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Nokia Maps now available for Android and iOS

 

Nokia Maps and its voice-guided, turn-by-turn walk navigation is now available for Apple's iOS and Google's Android.

The service is available via an HTML5 Web app rather than separate apps in each of the platforms' app stores, though it can be added to your home screen by tapping the middle button on the menu and selecting "Add to Home Screen."

Users can access the maps via m.maps.nokia.com on their iPhone or iPad, or a device running Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and higher, Nokia said in a blog post.

"No one is stuck with other mapping services, anymore, you can access Nokia Maps extensive places directory and high quality directions also on m.maps.nokia.com and from today with voice-guided walk navigation too," Nokia said.

Parrot unveils new versions of the Android-powered Asteroid in-car entertainment systems

We recently checked out the Parrot's new Asteroid in-car navigation systems.

These aren't the first of their kind from Parrot, but they're a huge upgrade:

The last version of the Asteroid was based on Google's Android 1.6, and this year's model runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

There are three different models of the Asteroid system.

Motorola launches the MOTOACTV watch to help you monitor your sports efforts

So, we've got Christmas in a month.

And then the inevitable happens.
We step on the scales, have a fit and join a gym as a new year's resolution, annoying those gym-folk who do go all the time by hogging the treadmills and weights, only to give up by the third week of January and leave them to it whilst still paying a direct debit for the next 12 months.

But, perhaps if you invest in one of Motorola's latest inventions, you may find yourself a little more active, with the news that the MOTOACTV is coming to town.

Yes, Motorola has obviously been on a diet itself because, just like it did with the Droid Razr, it decided to shed a few letters from product titles again for no obvious valid reason.

TomTom Places for Android now available for most European countries

Good news for Google's Android users in Europe!

TomTom has released its Places app to the Android Market, allowing users to search for restaurants, hotels, tourist attractions, shops and more, and then get directions to these destinations within the same software.

The Apple's iOS version of Places is available in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Portugal and Sweden, and the Android Market release brings TomTom’s "10 million place" POI database to Android owners in the same countries, with Spain to come in September. 

Navigon launches new GPS apps for Windows Phone Mango

Germany-based Navigon, a provider of mobile navigation devices (PNDs), smartphone navigation applications, and solutions for the automotive OEM industry, recently made two new announcements:
The release of its on-board GPS App for Microsoft's Windows Phone 7.5 Mango, and the release of free traffic4all App for Windows Phone 7.

As a provider of mobile phone on-board navigation solutions, Navigon been offering Navigon turn-by-turn navigation app for other platforms, such as Google's Android and Apple's iPhone.

Now the company has launched the first on-board navigation app for Windows Phone 7 smartphones as well along with a free traffic app, stated a press release.

NAVIGON reveals its SatNav app for Windows Phone 7

We heard rumors that NAVIGON is bringing their navigation app to the Microsoft's Windows Phone platform.

Now we get to see a sneak peak of the NAVIGON app in action courtesy of the IFA 2011 consumer electronics show in Berlin, Germany.

The app looks feature rich and just down right nice. 
NAVIGON’s features include on-board maps, spoken turn-by-turn directions, visual lane guidance, live traffic information, automatic rerouting, and Reality Scanner, which provides an instant and effortless way of identifying nearby destinations while on foot.

Pricing for NAVIGON is being reported at €79.99 Euros (about US$114).
While the price may give you pause, in looking at the Apple's iPhone equivalent, NAVIGON for Europe runs US$119 (€84) while NAVIGON for the US runs US$49.99 (€3530) with regional versions running US$29.99 (€21).
So the pricing point is in line with NAVIGON’s other platforms.

No specifics on a release date beyond what we could expect, which is “later this year”.

Check out the Navigon app for Windows Phone 7 hands-on video after the break.

TomTom Satellite Navigation system comes to Apple' iPad this fall

TomTom has started testing its Apple's iPad app and is looking forward to launch it at some point in the fall.

While we don’t have the exact launch date, we do know it won’t be released as a separate application, but the one that will work both on the iPhone and iPad.

Of course, when started on Apple’s tablet, it will show a slightly tweaked interface, taking advantage of a bigger screen — which means sharpened graphics and more intuitive controls specifically developed for the iPad.

And that’s about all we have at present!

Wikitude Drive for Android brings augmented reality to GPS-assisted road trips

Let’s face it:
Dedicated GPS systems are not perfect.

From time to time the maps look nothing like the route you’re driving, the device doesn’t recognize newer roads (if you missed a software update), and it’s bulky to carry out of the car to prevent theft.

Looking to making navigation more realistic and convenient, the mobile augmented reality shop Wikitude just released the AR navigation app Wikitude Drive for Google's Android smartphones.

Rather than display a 2D map a line to show you where to go, the Wikitude Drive app uses your phone’s built-in camera to show a live view of the road you’re driving on and overlays your route on top.
So when you are looking at the app, you’re technically still keeping your eyes on the road.

Windows Phone Mango upgrade will also bring indoor maps

The updates to Windows Phone Mango seem to be coming hard and fast.

Bing Audio and Vision, SMS Dictation, on-device podcast support, and turn-by-turn navigation were just the beginning of the updates available. 
At the WPC event it was announced that Microsoft had acquired 400 million licenses and Tami Reller, Corporate Vice-president and Chief Financial Officer of Windows and Windows Live said that it was the path to Windows 8.

According to reports, the latest feature seen in Windows Phone Mango will be the ability to see Bing Maps indoors.

The service allows users to have the ability to view the lay out of large locations such as airports, shopping malls and convention centres.

The update doesn’t stop there:
Users can also view the layout of different floors on mall maps, parking, ATMs, entrances, as well as many other mall services.

Garmin acquires Navigon

The rumors floating around Internet over the last couple of weeks have turned out to be true.

Garmin is making the move to acquire Navigon, maker of the popular MobileNavigator app for Apple iOS and Google Android.

Frankly, this shouldn’t come as much of a shock to anyone who knows much about the mobile world.
The market for stand-alone GPS receivers is gradually disappearing at the hands of GPS-enabled mobile phones.

Big name GPS apps available for pretty much every mobile platform have grown to a point of maturity where they now rival the capabilities of the stand-alone GPS.

Apple and Android are closing the location tracking issue

In an unusual announcement on 5th May, Apple said that it was issuing an update to iOS that will reduce the information kept in the location cache on iPhones and iPads and that it will eliminate the backup of the information when the device is synced with iTunes.
The company also said that turning off location services will erase the cache.

In addition to issuing iOS 4.3.3, Apple also issued a candid discussion of what the location cache does, why Apple uses it, and what information is gathered.
The Q&A said that the location information is actually from a crowd-sourced location database, and what it’s storing are the locations of mobile (cell) towers and WiFi access points.

This allows the device to tell you its location very quickly, and it has the advantage of working indoors, which GPS generally cannot.
In the Q&A, Apple said that it never tracked the position of its users with iPhones or iPads, and that location data was used anonymously to build the database, subsets of which were provided to users for location services.

Nokia has big plans for Navteq - including the integration with its future Windows Phone 7 devices

Nokia is at work on a massive overhaul of its Navteq navigation and location-based solutions unit that will reposition the platform to target social location-enabled applications, services and developer tools.

An internal memo obtained by Phone Scoop indicates that effective 1st May, Nokia EVP Tero Ojanpera and Navteq CEO Larry Kaplan will commence work on a new business unit that consolidates all of Nokia's location assets designed to deliver differentiated geo-specific social services as well as hyper-local mobile advertising services for brands and merchants.

Nokia and Navteq will target Nokia devices (including future smartphones running Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 Operating System [OS]) and also will "focus on horizontal services that target Nokia devices, and beyond Nokia devices, including the ongoing availability of Navteq data to all its B2B partners."

Mapquest free turn-by-turn navigation app now available for Android

Following the success of its Apple iPhone app, Mapquest has released a free voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation app for Google Android handsets.

The new app differs in a couple ways from its older iPhone sibling.
Most significantly it takes advantage of Android’s speech capabilities and includes OpenStreetMap data, which allows the app to be used outside the US and results in some enhanced local mapping within the US.

We’ve had a chance to use the app for the past 24 hours and can report that it generally works well, although there are a few areas and features that are rough around the edges.
Mapquest’s SVP & GM Christian Dwyer told us that he is pleased with the app but pointed out that it’s a “work in progress.”

In discussing the performance and success of the Mapquest iPhone app Dwyer said that it has seen “millions of downloads” and is used “at least at parity” with Google’s mapping app on the Apple device.

TomTom will not develop for Windows Phone 7 - at least for now

Naturally, app development for a particular mobile platform hinges on many factors, like its market share, but looking at Microsoft Windows Phone 7 right now, it’s clearly not yet at a high level to garner demanding app support.

That’s probably why TomTom isn’t so forthcoming in developing an app for Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 platform, and as it stands right now, Navigon appears to be the sole option for true turn-by-turn navigation for the platform.

As much as some people would prefer paying a one-time cost for a navigation app, Navigon is generally re-branded to some sort of carrier GPS application – which of course, requires a monthly subscription.
However, TomTom recently came out on the matter of developing an app for Windows Phone 7 and said that they don’t have information about a possible app in the near future.

Garmin releases StreetPilot GPS app for iPhone

Garmin finally releases Apple iPhone Navigation StreetPilot App.

Well, as we announced back in October when Garmin killed off the ill-fated nuvifone, the company has finally accepted the inevitable, and released an iPhone version of its popular StreetPilot turn-by-turn navigation software.

We played around with it and it looks like a faithful version of the company's standalone PNDs, complete with 3D junction view, real-time traffic, and other connected services like weather.

The StreetPilot App also integrates with your iTunes music library so you can access and control music while driving, as well as your address book.
The maps are stored in the cloud, so you'll always be getting Garmin's most current maps.

The App is available now in the iTunes App store for US$39.99 (30 euros). That includes lifetime map updates, and realtime traffic.
Not bad.

Check out an hands on video review of the Garmin StreetPilot app for iPhone after the break.

Facebook rated as the "biggest mobile malware threat"

Sophos Senior Technology Consultant Graham Cluley agrees with a BitDefender study showing Facebook as a growing attack vector for smartphone malware.
Sophos has seen a similar pattern, and Google's Android smartphones are often the easiest targets, Cluley said in a sit-down interview Tuesday.

"The iPhone operates in a more controlled environment and the BlackBerry security model is fairly strong. Because Android operates in a more open environment, it's more open to infections," Cluley said during a visit to the offices of IDG Enterprise, home of CSO.

Given the growing popularity of Android phones in the enterprise, Cluley said this is something IT security shops must be more aware of.

The malware being sent to the phones via Facebook messages are the garden-variety spam messages that rely heavily on social engineering tactics.
A Sophos threat report due out next week will dive more into the social networking threat, but the company's just-released "Dirty Dozen" spam list also mentions it.

Garmin launches GPS apps for Android and iPhone

Although technically one of the first GPS manufacturers to market a mapping app for portables with its Garmin Mobile 10 software for PDAs and Palm, Garmin has been notably absent from the smartphone navigation app marketplace as of late (discounting the aging and ridiculously overpriced Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry).

Today, Garmin jumps back into the fray, challenging apps from TomTom, Magellan, and Navigon with not one, but four of its own GPS-centric apps, including the new StreetPilot navigation app for Apple iPhone and three new GPS apps for Google Android devices.

The StreetPilot name hearkens back to the original Garmin StreetPilot GPS navigator announced at CES 1998.
The app essentially brings all of the features that one would expect from a standalone Garmin Nuvi navigation device to the iPhone's touc screen, including a simple menu and map interface, turn-by-turn directions with text-to-speech spoken street names, and graphic lane guidance.

TomTom for iPhone with Map Share update review

The brand new update to the ever popular TomTom for the Apple iPhone app (which has featured in the Apple 'top grossing apps' list since it was first released 18 months ago) adds one highly requested feature:
Map Share.

Why the big hurrah over one additional feature?
Simple, it's a hugely important part of the TomTom feature set and long overdue in iPhone form.
What Map Share does, and does brilliantly it has to be said, is allow users of the iPhone app to make changes to their own maps as well as benefit from the changes and updates made by the community of TomTom users.
Possible changes include editing of street names, setting driving directions, speed restrictions and so on.

The whole community editing of maps might sound a little dangerous, given the number of folk who might consider renaming major roads for a laugh, but actually TomTom has implemented the whole concept very well indeed.
While the changes you make to your local maps are instantly reflected, changes by others are only rolled out in Map Share updates to the wider community after having been verified by TomTom itself.

Telenav GPS Navigator now for Windows Phone 7

Windows Phone 7 comes loaded with Bing Maps and we do find it useful for finding places and checking out points of interest surrounding any location.
However, it is like Google Maps on non-Android smartphones and does not provide you with turn-by-turn or voice guided navigation. You can get basic directions, but you will not be prompted for turns and must actively interact with your Windows Phone 7 device to use Bing Maps to get to a destination.

Some Windows Phone 7 devices come loaded with TeleNav GPS Navigator so you can indeed get turn-by-turn and voice guided navigation. TeleNav GPS Navigator is a powerful connected GPS navigation solution that gives you connected services such as real-time traffic alerts and weather for the location you are traveling in.
There is no movie times support provided in the current version on Windows Phone 7.   

Samsung launches dual-screen Continuum phone

Android smartphone fans will soon be able to own a revolutionary new handset from Samsung following its launch in the US yesterday:
The Samsung Continuum was officially unveiled at an event in New York, and is already garnering interest on a couple of key points.

For starters, and on the down side, the smartphone features ageing Google Android 2.1 (code name Eclair), rather than current Android 2.2 (Froyo), which is already mystifying tech-fiends everywhere.
Considering that a version 2.3 of Android is currently being engineered (Gingerbread?), some are suggesting that this is a bit of a backwards step for the Korean electronics giant.

On the upside, the Samsung Continuum will feature no less than two separate touchscreens on the mobile device.
The main screen will be a 3.4" Super AMOLED multi-touch display. A secondary 1.8" touchscreen will then be positioned below this and be able to feature notifications in a ticker-style fashion.

Users will be able to monitor their incoming calls, texts and messages using the smaller screen, but it will also feature RSS feed updates, weather and all of the other day-to-day stuff that we all like to keep tabs on.