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Ummm...like most things Apple, it will be an addon for the future.

Not necessarily. Apple did directly tell David Pogue, "the iPhone’s G.P.S. antenna is much too small to emulate the turn-by-turn navigation of a G.P.S. unit for a vehicle, for example."

Again, please read my previous post in this thread. We DO NOT know all the answers and limitations, technical or otherwise, at this time.
 
Um, no one said it can't do turn-by-turn. Apple advertises "turn-by-turn" on its own site.

What was said by Apple to ONE REVIEWER is that the antenna is too small for IN VEHICLE turn-by-turn use. And you might do well to read my above post.

Apple isn't about surprises once a product is in the bin...
 
That's not necessarily true..

I don't think Apple intends to have the iPhone be a replacement for stand alone GPS devices, such as tomtom, magellan, garmin etc,etc...
Why not? They've practically swept the floor with the iphone on the mobile market. Why not go at standalone GPS devices? :D

:apple: is here to conquer the world! :cool:
 
Why not? They've practically swept the floor with the iphone on the mobile market. Why not go at standalone GPS devices? :D

:apple: is here to conquer the world! :cool:

Because standalone/dedicated in-car GPS devices have MUCH larger GPS antennas, and much larger batteries and/or are designed for direct connection to power.

(Yes, yes, we're well aware that the iPhone could be attached to a power source in a vehicle, too. That's not exactly the point I'm making, here. The point is that the design needs are much different between a wireless telephone handset and a dedicated in-car navigation system.)
 
the map sizes for tomtom are not very big

for US and Canada it is 897.9mb and apparently that is 99% coverage

http://www.tomtom.com/products/maps/select.php?D=1089&Language=1&P=337

i used tomtom navigator 6 on my old phone and it was great. all the people saying about battery life with using the GPS for directions in card have they not heard of a POWERED incar cradle. this way no worries about a dead battery. if tomtom do release an iphone version i would not hesitate buying it
 
Because standalone/dedicated in-car GPS devices have MUCH larger GPS antennas, and much larger batteries and/or are designed for direct connection to power.

Back to if it doesn't work well in a car, then why include it? Most people aren't walking looking for things.
 
Why not? They've practically swept the floor with the iphone on the mobile market. Why not go at standalone GPS devices? :D

:apple: is here to conquer the world! :cool:

lol, because if they did go that route, they would make a stand alone player to get more money out of people, they're not going to include it in the phone,

They'll make a stand alone that is compatible with the iPhone.. :D
 
Because standalone/dedicated in-car GPS devices have MUCH larger GPS antennas, and much larger batteries and/or are designed for direct connection to power.

(Yes, yes, we're well aware that the iPhone could be attached to a power source in a vehicle, too. That's not exactly the point I'm making, here. The point is that the design needs are much different between a wireless telephone handset and a dedicated in-car navigation system.)
What if Apple makes a standalone antenna like most Car GPS devices do? And you know that youre able to charge the iphone in your car right?
 
What if Apple makes a standalone antenna like most Car GPS devices do? And you know that youre able to charge the iphone in your car right?

I think deep down, we both know that Apple doesn't plan on making a GPS "standalone antenna" for the iPhone anytime soon..
 
Back to if it doesn't work well in a car, then why include it? Most people aren't walking looking for things.

Any GPS antenna in a phone handset anywhere near the size of the iPhone will have the same limitations.

Yes, there have been in-car, turn-by-turn systems for the iPhone. There just as easily could be, from a technical standpoint, for the iPhone. We don't know whether there will be. We don't know whether it's because of carrier agreements, worldwide licensing concerns, Google Maps data use issues, or because Apple has its own plans. We just don't know.

And if you've been paying attention, what Apple is going after is Location Based Services (LBS), which, to date, no one has been really able to conquer. The prevailing belief among some analysts and pundits is that Apple is going to be the first one to do this, and it's going to be huge.

It's not just about in-car, turn-by-turn navigation only.
 
man I wish I could get my old iphone back:)

Yeah, the real hype is about the 2.0 software and the App Store...

And since the current iPhone is 2.0 software compatible I don't see a reason to upgrade unless you just have to have it, no matter how good or bad it might be..
 
What if Apple makes a standalone antenna like most Car GPS devices do?

There are no technical limitations that would necessarily prevent this...unless there are no antenna pinouts in the dock connector, which means an external antenna would be impossible. We won't know whether this is the case with iPhone 3G until it is released.

And you know that youre able to charge the iphone in your car right?

Um, what did I *just say* in my previous reply?

We all know how powerful the iPhone platform is, and because of this, I know many people are wishing for the coolest in-car navigation system ever. But that might not happen right away, and depending on other limitations and agreements, it might not happen at all.

And it can't happen in the "hacking" community, because that market would always be too small for something like a commercial-quality, reliable vehicle navigation product. This needs to happen within Apple's application ecosystem, or it's not happening.

Why don't we wait until the iPhone is out, and then we'll know more about what's technically possible, possible under the license, possible with respect to Google Maps data, etc. The reason I say "wait until the iPhone is out" is because Apple will perhaps further clarify some of these issues.
 
Any GPS antenna in a phone handset anywhere near the size of the iPhone will have the same limitations.

Yes, there have been in-car, turn-by-turn systems for the iPhone. There just as easily could be, from a technical standpoint, for the iPhone. We don't know whether there will be. We don't know whether it's because of carrier agreements, worldwide licensing concerns, Google Maps data use issues, or because Apple has its own plans. We just don't know.

And if you've been paying attention, what Apple is going after is Location Based Services (LBS), which, to date, no one has been really able to conquer. The prevailing belief among some analysts and pundits is that Apple is going to be the first one to do this, and it's going to be huge.

It's not just about in-car, turn-by-turn navigation only.

I know that we dont know anything, but this is a forum for discussion, and we're currently discussing the possibilities of the iphone being a gps car device. Why dont you head over to www.plzdontdiscussanythingonthisforum.com if you dont like us DISCUSSING the current situation.
 
Sounds like a job for the famous iPhone aftermarket.

Exactly, that would be the best bet..

I firmly believe Apple doesn't want the iPhone to be a "TRUE" turn by turn navigation unit, whether it's because of it's focus on Location Based Services, or it's focused on something else..
 
I know that we dont know anything, but this is a forum for discussion, and we're currently discussing the possibilities of the iphone being a gps car device. Why dont you head over to www.plzdontdiscussanythingonthisforum.com if you dont like us DISCUSSING the current situation.

My complaint isn't with discussion. It's people stating things as fact that they have no clue about. Even the title of this thread is wrong...Apple said the GPS antenna wasn't good enough for IN VEHICLE turn-by-turn, not ANY turn-by-turn, considering it advertises and shows just that on its own web site.
 
Exactly, that would be the best bet..

I firmly believe Apple doesn't want the iPhone to be a "TRUE" turn by turn navigation unit, whether it's because of it's focus on Location Based Services, or it's focused on something else..

It's because Apple doesn't want the iPhone to do anything it won't be leaps and bounds better at than other devices (in general). And you're right about LBS, at least in part.

But again, if there are no pinouts for the GPS antenna in the dock connector — which I personally highly doubt there will be, but we'll see — then there will be no external GPS antennas, period.
 
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