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Jul 10, 09 - 01:34 pm Comment from: Anonymous©

The one thing I had read that interested me is that unlike the AT&T;nav app, this is NOT a subscription service. You buy the app and/or gps adapter/mount and that's it. Just like buying a standalone gps, you may want to buy new maps every year or two depending upon where you live, but that's it. No $10 a month.

Jul 10, 09 - 02:03 pm Comment from: Spark

I was hoping that the maps would reside in memory located in kit. I am concerned how much of my 32 GB iPhone storage will be taken up with Tom Tom.

Jul 10, 09 - 02:15 pm Comment from: eMax

umm, duh...

Jul 10, 09 - 02:16 pm Comment from: eMax

For anyone who is interested. this will be like TOM TOM Navigator software, the software they provide for PDA and other smartphones. It runs on symbian, Windows mobile and Palm OS.

Prob cost around 100$ if they price it fairly, include a year of free map updates and take up about 1GB of space for full USA maps.

I think will be the most expensive app in the appstore! Typically 100 - 200 dollars or euro!

Let's see! Cool if ipod touch could use tomtom with a external GPS

If they're smart, they'll sell the app for $19.99 and the car kit for $79.99. They'll sell a ton of them at that price, especially if they add iPhone 2G and iPod Touch compatibility. They might even out-sell their stand-alone units. The best part is that they can make it software/firmware upgradeable and they can reduce their support overhead, while extending their compatibility for several generations of Apple hardware/software.

That's how I would do it.

Jul 10, 09 - 03:35 pm Comment from: NCIceman

A shame they have to do their own mapping; I have found the built in google maps to be more accurate than GPS systems; seems a shame to have 2 sets of maps. I'd settle for less features for a lower price.

I like the sound of the car kit though, I think that will make it worthwhile.

Overall I find turn by turn navigation systems overrated. I know where I am going 99% of the time. I have found that the built in maps app is more than adequate for most of my navigation needs. Still, for the gadget factor I will probably get this anyway.

GO GO TomTom iTouch! Yes, I just called the iPod Touch the "iTouch"

Jul 10, 09 - 03:38 pm Comment from: Shadowself

NO software application can turn the first generation iPhone or iPod touch into a GPS device. They don't have the hardware to receive the signals from the GPS satellites. Therefore they will NEVER be GPS devices!

A much more accurate way to say this is, "TomTom’s iPhone app and car kit could potentially turn 2G iPhone, iPod touch into the best interface (or experience) of any GPS system"

The GPS receiver within the hardware car kit may be able to allow the first generation iPhone or iPod touch to utilize it and thus allow the software application access the satellite signals. However, the software does not do this. The hardware car kit is absolutely required for this -- if it even works at all (which is still to be explained and proven).

Thus while it is in the car kit cradle the first generation iPhone and iPod touch may have GPS capability. Once removed the best the first generation iPhone can do is use cell towers and/or WiFi hot spots to localize and the iPod touch can do is use WiFi to localize neither of which is GPS accuracy. Even with Tom Tom's app installed they still are just cell tower and WiFi location dependent. Hopefully, Tom Tom's implementation will take advantage of those towers and hot spots too, not just be useless, dead code if there is not GPS signal.

I think that is the point.

You really only need turn by turn directions when you're driving. The GPS tranceiver is a super smart business move by TomTom. A purpose-built GPS Antenna that works with the millions of iTouches out there? And, they don't need to pay Apple 30% for hardware.

When you're on foot, just the map is fine ( you're travelling slow enough that you can read the street signs )

It's likely they will use CoreLocation technologies, which will use GPS or Wifi.

m/w: physical... as in a physical piece of hardware

@ Spark - I wouldn't worry too much. I have the Entire lower 48 on my Garmin on a 2 GB micro SD card. I would think this should be similar.

Jul 10, 09 - 06:04 pm Comment from: jfort

The BT GPSr that came with the TomTom product for a Palm Treo worked fine with the TomTom app, but it was not good enough to turn the Treo "into a GPS device." For that, I had to buy a GlobalSat GPSr that was much more sensitive and accurate. I have compared the GlobalSat/Treo combination with the iPhone's GPS and found the former to be much more accurate than the latter. I hope iPhone allows external BT GPSr's for iPhone apps. Then, maybe, the iPhone can be a better GPS device.

Jul 10, 09 - 07:36 pm Comment from: GregoriusM

Remember, it has been reported that Apple itself has been involved in the engineering of at least the software, if not the hardware itself.

This is an Apple/TomTom car kit, so I'd bet my bottom dollar that it WILL work with the 2G touch.

It probably won't be as quick at getting your initial position due to the iPhone using A-GPS, but I'll bet it will do a decent job.

Now that I write this, the average GPS kit doesn't use A-GPS anyway, so Apple and TomTom would be crazy not to have the ability for the 2G AND 3G touch be able to use the kit.

I am SO looking forward to this product, if priced fairly.

Software $19.99? Ain't gonna happen. I'd think that $39 or $49 bucks with the device itself at $49 to $59 bucks or $79 to $89 bundled.

Put me on the pre-order list!

Greg

Jul 11, 09 - 09:54 am Comment from: Mel Gross

I love the way some people determine how much an app should sell for. "$19.95 for the app, $79.85 for the kit... that's the way I would do it."

That may be the way you would do it SAB, but this is a real company, they have to make real profits and sales. If you don't think that they have a good idea of what they must do here, then it's your fault, not theirs.

Jul 11, 09 - 02:51 pm Comment from: GregoriusM

Mel, Mel, Mel

Our guesses are sometimes way out there but they are just that - guesses. In a lot of cases, just pie in the sky hopes. None of us really have any idea what their marketing plan is but we throw our thoughts out there anyway, much like even some of the more prolific posters on these sites. I think it will be popular either way and the market will help to determine the price.

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