I’m a fan of navigation apps for mobile devices. I’ve been talking about navigation applications for a lot of years now and Navigon has been one of the more interesting players for a long time. They have history going back to the Windows Mobile days, consistently offering one of the nicest looking apps in the field. Now Navigon, a part of Garmin, is releasing a new version of their navigation app for Android. According to their press release, this version contains a number of interesting new features:
NAVIGON Widget: Users can add the new NAVIGON Widget to their phone’s home menu to easily access certain functions without having to first open the NAVIGON app. For example, users can navigate to their home address with the hit of a button, search for points of interest or access their last 20 destinations.
Active Lane Assistant: The Active Lane Assistant helps drivers to get into the right lane by showing a live lane animation. Displayed in the lower right corner of the map view, the animation reflects the current lane configuration and allows to see what`s ahead. An orange line indicates the way the driver should follow. The optional feature can be switched on or off.
Traffic Check: This is an easy to read gage graphic that appears after route calculation and alerts drivers of current traffic conditions. The Traffic gage indicates traffic conditions with a green, yellow, and red meter and disappears within a few seconds.
Bluetooth Support: The NAVIGON app now transmits spoken directions via Bluetooth to a connected audio device. This allows users to listen to directions through their car stereo system. Music will automatically turn down while directions are given.
And if the new features aren’t enough to get your attention, then maybe the fact that they are offering their North American editions at a $10 discount will get your attention. Until March 22, NAVIGON for Android USA is $29.95 and NAVIGON for Android North America is selling for $39.95. Although Android users already enjoy the basic Google navigation, that service is pretty basic. If you want to step things up a bit and you are in the market for a full-featured navigation app for your Android device, you owe it to yourself to take the time to check this one out!