Telenav's Scout: personalized GPS for you and your car, too
Telenav's Scout launched today at CES in Las Vegas with dreams of becoming your go-to personalized nav tool. What's personalized nav you ask? Scout opens to a customized collection of your favorite routes displayed in real-time, with traffic, local search, contacts, music and the like at your fingertips on the My Dashboard screen. Coupled with the initial free iPhone offering is Scout.me, a web site that allows users to make plans with friends via social sites such as Facebook and Twitter as well as being able to organize and save their favorite spots. The next time the app is started all that content will automagically appear on your phone. Telenav's end goal here is a consistent user experience across multiple platforms: no more endless typing and re-adding your details to all of your disparate navigation devices. With today's announcements of Telenav's partnership with Ford for its SYNC system, properly equipped handsets will connect to any compatible car where the center console will display your Scout environment as well as maps with voice guidance or text prompts. The app should be in Apple's app store today, but unfortunately there's no word on when we'll start seeing this in cars.
will work in select Ford vehicles later this year
LAS VEGAS - Jan. 9, 2012 - Today, from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Telenav, Inc. (NASDAQ: TNAV), the leader in personalized navigation, is introducing Scout, the first daily personal navigator that will be seamlessly accessible across the web, smartphones, and in-car systems – offering users an easy and consistent discovery and navigation experience no matter where they are. Scout is available immediately on iPhones via the Apple® App Store and at www.scout.me. Scout will also be available in cars later this year.
"Scout addresses people's frustration with navigation devices," said Sal Dhanani, Vice President of Products at Telenav. "Today, people want to be able to search, check drive times, and plan routes quickly on their computer, phone, or in the car. But with current tools, they must deal with multiple apps and interfaces and constantly re-enter information on the go, which compromises the experience. Scout is designed to solve these pain points."
Scout for Phones
First available on the iPhone as a free app, Scout sets itself apart from other navigation and discovery services by providing personalized information on where to go, when to leave, how to get there, and things to do upon arrival.
Scout opens to My Dashboard, a customizable start screen that allows users to quickly get personalized, real-time commute times to work or home – as well as instant access to local search for easy discovery of new places and saved favorites.
My Dashboard was created to solve the need for an everyday navigation tool, even when driving to familiar destinations. According to a recent survey* from Telenav, two-thirds of respondents said they alter their normal routes to avoid traffic, while 57 percent cited road closures and 57 percent cited the need to run off-route errands. In addition, U.S. drivers show a surprising lack of local know-how, even when driving around their home towns. For example, one in five respondents said they would not be able to give directions to the nearest emergency room, while 44 percent said they did not know how to find the nearest museum.
Beyond My Dashboard, Scout provides personalized features that further address these needs for discovery and commuting, including:
• My Routes – get award-winning Telenav® turn-by-turn directions (spoken directions coming)
• My Traffic – avoid traffic jams with real-time traffic on demand
• My Places – discover and search for places nearby, near another location, or near a destination
• My Favorites – discover and save favorite places online and send them to Scout
• My People – easily access and drive to contacts saved on the phone
• My Music – listen and control music on the iPhone without ever leaving Scout
Scout.me
Most people still start their searches from their home or office. In fact, according to the same Telenav survey, 75 percent of respondents prefer to use a personal computer over other options to begin their search for local businesses, and 65 percent turn to a personal computer rather than a mobile device to find navigation information.
To ensure Scout users have a rich online experience, Telenav is launching Scout.me, an online companion site to the Scout mobile app. Scout.me is a new site that gives people an opportunity to explore new places and events while still at their computers. On Scout.me, users can share favorite places with their friends or connect and make plans with friends via Facebook, Twitter, or email. Scout.me also allows users to save or organize favorite places and events online, which are automatically available when they launch Scout on their phone or when they use Scout in their car.
Scout for Cars
Scout for Cars gives drivers access to the entire Scout personalized navigation and search service using in-car features and controls. Users simply connect their Scout-equipped phone to a compatible vehicle for an experience similar to a built-in navigation system, but without the high price tag, frustration of re-entering information, or expense of upgrading maps and points-of-interest (POIs). Scout for Cars will be formatted and displayed on the car's center stack screen to provide drivers with turn-by-turn directions and voice guidance channeled through the car's speakers. Depending on individual automotive OEM specifications, Scout for Cars can range from full-color moving maps to basic navigation prompts.
"In-vehicle display screens are becoming more common in new cars for safety and convenience purposes," said Dhanani. "Scout could very easily use these screens to display full-color navigation. With Scout, automakers can offer access to a complete and connected GPS navigation experience without having to invest in additional in-car technology, expanding their ability to offer luxury-level features at a non-luxury price."
The first implementation of Scout for Cars will be with Ford. Telenav and Ford announced today the upcoming launch of Scout for Ford SYNC® AppLink™. SYNC AppLink is a program that allows drivers to access various smartphone apps using voice commands and buttons on their steering wheel. Scout for Ford SYNC AppLink will include turn-by-turn navigation capabilities and is expected to be available in the U.S. later this year.
Also announced at CES, Telenav and Sony have collaborated to bring Telenav GPS® to select Sony in-dash A/V receivers. The detailed product features for the A/V receivers will be announced by Sony Electronics on January 10.
"Telenav's expertise in smartphone navigation, along with our long-standing tradition of premium audio and video products, is truly reflected in our new A/V receivers," said Andrew Sivori, Vice President of the Personal Audio Division at Sony Electronics. "This collaboration represents a breakthrough for Sony in regards to iPhone navigation solutions."
Additional information on Scout can be found at Scout.me, www.facebook.com/scoutbytelenav or www.twitter.com/scout.
Representatives from Telenav will demonstrate Scout at the Pepcom media event this evening from 7:00 p.m. PT to 11:00 p.m. PT at the MGM Hotel in Las Vegas.
*The survey sample consisted of 1,052 U.S. adult drivers surveyed online. Responses were collected on December 12, 2011.
About Telenav, Inc.
