Garmin Mobile 10: Direct sat-nav to your smart phone
Want to beef your phone up and turn it into a sat-nav? Have a gander at Garmin's easy to set up solution, the Garmin Mobile 10
Only yesterday we were complaining that the Palm Centro didn't have enough oomph for our liking when -- whadda ya know? -- the postman kindly delivered the Garmin Mobile 10, a memory card and sat-nav receiver combo that converts a variety of smart phones, including the Centro, into satellite navigation devices.
You simply stick the card -- in microSD, miniSD and SD formats, all included -- into your smart phone, and the sat-nav software automatically starts to install itself. Once installed, you're ready to go and can input full addresses or just a post code. The receiver automatically pairs with your phone via Bluetooth when you launch the app. If your phone has a GPS receiver built in, you can buy the card separately, as the Garmin Mobile XT.
Similar to a standalone sat-nav you get directions read out over your phone's speaker and a 3D map view. It'll re-route you if you go the wrong way by mistake and it'll even offer real-time traffic alerts for no extra cost. Our only niggle with it is that it doesn't read out street names.
Garmin Mobile XT costs around £60 and is designed for phones that already have GPS, such as the Nokia N95 or HTC TyTN II. Garmin Mobile 10 costs around £100 and is designed for smart phones that don't have GPS built in, such as the Palm Centro or Nokia N73. For more information visit the Garmin Web site. -Andrew Lim