One for the road

GADGETS: Forget maps...zip to your destination, guided by satellite.

It's right out of a James Bond movie. Vivek Nair, a 33-year-old Company Secretary from Cochin and a first-time visitor to Delhi, sits in his car, switches on a gadget and drives everyday from Hauz Khas to Noida without any hassle.

His gadget, which is primarily a small screen, shows his car as an arrowhead on the screen travelling along a pre-determined route guided by Global Positioning System or GPS.

Despite being new to town, Nair knows exactly where his ATM is in the city, or where to stop for a meal. In fact, he has also driven to Jaipur from Delhi without stopping for directions or consulting any paper roadmaps.

This hi-tech navigation is made possible with the MapmyIndia Navigator, a new handheld device that directs users to the shortest possible route to their destination using GPS signals from satellites. The device also lists the nearest ATMs, restaurants, petrol pumps, shopping complexes and hospitals along the way.

Aimed at frequent travellers, executives, foreigners, tourists, online map portal MapmyIndia.com has priced the "Navigator" at Rs 21,000. The navigator's hardware is currently sourced from Delphi and resembles a mobile phone.

The unit can be placed on the dashboard of a car while driving. Only for longer distances does it need to be plugged to the car-charger. When completely charged, the navigator can run for 30-40 minutes but experts advice it to be used while plugged into the car-charger.

The navigator is simple to use as it has a detailed road map of metro cities including Delhi and the national capital region, Mumbai and its suburbs, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata. Besides, the navigator can also direct you from these metro towns to 18 cities.

To begin, the consumer has to set a home address, destination address and switch on the GPS. From here on, an automated voice guides his every step and informs him about approaching intersections, roads, and junctions, and which road to take. If he goes off-course, a beep alarms him and then re-calculates the shortest possible route to the destination.

MapmyIndia believes that the device is a must for ladies. "In the US, such gadgets have sold over 20 million units in the last three years and a majority of them have been bought by women. It empowers you at all times and tells you not only where to go, but also how to reach in the shortest possible time," says Rohan Verma, senior executive at MapmyIndia.com.

As per the company's estimates, once consumers are made aware of the device, at least 100,000 units should get sold in the first 12-15 months. Currently, the product is available through the company's website but soon it will be found in leading electronic stores across the metros, Verma says.

The navigator has some add-on features as well "" storage space for movies, music, a calculator and games. The company is also in talks with leading automakers to offer it as part of a car's standard features.