GPS Navigation Systems: What Next?

Technology has achieved many useful developments in satellite navigation systems that allow a small electronic device to navigate its exact location (Longitude, Latitude and Altitude) through satellite. When it knows its position, the navigation device calculates the navigation information including terrain, directions, roads and more.

Nowadays, most vehicles come with the satellite navigation devices pre-installed in them. These devices are generally used by motor vehicle drivers, military, outdoorsmen, boaters and for other military applications.

The well known satellite system that is fully functional at the time of this writing is the GPS or the Global Navigation System. GPS in the United States contains 24 to 27 satellites orbiting at an altitude of approximately 20,000 km with an inclination of 55 degrees in six different planes.

The Russian counterpart to GPS is called the GLONASS, which is derived from GLObal Navigation Satellite System. Though the initial satellites for GLONASS were launched in 1982, the system was not fully operational till 1995. The GLONASS has deteriorated to only 12 satellites, due to economic difficulties. The Russian GLONASS constellation is expected to become fully functional by 2010 and there are plans to include India as well.

The European Union is working on EGNOS derived from European Geostationary Navigation Overlay System. It consists of 3 satellites intending to supplement the GPS and GLONASS systems by determining the accurate signals and position with in 5 meters. It is expected to function in 2006.

The European Space Agency is working on introducing an alternative to GPS, called Galileo. The receivers will be able to combine the signals of 30 Galileo satellites and 28 GPS satellites to get highly accurate positions.

There are many satellite navigation systems yet to launch in several countries. The Satellite system of France is called the DORIS (Doppler Orbitography and Radio-positioning Integrated by Satellite) The Chinese system is called BEIDOU, but these satellite systems do not come under the caliber of GPS, GLONASS and Galileo.

Posted by password.com Saturday, December 13, 2008 at 5:59 PM 0 comments Labels:  

GPS Navigation Portable Features - Which Do You Need?

GPS portable navigation systems have become extremely popular in recent years. As with any electronic device, when making a purchasing decision about which brand or model to buy, one needs to understand the feature sets being offered and decide which features he or she needs and which they want to pay for.

Here is a list of many commonly available features on different brands of GPS navigation portable systems:

Widescreen- 4.3 inch or larger screen measured diagonally (vs. a standard 3.5 inch screen)

Includes Europe Maps- Comes loaded with both North American as well as maps of Europe.

Speaks street names- Announces names of streets and exits, for example, “Turn right on Main St.” instead of “Turn right in 500 ft”.

Speech Recognition- Operates the gps device with spoken commands rather than having to enter the information by touching the screen.

Lane assist- Realistically displays road signs and junctions along your route and shows arrows that indicate the proper lane for navigation.

FM Traffic Compatible- Add-on an optional FM receiver and subscription to avoid traffic congestion.

FM Traffic Included- Avoid traffic congestion with and included FM traffic receiver

MSN Direct Compatible- You can add an optional receiver and subscription to MSN Direct to get traffic, weather, gas prices, stock quotes, news, and more.

MSN Direct Included- Receive MSN Direct content including traffic, weather, gas prices, stock quotes, news, and more with the included receiver.

Bluetooth®- Connect to your phone to make and receive hands-free calls

MP3 Player- Built in MP3 Player

Emergency Locator- An emergency locator that shows your coordinates, nearest address, and closest hospitals, police and fuel stations

Slideshow Viewer-

Multi-mode Function- Provides driving, walking, bicycling and boating modes such that the device can be used for any of these modes of travel.

Multiple point routing- Sorts multiple destinations to determine an efficient route for deliveries and sales calls.

If you are a more or less “normal” driver who would only use your GPS portable navigation system occasionally, either from home or while on travel, you certainly don’t need all the bells and whistles mentioned above. A couple of things should be noted for this type of driver, however. One should certainly consider purchasing a unit with the “speaks street names” feature. You have much more certainty when you know you are turning onto the correct street than if you are not sure of that, and in addition you don’t have to be continually looking at the odometer. Another consideration this author would suggest is to purchase a unit with at least a 4.3 inch screen rather than the current standard 3.5 inch screen. You can see the screen much more easily, and more importantly, the buttons for making address entries, for example, are larger. I found that the smaller buttons on the 3.5 inch screen were too small. I would think I was pressing one button only to find that the wrong letter showed up on the screen. For example, I wanted to push the letter “u”, and “v” , which was next to “u”, came up on the screen. So this obviously had to be corrected. I would definitely suggest that these two features are worth the extra money. The speech recognition feature would be nice to have, but this almost immediately puts you into the very high end systems with prices in the $600 and up range. Entering addresses or other destinations by touch screen is really pretty easy and quick once one gets the hang of it.

If you drive long distances often, or if you are a professional delivery person who needs to choose the most efficient routes to make your deliveries, obviously the more advanced features on the list might be useful for you. Certainly if you might be using your gps navigation portable system in Europe, you would want to consider purchasing a unit that has Europe maps loaded as well.

As for updating maps, this is normally necessary only every 3-4 years or so. The major brands usually release official updates approximately once a year, and there is a cost to obtain these new maps. Of course new neighborhoods and new roads are included, and new points of interest, like gas stations or restaurants are also updated. These don’t change that much from year to year, so one can afford to wait a while before purchasing updated maps for your gps portable navigation system.

Posted by password.com Friday, December 12, 2008 at 5:56 PM 0 comments Labels:  

TomTom ONE XL 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Maps of the U.S. and Canada

TomTom ONE XL 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Maps of the U.S. and Canada

TomTom ONE XL 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Maps of the U.S. and Canada
From TomTom

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Product Description
Building on the success of the TomTom ONE, the TomTom ONE XL ups the ante with a gorgeous widescreen, 4.3-inch display, and expanded traffic options that include GPRS- and optional RDS-TMC radio-based real-time traffic information. The TomTom ONE XL is a complete portable GPS vehicle navigation device with an incredible range of features.



The TomTom ONE XL sports a crisp and bright widescreen display, so you can see even more of the road ahead. See a comparison of the TomTom ONE and TomTom ONE XL screens.


Navigate to millions of points of interest with ease.


Powerful traffic services give you a big advantage on the commute home. View larger.


Use TomTom PLUS services to stay abreast of key information. View larger.


You betta' choose my voice, sucka! View larger.
Like TomTom's other navigation systems, the ONE XL gives you coverage in all fifty of the United States, as well as Canada--all stored on 1 GB of internal memory.

But it's not just the broad geographical coverage that makes the TomTom ONE XL special. The user-friendly design also puts it a step above other navigation systems. The crystal-clear multicolor display makes for exceptionally easy viewing of maps, routes, driving directions, and other traveling information, such as mileage and distance. Measuring 4.3 inches, the TFT display offers an expanded widescreen view of brilliant two- and three-dimensional graphics. The device also features 32 MB RAM and 266 MHz CPU, making it responsive and zippy. Using the USB port and the provided cable, you can use your PC to add your own points of interest. Memory expansion is made possible by an SD card slot.

The ONE XL provides clear and accurate turn-by-turn voice instructions, so that you don't have to take your eyes off the road while your vehicle is on the move. Voice instructions are issued at a speed-sensitive volume, so as your vehicle's engine becomes louder or quieter as your speed changes, the volume adjusts itself accordingly, guaranteeing clear and easy listening. And because voice instructions are available in over 30 languages, just about anyone will find the TomTom ONE XL to be an invaluable system.

With its touch-sensitive screen, the TomTom ONE XL puts programming and operation literally at your fingertips to make sophisticated technology simple. The built-in database offers thousands of points of interest for you to use as destinations or reference points as you plan your trip. The ONE XL will also provide a selection of available routes, giving you the option of avoiding toll roads or choosing between the quickest or the most scenic routes. The database includes zip codes to simplify your route selection, and for extra convenience, the ONE XL lets you save the addresses of frequent destinations, making route planning easier and faster than ever. Other display features include a compass mode to assist you with directional orientation, and an anti-glare screen for optimal viewing even in direct sunlight.

For additional navigational features to assist with trip planning, the built-in Bluetooth connection provides access to TomTom PLUS subscription-based services, so that you can tune in to the latest traffic and weather conditions, as well as download additional city maps, voices, points of interest, and much more. The ONE XL adds to these capabilities with FM radio-based RDS-TMC traffic information as an available accessory (not included).

Weighing less than 10 ounces and measuring 3.4 x 4.7 x 1.2 inches, the TomTom ONE XL can be easily installed in any vehicle. An included windshield suction mount holds it in place. Plus, with an operating temperature range of an icy -10 degrees to a sweltering 55 degrees Celsius (14 to 131 degrees Fahrenheit), the navigator is durable enough for New England winters or Arizona summers. The TomTom ONE XL is powered by an internal lithium ion battery that can be charged from your vehicle's cigarette lighter with the included 12-24V adapter.

What's in the Box
TomTom ONE XL device, windshield mount, USB cable, cigarette lighter adaptor, adhesive mounting disk, documentation pack, and product code card.

Customer Reviews

Mostly Great4
The device is nice in that it has several features, places of interest, plus the large screen at a great price. The one thing however, it sometimes doesn't use the shortest routes, even if you tell it to recalculate using different routes. It seemed to always want you to drive to the nearest highway, rather than taking side roads.

much better than expected5
I read the negative reviews first before I decided to order the TomTom unit. Now that I have set it up and used it for one day I don't understand who and how the negatives were written.
I made one call to TomTom before purchasing.Waited about 10 minutes on hold after which all my questions were answered.
Made another call after receiving the unit. Again, about 10 minute wait which considering the time of year, wasn't excessive. Slight problem with CD which was an older version. The rep said that she would send me an e-mail which would contain the latest software. I received the e-mail about 5 to 10 minutes later.
I got the unit charged up last night and began setting it up this morning. Much to my surprise everything went smoothly as the unit with the correct software automatically set itself up. Five stars for TomTOm.
Ordered on the 5th received it on the 9th with free super shipping.

Beware of Tom Tom Customer service2
I purchased this product about a week ago and when it came it was messed up from the start, the maps were all screwed up and it permenantly had me located in Guam! Im in Texas. I spent over two and a half hours on the phone with these people trying to get it working with no success. Finally they tell me it needs to be repaired and that I have to ship it to them AT MY OWN COST, and that it will take two weeks for them to repair it and return. Now I was ok with everything until they told me that if I wanted to have a working product it was my responsibility to pay to have it shipped to them to work on. I really feel that this is ridiculous, why should i be out even more money for them to fix a product that should have been working in the first place. If i had had the product for six months and then there was a problem then maybe I can see having to pay shipping, but this is fresh out of the box. Never been used once. What they should have done is send me a new unit and allowed me to send them back the old one instead of telling me that i could pay for shipping or just deal with a broken unit. Their customer service needs some serious reworking.

List Price: $299.95
Price: $145.03 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
TomTom ONE XL 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Maps of the U.S. and Canada

Posted by password.com Thursday, December 11, 2008 at 5:12 PM 0 comments  

Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Automobile Navigator

Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Automobile Navigator

Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Automobile Navigator
From Garmin

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Product Description -- January 8, 2008
Garmin's nüvi 700 series brings two exciting new features -- multi-destination routing and, "Where am I?/Where's my car?" -- to its popular pocket-sized GPS navigator lineup. As with all nüvis, you get Garmin reliability, the fast satellite lock of an integrated high-sensitivity receiver, a slim, pocket-sized design with a gorgeous display, an easy, intuitive interface, and detailed NAVTEQ maps for the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico with more than 6 million name-searchable points of interest. All of the 700-series navigators also feature a rich array of features including spoken directions in real street names, MP3 player and photo viewer, and an FM transmitter that will play voice prompts, MP3s, audio books, and more, directly through your vehicle's stereo system.The nüvi 760 and  770 add integrated traffic receivers and Bluetooth capability for hands-free calling. The nüvi 770 adds maps for Europe. The nüvi 780 adds enhanced MSN direct content capability..

Which nüvi is Best for You?: Click here to see a quick, simple comparison of features for all Garmin nuvi GPS navigators

slim form factor
Garmin's nüvis pack top of the line features into a slim form factor.
Wider screen lets you see more of what's around. Compare these actual size views of a 3-inch (diagonal) screen
3-inch screen


and a 4.3-inch diagonal widescreen
4.3-inch screen

New Features -- Where Am I? Where's My Car?
The nüvi 700 series is the first to answer two common questions: "Where am I?" and "Where’s my car?"

At any time, with a single tap of the screen, drivers can display their exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations and gas stations. And to help drivers find their car in an unfamiliar spot or vast parking lot, all nüvi 700s automatically mark the position in which they were last removed from the mount.

New Features -- Multi-Destination Routing
This lets you enter several spots into the device (day care - supermarket-cleaners - office - day care, for example) and it will plot the fastest route. And once you've found the best router, the "Route Planning" feature lets you save up to 10 different routes, Garmin touts the feature for providing, "the most efficient route for errands, deliveries and sales calls." The feature also makes this an instant essential accessory for anyone who shops garage sales (you know what we're talking about).

A trip log provides an electronic bread crumb trail of up to 10,000 points, so you can see where you've been on the map.

See Better, See More
The super-bright, 4.3-inch (diagonal) touchscreen display gives is anti-glare for ease of viewing during the day and automatically changes its color profile for easy viewing at night or in dim light. It offers 2d or 3D perspective views.

The widescreen format gives you 70% more actual screen area than a 3.5-inch screen. Primarily this translates into a better view of the area through which you are driving. This is especially useful in showing you what parks, restaurants, ATM, gas stations, etc. are nearby, or in letting you know whether a detour is a good idea. Also, the device itself is larger, meaning controls on the screen are more widely spaced and somewhat easier to push.

First Rate Map Data
All nüvi 700s come preloaded with highly detailed City Navigator NT road maps for the entire United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. This map database features nearly six million points of interest (POIs), including hotels, restaurants, gas stations, ATMs, and attractions. Garmin gets its map data from NAVTEQ, a world leader in premium-quality mapping.

Important note about map updates: Due to our high volume of sales, almost every Garmin portable GPS navigator sold by Amazon.com will come with the most recent map version. If you ever do need a map update, you can purchase one from Amazon.com at our Garmin Store.

Hands-Free Calling
In more and more places, it is becoming illegal to use cell phones while driving without a hands-free kit. WIth Bluetooth capability, microphone and speaker, you can match your nüvi to any bluetooth-capable phone to make hands-free mobile phone calls. Simply dial the phone number with the nüvi's touch screen keypad to make a call on a compatible phone. To answer an incoming call, just tap the screen and speak into the built-in microphone. Making and taking calls on the road has never been easier, or safer. In addition, Garmin makes it a breeze to look-up and dial numbers from your personalized phone book or even tap into your cell phone's call history log.

Integrated FM Traffic Receiver
TMC traffic service coverage map
 Steer clear of traffic with an integrated FM traffic receiver designed to receive alerts from TMC Clear Channel about traffic tie-ups and road construction that might lie ahead on your route. All you have to do is simply touch the screen to view traffic details and you'll be ready to detour around any problem area. And if you end up missing a turn, or you're forced into a detour that is not relayed through the traffic receiver, the nüvi's sophisticated automatic routing will get you back on track in no time.

In most areas, TMC Clear Channel traffic broadcasts are continuous — there's no waiting for scheduled traffic news updates or random alerts. Because traffic broadcasts are received via a "silent" FM data channel, you can still listen to music or news programming on your car radio without interference from incoming FM traffic data transmissions.

A 3-month subscription to TMC Clear Channel's Total Traffic Network is included with purchase of this device. For more information on subscription fees, coverage in individual cities, and traffic data networks in the United Kingdom and Europe, check the Garmin website.

Garmin Lock
Garmin's patent pending theft prevention system that disables the unit from performing any functions until the user types in a specific 4-digit PIN or takes the unit to a predetermined secure location

Easy To Use Interface
Garmin's interface is a key to their success and one of the things that makes their devices such a pleasure to use. Simple controls and sub-screens make it easy to enter or search for destinations and get data about your trip.

Garmin's own navigation is easy to use

Beyond Navigation

Browse your stored pictures with an easy-to-use JPEG viewer.		 MP3 PlayerA handy MP3 player lets you play songs stored on SD memory cards. nüvi 250W accepts custom points of interest (POIs). View larger.

Navigation is just the beginning. All nüvi 700s feature travel tools including JPEG picture viewer, MP3 player, world travel clock with time zones, currency converter, measurement converter, calculator and more.

They are also compatible with optional content plug-ins available via SD card, such as the  Garmin Travel Guides and Garmin SaversGuide provide detailed data for attractions and information on nearby merchants offering discounts, so you can customize your nüvi for all your travel needs.

Garmin has also added the ability for customers to add custom points of interest (POI’s) from third parties such as school zones and safety cameras.

Trick Your GPS Ride

custom vehicle icons
Custom vehicle icons let you ride in style, at least inside your GPS.
See more icon options		 All nüvis support configurable vehicle icons. These fun, customized car-shaped icons come in a variety of colors to add a personal touch to your vehicle's position on the map.





What's in the Box
nüvi 760, Preloaded City Navigator NT for North America, FM traffic receiver with vehicle power cable, 3-month subscription to TMC real-time traffic services, Vehicle suction cup mount, USB cable, Dashboard disc, Quick start manual

Notes

  • Optional software for language translation, detailed travel guides, and savings programs allow you to customize your nüvi to fit your travel needs
  • The FM transmitter feature is only available in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand
  • Like most USB Mass Storage Devices, the nüvi is not compatible with Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows Me.

Which nüvi is Best for You?
Note: All nüvis come with detailed NAVTEQ maps containing more than 6 million pre-loaded point of interest locations.



 Screen
Size
inches
(w x h)
 Included Maps
 Text-to-Speech
(Directions in
Real Street
Names)
 Traffic
 Bluetooth
 Media

 FM Transmitter
(audio through
car stereo
system)		 Multi-
Point
Routing
 Battery
life
(hours)
Cont. U.S.,
Hawaii, and
Puerto Rico
 AK and
Canada
 Europe
nüvi 200 2.8 x 2.1
 check




Photos

up to 5
nüvi 200w 3.81 x 2.25
 check




Photos

up to 5
nüvi 250 2.8 x 2.1
 check check



Photos

up to 5
nüvi 250w 3.81 x 2.25
 check check



Photos

up to 5
nüvi 260 2.8 x 2.1
 check check
check

Photos

up to 5
nüvi 260w 3.81 x 2.25 check check
check

Photos

up to 5
nüvi 270 2.8 x 2.1
 check check check


Photos

up to 5
nüvi 350 2.8 x 2.1
 check check
check FM (with opt.
receiver)
Photos, MP3s

up to 8
nüvi 360 2.8 x 2.1
 check check
check FM (with opt.
receiver)		 check Photos, MP3s

up to 8
nüvi 370 2.8 x 2.1 check check check check FM (receiver
included)
 check Photos, MP3s

up to 8
nüvi 650 3.81 x 2.25
 check check
check FM (with opt.
receiver)
Photos, MP3s

up to 7
nüvi 660
 3.81 x 2.25
 check check
check FM (receiver
included)
 check Photos, MP3s check
up to 7
nüvi 670
 3.81 x 2.25
 check check check check FM (receiver
included)		 check Photos, MP3s check
up to 7
nüvi 680 3.81 x 2.25
 check check
check MSN (receiver
included;
1-year free);
FM (with opt.
receiver)
 check Photos, MP3s check
up to 7
nüvi 750
 3.81 x 2.25
 check check
check FM (with opt.
receiver);
MSN-enhanced
(with optional
receiver)
Photos, MP3s check check up to 5
nüvi 760 3.81 x 2.25
 check check
check FM (receiver
included);
MSN-enhanced
(with optional
receiver)		 check Photos, MP3s check check up to 5
nüvi 770 3.81 x 2.25
 check check check check FM (receiver
included);
MSN-enhanced
(with optional
receiver)		 check Photos, MP3s check check up to 5
nüvi 780 3.81 x 2.25 check check

MSN-enhanced
(receiver inc.;
3 months free)
receiver);
FM (with opt.
receiver)		 check Photos, MP3s check check up to 5
nüvi 850
 3.81 x 2.25 check check

MSN-enhanced
(with optional
receiver);
FM (with opt.
receiver)
Photos, MP3s check check up to 4
nüvi 850
 3.81 x 2.25 check check check
MSN-enhanced
(receiver inc.;
3 months free);
FM (with opt.
receiver)		 check Photos, MP3s check check up to 4
nüvi 5000
 4.5 x 2.7 check check
check MSN-enhanced
(with optional
receiver);
FM (with opt.
receiver)

check check external
battery
only
END

Customer Reviews

build-in speaker is too weak3
The build-in speaker is too weak to hear the direction clearly, and I didn't even turn my radio on!

How does bluetooth work?3
How does the Bluetooth function work? Do you need a special phone? Do you need a special cable?

Nice with a couple of glitches4
The Garmin is a really great product, that gives fantastic directions as one would expect. There are a couple of small glitches. One, it pronounces Dr. as "doctor" instead of "drive." That's actually amusing more than anything.

A bit more annoying is that it is always optimistic when estimating arrival time if there are any lights. I'm not even talking about traffice, just normal stop lights. You can usually add 5-10 minutes to the estimate for a 20 minute in town trip, or even suburban trip.

As for directions, sometimes they are a bit odd, taking routes that I would never choose on my own, and that are not necessarily fastest. The time differential is small, but my own route choice is usually a bit faster. This is only an occassional thing, and it happens with the online mapping as well (Mapquest, Google Maps, etc). You can't expect any system to always give the fastest directions.

The most problematic issue is the power cord. The design of the end is poor, with a plastic disc that sticks out. Ours just broke after just 3 months of use. Also the power cord is proprietary, rather than using a usb or mini usb connector. This may be to keep people from frying there Nuvi's with too much juice, but it means we now have to search for a power cord at the last minute before a trip. I'm hoping they warrantee the part, but that still won't get it to us quickly enough.

List Price: $599.99
Price: $248.97 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
Garmin nüvi 760 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Automobile Navigator

Posted by password.com Wednesday, December 10, 2008 at 4:39 PM 0 comments  

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