Mel Martin
Arizona - http://web.me.com/melmartin/Deep_Space_Images/
Was a journalist for many years working in Florida. Then went off to the BBC in London managing a technical project.
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone
Navigon briefly cutting price on its popular Nav app
Gee, we were just saying how competitive it is getting in the iPhone nav department, and Navigon has gone and cut prices for holiday travelers.For 10 days only, beginning today (November 20-30) Navigon's iPhone app, Mobile Navigator [iTunes link]will be on sale for U.S. $69.99 instead of $89.99 providing a $20.00 savings. In addition, Navigon's Traffic Live feature is also on sale for $14.99 instead of $24.99. Traffic Live is a one time charge, not a continuing cost.
That's a significant saving for this very popular app, and puts it under similar featured apps from TomTom ($99.99) and Magellan ($79.99).
In my tests of the Navigon app I have found it accurate, and it has a superior user interface that is easy to use. Of course you shouldn't be looking at it while you are driving, and the text to speech does an excellent job of helping you keep your eyes on the road.
The Live Traffic feature will route you around major traffic congestion and adjust your ETA times.
It's nice to see prices heading south on some of these GPS packages. Now you'll be able to head south (or north, or any direction really) for less money and with more features. Have a safe trip.
Filed under: Software, iPhone, App Store
TomTom delivers promised iPhone update
TUAW told you it was coming, and it has arrived. TomTom has updated its U.S. GPS navigation app [US$99.99, iTunes link] and added text-to-speech, advanced lane guidance, and a 'help me' feature for use in emergencies.TomTom has been a little late to the text-to-speech party, with most competitors already offering this important function. Magellan has now jumped into the game with a very nice nav app as well, and at an introductory price that undercuts the TomTom app by twenty bucks.
All of the major navigation apps for the iPhone are quickly approaching feature parity. At this point, your main decision is whether you want the data streamed to your phone (as the AT&T app does), or have maps and data built into the app (like TomTom, Navigon, Magellan and some others).
Looming over whatever decision you make is trying to figure out if Apple will ever allow the Google turn-by-turn navigation app into the app store. It's going to be free, and Google says it wants the app to be on the iPhone. Of course things haven't been going swimmingly between Google and Apple of late (Google Voice, Android competition), so it's just a guess as to how that will all turn out.
If you need a navigation app in order to get to Grandma's house for the holidays, it's probably a good time to buy one. However, If you're willing to wait for the possibility of Google's free turn-by-turn nav app making it to the iPhone, you might be rewarded for your patience.
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone
AT&T loses first round in battle over Verizon ads
The Associated Press is reporting that an Atlanta Federal judge has denied an AT&T request to pull the Verizon 'there's a map for that' ads.The judge has set a December 16th hearing to give AT&T another chance to make a case.
AT&T filed suit earlier this month looking for a temporary restraining order to stop the ads, and wanted a permanent injunction to halt them. The ads say that the AT&T network is not up to the quality or range of the Verizon network, and shows two coverage maps to make the point. AT&T claims the maps are misleading, and injures the company reputation.
Verizon has said the commercials are truthful and accurate.
The case pits the two communication giants against each other as they fight for increasing shares of the mobile market. AT&T has an exclusive on the iPhone, and that has brought AT&T an increasingly growing share of mobile customers.
Verizon was reportedly offered an exclusive on the iPhone more than 2 years ago but turned it down. There have been sporadic reports that Verizon would like to get the iPhone back when the AT&T contract expires, but with some Verizon ads targeting the iPhone as well as AT&T that looks to be increasingly unlikely.
Filed under: iPhone, iPod touch
Magellan car kit detailed at FCC filing
That was fast. We just learned Magellan was going to offer a car kit for the iPhone and it has already hit the FCC. GPSTracklog.com has a detailed drawing of the new device, and it looks to be quite complete. Magellan has said the kit will be on sale before the end of the year, and even give the iPod touch full nav capabilities. The car kit is supposed to allow any iPhone GPS app to work with it, so you're not limited to the Magellan app. It works in portrait or landscape mode, and has a speaker for hearing directions and also link to your iPhone for Bluetooth based calls.
The Magellan Roadmate app itself [iTunes link] has a boatload of good features, and we're anxious to get our hands on the app for a full test. Holiday travelers will have a lot of good choices for navigating to your destinations. Remember when we thought the plain old Google Maps app was cool?
Thanks to Rich for the tip.
[via GPSTracklog.com]
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone
Verizon to AT&T- 'The Truth Hurts'
Verizon isn't fazed by the AT&T legal claims that the Verizon ads attacking poor coverage are false and misleading. Our sister site Engadget broke the story of the Verizon response to the suit and you can read the it here.Verizon isn't pulling any punches and says "AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon's "There's A Map For That" advertisements are untrue; AT&T sued because Verizon's ads are true and the truth hurts."
Then to drive home the point:
"In the final analysis, AT&T seeks emergency relief because Verizon's side-by-side, apples-to-apples comparison of its own 3G coverage with AT&T's confirms what the marketplace has been saying for months: AT&T failed to invest adequately in the necessary infrastructure to expand its 3G coverage to support its growth in smartphone business, and the usefulness of its service to smartphone users has suffered accordingly."
Ouch!
This latest salvo follows AT&T sending a message to customers complaining about the Verizon ads and telling customers their coverage is great, that they sell more smartphones than Verizon and that the AT&T 3G network is faster. So there.
Well AT&T, your move. It's great for the lawyers, and actually, we admit we just love the spectacle.
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone, iPod touch
Magellan enters the iPhone nav app sweepstakes
I guess it was inevitable. Magellan has just launched an iPhone app that looks great and will offer road warriors even more choice in a very competitive landscape.The Magellan Roadmate 2010 North America is being offered for a 'limited time' for U.S. 79.99. [iTunes link] The 1.36 GB app includes the usual features plus text-to-speech for pronouncing street names, a car finding feature for when you park, pedestrian mode, lane assist, 3D landmarks, in-app music control, address book integration and an intuitive one touch menu system.
With the Magellan offering, all the big navigation companies have a cell phone product. TomTom is on the iPhone along with Navigon, and Garmin has a cell phone/ nav app hardware solution that hasn't exactly caught on fire with consumers. Then there is the 'will it or won't it appear on the iPhone' Google app.
Also interesting is that Magellan has announced a Premium Car Kit that will allow you to keep your iPhone in your current case, charge your phone, give you a bluetooth speaker phone, allow an iPod touch to work as a GPS, and it is supposed to function with any nav app. No price or specific launch date for the car kit, but it's supposed to be available before the end of this year.
We'll get a review copy of the Magellan app ASAP and give it our usual whirl around town. The more choice the better for iPhone users, and the new features on this Magellan app are most welcome.
[Thanks to David for the tip]
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Audio, Hardware, Multimedia, Music
Sonos adds a portable music player with room filling sound
Sonos, best known for wireless music systems that link to your iTunes library and internet services like Pandora, Rhapsody and Napster, is offering a one piece, 5 speaker system that can be placed in any room. It's called the Zone Player S5 and it's US $399 direct from Sonos or dealers around the country. Sonos shipped me a review system to try for 30 days, and I thought the sound was great. I already had a mutli-room Sonos system so adding the new portable player was just a matter of plugging it into AC power and pressing two buttons on the S5.
If you don't already have a Sonos system, you have to plug your unit into a router to connect to your music library and the internet. If that doesn't work in your home layout, you can buy what Sonos calls a Zone Bridge (US $99) that plugs into your router and lets the S5 make a wireless connection. Once that basic pairing is made, you can add as many other Sonos music systems as you like, all connecting over a wireless mesh network.
The system sounds quite good, given the limits of the small desktop-friendly size (8.5 x 14.4 x 4.8 inches). There are 5 speakers, two tweeters, two 3" mid-range drivers, and one 3.5" woofer all driven by individual amplifiers. The woofer is a ducted port design and the rear port serves double duty as a carrying handle.
Filed under: Odds and ends, iPhone
Whoa! AT&T has had enough of the Verizon slams
AT&T is clearly not going to take it anymore. Today, they blasted back at Verizon for the nasty ads about AT&T coverage.In a press release today, the communications giant pulled out all the stops:
"AT&T's wireless data coverage reaches 303 million people – or 97% of the U.S. population, where they live and work.
AT&T is the #1 network for smartphones, with twice the number of smartphone customers than Verizon, our closest competitor. Some of the reasons include:
Most popular smartphones. Unlike Verizon, AT&T offers the most popular smartphones in the industry.
More wireless apps. Unlike Verizon, AT&T customers have access to more than 100,000 applications, more than with any other wireless company.
Talk and E-mail at the same time. Unlike Verizon, AT&T's 3G network lets wireless customers simultaneously talk and surf the web or do e-mail.
Fastest 3G in the nation. Unlike Verizon, AT&T has the nation's fastest 3G network."
It's a bold move to respond to someone doing a number on you. Microsoft tried to counter Apple pricing with mixed reviews, and AT&T, unlike Apple, has a lot of unhappy customers. This will be fun to watch, but one wishes AT&T was improving service and features (tethering anyone?) instead of getting into these lawsuits and public mud baths.
Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, iPhone
It's about time: TomTom submits updated nav app to Apple
Very welcome news for owners of the TomTom iPhone nav app [iTunes link for U.S. version]; the company has announced a free update that includes many of the features that people were craving.- Advanced lane guidance giving drivers extra clarity when navigating difficult junctions. For the first time this is in both landscape and portrait mode.
- Text-to-speech helping motorists to keep their eyes on the road by enabling street names and places to be read aloud as part of the spoken instructions.
- "Help Me" providing direct access to emergency numbers and directions to the nearest emergency providers.
- Updated map and safety camera database (Europe only)
- Customizable audio warnings when approaching safety cameras or driving over the speed limit, increasing driver safety and saving money.
- iPod player control ensuring drivers can conveniently control their music from within the application.
The joker in this particular deck is still the free Google Navigation app, which is trying to get onto the iPhone and will have a gaggle of features no one else is offering.
[via Engadget]
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Software, iPhone, App Review
A trip around town with Traffic Live from Navigon
I've already reported on the updated Navigon iPhone app, [iTunes link] and noted that live traffic info was now included as an in-app purchase. I've spent the last 2 days driving around town testing it, and it works as advertised -- but perhaps in not as many places as I would have hoped.Here in Southern Arizona, there were very few traffic updates, so I set a destination for Phoenix and had lots of information. Clearly, Navigon is not always sourcing information from smaller U.S. cities.
As a comparison, I tried the traffic info built into my car nav system, and it displayed 9 nearby traffic incidents, some as close as 4 miles away. At the same time, the nearest traffic incident I got from Navigon was 94 miles away in the Phoenix metro area.
It was odd, because both systems source a lot of the same places (like Clear Channel Radio) for information. On the other hand, the traffic info from Navigon was more detailed, with nice close-up maps of the trouble areas.
I like everything about the Navigon app. The graphics are first rate. It automatically changes to night view, the text to speech voice is very clear in a noisy car, and the map doesn't lag from my actual position.
The traffic option is US$19.99 as a one time payment, and not overpriced in my view. My only caution is you may not get much information if you are not in the large metro areas, and it would be nice if Navigon posted where good traffic information is available.
For those in the bigger cities, it's a nice addition at a reasonable price.
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