NAVIGON 2100 max and NAVIGON 2120 max GPS Personal Navigators Review

NAVIGON is working to build a reputation for affordable yet, top feature packed GPS navigators. It’s rapid grab of market share and quick population of bestseller lists since its entry into the personal navigation market nine months ago are evidence that consumers agree with it’s focus. In March, NPD Group reported that their Retail Tracking Service was showing that NAVIGON had achieved an 11.5 percent (unit volume share) and fourth position in the personal navigation category. Picking up awards at the recent 2008 International CES for the NAVIGON 5100, NAVIGON 2100 and NAVIGON 7100 has certainly helped boost of NAVIGON’s range.

The NAVIGON 2100 max and 2120 max have a slim, stylish piano black casings and a wide, 4.3 inch, anti-glare, color, touchscreen display (WQVGA, 480×272 pixels). NAVIGON have used a Nemerix NX3 GPS receiver in their NAVIGON 2100 max models. Either a USB 1.1 drive or an SD memory card can be used to load data. The LiPo/LiIon battery will power operation for up to 3 hours depending on what features are being used. The only difference in specification between the NAVIGON 2100 max and 2120 max models is the maps they are boxed with. The 2100 max comes with maps of the continental U.S. while the NAVIGON 2120 max has the continental U.S. and Canada.

Reality View provides is photo-realistic 3D image of complex interchanges as they are approached. It’s a feature that needs time to get used to as the Reality View replaces the tracking view before and intersection meaning you don’t see your vehicle’s position on the map but, you do have the advantage of seeing a more detailed intersection map.

Lane Assistant is a feature providing suggestions for the best lane for your travelling your nominated route. Lane assistance is available on some other GPS navigators on the market but, Reality View appears to be unique.

The NAVIGON max models provide free access to ZAGAT Survey which is a provider of consumer survey-based information on where to eat, drink, stay and play. Ratings and reviews are based on opinions gathered. The NAVIGON provides access to five destination guides and ratings and reviews for U.S. hotels, resorts, restaurants, golf courses, attractions and nightspots in over 70 U.S. cities. In addition, pre-loaded on the Navigon units is a database of some four million POI (Points of Interest) for navigation assistance.

Text-to-speech (TTS) functionality allows the NAVIGON 2100 max models to announce street names when giving navigation directions rather than simply playing a recording of turn left or turn right. TTS improves driving safety by providing confirmation that you are on the plotted route without needing to check the navigation display.

NAVIGON’s DirectHelp is a service found on numerous GPS devices now providing instant directions and phone numbers for emergency services at a single button touch. You also have your exact location to give out so that you can be located quickly. Emergency services might include the nearest hospital, police station, tow truck company or pharmacy.

Navigating with the NAVIGON 2100 max models

There are a number of ways to select a destination

search area button to select a map area (position confirmed with crosshairs)
tapping you destination on the map
search for the city first if you don’t know the street address or for the street first if you don’t know the city
search for a POI (nearby, in a city, nationwide, direct access)

Assisting to speed up searching is predictive text assistance with typing your entries.

Two higher end routing features available with the NAVIGON 2100 max models are multi-destination routing and route blocking (for routes, intersections or turns you don’t like).

The NAVIGON max models can provide Automatic Speed Warnings (visually and verbally) when posted speed limits are exceeded. You can customize speeding warnings.

NAVIGON FreshMaps

An option available with the NAVIGON 2100 max models is real-time traffic updates, including traffic flow, incidents and alternate routes for the lifetime of the product. To highlight the importance of keeping your maps up-to-date, Andreas Hecht, NAVIGON’s Americas President, quoted industry figures suggesting that road networks change 15 to 20 percent annually. FreshMaps data is supplied by industry leader NAVTEQ. Up to 12 updates of both regular maps and POI are available over three years. NAVIGON seem to be trying to establish a market distinction for providing value for money GPS navigator mapping.