Wayfinder...It's here!

[lmf]

Just found this:
http://www.wayfinder.com/?id=5364

Wayfinder is now avaliable.
Has a 7 day free trial ! (nice!)
premium navigation maps for europe cost 99eur.
US cost $130.

Just wish I could buy just my region maps, for a bit less... (30..60eur)

so.... this means n810 launch is eminent... :)

[BarneyC]

Great - now if only a company made routable maps for New Zealand.

Aside from Navman and Garmin (and a couple of other hardware GPS devices) I don't get why none of the soft-GPS manufacturers have NZ maps.

Right now I rely on Google maps and their routing (which is pretty darn good) plugged into MaemoMapper. If they can do it..... ah why bother I guess our market just isn't big enough to warrant the effort.

Go MaemoMapper go.

[sachin007]

So it is confirmed then routing is free.... only the voice commands are the premium and on the go route calculation.

[munky261]

i dont see it as saying that the routing is free. the way it reads to me is that all you get is the maps for free but routing and voice directions are a paid service

[aflegg]

Yeah, from my reading of it routing (i.e. tell me how to get from here to there) is something that Wayfinder Navigator provides, which they quite clearly distinguish from the built-in maps application.

[hircus]

Yeah, from my reading of it routing (i.e. tell me how to get from here to there) is something that Wayfinder Navigator provides, which they quite clearly distinguish from the built-in maps application.

This begs the question -- what's the EULA on the Wayfinder maps? Can Maemo Mapper, say, use it and add voice and routing on top of it?

[NokNok770]

I don't get it, it looks exactly like the navicore maps I got and paid for. And if it only provide "current location" free, what good is it.

[BarneyC]

Again though I fail to understand why routing is a premium service given that google maps does it really really well. Not sure if it will but I wouldn't be at all suprised if Maemo Mapper gets route generation using the gMaps API at some point (and it already allows for voice prompting).

So then the only real difference will be the proprietory systems ability to display things in a more isometric view.

No I was taught to read maps properly so really am not fussed about that functionality.

So it for me it all comes down to what on Earth is the business model behind the Wayfinder 'service' as it cannot be built for longevity.

[yabbas]

I wonder if I can now navigate from the UK through to Germany without having to "swap" maps - that had BETTER be fixed now! :rolleyes:


Still don't see a download available for older Navicore owners like me...I only bought it 2 months ago :(

[Nikem]

I don't get it, it looks exactly like the navicore maps I got and paid for. And if it only provide "current location" free, what good is it.
Of course it looks the same, wayfinder bought navicore! It is just and update to the Ver. 2007. And you can use your old license-key to unlock the 'premium'-feature for no further fee.

[Nikem]

I wonder if I can now navigate from the UK through to Germany without having to "swap" maps - that had BETTER be fixed now! :rolleyes:
No, it's not fixed. They say, that it would be too slow. Read for yourself: wayfinder FAQ (http://www.wayfinder.com/?id=5408&lang=en-UK)

[mobiledivide]

Again though I fail to understand why routing is a premium service given that google maps does it really really well. Not sure if it will but I wouldn't be at all suprised if Maemo Mapper gets route generation using the gMaps API at some point (and it already allows for voice prompting).

So then the only real difference will be the proprietory systems ability to display things in a more isometric view.

No I was taught to read maps properly so really am not fussed about that functionality.

So it for me it all comes down to what on Earth is the business model behind the Wayfinder 'service' as it cannot be built for longevity.

I'm pretty sure Wayfinder operates on this subscription model with mobile phones as do other map providers (nokia Smart2go). It seems to work for them in that arena why would it be any different on the N810?

[yabbas]

No, it's not fixed. They say, that it would be too slow. Read for yourself: wayfinder FAQ (http://www.wayfinder.com/?id=5408&lang=en-UK)

Can't believe I didn't check the FAQ - I have become my worst internet user nightmare. :D It's a pretty good FAQ too, certainly answered all my questions! [thanks for the pointer]


Re Euro navigation:
Without knowing anything about the methods of routing - I can't believe it would be that slow to implement full European navigation [actually - I think the FAQ mentions it's more memory limitation with internal storage!]

At the very least they could implement a skeleton map comprising all major roads/motorways in Europe (and say - 1 or 2 miles of interconnecting roads around those); then without user intervention switch between this skeleton map and the individual "high detail" regional maps when doing routing.

Search could be implemented by having country selection boxes. Even if it took time to select the country database it'd be a better option than what we have now. That way an initial search would find locations in each region based on latitudes and longitudes; the locations could then be piped into the "skeleton map" to find a more general route between those countries. Then back to local routing to find a means of getting from initial area to the nearest 'skeleton map' junction on the motorway.



Gah - you get the idea. It certainly doesn't sound that difficult to implement - it wouldn't require that much more memory either! This initial Wayfinder sounds more likely to be a recompile of Navicom for IT2008.

[prosthetic]

I'd be happy to answer some question about Wayfinder. I can confirm much of what has been mentioned already. Wayfinder has replaced Navicore.

You only get position tracking and location searches for free. Routing and voice navigation by subscription. I admit that I don't understand the model a whole lot either. It wasn't what I was expecting. Why would you cut out routing? I possibly could understand cutting voice navigation and traffic updates.

Anyway, that's how it works right now. Traffic updates will not work for all areas, but I suspect they're working on expanding that coverage. And yes, you must change maps manually when you move from one map to the next. No doubt a lot of improvements will be forthcoming.

And for those unaware, Nokia is acquiring Navteq (the map data used by Wayfinder).

[Capt'n Corrupt]

As a point of interest, Google Maps also use NAVTEQ maps (map and map overlay only, not satellite images).


}:^)~
YARR!!

Corrupt Capt'n

[szucsati]

I've just downloaded the CE maps to my N800 (flashed with the beta os2008). I found that these maps and the ones that you can try on the Wayfinder's webpage are not the same. The webpage has more detailed maps. Have you noticed differences like this?:

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/1353/wayfindertiszapcx3.jpg

[Nik1]

I have OS2008 on my n800 and I get a message saying Wayfinder 7 day free trial will not be available untill December.