Call them winners
You might own a GPS navigator and not even know it. Several cellphones now on the market come packed with technology that, once activated, can transform this mainstay of modern life into a handy GPS system, complete with color maps and voice directions, all for about $10 a month. Just download the appropriate software directly to your phone and you’re ready to navigate the most unfamiliar territory. The GPS navigation service is offered on selected phones by the top three cellphone providers -- Cingular, Sprint and Verizon -- but each offers their own versions.
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BEST SOUND
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First look: I used Verizon’s GPS navigation software on a recent drive around Las Vegas. It sure beat having to ask gas station attendants for directions. Verizon’s software -- VZ Navigator -- has an easy-to-read screen with just enough information about upcoming turns to be taken in with a glance.
Likes and yikes: Voice directions were clear and sufficiently detailed. Screen directions also were intelligently designed.
The only thing missing was a voice system for adding addresses. That would have been especially welcome on a phone like the Motorola V325 -- at right, shown with a simulated screen image -- which doesn’t have a keyboard.
The 411: (800) 922-0204, www.verizonwireless.com
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First look: If you love Cingular, there is only one good choice in navigator-friendly phones: the BlackBerry 8800 -- at right, shown with a simulated screen image -- which was just added to the service’s lineup. It has a full keyboard for typing in addresses and a relatively big screen for viewing directions.
Likes and yikes:
The TeleNav GPS software used by Cingular allows you to add destination addresses by voice. Except for the BlackBerry, Cingular phones require the use of a $100 add-on device to capture the GPS signal. Besides the added expense, it’s clumsy to carry around.
The 411:
Cingular, (888) 333-6651, www.cingular.com
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AND THE AWARD GOES TO ...
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First look: Sprint not only offers several different phones, including the Sanyo Katana, right, that are navigation-capable, but the company also allows you to choose among different software programs. I tested the Sanyo Katana.
Likes and yikes: Go with TeleNav software for its clear directions and voice address input.
The other major choice, Garmin, is from one of the biggest names in GPS technology. But it hasn’t been perfectly adapted for cellphone use. Its voice directions were sometimes vague. It kept telling me to take “the ramp” on a freeway where there were three in proximity. It was like riding with my dad.
The 411: (800) SPRINT1 (777-4681), www.sprint.com
-- David Colker
