Navigon iPhone GPS app to get social media, panoramic 3D view
Navigon is about to release a major update for its MobileNavigator GPS app for the iPhone that adds social media interaction, panoramic 3D views, and Navigon MyRoutes.
Of all the GPS applications for the iPhone, Navigon's MobileNavigator has arguably been the most comprehensive. It already has a lot of features, and Navigation is about to add a few more.
The company announced another major update Tuesday, version 1.5.0, that will add in-app connections to Facebook and Twitter, Panorama View 3D with 3D terrain views powered by NASA data, and personalized route delivery via Navigon MyRoutes.
The in-app connection to social media Web sites lets you report your current position, destination, and estimated time of arrival via a single tap on an icon on the phone's screen. According to Navigon, the reporting won't interrupt navigation. This feature would come in handy if you want to regularly report to friends about your whereabouts for both event planning and safety reasons. This feature, of course, will use the phone's data connection.
On the other hand, the Panorama View 3D feature will be integrated with the app's built-in maps and won't require a data connection. According to Navigon, it offers true 3D in-map views obtained from NASA's height and terrain data, which shows an intuitive orientation of surrounding environments as well as what lies ahead with digital landscape elevations, shadows, and geographic images.
The last feature, Navigon MyRoutes, is designed to analyze driving habits, patterns, location, and so on to provide up to three routes clearly displayed in-map with ETA, distance, and driving times provided for each. This gives drivers quick access to finding the best route at any given time.
The 1.5.0 update will be available sometime in spring. Except for the Panorama View 3D feature that costs $9.99 via an in-app purchase, the other two features are free.
Navigon has also started a promotion period that ends on February 15. During the promotion, price for the Navigon MobileNavigator app is reduced to $69.99 (as opposed to the regular price of $89.99 ) and the Traffic Live feature's one-time cost is only $19.99 (down from $24.99).
Apart from GPS-ready iPhones (the 3G and 3GS), the Navigon's MobileNavigator app also runs on first-generation iPhones an iPod Touches, with the required addition of a GPS accessory.