Honda adding Google Earth to cars (in Japan)

Leftlane News reports that Honda will soon add Google Earth to cars using its ‘internavi Premium Club’ navigation service in Japan. Google Earth will interface with the existing navigation service, adding high-resolution satellite images of cities to current traffic information downloaded via the car's wireless internet connection.  As you may recall, Volkswagen also recently showed off its own Google Earth-enhanced navigation service, although it looks like Honda may actually beat them to the market. No word if/when it'll make it to North America market though.

Update: As much as we'd like this to be true, it turns out that Honda isn't offering such a service after all. The car company's just making it easier to use Google Earth or other services by providing a way to export data from the car's nav system, which can then be manipulated on a PC. Thanks to everyone who pointed this out!

[daschupa @ Apr 5th 2006 4:01PM]

The Mars rover could use Google Mars next time.

[anyo @ Apr 5th 2006 4:03PM]

I want I want!

[slyecho @ Apr 5th 2006 4:24PM]

They need the whole Earth of Google Earth for a navigation service that is for Japan only?

[Mike @ Apr 5th 2006 4:25PM]

Hmmm... Google Earth in a car. Very useful for that trip across the Pacific ocean. WTF!?!

[Eli @ Apr 5th 2006 5:57PM]

When will it make it to North America? Probably not for awhile, since our wireless internet is practically stone age compared to Japan. Not to mention they've got 100% 3G coverage. In the US it's maybe 10-20% - mostly confined to major cities. Canada is almost assuredly under 5%, and I have no idea about Mexico.

But considering how slowly Google Earth works on my cable connection, it would take some serious preemptive downloading to make it run smoothly enough to navigate by.

[Al2x @ Apr 5th 2006 9:13PM]

My Pops works for Honda, he's got a RidgeLine in the shop (import) and it has Google Earth. He said it was pretty sweet (he's not into the whole 'gadget' century yet, though).

[Jamar @ Apr 5th 2006 9:15PM]

Well, I'd imagine that the whole of the earth is needed in case someone takes their car with them when they leave Japan (I see tons of imported Japanese cars here in Shanghai- recognizable by their American-sized license plate holes).

[ombudsman @ Apr 5th 2006 10:19PM]

google maps will not use wireless internet. it will most likely use direct satellite data just like current navigation systems.

[JC @ Apr 6th 2006 6:21AM]

Why only in Japan?

[nischal @ Apr 6th 2006 8:21AM]

thats great news i hope all the companies come forward with this view to giv forward the navigation

[nischal @ Apr 6th 2006 8:37AM]

that's great news eveen in other countries & also even by other companies the google earth should be added so that this helps for navigation

[Awesome Man @ Apr 6th 2006 10:13AM]

This is one thing I truly admire about Japan.

Keep upgrading and throw away the old junk, I like it!

[Lazarroni @ Apr 6th 2006 12:54PM]

The original press release (Japanese) makes NO mention of making Google Earth available in Honda cars. It says "now anyone can download Internavi Premium Club traffic data and view it on Google Earth installed on a DESKTOP PC."

http://www.honda.co.jp/news/2006/c060329.html

This is another case of the Blog Telephone game.

[Tamyu @ Apr 6th 2006 2:02PM]

Lazarroni is right. The article says that members will be able to view live data superimposed on to Google Earth on a PC. Not that it will work in the car. Also, it will only apply to 3 major city areas in Japan.

I REALLY REALLY REALLY wish that Google Earth supported roads in Japan natively. You can see road maps of a large part of Europe, and of course the US, but not of Japan... Which is odd to me, as the roads are all there on Google Local. When it supports Japanese roads, I`ll rig up my laptop with my car`s GPS system and have some fun. For now, it`s fun to look at places, but has no real use to me.

As for bandwidth - Lowest resolution settings over Air-Edge works quite well.

[Lazzaroni @ Apr 7th 2006 11:20AM]

Regarding the update: you are getting warmer.

The data isn't exportable from the in-vehicle navigation system. You download it from the Internavi website and then view it in Google Earth. Go ahead and try it. Go to this page and click on one of the three buttons labeled Tokyo, Nagoya or Osaka and download the "kml" file.

http://premium-club.jp/PR/lab/lab1.html

If Google Earth is installed on your system, just double click the file after it finishes downloading. The data is updated three times daily.

Kind of anti-climactic, isn't it?