Motorola To Add Connected PNDs

By Joseph Palenchar -- TWICE, 1/11/2010

Libertyville, Ill. - Motorola, which entered the portable navigation device (PND) market in fall 2008, plans to ship its first connected PNDs in the first quarter.

Subscription-based connected services will be available in all three new models via Bluetooth through a data-enabled cellphone for a fee. Pricing of the PNDs and service haven't been announced.

The TN555, TN560t and TN765t all feature touchscreen, street-name announce, lane guidance, junction view, speed-limit data, safety camera alerts, hands-free Bluetooth speakerphone capability and voice dialing. Other features and services common to all are voice-prompted Google local search for points of interest, live traffic (available on the TN555 with the addition of a dock equipped with traffic receiver), and Bing-powered voice search for such information as stock quotes, horoscopes, travel information, sports, movie times, flight status, weather and other data. Connected services are free for the first 90 days.

All three feature voice recognition to execute commands, but the TN765t adds voice input of destinations. The top model also adds 3D landmarks, a feature that is optional on the TN560t and TN555. All three use Motorola's MultiView display, which shows map and location in the center of the screen with the left side showing route details and points of interest. The right side shows contacts and other information.

The TN555 and 560t feature 4.3-inch widescreen LCD touchscreen, 128MB embedded memory and removable 2GB memory card. The TN765t features 5.1-inch widescreen "cinematic" display, so-called because it's wider than the screens on the other models. The TN765t also features 256MB of embedded memory and removable 4GB memory card.