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Sony brings TomTom to US-bound XNV-770BT and XNV-660BT in-dash head units

Darren Murph — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:32:00 +0000

We heard back at IFA that Sony was making the absolutely brilliant move of incorporating a market leading navigational system into its Xplod line of in-dash A/V units, and now that love is being shipped across the Atlantic (or the Pacific, if you're taking the scenic route) in the form of the XNV-770BT and XNV-660BT. The beautiful Sony / TomTom partnership will soon be assisting clueless American motorists when both of the previously mentioned units ship in November, with the 770BT offering a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen and the 660BT stepping down to a 6.1-incher. They'll both feature rear USB ports for iDevice connections, support for multi-channel audio playback and most importantly, pre-loaded maps of US and Canadian roadways. TomTom claims that its maps offer more than one million more miles of roads than other GPS brands in America alone, and buyers will also be treated to familiar TomTom extras like IQ Routes, Advanced Lane Guidance, MapShare and six million POIs. We still wish Garmin would've received the nod here, but it's certainly better than some white label system -- check 'em soon for $1,300 and $1,000 in order of mention. Continue reading Sony brings TomTom to US-bound XNV-770BT and XNV-660BT in-dash head units

Sony brings TomTom to US-bound XNV-770BT and XNV-660BT in-dash head units originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Sep 2010 12:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Xplod navigation comes with TomTom software

Dave Rubert — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:34:51 +0000

The new SonyXplod AV Navigation Systems will be coming with TomTom navigation software which is fully connected, offering LIVE services such as HD Traffic to keep you out of traffic jams and Google business address searches. Other TomTom features that are available on Sony Xplod (aka XNV-L77BT) are the IQ Routes and Map Share which make use of the actual speed data collected from millions of users to accurately calculate the travel time of any given route. It accounts for rush hours, traffic lights, and even shopping crowds when calculating your ETA. Brought to you by your GPS navigation site NaviGadget. Sony Xplod navigation comes with TomTom software

Darth Vader Drives You Through the Dark Side of the Road [GPS]

Jesus Diaz — Tue, 04 May 2010 16:40:00 +0000

TomTom has decided to celebrate Star Wars Day—May 4th—with a Darth Vader voice for their GPS devices, complete with Imperial March playback, rattling lightsabers, and flying TIE Fighters. And there are more Star Wars characters coming soon: More »

Garmin and TomTom cling to profits, hope

Thomas Ricker — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 07:44:00 +0000

As everyone knows, Garmin and TomTom have their backs against the ropes in a fight to remain relevant in an age of free GPS turn-by-turn navigation on smartphones (thanks Google and Nokia). While dedicated personal navigators are almost always superior to their converged competition, the gap has certainly narrowed such that it's become difficult to justify another device when an increasing number of people already carry a fine navigation device in their pockets. But that's just gut instinct talking, where's the hard evidence? Certainly not speculative stock prices. A good place to start is in forward-looking financial statements like the one Garmin, the leading navigation device maker in the US, just issued. Gamin says that it expects competition to cause prices to decline by about 10% in the personal navigation device (PND) industry putting pressure on margins, and thus profits, in 2010. It also sees flat or slightly declining revenue over the same period. Fortunately for Garmin, it has a diversified product offering that includes the Nuvifone. However, Garmin admits to being disappointed by sales of the handset that "won" our Editor's Choice award for Worst Gadget of the Year.

Things aren't all doom and gloom, though. Garmin has a pair of Nuvifones in the chute including the Android-powered A50. And its Q4 results of $1.43 per share easily beat analyst expectations of 95 cents a share. Even TomTom surprised many last week with a 1% increase in Q4 revenue and net profit of €75 million compared to a €989 million loss a year ago. So there's some hope left for the dedicated PND market... but not much.

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

Garmin and TomTom cling to profits, hope originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 02:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TomTom Ease

Tim Robbins — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 08:04:33 +0000

TomTom just introduced an entry level GPS navigation system called TomTom Ease. It will have a 3.5″ touchscreen, 2GB memory that includes TeleAtlas maps of the US, and text-to-speech feature (we’re really glad text-to-speech is now part even the lowest end sat nav systems). Other features include their famous fold & go easy mount, Map Share technology, IQ Routes, and Help Me menu for emergencies. We’re not sure how much it will cost yet but how much are you guys hoping for? Brought to you by your GPS navigation site NaviGadget. TomTom Ease

TomTom Go I-90 integrates into any dashboard, brings radio ‘infotainment’

Vladislav Savov — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:04:00 +0000

TomTom has been on a mission to keep itself relevant as smartphones increasingly start to overstep on its territory, and the GO I-90 is another move in its counteroffensive plan. Capable of slotting into the double DIN slot usually reserved for in-car radio / music players, its big selling point is that it integrates into your dashboard yet is still capable of being moved around like a discrete nav unit. You wouldn't be left decrying the loss of your radio either, with the GO I-90 sporting FM (with RDS support) and AM reception, USB support for MP3 players including iPods, and a promised compatibility with an "extensive" list of phones for handsfree calling -- unfortunately, the poorly worded PR makes no mention of Bluetooth so we're not sure how they'll pull that off. Throw in a guarantee to receive the latest maps, TomTom's Map Share for crowdsourced routes, and a Help-Me! emergency menu, and you get a pretty comprehensive product. Shame about that €599 (about $893) sticker then. Available in Europe in December.

Filed under: GPS

TomTom Go I-90 integrates into any dashboard, brings radio 'infotainment' originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 06:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota and TomTom take Australia

admin — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:23:08 +0000

Toyota and TomTom have been working together in Europe as it can be seen with the Toyota Yaris SR, and just today they announced a partnership in Australia announcing a portable GPS navigation system that fits into your vehicle’s dashboard. It is called FollowMe navigation unit and it also takes care of the audio in your vehicle. When in portable mode the TomTom device can be used in other vehicles or even in pedestrian mode. FollowMe gets traffic updates from Suna Traffic Monitoring Services to help you battle with traffic, has bluetooth connectivity to pair up with your phone, and it can even read your text messages out loud. Now that’s a life saver. TomTom FollowMe has a 3.5″ screen, and it can even hook up to rear view camera if you opt-in.

FollowMe’s motorized tilting front panel can be adjusted up to 30 degrees to reduce sun glare, and hides the CD slot. You’ve got an optional iPod connection kit (costs extra) that brings your GUI to the dash, and if you remove your navigator you can still use all the other functions of FollowMe.

FollowMe – which really resembles an Eclipse AVN2210p by the way – uses a built-in gyroscope and accelerometer that calculates vehicle speed and direction, even in tunnels where satellite signals generally drop out… via

Brought to you by your GPS navigation site NaviGadget.

Toyota and TomTom take Australia

Sanyo and TomTom team up to take over America

admin — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 07:24:24 +0000

According to WSJ TomTom and Sanyo are joining their forces to sell their devices to car makers.

Japanese Sanyo announced yesterday that it will team up with Dutch TomTom to grab more market share in North America and Europe where the auto industry is supposedly picking up.

The collaboration between Sanyo and TomTom will supply auto makers with customized in-dash GPS navigation systems as early as 2010.

Sanyo has been making GPS navigation systems in Japan since 1993 where factory fitted sat nav system are more common place. On the other hand North Americans and Europeans are more into after market, windshield mounted, unsightly, portable systems.

Brought to you by your GPS navigation site NaviGadget.

Sanyo and TomTom team up to take over America