Among the lakhs who thronged Pragati Maidan in New Delhi in the past week, there must have been very few who were not busy fighting for a vantage point from where to espy Tata’s Rs 1 lakh car. The car was news alright, but I thought I’d also check out the technology stands and get a sense of the items that car companies were cooking up. So it was that I noticed that maps—or more precisely, the Global Positioning System—was the buzz. GPS companies Map My India and SatGuide both had new products. While SatGuide had come up with a cheaper receiver, Map My India had a more versatile receiver. There is another major player besides these two in the dedicated GPS business now. Have a look at their products.

MapMyIndia Navigator:
The most expensive option available to the car owner today, but loaded with the maximum maps. There are two GPS receivers, the earlier one manufactured by Delphi, and the new one called the A-Max 06GP5A, which looks like a Chinese import. Both the versions are priced the same: Rs 21,000 if you are in Delhi, and Rs 22,000 across India. Here’s a tip: get one at an auto accessory shop for just Rs 19,000. The new receiver has a 3.5 inch screen, and can act as an MP3 player, a DivX video player and a photo viewer. All the maps are loaded on a pluggable SD card. There is no clarity on how and when you will receive updates for the India maps, and right now not all cities are available, but I felt that Map My India had the best cartography.
The unit comes with a windscreen-mount suction stand. The touch screen an easy interface. Also if you intend to use it as an MP3 player (it’s way too expensive for this purpose soley), I would suggest you buy a screenguard on day one. The navigation menus are a breeze and brilliantly done.
However, this GPS limits you to India, as it is designed for in-auto use with India maps.
More details: www.mapmyindia.com

... contd.