What a landmark week we are having here in android land:

Google serves up an Android 2.0, Eclair  dessert, Motorola releases its new Droid handset ( reportedly to be called “Milestone” in UK) and then to top it off (if you believe what the press and some bloggers are saying) – Google completely and utterly releases the biggest, most impressive revolution in transportation since the wheel.
Actually for those of you who are actually quite sensible, here’s what really happened – Google announced a satnav  Google added voice directions to Google maps for Android 2.0 phones…..that’s it, nothing more.
The panic that ensued since then has caused satnav companies share prices to drop by 10-20%, people to announce the end of the satnav market and  some companies have even publicly attacked Google for improving their application as treading on the feet of existing developers and are threatening to boycott Android.

What an overreaction! There is nothing revolutionary about free satnavs. Nokia have been giving them away with their phones for years, nav4all is currently available to download off the android market and even integrates Google Local- so there is nothing new there!

Turns out that the secret sauce in the soon to be released Google Navigation is  the fact its internet connected.

1. Voice Control – You can talk to it!
2. It will look up destinations on the internet.
3. It will provide information such as petrol stations from the internet and update on the map
4. Its going to be FREE! (whats the business model?)

My thoughts are to the other companies complaining about this…… its obvious that this was the next step for satnavs- why didn’t you do this first??

Is this going to change the world?

Sadly probably not, and here’s why:

1. The price point of Satnavs are so low now that you can get a great software satnav for only 20.00 GBP.  ALK Copilot is available now from the market- with a great user interface, full UK downloadable maps to your SD card. ( I am going to do a showcase on this app soon as its amazing)
2. You can by a standalone Tom tom GPS for only £50.00, which if you do a lot of driving is not an expensive investment.
3. There are already free Satnav applications on the market ( see Nav4all)
4. Downloadable maps and instructions are only as good as the telephone signal you are receiving.  Even in London there are signal  blackspots and being able to deal with  these will be a real challenge to the application.
5. Telephone Gps receivers are no comparison to dedicated devices.

The target market for Google Satnav, was never going to be people who drive as a part of their job.  These people need to have reliable, proven technologies and are most likely are going to stick to using the Garmins and Tom toms to get around. The market for Google Maps navigation is going to be the people who are only going to use it occasionally, to find a new restaurant or to find the occasional new shop.  These “occasionals”, would never have paid for satnav, and certainly would never have subscribed so there is no money being lost.

What is clear is that Google has shown the way to  the satnav market. If  I was a satnav company now, I would be drastically integrating my software with the web, making sure it ran on peoples’ mobile phones, and most importantly would focus on value added items, such as speed cameras and traffic information.  In a few months, any satnav that can’t at least match Google’s set of functions and internet connectivity will be resigned to being given away free on the front cover of magazines. Also the online mapping market is not a one horse race.   I am not a strategist, but if I was a GPS company I would be racing to tie up deals with Bing maps, Multimap, AA Routefinder and any any other company who has even heard of a map.

Convergence is a major theme of the current technology revolution and it was bound to happen at some stage that the the separate satnav would be made obsolete- Garmin are bringing out satnav phones, Copilot and Tom Tom are releasing phone applications- it isn’t long before we have a single device that performs all tasks.  So to all those companies who are complaining about Google, its time to innovate, tie up some deals and step up your game.

The main question is, will this development  encourage car manufacturers to finally step up their Satnav game and integrate Android into their vehicles?- Google have “iphoned” the satnav market, people have tasted internet connected satnavs and there is no way that they are going back.  Car buys are not going to accept, archaic, proprietory, standalone computers being built into their cars.  The future, is internet connected, and integrated with peoples other technologies.   Car manufacturers, start your engines, your race is about to start!

Check out the great video demo of Google Satnav below:

For more information and to see more screenshots go to the Google Maps Navigation Beta

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