NavigationSystem
BMW ditching navigation DVDs for 2009
BMW's MY 2009 cars will get a new iDrive system with a 40GB hard drive. According to Bimmerfile, the drive allotment will have 12GB dedicated to navigational maps (and 8GB for entertainment and 10GB for your address book, because you've got more friends than music, apparently). With nav maps placed on the hard drive, BMW will no longer be providing a case full of map DVDs.
Teddy bear nav system points way home
Most of us don't like to be yelled at while driving, but a company called IXs Rearch is betting that there must be some people out there who want a suitable replacement for the nagging spouse when they're in the car alone. The tech company has developed a high-tech teddy bear that can do everything from spout directions to yelling "Watch Out!" when you brake too fast. The "Navi-Bear" is packed with technologies that can help drivers stay safe and get from point A to point B without fuss.
Honda system warns motorists of crime hotspots, steers clear of Detroit

Honda's launching the next step in navigation system evolution that will automatically warn drivers to be on guard when traveling through areas of high crime. The system is launching in Japan on Tuesday, but we haven't heard of any plans to bring it to the United States. It's probably for the best, as there'd be wide swaths of the country that this navi would recommend you avoid. Places like Washington DC, where crime is apparently legal and perpetrated by criminals with offices and staffs. Detroit might be marked with an avoidance warning too, but that's more likely due to Honda wanting to avoid a Jets-Sharks danceoff.
read more »Driver puts faith in GPS, shears off top of charter bus on bridge

As of today, we're taking bets to see how long it will take before people realize that "GPS" does not stand for "Auto Pilot." The latest "But the GPS told me to..." story is brought to you by a charter bus driver in Seattle. Piloting a coach through the Washington Arboretum -- as the GPS instructed him -- the driver ignored, or didn't see, or didn't believe (take your pick) the flashing lights and sign warning him that his 11-foot-high bus was too tall for the looming 9-foot concrete overpass.
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