Portable navigation market gets new players
With recent announcements by consumer electronics heavyweights Audiovox and Philips, the portable navigation system market is no longer the province of niche players like TomTom and Garmin.
CNet reports that Audiovox’s debut nav product is the NVX216, a touch-screen device with 1 GB of flash memory, MP3 functionality and an FM modulator to connect with your in-dash sound system. It comes with a full U.S. map, and retails for $599. Later models will add a bigger screen, built-in hard drive, turn-by-turn voice-assisted navigation, and be XM-ready.
Meanwhile, Royal Philips Electronics announced this week that it will roll out three personal nav models this fall, with prices starting at $500.
Will personal nav systems overtake built-in car systems in the marketplace? The writing’s on the wall. After all, remember what happened to hard-wired car phones?
[Source: CNet]
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