Magellan Navigation Inc. on Sunday announced its first portable navigation device to feature cellular connectivity will come with Google Inc. business listings and search functionality.
The Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS, being unveiled at this week's International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, will be among the first in a new crop of global positioning system devices to feature GPRS cellular capability. Several other GPS device makers, including Dash Navigation Inc., are expected to show navigation products with connectivity features at CES, too.
The connectivity allows users on the road to get information such as real-time traffic conditions, local events or where to find the cheapest gas. For example, users of the Maestro featuring Google Local Search can type "pizza," and Google will display its relevant results, including Web-based recommendations, around the user's specified or current location, Magellan said.
Furthermore, destination addresses and other information can be wirelessly sent to the car-navigation device from PCs or Web-connected gadgets.
The Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS will be Magellan's premier GPS model, with a price tag of $1,299, is set to debut by the end of March. The GPRS service will be available for a yet-to-be-determined monthly fee.