about-electronics.eu

GPS Review: Details of the new TomTom DUO device, scheduled to be coming to CeBIT next month, have been leaked. As the name applies it looks like it will come with a couple of primary functions, navigation and an iPod docking system.

As you can see from this image, it looks like a dock will be available where you can snap in TomTom DUO into one case.

What remains a question though is the exact function of this dock. Will it be a component replacement for a car stereo as has been rumored in the past or will it be a stand-alone device?

It does appear as though the dock will have an FM transmitter to be able to play music stored on an iPod or other USB music player though your car stereo.

While the ONE comes with Bluetooth only for the TomTom PLUS services, it looks like the TomTom DUO will get hands free calling with compatible Bluetooth phones as well.

In terms of the physical aspects, the TomTom DUO looks just like the ONE, except it has square sides unlike the rounded sides of the current TomTom ONE.

read more

Springwise: According to independent research (…), personal navigation devices (PND) have another important benefit: a positive influence on traffic safety. Part of the research focused on data collected on 115,197 drivers of lease cars. Those without PNDs had a 12% higher rate of damage incidents, and damage costs were on average 5% higher.

Research also showed that drivers with navigation devices were less distracted, ignored fewer traffic signs, felt more in control and less stressful.

All of which is being rewarded by Dutch insurance company Delta Lloyd, which co-commissioned the research with Dutch makers of PNDs TomTom. Customers who send in their TomTom product number will receive 10% discount on their Delta Lloyd auto insurance.

read more

Hexus.lifestyle: TomTom yesterday admitted that some of its range-leading hard-disk-based GO 910 models are carrying virus infections – a situation the company seems to have known about since mid-December.

A number of owners of GO 910s had realised that the sat-nav’s hard disk was infected with a virus (or “win32.Perlovga.A Trojan” by its Latin name) and told the company about this.

TomTom has issued a statement to the effect that only a small, isolated number of TomTom GO 910’s, produced between September and November 2006, may be infected with a virus.

The company claims that the virus is qualified as low risk and can be removed safely with virus scanning software.

read more

Sat nav producer TomTom has confirmed that those of its devices which contain information about speed-surveillance and safety cameras have been banned in Switzerland with immediate effect.

A TomTom spokesperson said the new rules adopted by Switzerland were not directed against all portable navigation devices, but against all gadgets that warn of safety cameras and mobile speed surveillance locations. Their use, production, import and sale is now illegal in the country.

The measures apply for the models TomTom GO 710 and TomTom GO 910, but not for the TomTom ONE model, which does not have the feature.

U.S. rival company Garmin was also affected by the new regulation in Switzerland.

Source: Het Financieele Dagblad

read more

TG Daily: TomTom said that it will be marketing a GPS navigation system to the automotive industry, which can be embedded into the dash, but also comes with the capability to be removed by users of the system.

According to the company, the new device, scheduled to be available this summer, can be coupled with a radio, infotainment head unit, or built directly into the dashboard.

The manufacturer said that the navigation device will provide full audio integration with other components of the car, playing CDs and MP3s in Hi-Fi stereo quality, and will be compatible with spoken instructions and phone calls via the car’s speakers.

Pricing of the system has not been announced.

read more

Reuters: Dutch Philips Electronics has shelved plans to make mobile personal navigation systems, the chief executive of Philips’ consumer electronics unit said on Tuesday. (…)
Rudy Provoost of Philips told analysts at a meeting that Europe’s biggest consumer electronics producer would not enter the market for navigation devices, citing existing competition and the low profitability of introducing a new product in a saturated market.

Philips had said in June that it was planning to make its own navigation devices, which would weigh 160 grams and be 2 centimeters thick.

The announcement weighed on shares of TomTom at the time.

read more

The Register: Car navigation equipment maker TomTom has lost its “me too” design infringment case against Garmin.

In a normal summary proceeding TomTom asked a judge to prevent the sale of Garmin’s StreetPilot c300 and c500 series in Europe, alleging that Garmin copied aspects of the TomTom GO design in its product line.

Yesterday the Dutch judge ruled that at first glance there are clear differences between Garmin’s StreetPilot c300 and c500 and TomTom’s Go models. For instance, Garmin’s c300 and c500 have an angular form, while TomTom’s Go has a round shape. The judge included drawings to underpin his views.

TomTom said it won’t appeal, but is counting on a procedure on the merits it has filed earlier on Garmin’s car navigation design. There are also several patent infringement cases between the two rivals.

Earlier this year, Garmin called for unspecified financial damages in its claim that TomTom is unlawfully using five US-patented Garmin technologies designed to “calculate which streets are important enough to a drivers’ route to be displayed”.

read more

Reuters: Mobile phone signals sent from traffic jams will enable a real-time travel information service, British telecoms group Vodafone and Dutch sat nav company TomTom said on Friday.

The service will be available in the Netherlands in the second half of 2007, using the Dutch Vodafone network.

Mobile phones continuously beam signals to their nearest base stations, which gives the network provider the approximate location of the phone.  TomTom will use this location information to establish if roads are congested, if and by how much the trip will be delayed, and if alternative routes can be suggested.

Mobile phone penetration is more than 100 percent in the Netherlands, meaning that every person carries one or more mobile phones.

“The service provides a much more accurate, faster and more detailed picture of the actual travel times than current solutions. The total investments are a fraction of the current, road side equipment based solutions,” TomTom said.

Unlike current systems, the TomTom system would monitor all roads.

“This is an industry first,” Harold Goddijn, TomTom’s chief executive officer said in a statement. “We are looking forward to signing further deals with leading operators across Europe and the U.S.,” he added.

TomTom sells more than half of all standalone car navigation devices in Europe. In the third quarter it sold 1.2 million of its route finders.

read more

Gadgetcandy: Welcome to the satnav answer to the iPod. Fujitsu-Siemens’ new pocket PDA/satnav is lighter than Apple’s device, has a superbly bright 2.8-inch touchscreen and wraps up mini maps’n'music…
The LOOX N100 excels as a satnav. Getting a satellite fix takes a so-so five minutes, but selecting postcode destinations or points of interest (POI) using the touchscreen takes seconds, and route calculation is similarly brisk.

Price: £270 (400 euro)
Features: 2.8-inch touchscreen. 128MB internal memory. UK maps. MP3 player. 100g.
Love: Tiny case. Bright screen. Superb satnav software. MP3 player is a cool bonus.
Loathe: No traffic or speed-cam info built in. No business applications.
Overall rating: 4/5
We say: TomTom beware: Fujitsu-Siemens has come out of left field and made one of the most portable and easy-to-use satnavs yet.

Navigation is comparable to TomTom’s devices, with smooth, real-time 3D graphics, clear voice guidance at a volume that automatically goes up as you accelerate, and helpful on-screen info. You also get multiple route profiles and speed warnings, though there’s no camera database on board. You’ll need to buy a TMC aerial goodie for traffic updates.

The unit ships with UK maps on a 1Gb miniSD card, and there are thousands of points of interest, including tourist sights and decent restaurants, instead of the usual selection of service stations and dogburger joints.

The music player is better than you might expect, with superior earphones to the iPod (not that that’s saying much). As a PDA it’s a bit feature-lite – no business apps here, just a world clock, calculator and retro games to pass the time.

Battery life is on the short side at about six hours, but for occasional in-car use and tourist walkabouts, there isn’t a more convenient satnav around. Garmin, TomTom et al should be worried, and if you add a bigger miniSD card, even your iPod might be looking to its laurels.

read more

Dutch sat nav firm TomTom said that its third-quarter net profit rose 24% to €73 million, after sales rose 41% to €353 million.

The company said that it shipped 1.2 million portable navigation devices in the quarter, up 119% from a year ago, as the market for its products continued to grow strongly.

TomTom said that it’s now expecting 2006 sales in a range of €1.3 billion to €1.4 billion, up from a prior estimate range of €1.1 billion to €1.3 billion.

TomTom expects a gross margin of at least 40% and an operating margin of above 20%.

In related news, TomTom have also signed an exclusive deal with Toyota to bundle their GO710 unit with new cars sold in Taiwan.

Source: MarketWatch

read more

Dutch car navigation system maker TomTom will sue U.S. rival Garmin.  According to TomTom, Garmin has launched products which resemble too much of TomTom’s first navigation tools launched in 2004.

In February 2006 Garmin announced it would sue TomTom over patent infringement. The patent infringement lawsuit, which is not yet over, was filed with the Western District Court of Wisconsin and involves claims for alleged infringement of five Garmin patents in the United States.

Source: De Financiele Telegraaf

read more

The North America portable GPS market has been barraged in the past 45 days with new products and new suppliers, all vying to gain a toe hold in the expected 3 million unit market this year.

New brands including Uniden, Rand McNally and Dash Navigation, have announced market entries and current suppliers Delphi, Mio, Cobra, Navman, Lowrance and TeleType, as well as the “big three” market leaders: Garmin, TomTom and Magellan have announced new products.

It remains to be seen if some of the contenders can break the market stronghold enjoyed by Garmin, TomTom and Magellan, which collectively own about 85 percent share, according to The NPD Group.

With the portable GPS category ready to nearly triple in sales this year and possibly double again next year, many brands are doing their best to topple the big three’s juggernaut.

The contenders’ success will be determined in part by pricing and by distribution, said Ross Rubin, NPD’s industry analysis director.

He notes that Garmin, with 40 to 50 percent share, has been aggressive on price to help defend its stronghold. Making some inroads in market share, however, are Sony and Pioneer, which have each gained by a few points recently, said Rubin.

Sony has the advantage of strong distribution, he said. Pioneer has been offering a free portable GPS with the purchase of a Pioneer in-dash navigation system.

Rubin noted, “It’s easy to get into the category, but it’s difficult to differentiate one self.”

Source: This Week in Consumer Electronics

read more