It's been quite awhile since Mio's LEAP K1 was introduced overseas, but now we're getting an up close and personal look thanks to one particular unboxer over at Mobile01. The two-faced mobile looks like a typical handset from the front, but upon flipping it over, you'll find another side to this critter -- one that fancies GPS navigation. We're not too sure how we feel about having to safeguard displays on both sides of the handset, but if we had access to plenty of screen protectors, we suppose we could get used to all that added functionality. Hit the read link for lots more pics.

[Via iTech News]

While many GPS manufacturers seem to be still seeing how much they can milk out of minor feature updates and monthly subscription fees, Navigon is going for the jugular with the new 2200T. The 3.5-inch-screened nav device offers up free real-time traffic updates for life -- a service that usually will run you $10 a month -- in addition to fun stuff like Reality View Pro (3D images and actual road sign text), Lane Assist Pro and text-to-speech, all for a mere $229. Three years of map updates will cost you $80, but the built-in maps for US and Canada should get you pretty far. We saw the 2200T at IFA, and while it's nothing so special to look at, that price is going bruise up some of the competition. No word on when this will hit stores, but our guess is soon.

Most of the geotaggers we've seen have written location data to your photos using some fancy software on your machine after you've pulled images off your camera, but ATP's PhotoFinder mini moves the tagging step backwards in the process, writing geodata directly to images on your memory card. Like similar devices, the PhotoFinder mini records timelogged GPS data from a SiRF Star III chip while you shoot -- but when you're done, you insert your card into a base station, which tags your images using their EXIF timestamps. Sounds like a much simpler system than relying on third-party software to integrate with your photo-management apps -- we just wish the dock was also a card reader, which would make this a one-step process. No pricing info yet, but if this thing is reasonable, it'll certainly be tempting.

[Via Photography Blog, thanks Mark]

When you're cruising down the highway on your hog, wind in your face, hair trailing behind you, teeth covered with insects, you probably want a GPS unit that's as rugged and unafraid of dying as you are. That's where Becker's Crocodile (AKA Traffic Assist Z 100) comes in. Nothing says "fearless badass" like a crocodile-skin satnav, replete with a 4.3-inch touchscreen, 2GB on-board memory, 3D terrain and city views, and 42 country maps pre-installed. The device is rubber coated and water resistant, and features turn-by-turn directions optimized for motorcycles, making it ideal for your cross country biker gang meet-ups, or just long weekends cruising the coastlines. The Crocodile will be released in October for €300 (or around $438).

TomTom is really pushing the connected capabilities of its navigation devices with this new x40 LIVE series, which hit IFA this year as rumored. The GO 940 LIVE, GO 740 LIVE and GO 540 LIVE include a "new and extended" version of IQ Routes, which can adjust your route for predicted and actual road conditions, based on historical data and TomTom's HD Traffic feature. The units include Safety Alerts for alerting to speed cameras, Fuel Prices, and Local Search, which is powered by Google and allows you to plan a route to your search results. Also onboard is voice command and control, letting you plan routes and make phone calls using only your voice. The series will be available in the UK, Germany, France, Netherlands and Switzerland this fall, starting at £299 (about $544 US). LIVE services are £10 a month. Unfortunately, the versions we played with at IFA didn't have a live connection, but software looks easy to access and easy to use. Too bad the actual hardware looks circa 2003.

We just went on a whirlwind tour of Navigon's booth here at IFA 2008, and while a sea of barely distinguishable GPS devices has a tendency to send us into sudden and violent fits of napping, we thought we'd give you a look-see just in case you feel otherwise. The only real standout was the new 7200 (pictured), which has a flat, glossy front, and is a joy to touch -- we're not positive it's capacitive, but it feels a ton better than the regular dull resistive touch of most GPS units out on the market. We also took a look at the 2200 and 2150 Max, as you can see in the gallery below. Knock yourself out.

Blaupunkt's TravelPilot nav units have never really stood out from the pack, but it looks like that's about to change -- the new TravelPilot 700 and 500 feature an integrated camera that displays realtime video with nav overlays on their 16:9 screens. That's definitely a novel and intriguing feature, but there's not a lot of information on how it works or what kind of hardware is under the hood to keep it running smoothly -- with the 700's estimated list price of $740, we're guessing it's pretty beefy. Both units also feature voice control, DVB-T traffic, live traffic, Bluetooth, and the usual PMP features, and the 700 also has a browser, email app, and VoIP client that work over Bluetooth tethering with your phone. Yeah, definitely intriguing -- hopefully we'll see this thing make it Stateside soon. Video after the break.

[Via Navigadget; thanks, Khattab]

Ford invited us to its swanky Premier Auto Group headquarters in Irvine, California to talk about the future of Sync and demo the latest iteration of their infotainment platform coupled with Sirius Travel Link. According to the company, Sync v2.0 debuts in November, bringing tighter integration with Ford's syncmyride.com portal, providing owners with in-depth online vehicle health reports. Also in the cards is E911 support, which automatically places an emergency call as soon as the vehicle detects airbag deployment. Sync 3, scheduled to debut "sometime in 2009," will bring traffic, news, sports and weather to Ford vehicles without requiring navigation or a monthly subscription. On the infotainment front, however, 2009 Ford vehicles with the navigation option can subscribe to Sirius Travel Link for $7 a month, enabling real-time traffic info, coast to coast weather, local gas station listings sorted by price, movie show-times and sports scores. Peep the gallery below for a smorgasbord of screens.

It looks like U.S. International Trade Commission judge Carl Charneski has managed to cause quite a stir in the GPS industry this month, with him first ruling earlier this month that chipmaker SiRF infringed on six of Broadcom's GPS patents, and him now recommending that the ITC issue an all out product import ban on products using the offending chips. Given that one of the supposedly infringing chips is the ever-present SiRF Star III, that would obviously shake things up in a pretty big way. A final decision on a ban won't come until December, however, and SiRF looks to be exploring all of its options in the meantime, including asking the U.S. Patent Office for reexamination of the contested patents. As Reuters reports though, that hasn't stopped SiRF's shares from falling 24 percent to an all time low on Tuesday, and at least one GPS device manufacturer doesn't look to be waiting around to see how things shake out either, with DigiTimes now reporting that Mitac is set to stop using SiRF chips in its GPS devices in the fourth quarter of this year. Then again, that is DigiTimes, but we doubt that'll be much consolation for SiRF right about now.

Read - Reuters, "SiRF hit after ITC judge urges product import ban"
Read - DigiTimes, "Mitac to give up SiRF GPS solutions due to patent dispute"

[Via Linux Devices]

In a move that we can only hope signals a trend, GPS maker Navigon has announced that real-time traffic updates will now be free for all users of its wares. For awhile now, the outfit has offered gratis traffic updates on its higher-end models, but now, it's taking the Free Real-Time Traffic Updates for Life program to each navigation system it produces. There's no extra hardware to buy, no hidden fees -- just good, clean, free traffic updates. What's not to love?

We got a brief glimpse at Garmin's new nüvi navigators, the 7x5 Series and 2x5 Series. Since we weren't on the road, the 755T treated us to 3D views of the IFA building we were chilling at, spinning at a blistering 10 fps. The Lane Assist also does what it says on the box, giving you a crystal clear look at your next merge. The 265T was considerably less dramatic, and both units show a considerable amount of boredom on the industrial design front. Garmin clearly knows what it's about when it comes to navigation devices, but we could use a bit more spice with those maps to keep us coming back.

Oh, Nuvifone, how you disappoint us. Over here at IFA we just managed to get a Garmin rep to whip out his Nuvifone prototype for a quick look, but sadly, almost a year after the device was first announced, there really wasn't anything new to see. We still aren't allowed to take video of the interface, or really see much of the phone other than the home screen, and when the rep tried to show us how the Nuvifone kicks the iPhone's ass in navigation, the Nuvi promptly crashed -- so at least those two have that in common. Not that we should be surprised, Garmin mentioned last month that the phone had been delayed into 2009, but we're quickly running out of patience, as well as any scrap of remaining hope for this thing to actually matter when it does arrive. Peep the gallery for a little bit of iPhone 3G versus action.

Sony's Nav-U line of PNDs hasn't made big waves in the States yet, but the company's keeping at it, releasing four new touchscreen navs today. The new $400 NV-U94T (pictured) takes over from the NV-U83T at the high end, featuring a 4.8-inch touch screen in a 30 percent thinner case, gesture commands, POSITION plus accelerometer and barometer (wild)-based dead reckoning in case of signal loss, Quick Links POI icons, and an RDS-TMC traffic receiver built into the cradle, as well as basic PMP functions, Bluetooth with A2DP output and Memory Stick Duo expansion; the $300 NV-U74T is basically the same package minus the PMP features and with a 4.3-inch screen and the $350 NV-U84 keeps the 4.8-inch panel but doesn't have Bluetooth, dead reckonings, or traffic. There's also a totally new 3.5-inch unit, the $250 NV-U44, which is pretty basic but seems like a fine deal: text-to-speech nav, maps of the US and Canada, and split-screen 3D views with lane guidance. All four should be out in September.

[Via CNET]

Garmin continued its contribution to the general, incremental advancement of technology today by spitting out a handful of new satnavs destined to be suctioned to your windshield in the very near future. The company introduced updates to its low-end 2x5 series, including the 265T, 265WT and 275T. The models include lifetime traffic alerts via NAVTEQ Traffic, Bluetooth connectivity, and are offered in 3.5-inch or 4.3-inch touchscreen iterations. Garmin also updated its higher-end 7x5 lineup, bringing the 755T, 765T, and 775T into the mix. The devices sport 4.3-inch touchscreens, those same NAVTEQ Traffic updates, 3D transparent building views, accelerated graphics rendering, and HotFix (which stores "critical satellite information"). No word yet on release date or pricing for the new models, though we expect to see them on display at IFA.

[Thanks, Tim]

Read - Garmin Expands Affordable nüvi 2x5 Series, Offering Hands-Free Calling and Lifetime Traffic Alerts
Read - Garmin Introduces nüvi 7x5 Series with Lane Assist, Giving Drivers a Clear Picture of the Road Ahead