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Right. Because those 3 feet are gonna make a difference, considering that the GPS satellites are orbiting Earth at an altitude of roughly 13,000 miles.

It's not the 3' its the metal that your car is made of.

My friend's GPS stopped working because the window tint she got contained small amounts of metal.
 
I had route 66 on an ancient nokia phone years ago, using an external bluetooth GPS, and on an old Ipaq. This isn't new - its just new to iphone.

I'd prefer a solution that works offline in case you're in a bad signal area, and maps these days are pretty small - maybe a gig?

Nokia maps uses both methods - you can either preload the maps for a chosen area from a PC to your phone and then its all offline, or you can download over 3G as you go. Maybe the tom tom solution for iphone will be the same.

And as for what happens when you get a call - seriously? You aren't literally driving by the spoken directions. You can take a call while still having the visual indicators on screen. Its not like you're going to drive over a cliff because you didn't hear the satnav tell you to turn left. You still have to pay attention.
 
Exactly, mrklaw. This is just now coming to a late entry on the smartphone market, and so far I haven't had any problems not getting lost while taking a phone call.

For the rest:

tomtom_xda_2s_mount.jpg


If a call or a text message comes in, it pops up in the lower third of the screen and you can decide whether to take the call or read the message, or not.
 
Integrated SMS and MMS* texting during navigation using a split screen mode would be cool.

* MMS not supported by AT&T until the end of the summer of 2009.

MMM tell me where you drive so I can move to a different city....

*/somebody who works on a trauma unit... Everyday incidents with people trying to call and *Text* while driving... I have seen a few lives lost because of this in the last 3 years./*
 
If the crippled Slingplayer is going for $30 then you can bet your ass that Tom Tom is going to cost a helluva lot more.

This whole $30 and $50 pricing talk is a pipe dream.

Remember that these guys are in all likelihood looking to eventually replace their revenue stream from physical devices with software sales on devices like the iPhone.

$30 for an application when Apple takes 1/2 is not going to come even close to cutting it. They have to pay almost that much for the nav data anyways.

I would expect the navigation applications to be among the most expensive in the App store.

Then I'll keep smokin' til we find out! :D
 
I have an old huge clunker of a Garmin and this would be a welcome replacement. Again, at the right price.
 
Loss of cell signal should not hinder TomTom

I used to have a BB Curve 8310 and used both Telenav and Mapquest Navigator on it. What both of those apps did was download the entire maps you need for a trip. So instead of continuously streaming map data, it is already downloaded on your phone. So if you loose your cell signal, it doesn't matter.

Now if you go off course and don't have a cell signal then you could get lost.

Also, I would also imagine this would be a subscription service. Say $10/month and not a $99 +/- product to buy.

These are of course speculation since nobody knows unless you work for TomTom. Take it as you will.
 
The reason many of us ARE iPhone users is because we don't believe we should have to own 10 pieces of hardware in order to get 10 services. There's a distinct advantage in letting your one master device do everything. (There's also a disadvantage, in that you're completely SOL if your one device breaks, but many of us assume that will never happen. :D)

Assuming there's a traffic feature, I'd pay up to $100 for this.

Another advantage to the iPhone/GPS unit is that when you exit your car you pocket the device because it has multiple other uses. My friend who has a stand-alone GPS unit has to stuff it all under his seat after he parks so the idiots who see it don't do a couple hundred dollars of damage to his car in order to steal it.

Just something more to factor in.
 
Buy the TomTom One 130 (for $49 after $20 rebate) or the TomTom One 130S ($69.99 after $20 rebate) refurbished units on Amazon and save your money for the likely very overpriced app. Do you really want to leave your iPhone in the sun on the dashboard anyway for extended periods of time?

Though looking back at the Amazon pages, they seem to have stopped the rebate on the 130 model for some reason but it still seems to be on for the 130S.

I've got a TomTom One 3rd Edition that I'd most likely use on long trips to save wear and tear on the iPhone. However, On around last minute trips I might not have the TT with me. So having the iPhone as an alternative might come in handy.

Map updates are another ongoing expense on the TomTom One. I wonder how much that is going to cost on the iPhone?

Also, I wonder if the iPhone would have all the features of even my old TT?
 
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If the dock enhances GPS, then how exactly do you think it's going to be done other than with a GPS chip inside? Pink taffy and LSD?

It could house a much larger antenna to capture the satellite signal than apple has supplied inside the iPhone.
 
I won't be $99 or more because yo ureally have to by the windshield adapter, which will be $40-50.

So that would put you around $150, which is more than a low-end stand alone Tom Tom system.

Yes, you will pay a premium because it's an iPhone, but NO one is going to pay more than $100 bucks.

Besides, many people already gave a GPS system. There needs to be an incentive to switch. That, and you aren't paying for any physical hardware.
 
It could house a much larger antenna to capture the satellite signal than apple has supplied inside the iPhone.
How would that antenna make this signal reach the GPS chip deep buried inside the phone. Do you think there is a direct connection between the dock and antenna input of this GPS chip? This is just a plastic mount.
 
Lack of real GPS with turn by turn was the core reason I never bought it.
It is now the reason I will buy it :D

P.S. Next time you take a domestic plane trip check out your 'whatever' GPS with you..
Looks wild travelling 900kph over city streets.. zoom out... from the road..
 
Agreed. Also I hope that mount is good and it doesn't constantly drop off the window.:eek:
I have a TomTom and the suction falls off the windshield about every 15 minutes or so. At least it does not fall on its screen.

Remember that these guys are in all likelihood looking to eventually replace their revenue stream from physical devices with software sales on devices like the iPhone. $30 for an application when Apple takes 1/2 is not going to come even close to cutting it.
Apple does not take half and TomTom might even have a better deal than the usual percentage applied to other smaller developers. In any case, they would want to maintain their profits, sure, but hardware involves a lot of production, shipping and R&D costs. I don't think they would mind being a software only company if they had to. If they can make money selling basic units at around $100, a software only package should cost considerably less.
 
I currently use a Navigon, but in the past I had a TomTom. (The reason I replaced it was because someone broke into my car and took the TomTom Doh! :eek:)

Anyway, the TomTom apps looks interesting, but I am really liking the Navigon map display. Maybe I'll see what the Navigon apps would look like.

I remember hearing the Navigon was leaving the US market. Would an apps only be for Europe?
 
What if i don't want the silly dashboard mount?

I have my own iPhone dashboard mount, I don't really want to buy something I already have?

But...will it cripple the app's functionality? Also, in the demo vids, the mount looks very snug - what about those of us with iPhone cases? Will they fit?

Trivial questions, but valid all the same.
 
I wish that either Google Earth supported directions, or Google Maps could give you that angled view. As long as they both support compass data, there would be no need for these 3rd party apps.

I take it you live in an area where you have constant coverage. I don't, so an app with offline maps is required.
 
This is just a plastic mount.
How do you know, have you seen one or read more detailed specs? While SandynJosh was just speculating, so are you. Personally, I expect the cradle to be able to enhance the GPS signal by either having a GPS receiver or have an inbuilt antenna (my bet) which will connect to the onboard GPS through the dock connector. TomTom themselves also claim:
The TomTom car kit for iPhone; a specially developed car kit for secure docking, enhanced GPS performance, clear voice instructions, hands-free calling and in-car charging.
So I fully expect it to have a built in speaker too
 
Along with many others I will happily buy this or something similar. I currently have a Magellan that I don't really like all that much (it gets confused pretty easily). The allure of the iPhone to me has always been that I only need a single device. Phone, iPod, camera, video camera, gps device! Wow - that's pretty impressive for a single device (and cheap, contrary to the complainers).

I've been saving for the Garmin 705 Edge for my bike. I think I'll just figure out how to mount this bad boy on my bike and buy a much cheaper suunto or polar HRM.

I would like to see topo maps, though, with waypoints for hunting, hiking, and fishing. It should be an interesting year for the iPhone (at least the 3GS).
 
iPhone and iPod touch?

will this TOMTOM Nav work on the iPod touch or is the iPhone the only one that will work?
 
will this TOMTOM Nav work on the iPod touch or is the iPhone the only one that will work?
Well, it's only being promoted for the iPhone, which is why I expect the cradle to be an external antenna rather than have an in built GPS, but no one really knows yet
 
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