GPS Tracklog

Mio GPS 3.5G handset coming early next year

DigiTimes is reporting that Mio will launch a 3.5G handset with GPS during the first quarter of 2009, ahead of the Garmin nuvifone. While nothing was mentioned about this being released in the U.S., Mio was showing off a concept model at CES last year (image via Engadget), so it wouldn't surprise us to see it on this side of the pond.

Navigating thru a winter wonderland

There's a confusing enough array of GPS units on the market, but around the holidays the major manufacturers start throwing out units you've never heard of and have never seen reviewed. Some are exclusive to one retailer, while others are bargain-basement stripped down devices. Here's what the major manufacturers have on tap for the holidays this year...

Knight Rider GPS by Mio review

The Mio Knight Rider has gotten a lot of coverage for its hip factor, though I assume its appeal is limited to fans of the 80's TV show Knight Rider. Mio may also attract a new generation of fans with this device, thanks to the new NBC series remake of the same name. But hey, we're not here to discuss TV, David Hasselhoff or muscle cars. So let's get straight to the GPS review...

Mio free map update promotion

Mio appears to be trying to bump holiday sales this year with a free map promotion dubbed "The Map's on Mio." It also sounds like they will be introducing some new models soon, since the promotion lists some we haven't heard of before. Eligible units are the Mio Moov 200, 200c, 210, 300, 300c, 300x, 310 and 500 and the Knight Rider GPS by Mio.

Knight Rider GPS by Mio is now official

UPDATE: Read my hands on Mio Knight Rider review.

It's either the worse-kept GPS secret in years, or a well orchestrated bit of buzz, but now it's official - the Knight Rider GPS by Mio is due out later this quarter. So if you were a fan of the cheesy 1980's muscle car show, you too can have the voice of K.I.T.T. Your choice of over 300 custom names will welcome you each day.

Connected Mio Moov 380 headed to U.S.

The Mio Moov 380 has cleared the FCC, so we now have another GPS with two-way connectivity coming to the U.S. to compete with the Dash Express and the forthcoming Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS and Garmin nuvifone.

The Mio Moov 380 will have a built-in SIM card as well as a micro-SD card slot. No word on pricing, who their carrier or search partner is, or what the monthly connection fee will be.

Mio Moov 200 review

The Mio Moov 200 is the entry level model in Mio's new Moov series. The Mio Moov 200 has a 3.5” touch screen, comes with over 3.5 million points of interest (POIs), and has text-to-speech, so you'll get "turn left on Oak Street in 200 feet", rather than just "turn left in 200 feet."

Stepping up to the Mio Moov 210 gets you a one-year live traffic subscription, delivered via the Traffic Message Channel (TMC). The 300 and 310 models offer the same features as the 200 and 210, albeit with a wider, 4.3” touch screen.

Mio Moov 310 review

I’ve been testing the Mio Moov 310 recently, one of the first four models in the new Moov series just introduced by Mio. This product line has a completely new interface, created thanks to Mio’s purchase of Navman. As a result, I will go into the interface in some detail in this review. First though, let’s look at  what distinguishes these four models from each other.

Mio announces connected devices

Mio has announced an agreement with ATX Group to develop connected devices using ATX's content delivery infrastructure. They give the following examples of the types of services to be included:

•     Weather information and forecasting for your current and future surroundings
• Traffic updates that provide current information about conditions on the road
• Local information to explore your surroundings, including up-to-date address and phone listings for local businesses, and more

Mio "Moovs" backwards in the U.S.

UPDATE: Read our Mio Moov 200 review and our Mio Moov 310 review

Last month we broke the news about the Mio Moov series. Details are starting to leak out at CeBIT, and GPS Business News is reporting that we will see the Mio Moov 200, 210, 300 and 310 in the U.S. in the next six weeks.

As we've reported, these units will sport a new interface, that should be a real improvement over the iGo interface. Unfortunately, it appears that we're only getting the most basic models in the U.S. -- no connected services or even Bluetooth!