Connected PNDs have it rough. Ever since
Dash folded, the future has been murky at best for any GPS company hoping to rope consumers in by promising real-time information on the face of their navigator. Garmin, however, is hoping to get folks hooked by avoiding that awful monthly fee for the first two years on its
nüvi 1690, and it's using AT&T's network in order to do so. Today, the carrier proudly announced that it would be the one providing service to the device, giving users within range of an AT&T tower access to Google Local search, updated fuel prices, white page listings and Garmin's own Ciao! social networking system. What's interesting, however, is the high-profile nature of the partnership. We'd hate to speak too soon, but would we be nuts to think a whole cadre of AT&T connected GPS units were on tap for, say, CES 2010? Guess only time -- and sales data from the 1690 -- will tell.
posted Sep 17th 2009 12:42PM
So AT&T bitches about the iPhone and what MMS will do (not to mention anything else) to it's network but they're ok with tons of people connecting up with their GPS. The logic behind it never seems to make sense with this company.
The units will most likely use EDGE alleviating the strain on ATT's 3G network.
@Adam - Are you serious? Data is used regardless, so even if it was 3G, it would just download faster. It will still use more data - 3G or EDGE. The "slow speeds" on the 3G aren't from equipment strain - it's from AT&T being TOO CHEAP to upgrade the data connection(s) to the tower(s).
This is all part of AT&T's plans to charge infinity billion dollars per year for their service, without actually spending any money on upgrades. This should definitely help them to achieve that goal.
@Bob - actually they are 2 separate infrastructures that are intertwined. 3G data will not affect Edge users unless it is passed off to that lower connection. And Edge connections do not impede 3G users as well.
@Bob. The fact is, there is no slow 3G speed (at least comparitively). AT&T has the fastest 3G network on the market (download speeds are twice as fast as Verizon [yep, look it up]).
Are you really going to blame a company for being cautious? God forbid they keep shareholders in mind. Might as well just be idiots and have the whole network become useless just like with what happened to Sprint a few months back. And upgrading towers costs millions of dollars. That's being cheap?
Sure, the AT&T isn't perfect, but if you are going to bitch, how about have an educated argument to back it?
@clos1084, I am saying they are using the same WIRELINE connection (the data connection to the tower) to feed 3G and EDGE, so it can, and WILL affect 3G speeds - the more people you put on the wireline pipe, the slower it will go, everyone knows that.
Oh neato, so now I can have a GPS unit get crappy data service just like my iPhone. Thanks AT&T! Oh, please don't bother making the system work better either - that would be silly.
garmin sucks. the only reason they give away two years of their service for free is because they know nobody would voluntarily pay for it.
Idea! Why don't vehicle tech companies (SatNav, AV etc) agree to a new dashboard gadget standard that means cars come with a (say) 7-8" wide cutout in the centre of the dash where the driver's chosen brand of satnav can slot in. No more fiddly windshield mounts and associated cabling. The controls for the AV systems (radio, MP3, phone etc) can of course appear over the map on demand. This will be a boon to safety too. It is unlikely screens in vehicles will need to be larger than 7 to 8". I know there are centre mount LCD panels in a lot of modern cars and trucks, but they are built into the plastic, not slotted in.
Thoughts fellow Engadget peoples? Garmin, TomTom, DadDad, you listening?
If AT&T wanted to do something really worthwhile, they'd upgrade their wireless network to support high-speed data properly, set a tiered/flat-rate for any data plan (i.e. voice/text/data are all the same thing), roll out U-Verse to something more than six cities, and then make a "connected anywhere" plan that gave you U-Verse Internet, wireless data, and wi-fi hotspot acccess, all on one bill.
Or, you know, just keep charging more for less. It's ok, the American government will support your oligopoly.
ATT is supposed to make a profit, not roll out maximal services instantly and charge you less.
For one thing, the current way they do things has millions of people paying for landlines. That's awesome for their bottom line.
U-Verse rocks,and I hate that I live somewhere where I can no longer get it, but if it really was so cheap to do what ATT isn't doing, someone else would do it and eat their lunch.
This is likely because ATT will be carrying the Nuvi line of cells. Der.
PS.. NO.. edge will not affect 3G, and vice versa.. you stupid bastards.
"Google Local search, updated fuel prices, white page listings and Garmin's own Ciao! social networking system"? For those services while I'm driving I'd happily pay... uh... nothing.
This proposal strikes me as the kind of thing that emerges from a chain of reasoning that goes something like this:
Alice: "We want to charge $15 a month for this service"
Bob: "Nobody will pay $15 for real-time traffic"
Alice: "OK, what else can we throw in that uses data?"
Bob: "How about some internet stuff? And I hear social networking is big with the kids."
Carol: "Um, you do realize nobody wants any of that stuff, right?"
Bob & Alice: "This isn't about what people want to buy. It's about what we want to sell."
Hey Garmin: give me real-time optimized routing and I'll pay a few bucks a month. Anything else is just clutter.
From the press release...
"subscription renewal price for data services is $5.00/month."
Just sayin'