many past Windows Automotive applications were available only on luxury vehicles.
The technology in Sync isn't all that new--Microsoft and Fiat launched a very similar system, Blue&Me, in 2006, and the underlying voice-recognition features were first seen in Microsoft's Voice Command software for the Pocket PC platform. I tried a demo version of Voice Command, and it seems to work well as long as you stick with fairly simple commands, like "Play the Beatles." A recent AutoWeek review of Sync gave kudos for the voice recognition features, although it criticized Sync for its robotic reading voice.
One interesting note: the Sync ads also served as Zune ads, as Microsoft's portable player appeared in every car. But yes, Sync does work with most iPods (not the Shuffle).
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