Hasta La Gadget!

Remember The Club? Sure you do. We can’t say that Who-Rae’s Maplock is destined to become just as goofy in the pop culture scene, but it’s certainly one of the more absurd peripherals that we’ve seen this year. Put simply, this contraption provides a locking mount for your navigation unit and a presumably snip-proof cable that locks around one’s steering wheel. We suppose the point here is to easily show pondering thieves that they should probably select another vehicle to jack, but the easier solution is to figure out a mounting setup that doesn’t involve suction cup residue. For those who’d rather be safe than sorry, the Maplock can be procured for right around $50 — just be prepared for all sorts of jeering from your car club mates. Vid’s after the break, vaquero.

Maplock chains GPS unit to steering wheel, dares thieves to interfere originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Dec 2009 02:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Low-cost, in-car navigation systems may finally be on the horizon. Mazda unveiled a $500 nav option for the 2010 Mazda 3 sedan a while back, and Suzuki is also selling a (very poorly integrated) one. Now Nissan is planning to make available a $400 option for the Sentra, and possibly other vehicles, as early as January.

Detroit News reports that the system will feature a 5-inch touch screen, an intuitive interface, Bluetooth and USB connectivity, and XM satellite and XM Traffic NavTraffic. It also charges iPods and iPhones.

Once you get into the $400 and under range, it becomes much more appealing to have the unit integrated neatly in the dashboard–especially since Nissan’s unit works with an optional backup camera. Try that with a standalone PND.

The A8’s Multi Media Interface (a fancy name for a nav unit with media player attached) is already a pretty sophisticated piece of tech, but Audi has opted against resting on those laurels and has pushed out a new feature for the luxury saloon’s next iteration. The 2011 A8 (available in Spring 2010 — crazy, we know) will benefit from the same handwriting recognition as promised for the next-gen R8, wherein the user is able to scribble his destination all John Hancock-like and then use the touchscreen to complete his instructions. With Cyrillic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean character support, this could be a particular boon for gadget lovers of a more Eastern persuasion. And just in case you’re fretting that the rest of your gear won’t get as much love, there are further plans afoot for connecting the car via UMTS and distributing WiFi goodness to the devices inside it. The only thing this is missing is a Snoop Dogg voiceover for the ultimate in convergence tech. Video after the break.

Continue reading Audi A8 MMI adds handwriting recognition to list of 2011 features

Audi A8 MMI adds handwriting recognition to list of 2011 features originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Now here’s a good idea: a built-in GPS navigation system that’s actually priced to move. Co-developed with Bosch, Nissan has put together a $400 option with a 5-inch touhcscreen, Bluetooth support for phones, USB connectivity for media players, iPod integration, XM Satellite and NavTraffic. The Detroit News was certainly impressed, testing it on a new Sentra and calling it a moment where the benefits of the built-in nav systems outweigh the costs — although the display was maybe a bit too small for its liking. Look for it to these to hit in some of its lower-priced models starting this January. Hit up the source link for the full impressions.

Nissan introducing low-cost navigation systems this January originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 03:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We heard earlier this month that Magellan was looking to one-up TomTom by outing an iPod touch / iPhone GPS car kit of its very own, but a few critical details were missing: namely, a price and a release date. Thanks to a new product listing on Amazon (capped after the break), we at least have a clue as to when this thing will be shipping stateside and for how much. If you’ll recall, this one’s compatible with the 2nd and 3rd generation iPod touch as well as the iPhone 3G and 3GS, and aside from providing a built-in speaker, charging capabilities and a noise-canceling handsfree speakerphone, it’ll also work with any navigation or location-based app — not just Magellan’s own $79.99 RoadMate program. The unfortunate part here is that Magellan has somehow managed to produce a cradle that’s actually more expensive that the ludicrously overpriced TomTom variant, but those willing to part with $129.99 can place their order now and look for a December 11th ship date.

[Thanks, Mark]

Continue reading Magellan’s GPS Car Kit for iPhone and iPod Touch: $130, coming next month

Magellan’s GPS Car Kit for iPhone and iPod Touch: $130, coming next month originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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