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Owners of Android phones can now enjoy the same turn-by-turn navigation experience iPhone users have had for a long time, as Navigon announced today the release of its MobileNavigator for the Android platform.
The iPhone version of the app is arguably the most comprehensive of the navigation apps for smartphones. The company says this is also the first on-board navigation app that brings premium navigation to the growing Android user base.
MobileNavigator for Android includes the Traffic Live feature without an additional cost. On the iPhone platform this feature costs an additional $20. The app also includes a industry-first feature, called Reality Scanner, that identifies points of interest (POIs) by showing them in a live camera view.
In a nutshell, Reality Scanner utilizes the phone’s built-in camera, positioning, and compass components together with Navigon’s POI database to project POI icons directly on the camera’s image. Users can point the device and instantly identify POIs in or around a location.
Like the iPhone version, MobileNavigator for Android includes preloaded Navteq maps and therefore is able to provide navigation when a cell signal is not available. Other features include:
- Lane Assistant Pro prepares drivers to make an upcoming exit or turn with a lane map complete with arrows and actual road geometry.
- Speed assistant audio-visual warning alerts drivers of speed and can be turned on or off.
- Text-to-speech turn-by-turn directions inform the driver of both street names and directions.
- Navigon MyRoutes analyzes driving habits, patterns, location, and time/day, and provides up to three routes clearly displayed in-map with ETA, distance, and driving times for each.
- Day and night modes for map display.
- Direct access to contacts allows navigation to contacts saved in the phone’s address book.
- Branded POIs and POIs along the route and in Reality Scanner.
- 2D and 3D map view
- Employ longitude and latitude coordinates as an alternative to traditional input like addresses or POIs by name. E-mail geographical coordinates for precise location identification.
- Automatic portrait or landscape modes
- Intelligent address entry for quick text entry and results lookup.
- Direct calling to POIs
- Pedestrian navigation
- Google Local Search-connected instant search of local points of interest.
- Advanced visual warning for most red-light and speed cameras.
The MobileNavigator for Android app is available now in the Android Market and Google Checkout for $39.99 for two weeks. After that, the price will increase to $59.99.
