Pioneer suing Garmin over three navigation patents

Pioneer’s GPS products don’t make huge waves in the Stateside navigation market, but it’s actually got some fairly broad patents on route guidance and mapping, and apparently Garmin’s infringing them. That’s at least the story Pioneer’s telling to the US International Trade Commission, where it’s filed a complaint against Garmin and asked for a ban on sales of GPS products that infringe the patents. Obviously that would shake things up in a big way, but we clearly don’t have the whole story here — Pioneer and Garmin have apparently been negotiating for some time, and the two companies are currently fighting it out in the German court system as well. We’ll see how this one shakes out — stay tuned.

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Pioneer suing Garmin over three navigation patents originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How would you change Garmin-Asus’ nuvifone G60?

The nüvifone G60 took nearly two years to go from introduction to on sale at AT&T, and just weeks after its introduction, it has been nearly completely forgotten. Smartphones like Motorola’s Droid and HTC’s Droid Eris have already snagged the spotlight, and of course, that $300 (on contract) price tag that it debuted with didn’t help attract any eyes, either. That said, we’re sure at least a few (couple?) of you bit the bullet post-price drop, and now we’re overly anxious to hear how you feel about it. After two years, does this thing really live up to the expectations? Are you satisfied with the navigation capabilities? Is the lackluster battery life worrying you yet? Should Garmin-Asus even bother with a second-gen device? Sound off in comments below!

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How would you change Garmin-Asus’ nuvifone G60? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Garmin’s new aera series gets you there by air or by land

Pilots looking for the hardest-core portable nav unit available tend to flock to Garmin’s GPSMAP 696 these days, but there’s a problem: the big, bulky tablet doesn’t do much good once you’re wheels-down and you’ve got to find your way to the hotel. Enter the new aera series, which you can sorta think of as “nuvi for pilots” with 4.3-inch touchscreens, user-friendly prompts, and dedicated car modes across the board that’ll keep casual observers from realizing that your little buddy doubles as a $2,000 beast capable of safely guiding you cross-country at flight level 250. The 696 is still being regarded as Garmin’s premier aviation portable, while the four aera models — the 500, 510, 550, and 560 — are called “entry or mid-level” with prices ranging from $799 to $1,999 and should finally sunset the aging lower-end GPSMAP models that look like they’re straight out of Garmin’s GPS III days. The 510 and 560 throw in XM WX weather support while the 550 and 560 feature Garmin’s SafeTaxi interactive airport diagrams, integrated AOPA Airport Directory, and high-end car features pulled from the nuvi line like lane assist and speed limit data. All four models are technically launching on the 5th, but appear to be in stock with online retailers now if you’re in a rush.

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Garmin’s new aera series gets you there by air or by land originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Telmap taps NAVTEQ for iPhone GPS solution, understands the inevitable

Man, talk about awful timing. At least TomTom and Navigon were able to sell a few rounds of their pricey iPhone GPS application before Google went and ruined everyone’s day (at least in the GPS biz), and now that Google Maps Navigation is but an approval away from hitting iPhone users for free, we’ve got serious doubts about Telmap’s ability to market its newest product. Utilizing NAVTEQ maps and familiar shells like MapQuest Navigation (in the US) and Orange Maps (in France), the company seems quite proud of its newest routing solutions. Oh sure — there’s live traffic, turn-by-turn guidance, in-car and pedestrian modes, etc., but is anyone really doling out cash for a phone-based routing system right now with Google at the wheel? Exactly.

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Telmap taps NAVTEQ for iPhone GPS solution, understands the inevitable originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 reviewed at Engadget Mobile!

You’ve been waiting for this day for nearly two years, but before you go and drop three Benjamins on a phone that you’re probably assuming is way out of date by now, you should probably hit up Engadget Mobile’s review of the thing. It’s the nüvifone G60, and the full, unadulterated critique is waiting for you right here. Have a gander, won’t you?

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Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 reviewed at Engadget Mobile! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 unboxing and hands-on

There she is. 20 months and 1 day after its original introduction to the world, the Garmin-Asus nüvifone G60 is at long last in our (admittedly sweaty) palms. The highfalutin’ smartphone isn’t slated to hit AT&T shelves until this Sunday, but we were able to wrangle a retail unit early in order to bring you a sneak peek at what’s to come. Frankly, we’ve been looking forward to this day for a long (long!) time. We’ve got a soft spot in our hearts for the Garmin navigation UI, and we have to say, that very same look and feel has been beautifully migrated to the mobile space. Upon unwrapping the phone, we were struck by just how classy the whole thing looks. It’s plenty thin for being a GPS-turned-phone, light enough to not weigh you down and sturdy enough to somewhat justify the $299 (on contract) price. We did some brief browsing around, and everything felt satisfactorily snappy. The resistive touchscreen had some expected give, but by and large screen presses did exactly what we wanted ’em to in our limited testing. We’re aiming to give this bad boy a serious critiquing over the next few days, but for now, feel free to peruse the absurdly detailed gallery below.

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Garmin-Asus nuvifone G60 unboxing and hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Garmin nuvifone G60 officially coming to AT&T: October 4th for $299

Can you believe it? No, seriously — can you believe it? Nearly two full years after its surprise introduction to the world, the nüvifone G60 is finally coming to US shores. In an official press release outed today, the Garmin nüvifone G60 has been blessed with an October 4th launch date on AT&T. Oddly enough, nary a mention of “ASUS” or “Garmin-Asus” is found, but regardless of semantics, you can bet that it’ll be looking for buyers this Sunday. The internal GPS chip and 3 megapixel, auto-focusing camera will enable users to geotag photos and emails and navigate using the same heralded user interface that folks rely on today with the company’s standalone PNDs. You’ve already pounded the specifications into your head by now, but the last figures you’ll need to know are these: it’ll run $299 on a two-year agreement after a $100 mail-in rebate, and if you’re hoping to access Premium Connected Services — which includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movie, local events and fuel price content — you’ll be forking out $5.99 per month after the 30-day trial expires. So, after all of this, who’s in?

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Garmin nuvifone G60 officially coming to AT&T: October 4th for $299 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 09:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TomTom pushes Google services to mid-range XL 340S LIVE

TomTom has already delivered its LIVE services to an array of its higher-end personal navigation devices, but now the company is pushing the Google love onto less expensive siblings. Er, one less expensive sibling. The mid-range XL 340S LIVE has just been launched, complete with Google-powered Local Search, real-time traffic information, real-time fuel prices, local weather and the company’s own IQ Routes, which gets you from one point to another via the most efficient route possible. Essentially, this is simply a 4.3-inch (320 x 240 resolution) XL 340S with connected services, and as with Garmin’s latest, said services are being provided courtesy of AT&T. Unfortunately, the $299.99 asking price only includes three months of LIVE; after that, you’ll be shelling out $9.95 per month and hating every minute of it.

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TomTom pushes Google services to mid-range XL 340S LIVE originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TomTom clears up iPhone car kit slip: £99.99 for the hardware alone, app sold separately

Oh, brother. TomTom just hit us up with the real details on its iPhone car kit slip this morning, and we’ve got a feeling you won’t like what it has to say. It confessed that the posting was indeed a mistake, and thus, the pricing was also incorrect. If you’ll recall (c’mon, it wasn’t that long ago), the Apple store listing explained that the £99.99 car kit included the iPhone app, when in reality, that price definitely does not include the app. Jump on past the break for TomTom’s official statement, which now curiously states that the “iPhone 2G” will be compatible with the car kit, yet doesn’t mention the iPod touch at all.

Continue reading TomTom clears up iPhone car kit slip: £99.99 for the hardware alone, app sold separately

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TomTom clears up iPhone car kit slip: £99.99 for the hardware alone, app sold separately originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola impresses with pre-loaded apps list for CLIQ

October 19th may be under a month away, but that’s still an eternity in “waiting years.” Thankfully, Motorola has posted up a handy guide that spells out exactly what kind of pre-loaded software comes with the CLIQ, and we’ve got to say — the list is fairly impressive. For starters, users will get access to LastFM, an array of Google features, Yahoo! Mail (funny, real funny), Digg, Mint, Facebook, Twitter, Travel Channel, MTV and Amazon’s MP3 Store. On top of all that, Moto’s throwing in QuickOffice — a piece that demands $9.99 on the iPhone — as well as TeleNav Navigator, which has also found itself on a few other Android-based smartphones over the centuries. Hit the read link for the full list, but only if you don’t mind the tease.

[Via Phandroid]

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Motorola impresses with pre-loaded apps list for CLIQ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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