Apr 06

Jasper Wireless Will Connect the TomTom Go 740 Live

Posted in: gps, Today's Chili, tomtom

TomTomGo740Live.jpgIn the increasingly beleaguered world of plug-in GPS navigators–which faces a combined threat from razor-thin margins and cell phone navigation software–manufacturers are looking for a killer feature to push their products out front. Despite the failure of the Dash Express, the first connected navigator, GPS makers are cautiously optimistic that connected services have a future.

This month, TomTom will begin selling the GO 740 Live, a $499 navigator that will offer live Google searches, and Jasper Wireless announced that it’s been selected to deliver the cellular connectivity. Connected navigators use cellular connections, just like cell phones, to send and receive data.

The good news for customers here is that they’ll be able to activate their GO 740 Live navigators instantly, without any registration. Each navigator will come with three months of free service (which is $9.95 per month thereafter). With a cellular connection, drivers will be able to receive real-time traffic feeds, search Google for local businesses, get updated gas prices, and view weather reports.

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Apr 01

TomTom intros ONE 140 and XL 340 series, ships GO 740 LIVE

Posted in: gps, nav, navigation, Today's Chili, tomtom

TomTom decided to bust out a pair of announcements this morning, so we won’t waste any time getting right to the crux of it. That splendiferous GO 740 LIVE, which was introduced at CES this January, is finally shipping in the US of A. If you’ll recall, this is TomTom’s first connected navigation system, which can download real-time traffic information, fuel prices, weather reports, etc. If you’re intrigued, you can snag one now with three months of LIVE Services for $399.95. Moving on, we’ve got four new systems entirely: the ONE 140 / ONE 140s (3.5-inch display; 140S announces spoken street and place names) and the XL 340 / XL 340s (4.3-inch display; 340S includes speech functions). Each of these include the company’s IQ Routes technology and Advanced Lane Guidance, features that were previously reserved for higher-end PNDs; furthermore, the new crew also includes maps of Mexico. Catch ’em all this month for $179.95, $199.95, $229.95 and $249.95 in order of mention.

[Via GPSReview]

Read – GO 740 LIVE now shipping in US
Read – ONE 140 Series and XL 340 Series

Gallery: TomTom intros ONE 140 and XL 340 series, ships GO 740 LIVE

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TomTom intros ONE 140 and XL 340 series, ships GO 740 LIVE originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 30

Microsoft and TomTom settle Linux patent suit, Linux not necessarily in the clear

Posted in: lawsuit, legal, Linux, Microsoft, patent, Today's Chili, tomtom

Well, that was fast — just a month after Microsoft set the open-source world on fire by claiming that TomTom’s use of Linux violated its FAT filesystem patents, the two companies have settled, with TomTom paying the always-popular “undisclosed amount” and letting MS license four of its navigation patents for free. What’s more, TomTom has also agreed to remove certain functionality from its PNDs within two years. That’s huge — not only did TomTom’s attorneys calculate that the total cost of this settlement was less than the cost of a trial and a potential loss, the overwhelmingly one-way nature of the deal implies they felt they were holding a bad position. Since we don’t know if that was more to do with the navigation patents or the FAT patents, we can’t really say what’s going to happen next, but Microsoft’s made no bones about the fact that it thinks Linux violates all sorts of its IP, and cruising to an easy settlement in a month like this just might encourage its legal department to go digging for gold in troubled economic times. We’ll see.

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Microsoft and TomTom settle Linux patent suit, Linux not necessarily in the clear originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 30

Microsoft, TomTom Settle Patent Dispute

Posted in: Microsoft, Today's Chili, tomtom

tomtom MS.JPG

Microsoft and TomTom on Monday announced that they have settled a patent infringement case brought by Microsoft against the GPS maker. Under the five-year deal, TomTom will pay Microsoft for the use of eight Microsoft patents relating to car navigation and file management systems, as well as the four patents included in the TomTom countersuit.

Last month, Microsoft sued TomTom for patent infringement relating to innovations in car navigation technology and other computing functionality. TomTom filed a countersuit earlier this month, accusing Microsoft of infringing on its patents with its Streets and Trips program. In the next two years, TomTom must also remove from its products functionality related to efficient naming, organizing, storing, and accessing of file data.

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Feb 25

Microsoft files patent lawsuit against TomTom over Linux-based GPS systems

Posted in: lawsuit, legal, Linux, Microsoft, patent, Today's Chili, tomtom

Microsoft has long maintained that Linux infringes at least 235 of its patents, and it looks like it’s reaching deep into the bin for some extra ammo in a new case filed against TomTom over nav systems — of the eight alleged patent infringements in the complaint, five are specifically about portable navigation devices , while the remaining three cover what look to be filesystem-management techniques inherent to the Linux kernel itself. It seems like the Linux issue is less important to Redmond than the GPS patents — deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez says there aren’t any broader plans to go after Linux vendors and that it “respects and appreciates” open source — but if Microsoft scores a victory here, it’ll have an incredible advantage should it decide to take on any other Linux-based products. We’ll be following this one very closely, we’ll keep you in the loop.

[Via Business Insider]

Read – Techflash
Read – Microsoft complaint [PDF]

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Microsoft files patent lawsuit against TomTom over Linux-based GPS systems originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Feb 2009 18:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 25

Microsoft Sues TomTom for Patent Infringement

Posted in: Microsoft, Today's Chili, tomtom

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Microsoft sued GPS producer TomTom for patent infringement on Wednesday, claiming the Dutch company is using patented Microsoft technology without properly compensating the software giant.

The move comes after a year of trying to engage in licensing talks with TomTom, Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of intellectual property and licensing at Microsoft, said in a statement.

The suit relates to “innovations in car navigation technology, and other computing functionality,” Gutierrez said.

“In situations such as this, when a reasonable business agreement cannot be reached, we have no choice but to pursue legal action to protect our innovations and our partners who license them,” he continued. “Other companies that utilize Microsoft patents have licensed and we are asking TomTom to do the same.”

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Feb 24

Tweetlog: TomTom One 130-S

Posted in: Today's Chili, tomtom

TomTomOne130S.jpgThe TomTom One 130-S (http://tinyurl.com/bc6snc) is pretty chatty for a cheap GPS, doncha think?

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Jan 22

Recession roundup: Sony warns of $1.7b loss, other companies not doing much better

Posted in: LG, samsung, sony, Today's Chili, tomtom

Evidence that the economy has been ground to a fine powder continues to pile up, and today’s brought another batch of bad news. Tales of woe abound, but looming largest is Sony, which announced its 2nd quarter earnings yesterday, then warned today that they expect to post a $1.7 billion loss this year (though we’ve seen other reports that are now putting the number at well over $2 billion). Additionally, Samsung is expected to post a first-ever quarterly loss when it reports its earnings Friday, which are expected to run somewhere in the neighborhood of a $67.7 million net loss. Moving on, Seagate’s also announced an unsuprising cut of about 6 percent of their workforce in Thailand. Finally, LG has reported a $487 million loss, while TomTom announced a “cost cutting program,” meaning they’re cutting about 7 percent of their global workforce. Seriously, does anyone have a light-hearted Dilbert strip or something to ease some of the pain? Sheesh.

Read – Sony, Warning of Annual Loss, Escalates Cost-Cutting plan
Read – Samsung may report first ever quarterly loss
Read – LG Electronics Posts $487 Million Loss
Read – TomTom Cost-cutting programme
Read – Seagate to lay off up to 800 local workers

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Recession roundup: Sony warns of $1.7b loss, other companies not doing much better originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 09

TomTom intros GO 740 LIVE connected GPS

Posted in: gps, Today's Chili, tomtom

It’s been a rough little while for so-called connected GPS units, but it looks like TomTom is still confident in the idea, and it’s just gotten official with its first such device for the US market: the GO 740 LIVE. As you may recall, this one actually made its debut way back at IFA in the summer, and it looks to be mostly unchanged for its entrance into the US. That includes the standard 4.3-inch touchscreen, 2GB of internal flash memory with a microSD card slot for expansion, handsfree Bluetooth functionality, voice recognition, maps of the US and Canada courtesy of TeleAtlas and, of course, a built-in SIM card slot and GPRS modem to let you take advantage of all those “connected” features. As with the Insignia connected GPS unit, you’ll get a year of free service with the device, which certainly makes that $500 price tag a bit more bearable. Look for it to be available sometime in the second quarter of this year.

[Via PC Magazine]

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TomTom intros GO 740 LIVE connected GPS originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Jan 2009 09:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 07

TomTom / ECLIPSE AVN4430 in-dash nav system snags CES Innovations Award

Posted in: nav, navigation, Today's Chili, tomtom

TomTom and Fujitsu Ten are back with a new in-dash nav system. An update of the ECLIPSE AVN2210p, the AVN4430 houses a removable 4.3-inch WQVGA touchscreen TomTom GPS (which also functions as a stand-alone unit), as well as a full-featured CD / DVD / MP3 / WMA player, iPod audio and video support, iPod controls and a USB port. This guy is the winner of the CES Innovations 2009 Design and Engineering award, so keep your eyes peeled for it when you hit Las Vegas.

[Via GPS Review]

Read – AVN4330 product page
Read – ECLIPSE win the 2009 CES Innovation award

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TomTom / ECLIPSE AVN4430 in-dash nav system snags CES Innovations Award originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Jan 2009 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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