Our turn for new Navman

There's nothing better than coming across a slick new gadget on the web and discovering that it's New Zealand made. Rare though this is, there is one major exception - the electronic navigation company Navman. And there's plenty of buzz on the internet about a Navman in-car GPS (global positioning system) unit that's about to go on sale in Europe.

Navman is set to release a hard drive-based GPS unit, the iCN550, in Europe. It seems the ample storage space is being used in the European models to hold road mapping and landmark information for much of Europe. A memory slot is also included for updates. It's unclear whether the 550 can act as a multimedia player, a sort of iPod and GPS unit in one, but that's where the industry is heading.

The 550 also supports real-time traffic management, a system operated with local service providers and tells drivers what roads to avoid.

As Europe gets the 550, an earlier model which has been out in major markets - the iCN520 - hits the market here.

Costing $999, the 520 can be used in or out of the car for navigation, with mapping displayed on a 3.5-inch colour touch-screen, while 1.5 million street numbers and 23,000 points of interest are programmed into its memory. The mapping data is provided by New Zealand company Geosmart. The device has a rechargeable battery and Navman's voice directions remain.

Another model destined for release here - the PiN 570 ($1049) - is basically a Pocket PC handheld computer with a built-in GPS module and features the functionality of Pocket Word, Excel and Windows Media Player with mapping software.

There's 3D map view and you can automatically navigate to a location based on the contact details of people listed in Pocket Outlook.

I'd been wondering what Navman would come up with next and it seems the two new models are good updates on the classic iCN635.

Competition in the in-car GPS world is really heating up. Everyone from Sony to Garmin are jostling for position for in-car and personal GPS units. Mobile phone makers are also entering the space so that before long we'll all be carrying navigation technology in our pockets.

The in-car GPS systems are becoming fully-fledged multimedia devices, playing video and music and displaying 3D mapping information. Navman's founder Peter Maire told me last year that the company would inevitably end up in the car stereo business as GPS units would increasingly come combined with them. Meanwhile, Navman is selling devices that can be put in any car and are mounted with a suction cup that connects to the windscreen.

Hopefully the new European model and the two Navman units being released here this month will help it keep its dominance in the GPS market it helped build.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY