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JVC puts a nav screen in a car stereo

Convergence is the name of the digital game at CES 2007. Music players become phones, phones become GPS devices, and GPS devices become music players. In the latest effort to combine two previously distinct products, JVC Mobile has integrated an 3.5-inch color LCD screen into the faceplate of a in-car stereo head unit to provide drivers with movies, music and directions in one after-market device.

The KD-NX5000, on display at CES for the first time, is an impressive product. Its 16GB hard drive-based navigation system contains 13 million points of interest and comes with a built-in RDS-TMC traffic tuner … Read more

Car infotainment to be two-way traffic

In-dash navigation and entertainment systems are great if you're the driver, but not so much fun for the front passenger. Not only do those riding shotgun have their navigational responsibilities usurped by an electronic processor, they're also forced to wait until the car is stopped to watch movies or even program in a destination.

There is a good reason behind this, of course--drivers can't have the distraction of a movie playing while racing along in the fast lane of the freeway, and punching in a destination on the touch screen is a dangerous diversion from the road. … Read more

Dash Express turns to navigation 2.0

One of the most eagerly anticipated aftermarket car tech gadgets at this year's CES is the Dash Express from Dash Navigation. Dash Express is the first portable navigation system to have built-in two-way connectivity (cellular and Wi-Fi), giving drivers access to a whole new world of information via the Internet and the network of other Dash-connected users. The system display real-time traffic data, which comes from the network of other Dash drivers, while Web connectivity gives drivers a points-of-interest database served up by Yahoo Local, with whom Dash announced a partnership last week. Here are some of the major … Read more

Eclipse bridges the gap between in-dash and portable navigation

Eclipse kicked off its CES 2007 press conference with the unveiling of the AVN2210p, an in-dash navigation and multimedia system that doubles as a handheld portable navigation device. The system comes in two parts, with a standalone portable navigation device, similar to the TomTom One, slotting into a double-DIN-sized audio unit installed in a car's dash.

The AVN 2210p's SD card-based navigation system features real-time traffic information as part of TomTom's optional service package, and can be updated by downloading maps from the Internet. The navigation system provides 3D maps and turn-by-turn voice directions, which play either … Read more

Samsung phone grows a joystick

As we continue to monitor its evolutionary process in midstream, we observe that the mobile phone has taken another Darwinian step. A species of the Samsung family has just grown a joystick.

The "Optical Joystick" V960 model is being touted as the first mobile phone with said feature, according to Fareastgizmos. It actually behaves more like a laptop touchpad than a console joystick and is designed for menu navigation, not fragging. The phone, which includes a 2-megapixel camera, also features a new "Smart Lighting" sensor that automatically adjusts screen and keypad brightness.

We're not sure … Read more

ViaMichelin shows North America some GPS love

Like many Japanese and European parties that Americans have arrived woefully late to, (see also: soccer; 3G networks; Law, Jude), the personal navigation device is just now going mainstream.

Though it's obviously not the only to do so, ViaMichelin released its first personal navigation device for the North American market this week after ignoring us for six years in favor of our apparently more direction-challenged European counterparts.

Using SiRFstarIII GPS receiver technology and NAVTEQ digital map data, the X-930 model can give voice and text directions for driving in the car and walking down the street.

Weighing in at … Read more

Navigator could be 3D life-saver

It may look like an air hockey mallet, but don't laugh--it could be your survival guide if you get lost in Second Life.

The "SpaceNavigator," developed by Logitech subsidiary 3D Connexion, offers an alternative to the mouse movement and keystroke combinations now used to navigate 3D environments or move 3D objects.

Using six optical sensors, the navigator isn't a replacement for a mouse but is intended for use in the mouse-free hand. You can move through a 3D space by gripping the top of the SpaceNavigator and sliding it around, twisting it like a dial, tilting … Read more

Eye in the sky, on your cell phone

TrafficGauge lets you use your cell phone to view traffic conditions on a nice color-coded map showing slow traffic in red, medium-speed traffic in yellow, and fast traffic in green. The company previously launched a handheld unit showing similar information in an ugly but useful monochrome display. TrafficGauge's new cellular service enables anyone with a cell phone capable of texting and showing color graphics to get traffic conditions in 17 metropolitan areas, such as Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Atlanta.

To use the service, go to the TrafficGauge Web site, click to the cellular service area, … Read more