Τι έγραψαν για το Garmin Viago:
In order to compete with the navigation apps that both Apple and Google give away for free, Garmin is introducing a new Android and iOS nav app called Víago that sells for just $2 (on sale for $1 until July 13th), with advanced functionality available as in-app purchases. It's still not free, but compared to Garmin's previous app which sold for $50, it might just be worth upgrading your smartphone's default maps app.
It's not easy to lure consumers away from free apps that are already 'good enough', but the base version of Garmin's Viago sounds like it's loaded with enough features for it to be worth the upgrade. For starters, it's got Garmin's name attached to it, a company that's been creating navigation devices since they were first available to consumers. Which also means the base version of the app includes features like turn-by-turn directions with proper lane recommendations, your speed and the current speed limit, three-day weather forecasts, traffic, and photo-realistic junction views so you can be certain of where you are. The in-app purchases range in price from $5 to $20, and add additional functionality like offline maps so you don't need a constan data connection, Garmin's Real Directions which provides turn-by-turn cues using visible landmarks and signage instead of street names, and a panoramic view that incorporates NASA's 3D height and terrain data to provide a more accurate map of where you're actually driving.
Is that enough to make it worth the upgrade? Neither Apple's nor Google's mapping apps are superstars when it comes to turn-by-turn directions. But they're slowly and steadily getting better and better. But until they're perfect, it certainly wouldn't hurt to have Garmin's new Víago as a backup for your next road trip.
http://gizmodo.com/garmins-new-upgra...ust-1591501937
While Garmin is no stranger to mobile navigation apps, it has continued charging $30 or more for its StreetPilot software even after breaking out some components as in-app purchases. That's a hard bargain in an era when phones offer GPS tricks like lane assistance for free. Clearly, the company is aware of this discrepancy -- it just unveiled Viago, an app for Android and iPhones that tries to bridge the pricing gap. Fork over $2 ($1 until July 13th) and you'll get worldwide maps alongside lane assistance, realistic junction views, speed limits, weather and traffic. You only pay more for the features you want, and some of them are unique -- Real Directions gives you directions based on landmarks rather than street names, while Active Lane Guidance simplifies taking that next off-ramp.
Viago is likely to be a better deal than earlier releases, especially now that the interface is simpler and less focused on replicating dedicated nav units. However, Garmin still faces an uphill battle. Some of the features the company wants you to buy, such as offline maps and mass transit directions, are available for no charge on both Android and iOS. With upgrade prices typically ranging between $5 and $20, you may have to shell out a lot more than $2 to equal or beat what your handset can already do. If you're eager for a do-it-all mapping tool, however, Viago is ready and waiting.
http://www.engadget.com/2014/06/17/garmin-viago/
Garmin, the once-mighty GPS powerhouse, just launched Víago, the latest attempt to win back its former hardware customers. And it may well be Garmin’s most compelling software offering yet.
When it comes to GPS navigation, Google GOOGL -0.31% has most of us spoiled. We get free turn-by-turn navigation anywhere in the world, right on our phones. And when another company dares to give us free turn-by-turn navigation that isn’t as good (yes, that’d be Apple AAPL -0.13%), everybody reaches for the pitchforks and torches. It’s easy to forget a time not long ago when paying $200 for a Garmin or TomTom seemed like a reasonable way to get in-car GPS.
Well, Garmin hasn’t forgotten. Think of Víago—which arrives today for both iOS and Android—as a highly customizable GPS system on your phone. For a trivial 99 cents (until July 13, when it goes up to $1.99), you get a fully functioning GPS app with on-demand maps and turn-by-turn instructions wherever you are. Many of Víago’s stock features aren’t to be found in Google’s free Maps app:
Multiple-destination route planner
Posted speed limits
Your own current speed
Weather reports for your destination
Photo-realistic junction views
We haven’t tested it yet, but if the interface is nice enough, that seems like an impressive starting point. But the fun—for you and for Garmin’s accounting department—begins when you start buying add-on packages.
On-board maps, provided by Nokia NOK1V.HE +0.17%’s Here mapping system, are a key starting point: Maybe you want to download a U.S. map to use when you’re out of cellular range, or maybe you want a Latin America map, to help you get around on vacation while avoiding crazy international roaming fees. That’s $19.99 each for maps of North America, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and Australia/New Zealand. (The maps are actually on sale for $9.99 until July 13.) In addition to the maps, there are seven other in-app purchases you can make to build your own Víago experience. Here are the standouts:
Traffic Live ($19.99 but $9.99 until July 13): Traffic alerts that combine historic data with realtime information from fellow drivers. It will show traffic in the navigation view, and automatically route you around gridlock.
Safety Kit ($9.99) – Active lane guidance, telling you where to be when you’re getting on and off the highway; speed limit alerts; school zone warnings; routing that enables the shortest or fastest options.
Real Directions ($9.99) – Perhaps the most interesting feature, a turn-by-turn instruction set that tells you to turn right “at the light” or “when you pass the Starbucks.” It uses landmarks, lights and other information collected at the busiest intersections. It requires on-board maps in order to work.
The other add-ons, all $9.99 each, will provide features such as public transit routing, 3-D maps, spoken street names and the locations of speed cameras. (And despite these screenshots, there is a horizontal view, too—something many drivers prefer because of the lower dashboard profile.)
As you probably guessed, this $2 app could easily cost you upwards of $100 if you start letting the nickels and dimes pile up. Garmin isn’t offering a “kitchen sink” bundle at a discounted rate, and besides, any price at all is very hard to compete with Google’s “good enough and free.” But at least with Víago, you get a choice: keep it simple or pay for the features you want most.
http://blogs.wsj.com/personal-techno...you-pay-extra/
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