Q: What's the difference between portable navigation devices (PNDs) and smartphones with built-in GPS? Why do we have to pay for GPS service on smartphones, even they have built-in GPS antennas, whereas for in-car GPS, we don't need to pay a monthly subscription? Is there a smartphone which will also function as a PND that will avoid paying monthly subscription to mobile companies? --Wize Chap via e-mail
A: Wize Chap, I completely understand your confusion. On the surface, PNDs and GPS-enabled smartphones seem to offer the same services and navigation tools--maps, points of interest, turn-by-turn directions--so why in the world would you pay an extra subscription fee just to get GPS capabilities on a mobile phone when you can get it all for one price on a PND? Well, there are several reasons.
(Credit:
AT&T)
With GPS-enabled smartphones and cell phones, you're not paying for the use of the GPS antenna. You're paying for the connectivity and dynamic content provided by location-based service (LBS) providers like TeleNav and Network in Motion. This content includes real-time traffic, local business listings, and current gas prices, and the information provided on your smartphone will always be current since you have that constant connectivity. On the other hand, with an in-car GPS, you get whatever is preloaded on the device at the time of purchase. The map data and points-of-interest database may be current at the time of purchase, but eventually, they will become outdated and you will have to pay for any map updates. Also, if you want any real-time traffic information on a PND, there usually is a monthly or yearly subscription fee.
To get more clarification, I talked to MaryBeth Lowell, communications manager for TeleNav, who explained it this way, "With a PND, you pay for the device and what resides on the device when you buy it. If you want any upgrades, you have to pay for it, otherwise you have a device with a shelf life since you won't get map or business-listing upgrades--not to mention content like traffic. With phone-based nav, you get the benefit of the wireless connection, because it's inherent in the phone. But just like a connected PND, you need to pay a subscription to get the real-time content." Lowell also added that the reason for subscription fees is to pay the partners who provide and update the real-time data, noting that carriers are also part of the revenue chain.
Hope that helps, Wize Chap!
For the most part, the only person you can socialize with on a handheld GPS navigator is the chick who tells you to turn left after 100 yards.
Garmin wants to change that. The device manufacturer has partnered with location-based app company ULocate to bring its Where.com software, previously available only on compatible cell phones and carriers, to some of its devices. (It hasn't said which ones specifically.) This will give Garmin owners access to Where's own Buddy Beacon software, which shares users' current locations with friends. It can be hooked up to Where's Facebook application, too, so you can tell your friends where you are.
Personally, sharing my location isn't exactly what first comes to mind when I use an in-car GPS navigator, but some of Where's other services sound helpful: Yelp reviews, gas price comparisons from GasBuddy, and a handful of others. Unfortunately, a Where representative told me on Tuesday, those aren't encompassed in the Garmin deal.
Location-sharing has been met with some skepticism. Many people thought that location-based social-networking and friend-finding applications would explode after the launch of the iPhone 3G, but we still haven't seen an epidemic of location-sharing take off. Many cell phone owners seem to be perfectly OK not having everyone on their Facebook friends list know where they are.
I might be sold if Where makes its gas price widget available to Garmin. That's something that Ms. "After 1.1 miles, take the exit right" hasn't yet been able to offer me.
This post was updated at 6:22 a.m. PT on Tuesday to clarify that only the Buddy Beacon widget will be available on select Garmin devices.
Typing your starting point on a typical cell phone search tool can get tedious, even if you've got a high-end device with a QWERTY keyboard. A GPS-enabled cell phone can wipe those tears away, but since about 85 percent of handsets do not have GPS, most users are out of luck.
Google Maps for Mobile with My Location draws enough information from local cell phone towers to figure out where you are and then uses that information to launch a search. The idea is it saves you search time and manual effort. How well does it work? Get a glimpse in the First Look video .
You should note before downloading that Google Maps for Mobile sends anonymous radio information back to Google. If you don't want to become lab research, you may disable the entire feature from the Help menu. However, you would miss out on the most significant new keypad shortcuts.
Loopt, which offers a mobile friend-finding service, has extended the reach of its application with a new feature that allows users to notify not just other Loopt users, but any friend, of their whereabouts via text or IM.
Starting Thursday, the Loopt service is integrated with subscribers' mobile address books and AIM buddy lists so they can share their real-time location via a text message or instant message.
(Credit:
Loopt)
The way it works is that when Loopt users text or IM their friends they can choose to have their location automatically attached. So a message that says, "Want to meet for a drink?" will also include a message that says "@ 28th Street and Park Avenue." Then it will link to a map that shows the exact location.
Loopt's service, which costs $2.99 a month, is available on some Sprint Nextel and Boost Mobile handsets. The service uses GPS chips in phones to pinpoint a subscriber's location; then users can broadcast that location information to friends or family, who can track them on a tiny map. Subscribers can also sign up for alerts to find out when other Loopt friends are near. They're also able to tag photos and send them to friends with location information attached.
Location-based services are expected to generate lots of money for carriers in the future. Already, most major mobile operators are offering some kind of location-based service, such as GPS-enabled navigation or tracking. Helio, a mobile virtual-network operator, also offers a tracking service that's similar to the one offered by Loopt. Other carriers, such as Verizon Wireless, Sprint, and now Alltel, offer tracking services for parents who want to keep tabs on their kids.
Now Loopt has taken the tracking service one step further by directly integrating into the mobile address book and IM buddy list. Previously, the Loopt friend-finding service only worked with other Loopt users, which inherently limited the usability of the service.
Even with the new IM and text feature, the Loopt service is still limited in scope. For the application to truly hit the mainstream, it will have to be offered by more carriers.
Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of Loopt, says more deals are on the way. The company is already in talks with another major mobile operator in the U.S., and it should announce another deal soon. But Loopt isn't just talking to carriers. The company is also working with Google and Facebook to add new features and functionality to its service. So stay tuned.
Yahoo Research Berkeley has released prototype mobile phone software called Zurfer that gives people a look at Flickr that's tailored to their particular location.
Zurfer lets mobile phone users interact with Flickr.
(Credit: Yahoo Research Berkeley)The software, which requires a "beefy smart phone," shows photos taken recently in a mobile phone user's vicinity, an example of a so-called location-aware service. The software uses Yahoo's ZoneTag technology to infer location from the cell phone tower to which a user's phone is connected.
Zurfer also lets members perform more traditional Flickr tasks, including seeing contacts' new photos, searching for Flickr photos and accessing a Flickr account. All pictures that are part of a user's Flickr photo stream, called "Photo Wallet," are automatically shown in Zurfer.
Because Zurfer sends lots of photos over the phone's Internet connection, "We recommend that you use an unlimited data plan," Yahoo said. Also: "Beware of roaming costs."
Zurfer is one application based on the nascent "geotagging" concept in which digital photos are labeled with location information such as latitude and longitude.
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