Road test: AT&T Navigator GPS iPhone application
So far I’ve tested four flat-fee GPS applications for the iPhone with built-in offline maps: Navigon, iGo My Way, TomTom, and CoPilot Live. They all have pros and cons, but they share a few common shortcomings: a lack of real-time traffic, no support for text-to-speech (except for Navigon with its recent update), and outdated maps.
AT&T Navigator's real-time traffic works well most of the time, even where 3G signal is not available.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)
I’ve just finished testing a GPS navigation app that offers all of those previously unavailable features: the AT&T Navigator (version 1.2i.5). The catch? It doesn’t have built-in maps (meaning you will need a working data connection to download the maps in real time) and it requires a monthly subscription of $10. The app itself is free.
This is one of the first GPS navigation applications made for the iPhone. It’s actually a product by TeleNav and is also available for other cell carriers, including Sprint and Alltel.
Unlike the other aforementioned apps that take an hour or so to download using Wi-Fi, the AT&T Navigator has no built-in maps and therefore is a snap to install on the iPhone, even via a 3G or Edge connection. This makes it a perfect quick add-on when you suddenly need a GPS navigator.
The app also launches very quickly, taking just a second or two on my iPhone 3GS. When it can (more on this later), it also picks up GPS signals very fast. After about a week of use, I can say I really like the real-time traffic updates–which warn you both onscreen and audibly–and the text-to-speech features. This is especially helpful when you are in a unfamiliar town. However, I found out that the traffic updates are available mostly for freeways only, unlike Google Maps, which offer them all the way down to street level for major cities.
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Originally posted at iPhone Atlas
Navigon iPhone app gets more new features
Navigon's MobileNavigator app continues to improve with features like text-to-speech and location sharing.
For the second time in as many months, Navigon has released an update to its MobileNavigator GPS app. The big news this time? Text-to-speech.
Since MobileNavigator debuted in late July, the App Store has grown …
Originally posted at iPhone Atlas
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(Credit: Dahon)
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Road test: CoPilot Live navigation app for iPhone
CoPilot Live's map view could use some cleanup and suffers some lag when switching between the vertical and horizontal positions.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)
CoPilot Live is the fourth turn-by-turn GPS application with offline built-in maps for all of North America that I have on my iPhone 3GS. After Navigon, iGo My Way, and TomTom, I thought there would be nothing new I could find in a navigation app. I was wrong.
CoPilot Live offers a quick way to switch between modes of travel, which include auto, RV, motorcycle, biking, and walking. This makes the app ideal for getting around town, especially, say, if you need to change from driving a car to walking. The Navigon app offers a similar option, but you have to dig pretty deep into the menu to change your travel mode. With CoPilot you can do this anytime, even in the middle of an existing route, just via a few taps.
CoPilot Live offers a quick way to switch between different modes of travel.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)
Another nice thing about CoPilot is the Live Services option, which includes Live Weather and Live Link. Live Weather lets you see local weather or weather in a different city. Live Link connects CoPilot Live users, allowing them to send messages or share locations. I wasn’t able to try this out as I was the only one I know who used the app during the testing.
The Live Services option, of course, requires an Internet connection and is only available when there’s a cellular or Wi-Fi signal. Unfortunately, the most anticipated feature that also requires an Internet connection, the real-time traffic option, is not yet available, though there’s a placeholder for it within the Live Services section of the app. According to ALK Technologies, maker of the CoPilot Live, this service will be added via an update that’s coming out by the end of the month and costs another $20 per year, on top of the current $35 flat fee for the app. No other iPhone GPS apps currently offer real-time traffic.
Also missing is the text-to-speech feature, where the app would read out the name of the street. Nonetheless, the app has a wide selection of voices for you to choose from. It includes voices of 29 languages, each with a few options of accents, both male and female. It’s probably the most versatile GPS app for the iPhone in terms of languages it supports.
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