Garmin has announced its entrance into the mobile phone market with the nüvifone, an all-in-one, sleek and slim, touchscreen device that combines a premium phone, mobile web-browser, and cutting-edge personal navigator.

“The nüvifone is an all-in-one device offering unmatched integration of utility and function in a single mobile device,” said Cliff Pemble, Garmin’s president and COO. “This is the breakthrough product that cell phone and GPS users around the world have been longing for – a single device that does it all.”

The nüvifone is an innovative mobile phone that has a wide range of advanced yet easy-to-use features. The all touchscreen device is the first of its kind to integrate premium 3.5G mobile phone capability with an internet browser, data connectivity, personal messaging, and personal navigation functions in one device. The 3.5-inch touchscreen display reveals three primary icons – “Call,” “Search,” and “View Map” which allow the user to effortlessly master the nüvifone’s functions.

Read more »

The TomTom GO 720 GPS Unit features a new elegant slim design with a high-quality finish that allows it to fit perfectly in any car or to be carried in a shirt pocket. The large 4.3 inch touchscreen has TomTom’s renowned easy-to-use and intuitive user interface with 3D graphics, including building footprints, that ensures drivers have an even better overview of their surroundings.

Technical Specifications:

• 4.3” full TFT color LCD touchscreen, 64k colors, 480 x 272 pixels
• Preloaded maps of the US and Canada on internal memory.
• High sensitivity GPS chipset.
• Support for active external antenna (not included)
• Built-in Bluetooth™ connection for handsfree calling, optional real-time trafic, weather and more
• USB connection for charging, updates and downloads
• Rechargeable internal 5 hour Lithium-polymer battery
• Dimensions: 4.6” x 3.3” x 0.9”
• Weight: 7.8 ounces
• CPU: 400 MHz processor
• Memory: 2 GB internal SD slot for optional, additional content. (SD not included)
• Operating temperature: 14° F to 131° F

Reviews:

GPSReview.net says…
What is important to note about the TomTom 720 is that it is more than just a simple specifications bump to an existing model– This device brings a lot of brand new features to the TomTom line that we can expect to see in future TomTom devices. So while this device is thinner, faster, and has a nicer screen than many pervious models, it has a host of new features that make the 720 an important device…It is hard to imagine this device not being a huge hit. It has generated more buzz in the industry than any other recently announced device. ..the TomTom 720 will also set a higher benchmark in terms of personalizing the device by allowing map updates, downloading map updates suggested by other users, and building your own voice prompts…

CNET says…
The TomTom GO 720 is a beautifully designed portable navigation system. Though more full-featured than the TomTom One, the GO 720 keeps a similar slim profile as the One and loses the extra bulk of older models… The entire front side of the GO 720 is dominated by the 4.3-inch, antiglare touch screen. With a WQVGA resolution (480×272 pixels), the display shows off bright and sharp-looking color maps. For the most part, we had no problems reading the screen…You can view maps in 2D or 3D mode. A status bar at the bottom of the screen displays useful information, such as the next instruction, remaining distance, and estimated time of arrival…

Nokia introduces a leading edge connected camera, navigation device and multimedia computer in one.

Nokia unveils the Nokia N82, the latest multimedia computer optimized for photography, navigation and internet connectivity. With the tools to discover the places and moments worth capturing, and the capabilities to capture and share them instantaneously, the Nokia N82 offers photography enthusiasts an enhanced camera experience.

Discover, capture and share
The Nokia N82 enables you to explore your surroundings and find your way with navigation and routing; document your adventures with the high quality imaging capabilities; and instantly share your experiences with one click upload to the web.

Featuring A-GPS, 5 megapixel camera, Xenon flash, Carl Zeiss optics and internet connectivity, the Nokia N82 also incorporates all the multimedia computer features common to Nokia Nseries. Like its predecessor the Nokia N95, the Nokia N82 is the latest epitome of a truly converged device that is not one thing but is many.

Discover the world
The powerful A-GPS and preinstalled* Nokia Maps help you explore and locate new places, whether in another country or just around the corner. All Nokia N82 standard sales packages come with a free voice guided navigation trial*, and you can purchase additional features, such as city guides and longer subscription to the navigation.

With access to more than 15 million points of interest, you can locate and navigate to the most interesting sights, bars or restaurants wherever you are. You can also send map excerpts and routes to friends by MMS or save map screen shots to the gallery.

Capture your experiences
With a 5 megapixel camera, powerful Xenon flash and Carl Zeiss optics, the Nokia N82 delivers remarkably vivid photographs, even in low-light conditions. Fast camera activation, autofocus with a dedicated autofocus assist lamp, fast reloading between shots and DVD-like quality video capture make it a truly convenient and credible tool for capturing and telling your life stories.

Thanks to the 2GB microSD card in the standard Nokia N82 sales package*, you can store up to 900 high-resolution photos or up to 84 minutes of high quality video on the device.

Share your stories
With high speed Wi-Fi connectivity and one-click upload to online communities, the Nokia N82 makes sharing your experiences and discoveries easy. When viewing a picture or video, simply one press of a button starts uploading it while you carry on using the device for other purposes.

Or you can impress your friends with multimedia slideshows – complete with music and effects – on the high resolution display or on a compatible TV.

The Nokia N82 comes with the new content driven 3D multimedia menu and includes a convenient orientation sensor that rotates the user interface automatically between horizontal and portrait mode. For quick and easy access to entertainment content, the Nokia N82 also supports the Ovi family of Nokia internet services, including Nokia Music Store, N-Gage games** and Nokia Maps.

Rochester, New York — Strafford County residents might have seen a strange looking orange minivan driving around in the last few weeks, capped with multiple cameras and foreign looking wired machines. Some might have asked themselves, What in the name of all that is good and holy is that thing doing?

The vans represent the next stage in maps. For nearly 42 centuries, maps changed very little. They became more accurate, but they remained a two-dimensional representation of the land and water underneath us.

But cartography has come a long way in the past 40 years. And Rochester and its surrounding communities have just been recorded.

Tele Atlas, a global corporation based in The Netherlands with American headquarters in Lebanon, N.H., is in the second phase of a three-year project, mapping the United States and Canada precisely.

Read more »

The modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite, launched from Cape Canaveral on Oct. 17, has been declared fully operational for military and civilian navigation users around the globe, following a successful on-orbit checkout by a combined U.S. Air Force/Lockheed Martin team.

The satellite, designated GPS IIR-17M, is the fourth in a series of eight satellites that bring new capabilities to military and civilian users of the GPS system. Each satellite features a modernized antenna panel that provides increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti- jamming capabilities for the military, and a second civil signal that will provide users with an open access signal on a different frequency.

Lockheed Martin’s operations team conducted the on-orbit deployment and checkout of all spacecraft systems in just over six days, allowing Air Force Space Command’s 2nd Space Operations Squadron (2 SOPS) based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo., to conduct the navigation payload initialization. The satellite was subsequently declared operational on Oct. 31 for both civil and military users.

Read more »