Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

I doubt that it is. It pro'ly is a wash as far as their model may be concerned. The "free" software will promote sales of the pay for play software.

I have a gut feeling that this won't be the last we see of this business model and I suspect there will be a few others who will give us "free" crippleware in order to create this new class of con$umer device.

The hardware is, what it is and the current price of an N800 is a dang bargain. I would think that the transmissive/reflective screen was the most costly new addition.
...even so, Nokia is starting out giving a discount on the N810 bringing the price down to arround $409 for most.

The N800 stayed at full retail from all suppliers for at least a couple of months.

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

To be precise, it costs $8.2 Billion Dollars to acquire the data...but now that Nokia owns Navteq I am going to have very high expectations for their mapping packages. Thus far, Nokia's GPS solutions have uniformly sucked, both in terms of sub-par GPS performance, lousy software and poor map sources. It seems like half the people on this board spend their time being Nokia apologists. Nokia does a lot of things right and attention should be called to those things, but equally one should call a spade a spade.

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

Maps can be cached. OSM is under a CC license (so even if they die, you could legally set up your own server with their data), and MM can handle GIS maps as well (most GIS servers are operated by governmental agencies, under the FOI act or similar rules, so their data can't get lost over a change of license either). Besides, with that amount of free map data about, even if Google, MS and Yahoo revert to non-free business models, many other services would immediately step in.

The point against Maemo Mapper is another: It is no navigation software, and until something similar to OSM with a focus on routing metadata takes off, it won't be good navigation software, no matter what effort MM itself would make at it - routing without up-to-date congestion rates, construction sites and the like is barely more efficient than following signposts.

Sevo

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

What you mean is not a cost to acquire the data but a sum paid by the highest bidder in auction to acquire Navteq corporation.
Value of maps is much less or to say in other words, has been overvalued.
But, on the other hand, TomTom also paid a lot of money to acquire TeleAtlas.

Buy want counts is not maps but market share in vector maps world.

I am sure, you are aware, maps are not build by cars travelling each new build road in the world.
Road tree system in electronic form is available for purchase from Highways authority in each specific country so to have your maps updated maps developer doesn't have to visit each new built road and enter it separately into navigation maps repository.
He buys a ready made product in electronic from from roads administration.

Another way is to have satellite nimages converted into vector maps
and have road extracted from satellite images.
I worked for CT /USG tomography projects and intelligent image processing of medical images shows you how to have roads only extracted from satellite images.

Finally, you can get and use maps for free visiting Google maps/ Google Earth, Yahoo maps, MS maps web servers.
You can get free maps from open source maps projects like OpenStreet and others.

So maps have some value but to use them you don't need to pay much.
Some car navigation systems in US start from as low as $100.
(road maps + routing + voice commands + hardware).

Maemo Mapper is based on maps accessed through Internet (Google, Yahoo, OpenStreet and others) and using it you pay nothing.

So maps business, navigation business sometimes generates no profit at all as there are hundreds of gps car navigation devices and systems on the market nowadays.

Darius

Darius

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

1. US is the only place with free map data. At least in Europe finding anything usable is pretty much impossible...
2. Google, MS and Yahoo already have non-free business models -- cacheing their data in Maemo Mapper is infringing copyright, no doubt about it. Openstreetmap and (US) public data are the only legal options. If they (Google et al) could prevent leeching maps without side-effects, they would.

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

Well, it sounds like folks here have some high hopes for the future of nav products on Nseries devices. That's encouraging.

And I'm reminded even as I am complaining about it that the business model for nav software on other Nseries devices -- I also have an N95, for example -- is the same. Map data is there, but actual navigation costs.

If someone wanted to buy the N810 now for the navigation capability -- part of the reason I wanted it -- I'd advise them to stick with the N800. It's not worth it for a built-in GPS -- at least not now.

But, YES, there are lots of other reasons to grab an N810....:D

-- Mike

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

And I think when and if some activate and use the navigation software they may be disappointed that it doesn't have all the features of a comparably priced, purpose built navigator like TomTom or Garmin.

The point is that the Tablet itself should lead the purchasing decision...

That is; it is a well featured, portable, internet access device that can also be used as a navigator.

I would not consider it a navigator that can also be used to access the internet.

The plus for me is that future features and improvements of the navigator app can more easily be implemented running on the tablet.
A purpose built navigator on the other hand, has just the amount of hardware required by the app by economic design... Not much more is available for future features and improvements.

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

Hell, I'd be happy if my N800 with the new os would see my gps more than once! I know it's still really not supported hardware/software combination, but if this is how it's going to be when it really is supported, I'm going back to the current os. The mapping software really does suck though. Waaay out dated, at least in my area. The roads aren't even named right! According to the map, I live out in the middle of a field. My house was built in '82.

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

I'll call you on that statistic, Rocket. Your perception is far from reality... especially given that well over half the people on this board don't even post. :p

And in all seriousness, you're doing your best it seems to skew the perception hard toward one extreme. Someone has to balance pure negativity, seeing as how any extreme outlook is unrealistic. IF that effort turned out to be 50/50, what would the problem be, exactly? It would look fair to ME... ;)

Re: Biggest Disappointment: Nav Software
 

IMHO, map data IS indeed also built by cars travelling the roads - at least in densly populated areas with much restricted roads. This is the only way to collect reliable, detailed information. (A friend of mine used to be such a driver...)