Jan 8th

Voice GPS

Voice GPS is coming on strong. Some very sophisticated voice activated GPS units have appeared in just the past year, and experts are predicting that improvements in speech recognition and control for GPS and other gadgets will be one of the hot trends in consumer electronics for 2009.

Voice recognition GPS offers the ultimate in user control. Key pads and touch screens have their place, but particularly for drivers having a GPS navigation system with voice control offers a tremendous advantage. Trying to set a route destination by punching at a screen while driving can be a lot more distracting than holding a cell phone. Now you can just tell the machine where you want to go, and it will tell you how to get there–at least if everything works properly.

This kind of two-way conversation has been a long time coming. Talking GPS navigators have been around for a while, and increasingly consumers can choose among a variety of GPS voices to suit their personal sytyle. If you want to take your driving directions from the GPS voice of George Bush, Elvis or Mr. T, those and many other options are now available–hey, choice is everything. Navtones has been offering celebrity voices for TomTom users for a few years, and promises that Garmin-compatible voices are finally on the way.

One of the more popular gift items this past holiday season was the Knight Rider GPS system by Mio. This is not just the voice of “KITT”–the articicially intelligent car of the 1980s TV series recently given a second life by NBC–but a 4.3 inch portable GPS navigator that does all it can to impersonate the fictional retro-futuristic talking automobile. How…cool?…is that.

Speech recognition in GPS and other devices has been slower to develop. The first generation or two of voice activated GPS units were a little dicey, performance-wise. Nothing like being stuck in traffic talking to a machine that can’t understand what you’re saying. But things have improved considerably, and new higher-end models like the Garmin Nuvi 880, TomTom GO 930, and Navigon 7200T all boast sophisticated speech recognition systems that–while still not perfect–are consistent enough to represent a real improvement over hands-on control.

Keep an eye out here at Voice GPS for more on voice recognition GPS systems and GPS voices.

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Jan 21st

Nuvi 885T Voice Recognition GPS

One reviewer called the Garmin nuvi 880 “probably the best GPS money can buy right now.” Well, that was eight months ago.

Garmin recently announced two new additions to its voice activated GPS lineup, both building on the success of nuvi 880 and featuring that model’s widely praised speech recognition technology. The nuvi 885t, introduced at the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show in January, is poised to become Garmin’s flagship personal navigator for 2009.

The Newest Nuvi: Garmin 885t voice recognition GPS

The Garmin nuvi 885t combines speech recognition and a full voice-activated menu with other advanced features, including “lane assist” lane positioning guidance, a feature that was lacking on the nuvi 880. It also includes a wider range of dynamic content updates from MSN Direct.

“Combining two of Garmin’s most popular features - speech recognition and lane assist with junction view - the nüvi 885T lets drivers keep both hands on the wheel and takes the guesswork out of navigation,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin’s vice president of worldwide sales. “And with enhanced MSN Direct services, the nüvi 885T provides much-needed travel information like traffic updates, flight status, Doppler radar, gas prices, news and business headlines and a wireless ’send to GPS’ capability.”

The voice command menu operates through a wireless remote device mounted on the steering wheel. Drivers then can set routes or issue other commands by voice, without having to take eyes off the road. The lane positioning and junction view features include arrows, road signs, and specific directions for carrying out complex driving maneuvers.

The nüvi 885T has Bluetooth wireless technology for hands-free calling, and an FM wireless transmitter which allows users to transmit everything from turn-by-turn directions to MP3s and audiobooks through their vehicle’s stereo. To maintain MSN Direct service after the first three months (which are fee), nuvi 885t owners will have to pay an additional $49.95 a year. An alternative is the nüvi 855, which offers speech recognition and lane assist without MSN Direct and Bluetooth. All other features on the nuvi 855 are comparable to the nüvi 885T.

We’re looking forward to seeing road tests and reviews of the new nuvi 800 series voice recognition gps navigators, both expected to be available by February 28, 2009. Garmin’s suggested retail prices are 699.99 for the nuvi 855 and 799.99 for the nuvi 885T. Slight discounts on pre-orders on the nuvi 885t and the nuvi 855 are already available on Amazon.

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