Are you in good hands? Better yet, is your car? GPS manufacturer TomTom is ready to give a judgment on how good of a driver you are. The company has partnered up with insurance broker Motaquote to give drivers individualized quotes based on their specific driving habits. For the insurance industry, it's like an underwriting gold mine. But for the individual driver, it may feel kind of like an invasion of privacy.
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‘GPS’ Stories
TomTom to provide insurance company with your driving style
British auto insurer AA unveils GPS tracked insurance policies for drivers
If you live in the UK, you're probably familiar with auto insurance company AA. The company has taken a cue from some of its smaller rivals in the UK and has introduced a new type of insurance policy that uses a little GPS recorder under the hood to track driving habits of the insured. The little box can transmit things like your speed, and if you're braking hard. The box can also record cornering speed, what types of roads the person drives on, and what time of the day the person drives.
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Canon PowerShot range overhauled: WiFi, waterproof, GPS, more
Canon has gushed its latest torrent of point-and-shoot cameras, a ten-strong update to its PowerShot line that includes weatherproof options, lengthy zooms and the choice of touchscreen control. Most interesting are the new PowerShot ELPH 530 HS and ELPH 320 HS, which each get WiFi and a 12x and 5x optical zoom respectively. The 530 HS has a 10-megapixel sensor and is 0.78-inches thick, while the 320 HS has a 16.1-megapixel sensor. Both have a 3.2-inch touchscreen and shoot Full HD 1080p video. The 530 HS will ship in April for $349.99, while the 320 HS will ship in March for $279.99.
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Congressional bill aims to speed FAA switch to GPS
It might not be that much longer until you can fly the friendly skies with the comfort of knowing the pilot isn't relying on technology that's several decades old. The US Senate has just passed a bill that will incite the Federal Aviation Administration to swith from antiquated raday systems to advanced GPS infrastructure within four years. The bill authorizes the spending of $63.4 billion to get this done.
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TomTom GPS systems now offer more Simpsons voices
D'oh! Homer isn't the only Simpsons character who can tell you when the next left turn you'll need to make is. TomTom has just landed a new agreement that brings the blue-headed wife Marge, as well as Mr. Burns into the picture. It isn't talked about as much since the novelty wore off, but celebrity voice guidance is one of TomTom's most distinct differentiating factors over the competition. Personally, we pity the fool who doesn't have Mr. T or someone equally as iconic giving them their turn-by-turn, sattlite-assisted directions.
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Nikon COOLPIX S-series keeps compact cameras shining
Gobfuls of new Nikon compact cameras this morning, with a four-strong update to the COOLPIX range that promises something for everyone, whether you demand GPS tagging, lengthy zooms or sub-$140 pricing. The Nikon COOLPIX S9300 leads the charge, with an 18x optical zoom squeezed into a 1.5-inch thick body with a 16-megapixel backside-illuminated sensor for improved low-light performance.
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Apple iPhone robbery thwarted by tech-savvy cop
How do you solve a crime in 30 minutes or less? All you need is a cop who knows his tech. Police Officer Robert Garland was able to successfully track down an iPhone thief and return the device to its rightful owner thanks to his quick thinking and his knowledge of the app "Find My iPhone." It all went down yesterday in New York City.
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Mercedes-Benz mbrace2 in-vehicle technology and apps hands-on
The folks at Mercedes-Benz have given us a demonstration and hands-on look at their second-generation in-car technology environment mbrace2, here with a set of built-in apps as well as a mobile application working on an iPhone connected directly with the vehicle. In the group’s brand new SL-Class we get to check out how a fabulous looking set of menus will bring us everything we could possibly need or want to the drivers seat of our car. No need for a dongle anymore also, as mbrace2 brings with it a brand new mobile application that is able to control your car from your iPhone.
Canada reaches space with Lego
Two students from Toronto have made a bit leap into the final frontier for Lego-kind, sending a Canadian-flag wielding Lego man into space with just a helium balloon and four cameras to record the whole event. Seventeen-year-olds Mathew Ho and Asad Muhammad simply attached a helium balloon to four cameras and a Lego strip connected to a Lego man and his cool tiny Canada flag and let them fly. Once the whole rig descended back to Earth, the collection was made and the videos were viewed. When the videos were loaded and the photos they took were reviewed, the teens started screaming.
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Microsoft’s so-called “avoid ghetto” GPS app draws controversy
A recently uncovered Microsoft patent is already generating a bit of controversy even though it could be years before any sort of product actually materializes from it. The patent is for an app that uses GPS technology to deter drivers from entering neighborhoods that are deemed unsafe. Of course, the conditions that are evaluated to determine whether or not a particular street is dangerous are coming under scrutiny.
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Suunto Ambit GPS watch touts heart rate monitor
Finnish watch maker Suunto recently announced its latest GPS-enabled watch called the Ambit. The Ambit is designed to help athletes with training and outdoor adventure. It provides a host of tools, including GPS navigation with 3D Compass, altimeter, barometric sensor, and a heart rate monitor.
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Supreme Court rules GPS tracking now needs warrant
In a move on a ruling that very well may put Batman’s tights in a bundle, the Supreme Court voted unanimously this week that police, private investigators, and anyone else with a sweet tooth for tracking will have to get a warrant before attaching a GPS device to a vehicle they do not own. Of course monitoring a vehicle’s movements had previously been called legal in a case against a drug dealer that’d been tracked for a month without a warrant, but now according to the Supreme Court, this tracking has been deemed “unreasonable.” Tracking a person with a GPS device without a warrant is now deemed illegal under the 4th Amendment.
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