Jan 7, 2008

Alpine Bolsters Navigation Line Up With All-New Portable Device

As the demand for navigation continues to intensify, the one-size-fits-all approach is no longer applicable. Consumers now want choices. Some may find that a portable device is all they need, while others may want a more robust in-dash system. Still others may want the flexibility of both. Alpine now offers a brand-new option for consumers that fits their unique driving lifestyle with a higher level of on the road accuracy: the new PND-K3 portable navigation device (PND). The slim, lightweight PND-K3, which is available in two versions, combines remarkable ease-of-use with natural voice text-to-speech technology and superior vehicle-positioning technology. The PND-K3msn shares all the core features of the PND-K3 with the addition of MSN Direct service. “Alpine engineered the PND-K3 from the ground up with the consumer in mind,” said Stephen Witt, vice president, marketing and product planning, Alpine Electronics. “It features Alpine’s most sophisticated vehicle positioning and navigation technology in a portable device. From a design standpoint, the PND-K3’s all-new look and user interface makes it a standout in the fiercely competitive step-up PND market.” “The combination of Alpine’s exciting new technology and MSN Direct service creates a compelling and connected navigation solution for consumers,” said Eric Lang, general manager of the MSN Direct initiative at Microsoft. The PND-K3 is fully loaded with everything a consumer needs for an easy, stress-free drive, including:

Complete touch screen command via a large, sunlight-readable, high-contrast 4.3-inch WQVGA display that ensures clear visibility in extreme lighting conditions
Redesigned, intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) with big, bright icons, large buttons and easy-to-understand screen graphics
Natural-sounding text-to-speech announcements that deliver turn-by-turn driving instructions, street names and other information with accurate pronunciation, so that the driver has complete confidence throughout the entire route
Assistive mapping visuals which offer essential driving information such as a Highway Junction View (which distinctly indicates the correct lane to use at a multi-lane junction split) and One-Way Street Icons for clear notification of one-way streets
6 million points of interest (POIs), including restaurants, hotels, gas stations, movie theaters and grocery stores
Preloaded NAVTEQ® map data of the United States and Canada, including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
Built-in Bluetooth® wireless technology for hands-free phone calls when connected to compatible Bluetooth-enabled phones
Built-in SD card slot allowing playback of stored WMA/MP3 music files

Alpine PND-K3

A new user interface feature is the “POI Search,” which lets drivers look for a POI through four search methods: “Near You,” “Within City Vicinity,” “Near Destination” or “Along Route.” After choosing one of these options, the POI database is narrowed down, resulting in more applicable search results when the user goes to the next step of searching for the POI by category or name.

The PND-K3’s slim form factor and easy-to-detach cradle system make it very convenient to store or set up the PND-K3 on the windshield or dashboard. And, despite the slim form factor, sound quality and volume level are not sacrificed. The PND-K3’s built-in loud speaker allows turn-by-turn instructions, music or incoming Bluetooth phone calls to be heard loud and clear.

The ability to lock in and maintain a moving car’s location on the map is a big challenge for many portable navigation devices. The PND-K3’s new, advanced vehicle-positioning system continues positioning the car’s location even in areas where it’s difficult to receive GPS signals, such as in tunnels or between tall city buildings. This is achieved through the simultaneous use of satellite-linked global positioning data as well as sophisticated gyro and accelerometer technology, which measures both the car’s direction and speed. This highly advanced “dead reckoning” approach ensures continuous, accurate vehicle positioning for high-quality navigation performance.

Alpine’s PMD-B200 Blackbird™ portable navigation device has a 4-inch wide LCD touch screen and a built-in traffic receiver, to access traffic updates through the optional NAVTEQ Traffic RDS™ subscription.

For an even more dynamically updated, location-relevant experience, Alpine also introduced the PND-K3msn. The PND-K3msn has all the features of the PND-K3 with the addition of MSN Direct services, which are delivered when the PND-K3msn is attached to the supplied MSN Direct-enabled cradle (separate service subscription required). With the PND-K3msn, consumers can receive instant and continuously updated information in the car, such as traffic information, weather reports, gas prices and movie times.

The PND-K3 and PND-K3msn come with eight different menu color schemes and eight different map color schemes. This allows consumers to match their interior dashboard designs and lighting colors with the unit, or personalize the unit to fit their mood.

The PND-K3 and PND-K3msn join Alpine’s award-winning family of navigation products, which include portable, docked and fixed satellite-based navigation systems. Alpine’s PMD-B200 Blackbird™ portable navigation device has a 4-inch wide LCD touch screen and a built-in traffic receiver, to access traffic updates through the optional NAVTEQ Traffic RDS™ subscription. In addition to being a full-featured standalone unit, the PMD-B200 can be docked completely inside the in-dash double-DIN IVA-W205 or IVA-W505 Mobile Multimedia Stations™. This gives users the car-to-car convenience of a portable device, as well as the integrated features of an installed system, such as voice-delivered driving instructions played through the car’s sound system and maps viewed on the larger screen of the Mobile Multimedia Station.

Alpine also offers the high-performance NVE-N872A DVD-based fixed navigation system, now shipping with new NVD-A802 mapping software. The NVE-N872A can access traffic updates through Alpine’s separate HCE-100XM XM NavTraffic Receiver Module (separate XM® Satellite Radio subscription required). SIRIUS® Satellite Radio’s traffic service can also be sent to the NVE-N872A, through a separate SIRIUS subscription and purchase of the SIRIUS-made traffic receiver. All of Alpine’s navigation products run on the Microsoft Windows CE platform.