With pricing now confirmed for the TomTom iPhone Car Kit at £99.99 without the Sat Nav Application, it makes the whole package a little expensive at just under £160 – especially when you consider that you can buy a fully functional stand alone TomTom GPS unit for less than £120.
Now, don’t get me wrong, TomTom do make great Sat Nav systems, but I’m really not convinced that their iPhone offering is really worth the £160 that they’re asking for it. The car cradle is a clever bit of kit, but there are other devices out there that will do the same thing. The main features of the TomTom Car Cradle are:
Charges your iPhone
Ability to play your music through your car stereo
Built in speaker for handsfree calling
GPS Enhancer
Volume controls
I’ve spent a bit of time this week searching out the best alternatives to the pricey TomTom set up and here’s what I found:
It’s not all in one like the TomTom, but this set up is less than half the price! CoPilot Live is a great alternative to TomTom. The software has been around for years on Windows Mobile devices and is the pre-installed mapping application on most T-Mobile and O2 smartphones. Feature wise it does everything that TomTom does, but for a lot less money. It’s currently rated as a 4 star app on the iTunes App store, compared to 3 stars for the TomTom app. The Sat Nav starter pack for iPhone includes a compact, rotating windscreen holder for your iPhone and a car charger. If you’ve already tried using GPS on the iPhone in your car, you’ll know necessary a car charger is. Having the screen on permanently and locking on to a GPS signal drains the battery quite quickly. The Jabra SP700 is much more than just a standard Bluetooth speaker phone. It has a built in FM transmitter that can stream music, calls and directions from your iPhone through to your car stereo using Bluetooth.
Use the Sat Nav Starter Pack and Jabra SP700 to get the most out of CoPilot Live
Navigon was the first Sat Nav app for the iPhone, and its relatively low price made it incredibly popular. On iTunes it’s currently rated as a 3 and a half star app, so better than TomTom, but not quite as high as CoPilot Live. The iPhone Car Pack includes a robust, adjustable holder that can hold your iPhone in almost any position as well as a car charger to keep your phone fully charged. The Venturi Mini is a Bluetooth car kit that is designed to fit in your cigarette lighter permanently. To charge your iPhone, you just need to connect your existing iPhone USB cable to the USB port on the side of the Venturi. The Venturi works in a similar way to the Jabra SP700. It connects to your phone using Bluetooth and will then stream your music, calls and sat nav directions through to your car stereo using its built in FM transmitter. If your car stereo has a line in/aux in connection, you can connect the Venturi to it using a 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable (the same as the TomTom Cradle).
This set up isn’t so much about saving money compared to the TomTom kit, more a case of showing you how much more you could get for the same sort of price. Without doubt, you’ll always get better audio quality using a fully fitted car kit than you would with a portable one. The Parrot MKi range of car kits have been designed with iPods and iPhones in mind and they work almost seamlessly. The MKi9000 kit is fitted behind your dashboard and is completely out of sight. There is a multi connector cable that has a USB port, 3.5mm headphone jack and an Apple Dock connector. This cable connects your iPhone to the car kit and will route call audio, music and directions through your car stereo at the same time as charging it. The Brodit holder that I’ve suggested here has a dock connector on the bottom too, so you can connect this cable to it, then whenever you slide your phone into the holder it will connect to the car kit without having to mess around with cables. If you’d rather not use cables, then you can use the kit over a bluetooth connection and get the same functionality from it. A small remote can be attached to your dashboard or steering wheel and can be used to answer/end calls as well as play/ pause music and activate voice dialling (Voice dialling is feature of the MKi9000 and will work with all models of iPhone). The prices shown here don’t include installation and vehicles without an ISO stereo may need additional cables.
Co-Pilot works well with the Parrot Mki9000
All three of these solutions work great with the iPhone and any of the available Sat Nav applications available for the iPhone, including the TomTom App. You’ll find more information on each of the Sat Nav Apps on the App Store within iTunes or on your iPhone. To give you a clear idea on the differences between the TomTom Kit and the other options mentioned here, I’ve put a chart together to show the main differences.
Despite TomTom releasing their Sat Nav application a few weeks ago for the iPhone, the car kit to accompany it is still nowhere to be seen. Rumours of pricing and availability have been floating around for a while now, but this week TomTom have finally confirmed that the TomTom iPhone Car Kit will be available to buy in October.
iPhone Car Kit from TomTom
More information is slowly starting to emerge on it’s features too. The most surprising news is that the Car Kit can be used with any Sat Nav Apps. The Car Kit can be used for handsfree calling, music playback, turn-by-turn instructions and charging, although the GPS signal enhancements will only be available when you’re using the TomTom App.
If you don’t want to shell out the rumoured £115 for the car kit, there are a number of other options to consider. The best value is the iPhone Sat Nav starter pack which gives you a holder and charger for the iPhone, and the Jabra SP700 is a great bluetooth car kit that clips to your sun visor and can handle your calls and music playback and route them through your car stereo speakers in the same way as the TomTom Car Kit. The price? Less than £55 for both – that’s less than half of the rumoured cost of the TomTom kit for all the same features - and best of all you won’t have to wait upto 8 weeks for them as they’re available to order now!
OK, I’ve seen some pretty odd ways of using mobile phone’s over the years, but this one really made me chuckle. As you’ve probably heard, you can now get TomTom Sat Nav on your iPhone, and the whole world seem to be going crazy about it.
Quite a few bloggers are reviewing the new software and posting video’s of it being used – which is great, after all £60 is a lot to spend on a software download if it’s no good, but I really think some people need to plan ahead when it comes to creating a video review.
This morning I stumbled on this iPhone TomTom video review on YouTube which shows off how easy the software is to use. They then take it for a spin in the car and demonstrate brilliantly how not to mount your iPhone in the car.
There are some things that sellotape shouldn't be used for!
Sellotaping your iPhone to the dash might be a quick fix, but just think of the mess that’s going to be left on his phone and dashboard when he’s done. Silly really, when for less than £15 he could have got himself aniPhone Sat Nav Pack that includes a rotating windscreen holder and car charger.
On the subject of iPhone holders, I’ve noticed that people seem to think that you have to use sat nav on the iPhone in landscape mode. As most phone holders for the iPhone 3G and 3GS are portrait, I’m guessing this is why people are resorting to sellotaping their phones to the dashboard, but what you may not realise is that Sat Nav works perfectly well in portrait mode too – in fact I prefer it. It means you don’t have to keep rotating the phone if a call or text message comes through and I find that you get a clearer view of what’s coming up on the road ahead. Admittedly, there’s not much in it, but do you really need to see all the side roads that you’re not going to be driving down?
CoPilot 8 on the iPhone: Landscape Vs Portrait
Easiest option of course is to just get yourself a rotating holder so that you can use your phone which ever way you want. The following iPhone car holders can all rotate for use in landscape or portrait mode:
It was announced back in March at the Apple Developers Conference, but until now further details have been very few and far between.. Until now.
We already know that the software and the car cradle will be available separately, and we’re now hearing that the car cradle will retail for around £115, but there is no news yet as to whether this includes the software or not.
UPDATE: TomTom for UK is available now in the iTunes App store for £59.99. No confirmed pricing yet on the car kit. iTunes Link.
iPhone TomTom Car Kit
Another image has surfaced of the iPhone TomTom Car Cradle, this time showing off a few more of it’s features:
EasyPort Mount from the TomTom ONE and TomTomXL
Built In Speaker
Volume Control
Microphone for handsfree calling
Mini USB Charging Connector
Audio Line out (for connecting to Car Stereo)
Sources are also confirming that it will work with the iPod touch too.
We’ve not yet been able to confirm any of this yet with our suppliers, and we’ll post again as soon as we know more.
On a similar note, the rumour mill is also suggesting that CoPilot Live 8 is on its way to the App Store and will be available some time next week for around £26. UPDATE: CoPilot Live 8 is available now from the AppStore – iTunes Link
Decisions decisions…£60+the cost of the car kit for TomTom, £26 for CoPilot…
GPS has been around in mobile phones for a few years now, but for a lot of people it’s purpose isn’t all that clear. As well as being a basic requirement for Satellite Navigation, GPS has a number of other really useful applications that you may not be aware of. This guide explains the basics of GPS and runs through the different types of GPS receiver and software available.
So What Is GPS?
GPS (Global Positioning System) receivers use a network of satellites in orbit around the earth to pinpoint your location (longtitude and latitude) to within a few metres. GPS receivers don’t require a signal from a mobile phone company to work, they just need to be able to see the sky. Locking on to GPS Satellites normally takes a couple of minutes, sometimes longer if you’re already on the move.
Over the last couple of years GPS receivers have found their way in to a number of mobile phones. Mobile Phones work slightly differently to stand alone GPS receivers as they can triangulate their location using nearby transmitters. Mobile phones combine the information from nearby transmitters with the information received from the GPS receiver to give them an exact location. A brief internet connection is normally required to find your location. This type of receiver is called A-GPS (Assisted Global Positioning System).
Both GPS and A-GPS have their strengths and weaknesses. External GPS Receivers tend to lock on to more satellites for more stable tracking. They also have better battery life than A-GPS as they don’t need an internet connection and have no screen to run the battery down. Phones with A-GPS tend to lock on to your location a little bit faster and may still be able to track you if you are indoors or under cover.
GPS Receivers
Generally speaking most GPS receivers are designed to communicate over a Bluetooth connection. Bluetooth is a way that 2 devices can talk to each other wirelessly and is found in most mobile phones and computers. If your PC doesn’t have Bluetooth built in, you can add this function easily by purchasing a USB Bluetooth Adapter.
If you want to use a GPS receiver with your phone, you just need to make sure that your phone has Bluetooth and you’ll need to pair the GPS receiver with your phone. When you launch an application on your phone that requires GPS data, your phone will automatically make the connection to the GPS receiver as long as your receiver is turned on.
External GPS Receivers can add functionality to your phone
Since the iPhone 3G launched last year with built in GPS and the new iPhone 3GS launch this year, people have been calling out for a proper Satellite Navigation Application for it. Well, after a long wait, iPhone OS 3.0 finally provides support for turn-by-turn navigation.
Navigon MobileNavigator for iPhone 3G & iPhone 3GS
TomTom were the first company to announce a ‘proper’ Sat Nav solution for the iPhone at last months Apple Developers Conference. TomTom demonstrated the software and introduced the TomTom Cradle – an optional extra to help you get the most out of their mapping software, but they didn’t announce any pricing or release dates. This week though saw the release of the first two Sat Nav apps, and surprisingly TomTom weren’t one of them!
It’s finally here! It might have taken 2 years, but there is finally an official Sat Nav Application for the iPhone.
TomTom demonstrated the software at last nights WWDC conference in America and have said that it will be available soon in the app store. As well as the Sat Nav application, TomTom also revealed the iPhone car kit – a charging cradle that takes advantage of the new iPhone 3.0 software, and uses a GPS receiver in the cradle to boost the GPS Signal being received by the phone for greater accuracy. The cradle is an optional extra and the sat nav will work perfectly fine with out it. TomTom software will be compatible with iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S.
Updated Cradle Specs:
GPS Receiver built in to enhance Internal GPS (might also work on iPod Touch but not confirmed)
Charges iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S
Built in loud speaker for turn by turn directions
External microphone for calls
Built in FM Transmitter for playing music through car stereo
Can be used in landscape or portrait mode
Mini USB Charger connection
More details can be found on the TomTom website, although they’re staying tight lipped about pricing and a possible release date.
Update: Sat Nav manufacturer Garmin have confirmed that they are not working on an iPhone solution as this could do damage to their upcoming Nuivfone, However Navigon & TeleNav will be releasing applications.
TomTom posted this video on their YouTube channel as a teaser for what’s to come.
Without doubt, the most popular mobile email solution around at the moment is BlackBerry from Research In Motion (RIM). I’m sure you will have heard of them, but are probably wondering just what exactly do they do, how they work, and what’s the difference between them?
What do they do? First and foremost, BlackBerry is about being able to send and receive email, quickly and easily. Over the last few years, BlackBerrys have been upgraded from only supporting email, text and phone calls to having digital cameras, expandable memory, media players, internet access, Wi-Fi, GPS and pretty much every other feature you’d find on any mobile phone on the market. The emphasis is still on email, and to be honest, there isn’t another device on the market that does what a BlackBerry does, as well as BlackBerry does it. BlackBerry devices can all handle email attachments such as Microsoft Word, Excel, & Powerpoint documents, PDF’s and images. Attachments aren’t downloaded automatically, the device will ask you if you want to download it. If you chose not to – maybe you don’t need to read the attachment until you get back to the office, the files will be sat waiting for you on your PC when you get back.
How does it work? BlackBerrys use "Push Email" to deliver email to your phone. "Push Email" simply means that as soon as the email server receives an email, it pushes it out across the cellular network to your device. You instantly get an alert to notify you that you have new email and can read it immediately on your BlackBerry. Email on your PC or most other mobile phones normally works on a "Pull" system called POP. With POP email, your computer will connect to the servers at regular intervals (anything from 5 mins to an hour or more) and then download any new emails to your PC. This often means a delay between the email being sent and you getting it. With "Push Email" there is little or no delay. BlackBerry condenses the emails into just plain text, all fancy formatting is removed, and you just see the information you need. This allows the emails to travel quickly over the cellular network, meaning you won’t have to wait for the email to finish downloading before you can read it.
Why would I want one? Email is now one of the quickest and easiest ways of communicating. By having email on your phone, you won’t have to worry about remembering to check your email on your computer. You won’t have to learn how to use email programs, or mess around remembering passwords for webmail. You don’t really even need a computer! Sending an email on a BlackBerry is as easy as sending a text message. You can send images in your emails, so there’s no need to try and figure out how to send picture messages. Email is cheaper too. Rather than paying for each message that you send, email is done on a flat monthly fee of around £5 (varies by network).
What email accounts can I use on it? Pretty much all email accounts that use either POP or IMAP will work with no problem. When you set up your email with BlackBerry, you may be asked for your POP or IMAP server settings, you can normally find these on your email providers website. If you use Hotmail, then you will need to either pay to upgrade your account, or you can set a forward to your BlackBerry email address that you’ll create as part of the sign up process. See our post on Setting up email on BlackBerry Devices for more information
Are they easy to set up? There are two different set-ups for BlackBerry Email, (BIS and BES) and this can cause some confusion.
BIS stands for BlackBerry Internet Service, and is what most of us would use to access our email. Setting up your email through BIS is extremely simple and is done either through your network providers website or through the handset. Once set up, BlackBerry email servers will check your existing email accounts for new messages and push them through to your device. BIS can be used by individuals, as well as companies large and small.
BES stands for BlackBerry Enterprise Server. BES is a more expensive option and is normally used by larger companies running email software such as Microsoft Exchange and requires BlackBerry software to be installed to the server and licenses obtained for each user. If you have been given a BlackBerry by your employer, there is every chance it will be running on BES. BES devices will have been set up by your IT department prior to you receiving the device. Depending on the security settings on your BlackBerry, you may also be able to add a BIS account so that you can access personal email on your BlackBerry as well. A word of warning though, this could breach your employers IT policy and get you into trouble, so its best to check with them first!
One of the biggest handset launches of the year so far was the HTC Touch Diamond. Its got a decent camera, touchscreen, compact design, full internet, email and built in GPS to help you get around, which is great, if, like me, you’re hopeless at finding your way around – but, it doesn’t come with any mapping software built in.
So far there hasn’t been a Sat Nav solution available for the HTC Touch Diamond as most third party Sat Nav software is installed onto a memory card. As the Touch Diamond doesn’t have a memory card slot, this made it impossible to install – until now!
CoPilot have just launched CoPilot Live 7, a fully featured Sat Nav system designed exclusively to run on the HTC Touch Diamond. Supplied on a DVD, the software is quick and easy to install and completely eliminates the need to use a memory card as installation is done through your PC.
The software features a large, clear touch based user interface, and can navigate using your phonebook contacts, address, or search for an address using a UK post code. CoPilot Live 7 aims to keep distractions to a minimum, so clear spoken instructions will guide you to your destination, while the clear 2D and 3D mapping will show you where to go and automatically zoom in when needed. Safety Camera alerts are also included at no extra cost with free periodic updates. Maps for the UK and Ireland are included as standard, and additional maps can be downloaded using CoPilot Central – a desktop application that allows you to plan and print your routes in advance, upgrade your services to include traffic updates and buy the extra maps.
Sony Ericsson have today confirmed that their next flagship handset, the Xperia X1 will be released on the 30th September.
The Xperia X1 is the first Windows Mobile device from Sony Ericsson, and features a 3.2 MP Camera, GPS, HSDPA and WiFi for high speed internet. The X1 also has a full Qwerty keyboard and widescreen display.
(3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)
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It’s finally here! It might have taken 2 years, but there is finally an official Sat Nav Application for the iPhone.
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