Reviews related to : Satellite Navigation
The merger between Mio and Navman has seen a division of targeted territories with the Navman branded products taking care of the UK. The company’s entry-level product is the S30 model. This particular device has a suggested retail price of £149 although the more experienced shopper should be able to find the S30 listed at a more tempting price with the minimum of effort.
Included in the box with the SatNav device is a mounting bracket that can attach to the windshield using a clip-down sucker. You also get a cigarette lighted power adaptor and a mini USB cable for linking to a computer.
After looking at Sat Nav’s that have all the bells and whistles it’s quite refreshing to review a unit that has one aim to get you from A to B. Some extras are missing but some things you might think of as extras are included at a reasonable price.
Intended for use in the car (the only charger provided is the one for a cigar lighter) a standard mini USB to USB will charge it in less than four hours. I always test it on trains and or buses as well as in a car. Unless you are a passenger you cannot really look at the screen of the unit and while travelling in a bus or train gives you that opportunity.
Never the one to indulge in half measures and with a strong preference for “world firsts”, Archos has taken the opportunity recently to announce some new products and additions to the company’s current range of service offerings.
I'm sure whether to classify the first announcement making up this report as multi-functional or more of a convergence in technology as Archos enhances one of its existing products. That product is the Archos 605 WiFi Media Player which featured in an earlier review ( ). Basically the announcement covered a new GPS In-Car Holder that turns the 605 WiFi portable media player (PMP) into a GPS navigation device without compromising the device's original multifunctional capabilities.
While HP is no stranger to navigation this is the first of their units I have seen that is dedicated to satellite navigation. The others were iPAQ’s where an SD card provided the facility to the PDA, this is totally different as it’s primarily a navigation device.
Click image to enlarge
First the size it's 11x8.5x2cm and although I have used it on a bus there is no pedestrian mode so only designed for in car use and of course all the required fittings are supplied. However the battery gives enough power for around two hours use away from the cars cigar lighter power.
Mio do several units suitable for pedestrians with an average battery life between charges of four to five hours. This could be used handheld but only for occasional use as the battery life is less than two hours, this is certainly an in car unit.
My first question then is why is it called a DigiWalker? However lets assume there is a reason this seems to me to be a rather good unit. Trying to assume the role of someone who has never had a similar unit could I insert it in my car by using the 13 pages in the getting started guide that are in English, answer yes. Could I plan a simple route answer yes.
Satellite navigation is become more popular with big price reductions and many
competing designs. The basic price though can still be fairly expensive. Here we
look at an alternative that uses the processing power and display capabilities of
your mobile phone to offer an alternative pricing plan.
When you buy ActiveNavigation 6 from Falk what you get is a small 4.5 x 9 x 1cm (WxHxD) unit with curved edges and soft rubberised finished that contains a GPS receiver and a bluetooth transceiver. The unit itself is very compact, looks good and will slip into trouser pocket or hand bag easily enough. There at three lights on the device.
Putting away my paper-based maps, it was time to check out another SatNav device.
As part of its range of DigiWalker SatNav devices, Mio has released its C220 model. Although at the more budget end of its product line up, the C220 packs an impressive amount of functionality into a unit that measures 108 x 81 x 24mm (H x W x D) and weighs in at 100g. Opening the box reveals the SatNav device; a three-part connection kit for in-car use; USB lead; software CD; and various items of documentation. The C220 SatNav unit is dominated by the 3.
A flexible personal GPS navigation system that can also provide a range of
other in-car services.
At heart the nüvi 660 is a Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite navigation
system. It also incorporates MP3 player, Bluetooth hands free functionality and
an FM transmitter (see later!). The nüvi is a whole family of different units from the '200' up to the '770'. The 660
under review here is toward the top end of the range in terms of both cost and functionality.
On the face of it this is a similar device to the recently reviewed Mio A501 but there are subtle differences. This is first a communications device and only then a device that has GPS capabilities indeed they do a model without the GPS.
Firstly the dimensions of the T-Mobile MDA Compact III, 10.5x6x1.5cm, the screen is 6x4.5cm. The weight is around 150 grams. It seems PDA manufacturers do not have the same restraints foisted on them that digital camera manufacturers do by the large retail chains as there is a pouch to protect the screen and indeed that of the 2 mega pixel camera.
This is a full featured PDA a phone and of course a GPS unit. However unlike some other PDA’s with GPS abilities this is firstly a GPS unit and it has the ability to make phone calls and to be a PDA. Of course being a PDA you only have a soft keyboard.
It is 9.5x6x2cm and weights only less than 150grams. The viewable screen is 5.5x4cm. As a GPS unit it works exactly the same as other recent Mio units reviewed.
Technology can help take some of the strain out of driving by supplying directions through a SatNav device.
Like printers and mobile phones, SatNav devices have started to adopt the mantle of multi-function products. An example of this trend can be seen with the . Along with the main SatNav mapping and directional features, the Mio C520t has audio, image and contact list features plus the ability to link with your mobile phone via Bluetooth connectivity. All this is packed into a device measuring 127 x 81 x 14mm.
Leaving the navigation to others can take some of the strain off driving.
Recently I have noticed a trend with portable peripherals that connect via USB. Instead of providing, as part of the standard package, a power lead to recharge the internal battery via the mains, you have to rely on the USB connection to carry out this function. Maybe this trend can be justified as a cost-cutting exercise but I find it restrictive as I prefer to fully charge such a device in order to check it out before introducing it to my computer.
Having recently looked at the top of the range C520t that seems to do most things. Here is their entry level offering that is exactly what it says a satellite navigation unit.
The unit has one huge plus over it's larger and multifunctional rival, better battery life and should you use it as a cyclist or pedestrian then this is vital. Mio C220 The overall dimensions of the C220 are 10x8x5x2cm and it weights around 150grams. The landscape screen is 7x5.5cm with the largest viewable map area of nearly 5.5cm square when in cockpit mode. Going round the unit the right side has input for an SD card and earbud socket.
This is the top of the range unit from Mio and the size of screen makes it ideal for use in a car. There are modes for pedestrian and bicycle but the size and short battery life make these unsuitable.
Within a few hours of the arriving I had fully charged it and taken it for a drive. To start with without altering any settings it was telling me measurements in metres and finding the switch to change to miles took a while. I noticed with pleasure that there was plenty of volume at the default setting and in fact it had more in reserve. Mio C520t The unit is 12.5x8x2cm and this allows a screen of 10x5.
This is a tiny sat nav system but not only is it for cars etc but also for pedestrians and bicycles. When I say small it fits into the palm of my hand and I do not have enormous hands.
It is 9x6x1.5cm and weights less than 100grams. The screen is 4.5x6cm and is fine apart from when the sun is right on it when mounted in a car. As regular readers will know I always take sat nav systems for at least a couple of journeys on a train.
As a prime target for break-in merchants, it does help if your Sat Nav device can be placed in your pocket when away from the car. The Mio P350 certainly qualifies.
Sat Nav products tend to fall into one of two main categories. There are devices that have been purposely built to provide just the functionality of satellite navigation whether based in a car or used in pedestrian mode. While a second approach, used by certain companies, involves adding satellite navigation capabilities to a third-party device.
When road-testing a product, it helps if you can take it out on the road as with a SatNav device.
Adding to its family of SatNav devices, ViaMichelin (a wholly owned subsidiary of the restaurant and hotel guide producing Michelin) has released its top -of-the-range (Global Positioning System) model. This product takes in Europe as it covers 20 countries down to street number level and has full UKK postcode search capability.
This is a Satellite Navigation unit that specifically mentions a pedestrian mode so a lot of my tests were conducted while walking to various places.
It is 11x8x2cm and weights only around 150grams. If you are going to use it outside a vehicle size and weight are both important. One of my first walks was perhaps my most eventful. It was raining so I of course had the unit well protected in a plastic bag and this meant that I could not use an umbrella. I ended up very wet and due to a glitch rather lost.
Roadstar Navigazione RGPS404
Published in Misc
by paul_smart
on Dec 25, 2006
GPS and I normally do not normally manage a happy relationship, however this unit was something different and from day one we got on.
Often I have a problem finding enough satellites here on more than one occasion I managed 11, yes eleven. You need three to triangulate and normally this unit found at least seven. I would suggest that you switch on a couple of minutes before you leave allowing it good time to seek them out after that even going through tunnels the signal is picked up again seconds after emerging.
Recent research indicates that around six million GPS devices, available from companies such as ViaMichelin, will be sold in the main European countries during 2006.
Currently GPS (Global Positioning System) technology, whereby a person, object or vehicle can be tracked and located to within a few feet using the power of satellites, has a high profile with steadily rising sales of units. Initially GPS navigation software was built into vehicles (rather a costly solution) and then it appeared in PDAs and other mobile devices at a more economic level.
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