Really cant see the point, I've been using the Navigon app and it works great no need for GPS boost or a special cradle that looks that awful, glad I didn't wait.
Reminds me of the joke about having two Vanderbilt football tickets on by dashboard. Someone broke the windshield and put two more right next to them. Ba-dum-pshh!
I have a friend who graduated from Vandy. He always says, "If you can't go to college, at least go to Tennessee." Ouch!
You really think that an iPhone app isn't drastically different than the software that runs on their own hardware? You haven't done much software development have you?
Have been a professional software developer for many year. Went to one of the best CompSci/Maths schools in the world. Exactly what is your point?
And no, I don't think the software will be dramatically different. Yes, the software will have to support the OS, hardware and interface. So what? You think it will have some new magic features? maybe it will just teleport you to where you want to go. It will still be a TomTom mapping and directional system. I expect the UI will be a hybrid of the regular TomTom UI and the iPhone, which makes sense.
The algorithms, the logic, the maps will all be essentially the same. Will be it a better experience because it is on the iPhone? perhaps, but then we already paid for the iPhone experience when we bought the iPhone.
Quote:
Originally Posted by steviet02
I think you are incorrect.
It was something I read. At AI, actually. take it up with them.
That £99 will include VAT at 15%, so it's more like $145 without sales tax. At any rate, that's far too high. I got the navigon app for £60 for the whole of Europe. The iPhones built-in GLS is quick and accurate enough. I had one problem with reception in Leeds next to the dalek when stopped at a crossing. When I started moving again it got a lock again quickly. The next update will also bring full postcode search and traffic, perfect. Glad I didn't wait for TomTom.
I expect TomTom to release the whole deal at $99, thats a fair price for both the base and the app and will put them in the lead with iPhone users.
Sorry, but it's gotta be in the $69 ballpark to be fair. You can get a decent standalone for $100. And prices of units are falling every week. They've become a commodity and most iPhone users know they can get by pretty well with the built in GPS and Google Maps.
This has never made sense to me. The point of a all-in-one GPS device in my pocket is that I would use it in any car I drive. With this TomTom iPhone frankenstein, I now have to lug the mount/receiver from car to car.
No thanks.
Hasn't everybody not already read the original source for this article, i.e.,
"TomTom iPhone pricing leaked…
Of course, the TomTom software application itself will also be available from the Apple App Store as a standalone download for the iPhone, and one has to assume that the cost will be fairly dramatically reduced if you are not buying into the hardware kit as well. "
If I recall correctly, that cradle actually has its own gps radio that they say is a lot stronger than the iPhones, which will allow for better performance. Keep that in mind when considering the price.
For the iPhone it would give a better antennae, but it may not be needed. The GPS in the mount may be so Touches can mount with it.
One major benefit that the iPhone TomTom will have over the standalone versions is that connecting will considerably faster since the iPhone can benefit from A-GPS. The app will also be able to get traffic info much faster and easier than with other GPS units. In fact, having a constant connection to the internet opens up a world of possibilities that standalone units can?t current match.
I?ll wait for the reviews, but if TomTom does this right the price will be well worth it.
I wish the cradle would accommodate an iPhone that's in a case. Looks like it'll only hold a bare unit.
A concern I have, and was mentioned in an earlier post, the cradle won't offer any protection from the sun when attached to the windshield. When I run my current nav app, the unit gets quite warm when it's not sitting directly in the sun and it appears the this cradle will keep it nice and toasty. Maybe there's a place in my car that can accommodate the suction cup away from direct sun. They should design it so there's a shield to block overhead direct sunlight.
The price doesn't seem too high if that includes the software and cradle when compared to the full price for the Navigon software. I have the Navigon and am happy with it but the GPS boost and better speaker for voice commands would be a welcome improvement.
Have been a professional software developer for many year. Went to one of the best CompSci/Maths schools in the world. Exactly what is your point?
And no, I don't think the software will be dramatically different. Yes, the software will have to support the OS, hardware and interface. So what? You think it will have some new magic features? maybe it will just teleport you to where you want to go. It will still be a TomTom mapping and directional system. I expect the UI will be a hybrid of the regular TomTom UI and the iPhone, which makes sense.
The algorithms, the logic, the maps will all be essentially the same. Will be it a better experience because it is on the iPhone? perhaps, but then we already paid for the iPhone experience when we bought the iPhone.
As a software developer, I'm surprised you don't take the under the hood equation in mind when you were making your comment.
I think it will be drastically different under the hood as the internal memory constraints are sure to be different and not dedicated, that was my point. Not about the feature set or how it looked. Your original point/statement was making it sound like charging that amount for the software/hardware was out of line because there wasn't much of a difference in the software. I think that there would have been significant challenges to get it to run on the phone.
If I recall correctly, that cradle actually has its own gps radio that they say is a lot stronger than the iPhones, which will allow for better performance. Keep that in mind when considering the price.
Quote:
Originally Posted by anonymouse
Actually, I thought it only provided an external antenna, not a complete GPS receiver. But, even if it does include that, those chips are pretty much dirt cheap, so hardly justify the cost.
That's one of the things I tried to find out when this was first announced. I've seen no confirmation either way. Feeding an antenna signal through the dock connector and letting the iPhones GPS chips receive the signal and calculate location could be tricky. Since I belive that would involve an anaolog signal, I think it would mean Apple has reserved dedicated dock connector pins for this. That's unlikely.
If the cradle include the GPS receiver and just transmits the locate as data through the dock connector, that would help explain the high price of the unit.
The question then becomes, if the cradle calculates location and provides that data to the iPhone app to display, will this work with an iPod touch?
WOW! No thanks. I was really looking forward to this product too. I think TomTom priced themselves out of most iPhone owner's price range. I'll pick up a magnetic compass and map before I'll buy this TomTom product.
That's one of the things I tried to find out when this was first announced. I've seen no confirmation either way. Feeding an antenna signal through the dock connector and letting the iPhones GPS chips receive the signal and calculate location could be tricky. Since I belive that would involve an anaolog signal, I think it would mean Apple has reserved dedicated dock connector pins for this. That's unlikely.
If the cradle include the GPS receiver and just transmits the locate as data through the dock connector, that would help explain the high price of the unit.
The question then becomes, if the cradle calculates location and provides that data to the iPhone app to display, will this work with an iPod touch?
It should be pretty simple for them to do. iPods have been able to do it for years (output music over the dock connector), so why not iPhones. I don't recall Apple preventing it on the iphones or if it was just a limitation of not have Dock Connector Accessory support, prior to OSX 3.0.
I don't have all the fancy gadgets (just an FM transmitter), but when I was looking for options to get both music and phone over the stereo, I read that the phone app, specifically, does not work over the dock connection.
Comments
What if he's in the passenger seat?
He specifically said he was driving.
Reminds me of the joke about having two Vanderbilt football tickets on by dashboard. Someone broke the windshield and put two more right next to them. Ba-dum-pshh!
I have a friend who graduated from Vandy. He always says, "If you can't go to college, at least go to Tennessee." Ouch!
You really think that an iPhone app isn't drastically different than the software that runs on their own hardware? You haven't done much software development have you?
Have been a professional software developer for many year. Went to one of the best CompSci/Maths schools in the world. Exactly what is your point?
And no, I don't think the software will be dramatically different. Yes, the software will have to support the OS, hardware and interface. So what? You think it will have some new magic features? maybe it will just teleport you to where you want to go. It will still be a TomTom mapping and directional system. I expect the UI will be a hybrid of the regular TomTom UI and the iPhone, which makes sense.
The algorithms, the logic, the maps will all be essentially the same. Will be it a better experience because it is on the iPhone? perhaps, but then we already paid for the iPhone experience when we bought the iPhone.
I think you are incorrect.
It was something I read. At AI, actually. take it up with them.
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles...offerings.html
Maybe I am wrong. Maybe you are. It is all just guesses now.
That £99 will include VAT at 15%, so it's more like $145 without sales tax.
"£113.85 ($193.75) or which works out to £99 ($168.50) plus tax."
You think it will have some new magic features? maybe it will just teleport you to where you want to go.
Well, it would definitely be worth the price if it did that.
"Need to teleport to a meeting? There's an app for that."
Well, it would definitely be worth the price if it did that.
"Need to teleport to a meeting? There's an app for that."
I might pay twice the rumoured price for that app.
I expect TomTom to release the whole deal at $99, thats a fair price for both the base and the app and will put them in the lead with iPhone users.
Sorry, but it's gotta be in the $69 ballpark to be fair. You can get a decent standalone for $100. And prices of units are falling every week. They've become a commodity and most iPhone users know they can get by pretty well with the built in GPS and Google Maps.
This has never made sense to me. The point of a all-in-one GPS device in my pocket is that I would use it in any car I drive. With this TomTom iPhone frankenstein, I now have to lug the mount/receiver from car to car.
No thanks.
Hasn't everybody not already read the original source for this article, i.e.,
"TomTom iPhone pricing leaked…
Of course, the TomTom software application itself will also be available from the Apple App Store as a standalone download for the iPhone, and one has to assume that the cost will be fairly dramatically reduced if you are not buying into the hardware kit as well. "
http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry4607.html
If I recall correctly, that cradle actually has its own gps radio that they say is a lot stronger than the iPhones, which will allow for better performance. Keep that in mind when considering the price.
For the iPhone it would give a better antennae, but it may not be needed. The GPS in the mount may be so Touches can mount with it.
One major benefit that the iPhone TomTom will have over the standalone versions is that connecting will considerably faster since the iPhone can benefit from A-GPS. The app will also be able to get traffic info much faster and easier than with other GPS units. In fact, having a constant connection to the internet opens up a world of possibilities that standalone units can?t current match.
I?ll wait for the reviews, but if TomTom does this right the price will be well worth it.
A concern I have, and was mentioned in an earlier post, the cradle won't offer any protection from the sun when attached to the windshield. When I run my current nav app, the unit gets quite warm when it's not sitting directly in the sun and it appears the this cradle will keep it nice and toasty. Maybe there's a place in my car that can accommodate the suction cup away from direct sun. They should design it so there's a shield to block overhead direct sunlight.
The price doesn't seem too high if that includes the software and cradle when compared to the full price for the Navigon software. I have the Navigon and am happy with it but the GPS boost and better speaker for voice commands would be a welcome improvement.
Have been a professional software developer for many year. Went to one of the best CompSci/Maths schools in the world. Exactly what is your point?
And no, I don't think the software will be dramatically different. Yes, the software will have to support the OS, hardware and interface. So what? You think it will have some new magic features? maybe it will just teleport you to where you want to go. It will still be a TomTom mapping and directional system. I expect the UI will be a hybrid of the regular TomTom UI and the iPhone, which makes sense.
The algorithms, the logic, the maps will all be essentially the same. Will be it a better experience because it is on the iPhone? perhaps, but then we already paid for the iPhone experience when we bought the iPhone.
As a software developer, I'm surprised you don't take the under the hood equation in mind when you were making your comment.
I think it will be drastically different under the hood as the internal memory constraints are sure to be different and not dedicated, that was my point. Not about the feature set or how it looked. Your original point/statement was making it sound like charging that amount for the software/hardware was out of line because there wasn't much of a difference in the software. I think that there would have been significant challenges to get it to run on the phone.
"£113.85 ($193.75) or which works out to £99 ($168.50) plus tax."
Try again. In the uk we include tax in our advertised prices, so £99 is about £86+VAT or $145+tax.
Try again. In the uk we include tax in our advertised prices, so £99 is about £86+VAT or $145+tax.
That was quoted from the original article, the price was £113.85 ($193.75), VAT included. They calculated the £99 price, excluding VAT, based on that.
If I recall correctly, that cradle actually has its own gps radio that they say is a lot stronger than the iPhones, which will allow for better performance. Keep that in mind when considering the price.
Actually, I thought it only provided an external antenna, not a complete GPS receiver. But, even if it does include that, those chips are pretty much dirt cheap, so hardly justify the cost.
That's one of the things I tried to find out when this was first announced. I've seen no confirmation either way. Feeding an antenna signal through the dock connector and letting the iPhones GPS chips receive the signal and calculate location could be tricky. Since I belive that would involve an anaolog signal, I think it would mean Apple has reserved dedicated dock connector pins for this. That's unlikely.
If the cradle include the GPS receiver and just transmits the locate as data through the dock connector, that would help explain the high price of the unit.
The question then becomes, if the cradle calculates location and provides that data to the iPhone app to display, will this work with an iPod touch?
That's one of the things I tried to find out when this was first announced. I've seen no confirmation either way. Feeding an antenna signal through the dock connector and letting the iPhones GPS chips receive the signal and calculate location could be tricky. Since I belive that would involve an anaolog signal, I think it would mean Apple has reserved dedicated dock connector pins for this. That's unlikely.
If the cradle include the GPS receiver and just transmits the locate as data through the dock connector, that would help explain the high price of the unit.
The question then becomes, if the cradle calculates location and provides that data to the iPhone app to display, will this work with an iPod touch?
Maybe
It's an iPhone app. Duh.
Right- I forgot. By the title, I thought it was about the mount.
It should be pretty simple for them to do. iPods have been able to do it for years (output music over the dock connector), so why not iPhones. I don't recall Apple preventing it on the iphones or if it was just a limitation of not have Dock Connector Accessory support, prior to OSX 3.0.
I don't have all the fancy gadgets (just an FM transmitter), but when I was looking for options to get both music and phone over the stereo, I read that the phone app, specifically, does not work over the dock connection.