Magellan might be conscious of the pulse of the GPS market as much as any one else, if not more. Their adventures or innovations affirm this fact to the hilt. ‘No pressures of being a market leader, we are out to live up to our name', seems their slogan.

Adventure renamed under Magellan brand name

The eXplorist series models cannot give a better definition for these devices are exclusively for the rugged and the toughest. Magellan eXplorist 500 Pedestrian GPS Navigator is the latest one from that line of adventure. Not necessarily, a car mounted type it has proved handy for the pedestrian adventurers as well as motorcyclists.

Navigate in vivid colour

The feature most highlighted by the company. Position display done in 16-colour. That says one can watch his premises live in colour. An awesome thing accompanied by a backlight glow in amber gloss. On screen, options further divided into four such as Compass, Map, Locator and Satellite modes, to make things easier for the user.

Maps with Points of Interest

Built-in European basemap features important roads, waterways, tourist spots along with a range of points of interest like hotels, filling stations, service stations etc.

Ruggedly Built for the Rugged

Tough casing designed of impact resistant resin, further protected by rubber armour that also provides waterproofing. The casing, well designed to resist the extremities of nature confronted by an adventurer.

Navigation features

A spectrum of smart navigational features awaits the daring.

• High-speed USB Data port
• True fix technology for accuracy that is reliable to the maximum within 3 metres
• Fourteen parallel channel tracking
• The distances between various geographical points can be calculated in a jiffy with the area calculator device
• Elevation changes of accessed or prone to access areas presented graphically with the help of a programme called Vertical Profile
• Built-in antenna enables enhanced reception
• Joystick enables easy scrolling

Languages

MAGELLAN eXplorist 500 Portable GPS System is compatible to English, Spanish, French, Swedish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Finnish, Norwegian and Dutch.

Other Key Features

• File system made simple for the user to interact.
• Turn by turn routing enabled MapSend topographic maps as additional option through SD Cards.
• A PC application called Geo cache Manager, to download coordinates from the web.

Battery

Li-ion rechargeable battery (1300 MAH), enables 17 hours of uninterrupted use.

Conclusion

Obviously, Magellan has a penchant for adventure. MAGELLAN eXplorist 500 Satellite Navigation System forebodes a good time ahead for the hikers. Let the next watchword for the GPS market be adventure and Magellan, be the trailblazer. Was there an explorer by this name in the historical past?

Who is Blaupunkt?

A subsidiary of the renowned German giant - Robert Bosch Limited, Blaupunkt (Blue Spot is the word meaning), with its head quarters located in Hildesheim , Germany , is the European front-runner in the car radio sector. Today its employee strength is about 7500 hands all over the world and an annual product output of more than 500,000 navigation systems and 5 million car radios.

Blaupunkt Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3 Sat Nav System

The Blaupunkt Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3 Sat Nav System is a classic product coming in the line of the ‘Travel Pilot Lucca' series, from the ‘Blaupunkt' backgrounds. This device comes accredited with a bundle of advanced features that still stands a rarity amongst its counterparts of the current GPS market.

Remarkable Screen and Map Features

• A high contrast, anti-glare LCD touch-screen of 4.3 format colour display.
• The screen size is 3.5”.
• Map features are enthralling. Full map coverage of the U.K. and Ireland comes pre-loaded and a DVD consisting explicit maps of another 21 European countries comes as a bonus package.
• Map display in 2D and 3D modes
• Traffic signs display
• Automatic junction Zoom
• Arrow Display
• JPEG, GIF and BMP picture Viewer. ( SD card accessed )
• Lastly and definitely not the least, the map shows City names, Street names and accepts the travellers' destination input too.

Attention Music Lovers

Option for MP3 playback , along with WMA and OGG , via the SD card is provided in the Blaupunkt Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3 Portable GPS System.

Points of Interest

Thousands of Mio Points of interest displayed. Highlighting points like restaurants, hotels, filling stations, tourist spots etc by names of relevant cities.

Smart Navigational Properties

The navigational features in the unit further justify the sublime support rendered by the screen and map part.

• The axis - The ‘Dual Core Technology ' of Atlas 2, better known as the SiRF Star III receiver. The Blaupunkt Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3, inspired by this, displays an array of exceptional navigational properties.
• GPS Quick Finder for express quick, route calculation avoiding ferries, toll roads etc.
• Route planning sphere augmented with multiple stop locations.
• Voice mode, Route Guidance realized by an integrated loudspeaker, provides timely notifications of motorway and street numbers.
• Full 7-digit postcode entry in the U.K
• Navigation by house number, street name and number, enabled.

Speed Camera Alert for Speed Devils

The traveller can subscribe to speed camera alert (Navigon).

Battery and Warranty

Blaupunkt Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3 GPS Navigator comes with a rechargeable battery with a one-time charge-life of 3 hours and a first purchase warranty of 2 years.

Conclusion

The history of Blaupunkt substantiates the fact that, in the sphere of developing innovative products of quality, they have delivered more often than not. Yet this (GPS sector) is a field of cut throat competition. Surviving, let alone succeeding is really tough in the European market. In the circumstances, a product of this standard emerging from their premises can prove real morale boosting for the company. Blaupunkt will definitely find the Travel Pilot Lucca 3.3, a shot in their arm in this race.

Michelin - contributions to the European roads of the early 20 th century was actually an awakening for the world road concepts. In those days life was terrible for a motorist in Europe due to unmade roads and minimal road signage. There Michelin came up with a Travel Guide, providing useful information on the location of nearby service stations and garages and details of restaurants and hotels in each region as well. This was followed by the famous Michelin Green Guide in 1926 in order to alleviate the problems of the motorists that had resulted from a boom in the number of vehicles on the roads during the interwar years. As early as 1910, Michelin invented the signposts which can be seen on some French roads even today. It has been a long way since those and by the dawn of the millennium, it set up the ViaMichelin that in no time has become a chief European provider of pioneering services in the field of travel including the much talked about GPS satellite navigation service.

The ViaMichelin X 950T Satellite Navigation System is one of their latest entries coming with an array of remarkable features like the RDS TMC receiver, Live reception of road conditions and Traffic jams by-passed with the automatic course recalculation feature. These are the significant factors of the 950 T that enables it 24/7 practical traffic updates. And considering, the voice guidance come in 15 different European languages, clearly and precisely through a built in loudspeaker, should definitely make heads turn.

Remarkable features

Some other features of ViaMichelin X-950T Portable GPS System worth mentioning here are, a speed Warner, that alerts when speed limits are exceeded, a POI Warner that informs the arrival of a specified Point of Interest, display of road signs for easier path-finding, the multi-criteria-dynamic-search to look for a hotel or tourist spot of preference, a memory facility that saves and manages favourite addresses and also the last 10 destinations and last but not the least, a simple, user friendly menu.

It is also significant here that the Points of Interest aspect is near perfect with a distinct collection of scores of practical addresses, handy for daily trips and vacation trips including car parks, petrol stores, sports joints, food shops, local services etc. It is directly fuelled by the famous Michelin Guides. The ViaMichelin 950T comes with the full road and street network coverage for 99.9% of the population in the U.K. ( 35% in Northern Ireland) and the main roads and street level coverage of 6 main cities, (45.1% of the population) in Ireland. Its integrated GPS reciever boasts of the much sought after SiRF Star III technology. The processor is Intel 312 MHz, well backed up by a 32MB RAM / 64MB ROM. Software employed are Via Michelin Navigation 5, SD card with pre-installed UK and Ireland maps, Via Michelin Navigation 5 DVD-ROM. A 2 year warranty is indeed a bonus for this product.

Accessories

The standard accessories too exhibit the quality of the premium gadget. The accessories pack consists of a multi-purpose carry case, a car kit that allows easy installation of the device in the vehicle, a cigarette lighter cable that powers and recharges the device in driving mode, a main adapter, 3 styluses for navigation and a TMC aerial that enables the device to receive traffic information directly.

The ViaMichelin 950T with SiRFStar III GPS receiver is a quality that is very much one of the best in the related business in the current world, if not the best. Via Michelin's services are continuously calculated by an independent body on the basis of accessibility rates and obtainability which rates it one of the best in the Internet world. It thus unites Michelin's exclusive and renowned know-how in the field of maps and guides publication with constantly changing technological proficiency.

Almanac

GPS data that contains the location of satellites at a specific time. GPS satellites continuously transmit this information to GPS receiver so that its distance can be computed.

Atomic Clock

GPS satellite has an atomic clock which is so precise that it shows just one second time error in every million years. GPS receiver synchronizes its less accurate clock with atomic clock and computes the time taken by GPS signal to reach it.

Bluetooth

A way of transmitting data without the need of wires. Both transmitting device and the receiver should have compatible Bluetooth devices to achieve this.

CDMA

Code Division Multi Access. A telecommunication method that GPS receiver uses to find out the unique code sent by satellite to find its location.

Cold start

When the GPS receiver is turned on for the first time, it starts to collect essential GPS information like almanac and this takes a few minutes to compute its initial location. This is called cold start.

Control segment/component

One of the three parts of GPS system that controls the satellites and updates the information received from them. Control segment consists of four unmanned, ground monitoring stations and one master control station. The unmanned ground stations receive the data from satellites and send it to the master control station which corrects and update the information and sends it back to satellites using antennas.

Differential GPS (DGPS)

A network of GPS receivers placed in fixed locations gets the satellite signals and corrects the errors and transmits the precise GPS information to other receivers. DGPS provides better accuracy than standard GPS system and computes its location with an accuracy of less than 5 meters.

Ephemeris

One of three bits of information that GPS signals transmit to GPS receivers. While almanac contains time & position information based on where the satellites are supposed to be at any given time, it has to be updated as the satellites may deviate from their orbital paths at periodical intervals. This updated information containing the exact location of satellites is called ephemeris. It is the master control segment that sends ephemeris data back to satellites.

GPS Receiver

Also known as user component/segment, GPS receiver has antenna to pick the signals from the satellites and the in-built processor computes the its location and other information and displays it on user-interface like touch-screen, LCD display.

GPS signal

There are two types of signals. Unencrypted, SPS signals transmitted at 1575.42 MHz for civilian GPS users. Another type is encrypted PPS signal that is used for military purpose. GPS signal contains three kinds of information - pseudorandom code, almanac and ephemeris.

GPS signals are low powered and travel on line of sight so they can be easily blocked by solid objects like rocks, thick foliage, tunnels and mountains.

Mapping software

Most GPS units come with base map that show regional information like major roads, important places, airports, rivers, lakes etc. Some GPS navigation receivers can download detailed maps that contain streets, restaurants, petrol stations, marine navigation details, topography etc. These maps can be purchased and need to be updated now and then. GPS units can store the mapping software in their memory cartridge or in their hard drives using DVD drive.

Multi-path signal error

One of the potential time errors that occur when GPS signals gets reflected off tall buildings or other solid structures before they reach GPS receiver. This means, the signals took more time than usual, resulting in time errors. GPS receivers rectify or minimize this error by calculating the average time taken by different multi-path signals and determine the location.

Mhz

Mega Hertz. Measure of unit used to find the frequency of radio signals. For example, GPS signals travel at a frequency of 1575.42 MHz.

NAVSTAR

A constellation of GPS satellites that orbit the earth and aid satellite based navigation for both military and civilian use. The US Department of Defense launched the first NAVSTAR satellite in 1978 and completed stationing the full constellation of 24 GPS satellites in 1994.

Orbit

The path of GPS satellites that round the earth. GPS satellite takes nearly 12 hours to make one orbit thus it completes two orbits every day.

Pseudorandom code

A kind of noise that contains coded information which is transmitted by GPS satellites to GPS receivers. Pseudorandom code helps the GPS unit to identify a specific satellite so it can find out its location and distance.

Points of Interest (POI)

POIs include airports, restaurants, petrol filling stations, hotels, tourists attractions and other places of importance. Most GPS units come with POIs

Precise Positioning Service (PPS)

A type of GPS signal which is encrypted and transmitted by satellites so that only military service can access it.

Satellite

Man-made object that orbits the earth and transmit various data to the ground stations. Digital TV, weather forecast and GPS navigation are some of the applications of satellite based technology.

Availability (SA)

One of the sources that affected GPS signals earlier. SA was the outdated method practiced by the US Department of Defense to deliberately degrade the GPS signals as a military maneuver. However, SA has been dropped now.

SPS

Standard Positioning Service. A type of GPS signals, which are unencrypted and transmitted at 1575.42 MHz.

Triangulation

Method by which GPS receiver deduces its location. For more information, read How does a GPS work?

TTFF

Also known as acquisition time, TTFF signifies the time that a GPS receiver to acquire GPS signals and compute its location when it is turned on for the first time.

User component/segment

See GPS Receiver

WAAS

Wide Area Augmentation System. Advanced GPS system that provides better accuracy and computes a location with a preciseness of less than 3 meters.

Novogo T30 GPS Navigator is a latest addition of the "T-series" models of Novogo brand which has been made in handy design. The slim device can give abundant navigational guidance and all your hang-outs will be convenient and safe. Usually most of the GPS navigators need activation code to access them whereas this T30 performs automatically immediately after plug-in.

Attributes Of the Portable Device

Built-in 12 channel GPS receiver

The device comes embedded with a 12-channel receiver along with a flip up antenna. This component is important for achieving navigational accuracy. You can also use an external second antenna in addition to this receiver with the support of MMCX connector.

Seamless Map Storage 

This contemporary model comes pre-loaded in the SD memory cards with Regional Map or Seamless Pan-Europe Map and North America. Apart from these maps, NAVTEQ map data is also pre-loaded.Handy Model

The new Novogo T30 GPS Sat-Nav unit weighs just 190 grams and is easy to use it even in your hands. The product has been designed with measurements like 74 mm height, 130 mm width and 21 mm depth.

Display

A 3.5 inches LCD touch screen is featured in the device. This TFT display screen supports a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels.

Indication of Speed Limit and Signpost

Audible warning will be given when you exceed the maximum speed limit. Signpost indications can be viewed on the LCD screen along with real road information. It guides you with up to 400 different voices.

Intuitive Interface

T30 models are made with an intuitive interface which does not require technical expertise to use. All you have to do is plug-in the memory card and take pleasure in your drive.

Door-to-Door Route Planning

This in-car sat-nav unit supports Door to Door Route planning feature. Before you start your journey, you can plan your routes if you have Novogo T30 sat-nav unit in hand. You can view a direction arrow on the screen which tells the right time to take turns. You can make use of command buttons featured on the device to enjoy quick access.

Viewing Mode

Two available viewing modes are 2D and 3D. Choose any to display the maps and routes clearly.

Multi-language Display

If you need to change language setting, just reset Novogo T30 GPS navigation system after choosing your mother tongue.

You can easily use the device and can select the vehicle type modes like car, motorcycle or pedestrian. The trip calculator feature of the device tells you the shortest time and the shortest distance to your destination. You can also avoid toll road and ferry with the Routing criteria functionality. The device also supports a Mini USB port to connect with PC.