For the past few days, I have been running a competition between my iPhone and the “old school” Magellan GPS in my rental car as I galavant across northern California. With the rate of change & innovation for our technologies, we are moving from car-based GPS to person-based GPS devices.
At the root of this shift are ubiquitous internet access and handy Advanced Programming Interfaces (APIs). The latter allow websites to talk to each other and bring different databases together. The iPhone talks to the internet thru the cell phone towers to show my relationship to the world and chart a course through Google Maps. In contrast, the Magellan GPS system talks directly to the satellites high above the earth.
I remember how amazing the Magellan system was when it first came out. Never will I need to be driving around lost again. Funny how a couple years can see new technologies surpass what once was so great and innovative.
So which is the better Global Positioning System (GPS), the iPhone or Magellan? Here are a few differences:
- iPhone has a touch screen navigation that is more intuitive to navigate, while the Magellan uses clunky logic-tree menus. Point for iPhone
- iPhone uses full color maps that show real-time traffic, while the Magellan has four colors of old school computer graphic maps with no traffic info. Two points for iPhone
- Magellan uses real-time directions, while the iPhone scrolls through step-by-step route directions without showing your current location (unless you ping it). Point for Magellan, until July when the new iPhone software comes out.
- Magellan has voice narration, while iPhone does not. Point for Magellan until 45 minutes of driving when the narration turns into nagging (then 2 points for iPhone).
- iPhone allows you to Google search anything on the map you’re viewing and then get driving directions, while Magellan only has Yellow Pages of businesses that don’t all show up. 5 points for iPhone.
- iPhone goes with me in my pocket when I leave the car (very handy when walking downtown), Magellan is anchored to the dashboard taking significant real estate. Two points for iPhone.
If I had to choose one, I’d go with the iPhone. However, I found the best option is to use both, especially if you’re traveling alone. That way, you can listen to the nagging without risking your life on the freeway, plus you can find how to get anywhere that shows up on Google.
Which one would you choose? What other great advancements are being made with GPS devices?
June 14th, 2008 at 6:52 am
I think a few of these could swing the other way, depending on the model of GPS you have. I have a Garmin Streetpilot C550, which offers real-time traffic and calculates a bunch of stats for the drive, which are huge bonuses for me.
Here’s an old post from the holidays: http://blog.bradjward.com/?p=230
Basically, a truck carrying 18,000 lbs of explosives flipped on the interstate, and I had real-time detour/re-route on the Garmin. That wouldn’t have happened on the iPhone (yet?). About once a week I-69 gets so backed up it re-routes me to Fall Creek/Sargent Rd. to get home. I really like that feature.
And like I mentioned, the stats. Stopped time, driving time, average moving speed, average overall speed, top speed, etc. Those are always fun for me to track on a trip. Here’s another stat-heavy post: http://blog.bradjward.com/?p=228
And here is a post from July 30, 2007, before I had an iPhone.
http://blog.bradjward.com/?p=134#more-134
My prediction were:
The Future of GPS
I fully expect to have a GPS in my car in no less than 2 years that will allow me to view real-time weather overlaid on my map, along with some feature that allows me to ‘track friends’, similar to some cell phone/social networking sites such as Dodgeball.com or Loopt.com.
I think with car-based GPS systems like Dash and people-based GPS like the iPhone, my prediction should not be too far off by July 30, 2009. I really like how Dash incorporates Yahoo! right into it, definitely check that out.
http://www.dash.net
I love GPS.