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Filed under: Aftermarket , Gadgets , Etc. , Tech Everything is in line to be a convergence device, and now the boring rear view mirror has stepped under the lights to get stuffed with extra equipment. The Azentek SmartMirror has a four-inch touchscreen on the right for a 2D and 3D text-to-speech GPS display. It's also offers Bluetooth connectivity, a call log, and caller ID. It has two video inputs, one that can be used for a rear view camera, and an SD card slot in case you want to record... well, whatever you might want to record with your rear view mirror. The only thing missing from the mirror is availability -- it's been so popular that Azentek can't supply enough of them. The company says that will change later this year when you'll be able to get it at major retailers. The other potential hitch: it'll cost you $800 to do what your phone, TomTom, and regular mirror already do. [Source: Engadget ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Gadgets , Tech , Celebrities , Humor "Left at the next exit you will turn," or so we imagine none other than Jedi Master Yoda telling us as we attempt to pilot our land speeders toward some unknown destination. You can now download Yoda as the voice of your TomTom or Garmin GPS unit courtesy of a company named PigTones and a fee of $12.97. Not a Star Wars fan? Well, you should be (at least of the original trilogy). There's always the Terminator. On second thought, who wants to be told to make a legal U-turn by the governor of California? That leaves Stewie from The Family Guy . He's the megolomaniacal infant that's hell bent on killing his mother, Lois. There are others to choose from too, some raunchier than others. Click here for the full list. Thanks for the tip, yash ! [Source: PIGtones via The Earth Times ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Etc. , Tech The Internets are abuzz with the announcement of an all-new iPhone, and with features like 3G data connections, new applications and GPS navigation, we're excited too. If you've been making plans to produce your own navigation app for iPhone 2.0, however, you may not be all that thrilled. A closer look at the iPhone SDK agreement shows that creating software for "real-time route guidance" is forbidden. This may mean that the creative kids at Cupertino aren't going to let anyone compete with the the Google maps solution it's already settled on. If true, companies like Garmin and TomTom, the latter of which has already confirmed that it's created a navigation app, would be unable to create salable navigation software for the popular touch-screen phone. Then again, you also can't do automatic or autonomous control of vehicles, aircraft, or other mechanical devices; dispatch or fleet management software; or use the iPhone for emergency...
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Filed under: Gadgets , Etc. , Tech As of today, we're taking bets to see how long it will take before people realize that "GPS" does not stand for "Auto Pilot." The latest "But the GPS told me to..." story is brought to you by a charter bus driver in Seattle. Piloting a coach through the Washington Arboretum -- as the GPS instructed him -- the driver ignored, or didn't see, or didn't believe (take your pick) the flashing lights and sign warning him that his 11-foot-high bus was too tall for the looming 9-foot concrete overpass. You can see how the story ends. The overpass ended up with some superficial damage, the coach got a removable top, and the girls softball team inside received some minor injuries. Luckily, the 60-inch sewage pipe inside the overpass wasn't ruptured. The driver was ticketed for $154. And in response to the charter company executive who remarked, "We just thought it would be a safe route because, why else would they...
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Filed under: Gadgets , Safety , Tech , Driving , UK The UK's Department for Transportation (DfT) is trying to put an end to situations like the one you see above . A woman headed to a christening party, paying attention to her satnav -- and little else, apparently -- drove down a road marked "Unsuitable for motor vehicles," and then drove into a swollen river because that's what her navi told her to do. The DfT wants satnav makers to improve their directions, and also wants them to start providing alternate routes depending on the particular car. In addition to consumer complaints, the DfT is also reacting to increasing incidents of truck drivers getting stranded on narrow country lanes . The 2,000 times it happens each year are estimated to cost £10 million and create 5,000 hours in delays. The DfT will essentially issue a seal of approval that it wants buyers to look for as a sign of directional quality. We still don't know what they plan to do about drivers...
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Filed under: Aftermarket , Gadgets , Tech Njection is a website for guys like us. In addition to their forums and picture resources, they have compiled a database of more than 50,000 speed traps worldwide -- areas with high radar use and speed cameras -- that works with Microsoft Live Maps. Njection is teaming up with Garmin, a leading manufacturer of GPS, to allow drivers to download and display their speed trap database information on portable navigation units. The Speed Trap-enhanced Garmin portable GPS units will be a great companion on a road trip, long commute, or while traveling in unfamilar areas. However, as sophisticated as the technology is getting, GPS still won't find your lost keys. [Source: PRNewswire via Winding Road ] Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Etc. , Tech A little more than a month after one bloke followed his GPS guidance into the path of a train , we find a lorry driver in Great Britain pulling a similar blunder. Instead of looking outside the cab of the truck and noticing the large sign indicating the road was "unsuitable for heavy goods vehicles," he ignorantly followed the GPS display as it led him down a narrow farm lane. Within minutes, his 45-foot tractor trailer became firmly wedged in the mud and thicket. Needless to say, his trip to carry timber from north Wales to Birmingham was abruptly cut short. The driver's job is likely in jeopardy, but he is thankfully uninjured. The owner of the land, who now has to drive an extra two miles around the detour, is understandably irate. This isn't a rare occurrence. In November, a Czech truck driver in the U.K. was led off course by his GPS and ended up spending three nights stuck in the woods. And who can forget the Brit who followed his GPS guidance...
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Filed under: Gadgets , Economy , Tech , Hatchbacks , Toyota , Lifestyle , UK Click above to view high-res gallery of the Toyota Yaris SR The Euro-spec Toyota Yaris is a well-equipped little car. But things like the nine airbags, chrome exhaust finisher, and remote central double locking are merely gravy for the real show on this new SR model: a fully-integrated portable TomTom navigation system that doubles as a touchscreen interface for the car stereo. It's a neat little trick, and the unit also offers Bluetooth connectivity and a USB connection for MP3 players. We wonder, though, if this is about simply making life easier and aesthetically cleaner for GPS users, or if people are really clamoring for a portable GPS. This blogger has never seen anyone walking down the street taking direction from a TomTom -- but this blogger also lives in LA where nobody walks anywhere, so maybe I'm not the best judge. If nothing else, certain Euro Yaris takers can finally kiss the suction cups...
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Filed under: Gadgets , Tech , Ford , Lincoln , Mercury , Lifestyle If SYNC sells cars for Ford , the Blue Oval is now going to see how well its latest electronic add-on moves the metal. In an effort to compete with OnStar, Ford has developed SmartAlert with a company called SkyWay Systems, Inc., of Colorado. Available to be installed by dealers by Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury dealers, SmartAlert uses GPS and can operate as a stolen car tracking service, and it will be connected to a call center that can unlock your doors for you. The system can also keep track of your speed, so teens beware: parents can set the system up to alert them to your lead-footed ways via cell phone, e-mail, or text message. To have SmartAlert installed will cost from $700 to $1,200 for the first year, after which, as with OnStar, customers will pay a monthly fee. Add this to the new features coming in SYNC 2.0 like 911 Assist , and it appears we have a nice little rivalry going in the field of in-car telematics....
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Filed under: Gadgets , Safety , Tech , Driving , UK It's only a ten-vehicle trial, for now -- but the emphasis is on the "for now." Transport for London, the body responsible for the Underground, bus, and river bus network in London, has put out an RFP for a company that can make an Intelligent Speed Adaptation system. What is that? It's a GPS-based device that would attempt to keep you from speeding. The device is meant to work by knowing where it is, and what the speed limit is. The same way the Nissan GT-R knows it's on a track and removes the speed limiter , this would be the reverse: the car would know it's in a 30-MPH zone, and would work to keep the driver from going any faster. It's not I, Robot (above) -- although we'll say again: yet . In the beginning, the system would only vibrate the accelerator pedal, or make a beeping noise to let a driver know he's speeding. At this point it doesn't look like there are any plans for the system to...
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Filed under: Safety , Tech Two things plague GPS users: being forced to deal with dubious direction vocalizations and the amount of time spent looking at the screen when you should be paying attention to the road. MVS is developing a solution and it's likely the most revolutionary concept to date. The system is comprised of a series of mirrors that project a three-dimensional line onto the windshield giving drivers a heads-up display of their intended path of travel. The Virtual Cable shown above the top of the windscreen is usable at night and seems to integrate cleanly into the surrounding environment, allowing users to focus on the road and simply use their peripheral vision to guide them. The system is currently under development, but the company's website has a few videos showing a mock-up of how it could work. [Source: MVS] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Gadgets , Etc. , Safety , Tech The feeling one gets when they receive in the mail a hefty ticket for speeding is extremely bad, but the cop-dodging experts at Cobra have come up with a terrific tool. Cobra's XRS R9G is the first US laser...
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Filed under: Etc. , Tech , GM As we all know, GM's OnStar service in analog-only cars -- those pre-2004 -- will end in a few months. Based on the comments we've seen, there are quite a few owners who are miffed that there's no upgrade or retrofit available...
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