Garmin announced a one-time-purchase plan for Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry. This one-time, $99.99 purchase is only available in North America and will give customers who own BlackBerry devices unlimited use of Garmin Mobile’s turn-by-turn, voice prompted directions for the life of their specific BlackBerry.

So if your BlackBerry has a data plan, get connected with Garmin Mobile for BlackBerry and put turn-by-turn directions and real-time traffic services at your fingertips!

A live shot of the Palm Treo 800w has just surfaced, along with a few technical specifications. Running Windows Mobile 6.1, it supposedly features a 320 x 320 touchscreen display, 400MHz processor, 256MB Flash memory, 128MB RAM, 2.0-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, GPS, and EV-DO Rev. A.

What’s special about these two new Strada’s is that they can be setup to control various things around the house. However as an intermediary device you’ll need your Bluetooth capable phone with a data plan with SoftBank, Docomo, and Au, so you can access all your devices from the internet - which will give you control over your door lock, DVR and TV, and many other things.You can also create a TV recording schedule so you don’t miss your favorite shows, control your air conditioning, turn off lights…

Strada CN-HX1000D and CN-HW1000D does provide other functions in addition GPS navigation and home control of course; such as the TV receiver, optical drive, hard disk drive, support for numerous media files, all on a sharp 7″ screen.Panasonic GPS Strada CN-HX1000D and CN-HW1000D expected to be available in June

Pioneer AVIC-T10 is the new release from Pioneer of Japan for their portable GPS navigation system series. Also named Carrozzeria, Pioneer AVIC-T10 featuring a 5.8” VGA screen, our PNS has 4GB of internal memory, Bluetooth, and can act as a hands-free system. It also has HDSPA connection support (through a module that allows you to plug in your mobile phone), TV (1Seg), and plays WMA, MP3 and AAC files. It provides Smart Loop Traffic Congestion Information, Parking Space Availability Information, Gasoline Price Information, and PinPoint Weather reports.

Especially interesting is the “Rendez-Vous Service,” useful when meeting someone as it allows you to select a convenient meeting place based on emails received from your friend.

Yukyung announced the launch of its 7-inch built-in navigation device ‘viliv X7 ME’ in Korea market, which features a full touchscreen display with 800×480 resolution.

The viliv X7 ME Running on AU1250 600MHz CPU, it supports TPEG/DMB service and multi-tasking function. It contains up to 8GB capacity by adopting SDHC card. Other features included AV In/Out ports, karaoke, image/text viewer and FM transmitter.

The screen on the Navigon 2100 was the most impressive feature. The 2D & 3D maps were crisp and clear. The screen is capable of high-color but most of the navigation screens use different shades of grey and don’t really utilize the screens full potential.

The Navigon 2100 has 2 display modes; 2D & 3D Reality View. The 3D mode is my preferred mode of operation and with that you also get Real World Sign Text (see picture above). With this mode you get a cool picture of highway street signs, pretty close to how they would appear as you are driving on the highway. One piece of negative feedback no the view modes is that switching between 2D & 3D takes two actions (taps on the screen) I would have preferred having a toggle button on the main display instead of requiring selecting the mode on a separate menu window. Read the full review at gps navigation systems

Pioneer is going to release its portable car navigation ‘Air Navigator(model: AVIC-T10)’ in Japan market, which supports 1-Seg and HSDPA.

Adopting a 5.8-inch WVGA monitor, the AVIC-T10 supports MP3/WMA/AAC playback and 4GB flash memory. Measuring 179.5*98.8*32.5mm at 500g, it is expected to be available in Japan in the early June.

GPS manufacturers Clarion have announced their latest satnav systems, the MAP680 and MAP780. Using a full 4.3-inch wide-aspect touchscreen with anti-reflective coating, both units have an RDS-TMC tuner for traffic information and Bluetooth for handsfree cellphone use and A2DP music streaming. Most striking, however, is the full 3D mapping that gives a windscreen-view of what the driver should be seeing.

Both devices have a lane assistant, information about the current speed limit and a phonetically correct voice guidance for street names. However where the MAP780 has 2GB of onboard memory, the MAP680 has only 1GB. The media player can handle MP3 and WMA audio files and AVI, WMV, 3GP and MP4 video files. An SD/MMC slot can be used to add extra storage (up to 4GB).

Initially four geographical versions of the MAP680 will be offered:

The MAP780 includes mapping for 43 countries. No pricing or availability details have been announced.

Takara recently debuted a new in-dash car entertainment system with GPS navigation called Takara GPV 1004. Expected to hit the market in Europe first, Takara GPV 1004 will probably go for 399 €.

The navigation software of this 1-DIN device will be the highly popular iGo from Nav N Go and the screen will measure 4″ which will be motorized to reveal the optical drive on the back. Maps will be provided from TeleAtlas and the GPS receiver from SiRF.

Takara GPV 1004 also has a feature called “dual zone technology” which allows for playing DVD on the back seats while listening to music and using navigation on the front seats. It also accepts video input for rear view camera and/or an audio-video input for gaming consoles.

MTI MicroFuel Cells and a subsidiary of Mechanical Technology Incorporated unveils a few days ago a new embedded micro fuel cell prototype design for handheld global positioning system (”GPS”) devices at the 10th Annual International Small Fuel Cells Conference in Atlanta.. MTI Micro will exhibit a micro fuel cell powered GPS prototype at booth number 101, alongside its full range of functional prototypes for use in handheld electronic devices.Mobion powered GPS prototype provides three times as much energy as GPS devices powered by four disposable AA batteries and can generate up to 60 hours of continuous power and provide weeks instead of days of typical usage.

This new Mobion powered GPS prototype also includes a USB interface, allowing you to use it as an independent energy source for a variety of purposes, including for recharging mobile phones, digital cameras, portable media players and other handheld electronic devices.