gps

Pocket-size GPS and the $100 barrier

Update 10:10 a.m. PT: It didn't take long for this to sell out. But stay tuned: I'll continue to post killer GPS deals as I find them.

It's like Black Friday, the sequel! In an apparent fit of madness, Tiger Direct is selling the Fujitsu Siemens Pocket Loox N100 GPS for $99.99. Granted, GPS prices have plummeted in recent months, but this is the first one I've seen dip below the $100 mark. Even more shocking, the Pocket Loox sold for $499 when CNET reviewed it earlier this year. This is the kind … Read more

Episode 617: Windows apps on a Mac?

U.K. town wants to escape GPS tracking

GPS navigation devices in England show truck drivers a shortcut through the town of Wedmore. But Wedmore's roads are ancient--too windy and narrow for a tractor-trailer.

Read the full story at The New York Times.

Photos: Cowon Q5W

It's been just a few days since Cowon's announcement of the U.S. availability of their supercharged Q5W portable media player, and we already have one in the office to play with. It's a real beauty. Take a look at Crave's photo gallery of the Cowon Q5W to see if it's the megagadget it claims to be.

Coming in 2008: GPS-enabled cameras?

The year of the GPS-enabled camera is nearly upon us.

So predicts Kanwar Chadha, founder of GPS chip designer Sirf Technology. "Most (camera makers) are seriously planning location-enabled cameras. The first," he said, "you'll see next year."

Chadha has a vested interest in the technology, so take that bullish prediction with a grain of salt, but don't discount his expertise, influence, and connections. And do pay attention to a new technology Sirf is developing that Chadha promises will let GPS devices find their location within 10 seconds of being switched on.

If his prediction … Read more

Hot deal: Magellan Maestro 3100 GPS, $159

Santa himself uses a bit more advanced version, but this should get you over the river and through the woods to Grandma's house with no problem. The Maestro 3100 is a basic portable GPS system, offered today at a 50 percent price reduction--and free shipping--at BuyDig. This unit's sleek simplicity is one of its best assets, since you'll do all your interface on the touch screen, never getting distracted from the road by trying to figure out which of several buttons to push. The 3.5-inch screen, though not the largest on the market, is crisp, bright, … Read more

Survey says: Garmin GPS No. 1 in consumers' hearts and minds

When you think of GPS, what brand name comes to mind? Would it happen to be Garmin? Because according to a new study by marketing research firm BrandIntel, Garmin is the most discussed portable navigation system and holds the best overall sentiment score with consumers. But it shouldn't get too comfortable or complacent, because TomTom, Magellan, Mio, and Lowrance are hot on its heels.

Based on an analysis of search results from "online consumer communities" (i.e., blogs, forums, and so forth) across the Web during July 2006 to August 2007, BrandIntel's GPS Navigation Systems Report … Read more

Review: Navigon 2100

Navigon's line of portable navigation systems seems to follow the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, offering three different flavors with one to hopefully match your tastes and needs. For the gadget hounds and GPS enthusiasts, there's the Navigon 7100 with its advanced features like Bluetooth and traffic services, while the Navigon 5100 is more of a middle-of-the-road system for intermediate users. And now for beginners, there's the Navigon 2100. The entry-level unit has an attractive price point of $249, and includes text-to-speech functionality for speaking actual street names, which you don't often find at … Read more

Creating your GPS maps

I've never seen one of photo vans they use to make the images in Google Maps' Street View feature, but a few days ago I did see a close relative. While walking through San Francisco, I saw one of the Tele Atlas vans parked for a rest. If the bright orange color (and the large Tele Atlas lettering) didn't give it away, surely the six cameras perched on the roof did. The crew wasn't around so I couldn't get a peek inside, nor could I ask just how the GPS/mapping company was using the van. … Read more

Loopt extends location alerts

Loopt, which offers a mobile friend-finding service, has extended the reach of its application with a new feature that allows users to notify not just other Loopt users, but any friend, of their whereabouts via text or IM.

Starting Thursday, the Loopt service is integrated with subscribers' mobile address books and AIM buddy lists so they can share their real-time location via a text message or instant message.

The way it works is that when Loopt users text or IM their friends they can choose to have their location automatically attached. So a message that says, "Want to meet … Read more

gps