There truly is no comparison because I actually thought about really getting the Iphone 3GS, but when I saw the demo for the Maps + Compass, I was not impressed. I even tried the new software (for $9.99 upgrade) out on my Ipod Touch, which is almost equal to the original iPhone with no monthly payments or contract or ability to call, but I tried the updated app at home with wifi and I thought: How am I supposed to click on all those screens to 1) see what the street looks like of my destination or 2) turn the maps 90, or 180 or 360 degrees and 3) so forth….I think all those Iphone 3GS features are nice, but give me one more feature–click here to get voice turn-by-turn. Even if Iphone/AT&T charged me monthly $11 or so like Blackberry, it would be worth hearing that voice navigate.

$120.00 a year….?! AT&T your nuts AND greedy IMO.

Due to the iPhone’s limitations, data connection, battery etc. An iPhone version of turn by turn will never be a hard core alternative, it will be closer to a “nice to have” feature in the event that your stuck in the middle of the city with a good battery condition.

I think there are many dedicated electronics the iPhone will NEVER replace (such as point and shoot cameras with decent lens and zoom capbility). I suspect that the proper business models for GPS will find their way on to the iPhone and be quite successful. Since I seldom travel and don’t have to deal with LA Traffic this is a feature I would use very seldom on either phone. Google maps with Compass and GPS on the iPhone work very nicely with paper maps I already own.

I could get by with a nice windshield mount and the software that comes with the iPhone. But hey if someone like TomTom come up with a good product that makes sense for me, I there.

The Samsung Instinct has great turn-by-turn spoken and visual GPS courtesy of Navquest. Living as I do in Los Angeles, I find the live traffic info and ability to reroute around the traffic jams an occasional life saver. The fact that it integrates with the contacts list and Live Search (or anywhere an address shows up, for that matter) just puts cherries on the cake, imho. No subscription, no extra download, no licensing fee… seems to me a much better model from the consumer point of view.

TomTom list the North America map on its own as $70

TomTom will also try and sell their subscription model with this as it’s for a connected iPhone… this includes traffic alerts etc.

I’ve been using G-Maps US West for (non-voice) Turn-by-Turn since it’s release and it works fine with or without a data connection.

Right now there’s no voice, but I’m hopeful that they’ll update. The price is much more reasonable than anything out there at the moment.

–Hilarious!

Sometimes a dedicated device is best.

- Ron
http://www.BaywideTechnology.com

But I was able to put detailed maps for my home area (Northern Virginia, Washington DC, and suburban Maryland), plus frequent vacation destinations, all on a county-by-county basis and, all told, taking less than half of my 128MB SD card.

Hell, even current Garmin maps come on a single DVD, which, even if it’s dual layer, would “only” be 9 gig. Find an easy way to reduce it to a county-by-county level, with maybe highway and major US and state routes for the full country, and it’d be an easy fit on the iPhone.

Ultimately, I gotta agree with the author — as this is a software product, you shouldn’t be paying hardware prices. And there’s a big psychological edge to some of the lower prices — $50, especially if it’s an annual thing, I’d probably do once. $30, or even $50, with a $15 annual update, I’d be a lot more likely to buy and keep up-to-date.

So, in relation to your article, whether you get turn by turn from a subscription model or from downloaded maps, the iPhone can’t (or won’t) provide GPS capability without a data connection. Perhaps there is a way around this in the API, but I’ve tried several GPS apps in these countries and none of them work if data is not present.