Miss Direction

Navigon 7200T

(Credit: Navigon)

Having to compete with the likes of Garmin and TomTom is no easy task, but Navigon is hoping to woo some new customers with its latest portable navigation system. Today, the GPS manufacturer announced its new Navigon 7200T, a high-end in-car GPS that's out to win you with style and substance.

The Navigon 7200T is certainly a stunner as far as design. It largely keeps in line with the company's previous models, such as the Navigon 2100 Max, with its slim profile and black lacquered chassis. On the front, there's now a 4.3-inch, flat-panel touch screen and in addition to the standard 2D and 3D map views, you get 3D landmark views. The feature is similar to the 3D building renderings found on the HP iPaq 310 Travel Companion, but brings them to landmarks, such as the Empire State Building and Golden Gate Bridge. You also get the Reality View Pro and Lane Assistant Pro capabilities that provide a "photorealistic" 3D view of complicated intersections that show you which lane you should be in and what direction you will be turning.

Moving beyond appearances, the Navigon 7200T comes preloaded with maps of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands and offers Zagat ratings and reviews of various points of interest. You get a number of advanced features, including text-to-speech functionality, a voice recognition system for address entry and more, free lifetime traffic alerts, and integrated Bluetooth.

Now, while the Navigon 7200T certainly looks good on paper, we're a little reluctant to get our hopes up since we haven't had the best real-world experiences with the company's GPS. The user interface isn't the most intuitive and there's been problems with sluggish performance. However, the 7200T is sporting a faster processor and new software, so perhaps this time will be different? Fingers crossed. The Navigon 7200t is expected to hit store shelves in October with a price tag of $499. We'll, of course, publish a hands-on review as soon as we can get a unit, so stay tuned.

Will the iPhone 3G hurt PNDs?

(Credit: Apple)

OK, maybe I was wrong. I'm a big enough person to admit it. You see, a couple of months ago, I wrote that there was no way that smartphones and cell phones with integrated GPS would take over the portable navigation device (PND) space, but now I'm having second thoughts. I'm not saying that PNDs will go the way of the dodo, but it could go the way of the PDA when smartphones really came on the scene. They'll still exist, but the demand will be less and their reach will be limited. They'll be an afterthought. Why the change of heart? Does this have anything to do with today's announcement of the Apple iPhone 3G with integrated GPS? Yes (more on this in a bit), but I also started having these thoughts over the weekend.

You see, I had to venture out to Oakland for a housewarming party on Saturday and if you're familiar with the Bay Area, you know that Oakland is just a hop, skip, and a jump from San Francisco, but it's unfamiliar territory to me as I rarely venture outside my SF bubble. So there I am sitting in my apartment, looking up directions on my laptop and feeling pretty foolish for not having an in-car GPS (hey, I didn't have anything to review at the time!). I also couldn't print out directions (hard to do without a printer) nor did I feel like scribbling down instructions on a piece of paper. Then it dawned on me that I could use my RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310 and the AT&T Navigation app to get the full shebang--color maps, text- and voice-guided directions, real-time tracking, and more.

It wasn't my ideal choice, since I was worried about viewing maps on the smaller screen, but it's all I had at the time. I entered my destination onto the Curve, hit the road, and got to the party without a hitch and with a new appreciation and perspective on this type of GPS convergence. I was able to plot multiple stops along my route, and the voice directions were loud enough that I could get away without looking at the screen much. In short, I pretty much got the same experience of a GPS on my smartphone that I would with a standalone device.

So going back to today's iPhone 3G announcement. Even before today's official unveiling, there was a report from Popular Mechanics that GPS manufacturers were "shaking in their boots" about the prospect of a GPS-enabled iPhone and now I'm thinking rightfully so. It's not that the iPhone is the first smartphone to offer this feature. Far from it; there's the Nokia N95, various BlackBerry models, AT&T Tilt, Samsung BlackJack II, and the list goes on. And granted, we obviously haven't had a chance to check out the GPS capabilities on the new iPhone but I think that if there's any mobile that's going to threaten the PND industry, it would be the iPhone and here's why.

Like the smartphone's other features--Web browsing, multimedia--it's not that the iPhone offers anything revolutionary but what it offers is a better user experience. Panning in and out of maps, the redraw rate--it's all smoother on the iPhone. Plus, you benefit from a 3.5-inch touch screen, which is right in line with the entry- to midlevel PNDs on the market today. Add to that the $199 price tag, the fact that you're getting about three gadgets in one and you're looking at a very attractive package. So with all this functionality, what's to attract a consumer to a standalone product? Garmin seems to have acknowledged the changing landscape, as it has already announced Nuvifone, and TomTom reportedly has navigation software for the iPhone ready to go.

Of course, there will always be purists and again, I'm not saying that portable navigation systems will be disappear for good, but as these converged devices become more sophisticated, more affordable, and easier to use, you have to wonder about the state of PNDs. Do you think I'm totally off base here? How do you think the iPhone 3G, or any GPS-enabled phone, will affect the GPS industry?

TomTom ONE 130

(Credit: TomTom)

Today, TomTom introduced the latest models to its ONE and XL line of entry-level portable navigation systems, complete with a fresh redesign and new mounting system. Succeeding the current TomTom ONE 3rd Edition and the TomTom XL, the TomTom ONE 130/ONE 130S and the TomTom XL 330/XL 330S boast a slimmer frame and come packaged with the new EasyPort mount, which apparently, you can keep attached to the GPS, fold it down, and still manage to fit into a pants pocket. (Anyone else wondering about how these mounts will hold up during road tests?)

All four models will come preloaded with maps of North America and will be compatible with the TomTom Home and TomTom Map Share services, which give you access to the latest maps, more content (points of interest, weather, and so forth), and other community features. They also have larger, enhanced speakers that should make voice-guided directions easier to hear.

The TomTom ONE 130 and ONE 130S are expected to ship sometime in May for $199.95 and $249.95, respectively. Both have 3.5-inch screens and the 130S adds text-to-speech functionality for street pronunciations. Similarly, the TomTom XL 330S ($299.95) also has the text-to-speech directions, while the XL 330 ($249.99) does not. The XL series ups the screen size to 4.3 inches. Now, we love variety, but it seems like a no-brainer that if you're making the investment and you can get text-to-speech directions for just $50, why not? We are in line to receive the ONE 130S in the next couple of days, so hang tight for a full review.

(Credit: Mio Technology)

While we weren't entirely in love with the Dash Express portable navigation device (PND), it certainly set off a trend of connected GPS devices. First, Magellan announced its Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS at CES 2008 and now Mio Technology announced its plans for a connected GPS at CTIA 2008.

Partnering up with the ATX Group, an automotive telematics service provider, the two companies are developing a PND that will provide real-time content and services. With the mobile Internet connection, the GPS device will be able to provide you with weather information based on your current location or planned destination, traffic updates, and local business searches. Mio expects to ship these new connected PNDs during the second half of the year.

(Credit: TomTom)

Today, TomTom added two new models to its GO series of portable navigation systems: the TomTom GO 930 and the TomTom GO 730. Both GPS devices feature enhanced user interfaces with new icons and a technology called Alfa Blending that claims to deliver smoother graphics. Beyond the aesthetics, the GO 930 and 730 offer more navigation functions to help drivers get to their destination faster and safely.

First, there's TomTom IQ Routes, which provides more "intelligent" routing based on the historical average speeds of a road during the weekday and weekends. In other words, it gives you a more accurate idea of driving and arrival time, and it also gives you the opportunity to find an alternate route--perhaps a little rush hour relief? Both GPS devices also have advanced lane guidance functions, more specifically lane separation and 3D renderings of complex junctions. Lane separation displays onscreen the number of lanes and which lane you should be in for your upcoming turn, among other things. And for particularly complicated intersections, you'll get a 3D image of what the area looks like as well as sign post information to give you a better idea of what's ahead. Having tested some portable navigation systems that just tell you to "Take the next exit" on a multiexit highway, this is a welcome and useful addition (though not new, see Navigon 7100 review) in my opinion.

Other highlights of the TomTom GO 930 and 730 are voice command functionality, including address entry, text-to-speech directions, integrated Bluetooth, and TomTom Map Share. The difference between the two models is the GO 930 comes preloaded with maps of North America and Europe, while the GO 730 is North America only. The expected ship date of the devices is April 29, but pricing was not available at press time.

Today, Sony announced the immediate retail and online availability of its Sony NV-U73T and Sony NV-U83T portable navigation systems. Announced back at CES 2008, both models focus on safety and have text-to-speech technology, nearly 5 million points of interest with branded icons and preloaded maps of the United States and Canada. They're equipped with SiRF StarIII GPS chips, but the units also have a feature called Position Plus that includes pressure, gyro, and acceleration sensors, which should provide for more accurate positioning even when driving through tunnels and in between tall buildings. In addition, you can perform certain functions with just the swipe of your finger, and there's a dual-view mode that will show a 3D rendition of complicated intersections.

As the flagship model, the Sony NV-U83T also has integrated Bluetooth for hands-free calling and a 4.8-inch, 16:9 ratio touch screen, while the NV-U73T has a 4.3-inch screen. They can be had for $400 and $300, respectively.

Mio DigiWalker C720t

(Credit: Mio )

It seems like there's a new company hopping on the GPS bandwagon every week, trying to loosen the grip that big boys Garmin, TomTom, and Magellan have on the market. Truth be told, these three companies have been in the industry for a while, and they know what they're doing, so these newcomers have a tough task ahead of them. However, we've been pretty impressed with one company in particular: Mio Technology. With the exception of the Mio C220, which had a horrible screen, it has consistently churned out some solid portable navigation systems and always packs in a good value for the price. Today, Mio continues that tradition with the announcement of three new products: the Mio DigiWalker C230, the Mio DigiWalker C320, and the subject of this blog, the Mio DigiWalker C720t.

There a number of cool things about the Mio C720t. First, it has a really sleek design similar to the Mio C520 and boasts a 4.3-inch touch screen. It also has a built-in 2-megapixel camera with zoom, so you can take pictures and geotag them with location coordinates. You can then use them as photo points of interest (POI) or share them with others. We've seen this feature before on the Navman iCN 750, but the C720t takes the cake with a better lens and slimmer form factor. That said, we have yet to test out this feature so we'll stop with the praises there. The unit also ships with a vehicle mount that has an integrated Traffic Message Channel receiver, and you get three months of free traffic service from Clear Channel. Other highlights include Bluetooth, maps of Mexico, text-to-speech functionality, and 12 million POI. The Mio DigiWalker C720t should be in stores by early October and will retail for about $599.

Garmin Nuvi 760

(Credit: Garmin)

Far be it from Garmin to let TomTom have all the spotlight today. Yes, Garmin had some news of its own as it introduced the Garmin Nuvi 700 series of portable navigation systems. The family includes three models--the Garmin Nuvi 750, Nuvi 760, and Nuvi 770--and features an enhanced user interface that makes these systems simpler to use. For example, you can now choose between a QWERTY or alphabetical keyboard. I know, it may not seem like such a huge deal but after struggling to enter addresses on an alphabetical keyboard, I'm pretty excited about this new functionality. Each model also has Bluetooth for hands-free calling, a built-in FM transmitter so you can hear directions, phone calls and MP3s though your car's stereo, and up-to-date traffic alerts (with a lifetime subscription to traffic services!). In addition, they have nice 4.3-inch wide-screen displays and text-to-speech functionality. The bad news is that you're going to pay for all these goodies. The Nuvi 750 will cost $624.85, while the 760 and 770 will go for $857.13 and $1071.42, respectively. All three will be available in Q4, so start saving your pennies now.