The Automobile Association has launched a satnav system. It says its AA Navigator is designed to provide detailed navigation in a simple, user friendly format that should appeal to a wide range of people.
AA Navigator runs on a Pocket PC and allows motorists to follow either the on-screen directions or a map that scales itself appropriate to their speed – both supported by spoken instructions at just the right time. Destinations can be chosen from a street address or full postcode for the whole of Great Britain – plus many places of interest.
It includes a cradle for mounting on a vehicle's dashboard, and requires no interaction from the driver once the destination has been set. According to Andrew Howard, head of road safety for the AA Motoring Trust, it allows drivers to concentrate on driving rather than navigating.
Charles Stewart, head of geographic information at the AA, says, "It builds on the success of the AA Route Planner that provides over a million routes a week on our website. AA Navigator takes this to a new level – it knows where you are and will recalculate if you make a wrong turn – it's like having your own personal signpost that is constantly updated."
Says Stewart: "It's also a more cost-effective solution than opting for an expensive in-car system that usually costs well over £1,000. When you sell the car, you can't take it with you and you don't always gain from a significantly increased resale value.
"Future options include the ability for users be able to add their own places of interest that they can navigate to. Also, when not navigating, you still have full use of the other functions on the Pocket PC – such as contacts, diary and email – but, obviously, not while you're driving."
AA Navigator is priced at £99.99 for the standalone software; £349.99 for an HP iPAQ Pocket PC, cradle, software and wired-GPS receiver; and £399.99 for the above but with a Bluetooth-GPS wireless receiver instead.
You can buy one or get more info here: www.AAnavigator.com.