Why have Personal Navigation Devices become popular? What technologies are required to facilitate the success of PNDs?
The personal Navigation devices have presently gained market acceptance and popularity. This has tremendously contributed to price drops. Manufacturers of PNDs have constantly been upgrading their products to be more competitive making PNDs have functionalities and capabilities which have made them even more popular.
Several technologies have been used to facilitate the success of PNDs which include: online connectivity which helps them compete with cell phones which have recently began offering navigation capabilities. Secondly speech recognition technology has been also integrated in PNDs making it a success. This feature enabled one to make a call by mentioning the name of the person you want as well as allow drivers manipulate their PNDs with their voice. Another technology that greatly contributed to the success of PDAs is the incorporation of 3D map capabilities that enables the display of visually enhanced and detailed imagery.
Who are some of the leaders in PNDs? What are the likely factors that will contribute to winning in this marketplace?
Present PNDs leaders include Garmin, Magellan and Tomtom. The dominance of these PNDs providers has been facilitated by the addition of enhanced features such as application and social networking integration, provision for maps and traffic updates as well as being affordable.
What will be a likely future for PNDs?
Despite the massive decrease in PNDs market, the future also opens more opportunities for the PNDs market. Present research suggests there will be a very strong interest for PND’s among consumers. But this will only come if PNDs manufactures lower prices on top of getting the price right. It is also speculated that lower-end services will be replaced by smartphone applications.
Apply as many TCOs to Personal Navigation Devices as possible:
I have chosen Garmin, since it’s easier to apply TCOs to the company: Garmin - is the parent company consisting of a group of companies founded in 1989 that develops consumer, aviation, and marine technologies for the Global Positioning System. To protect their property, most of the processes Garmin patented, but most of its software and applications are licensed, except some of them like, for example, XM Patent Application for Sending and Receiving Images. Garmin is very competent in the several of the fields like GPS receivers, StreetPilot devices, GPS eTrex series, iQue line of integrated PDA-GPS receivers, sonar fishfinders with GPS capabilities.
The company should continue to collaborate with the different vendors and competitors to add the new features. It probably should develop more independent and diverse marketing and manufacturing units globally to increase and encourage the R&D.
The company probably has to work more in the different directions, but based on the existing and recognized strength – developing navigation devices. Recently it achieved the great reputation in the developing navigation systems for the aircrafts and “won” the huge revenue: “Oregon based aircraft company Epic AIR LLC (subsidiary of Aircraft Investor Resources (AIR) LLC — United States) on or around April 17, 2007 announced that it will use Garmin glass pane cockpits and related avionics in all of its certified and experimental very light jets and turboprop aircraft. Garmin G900X will be used in company's owner-built airplanes, while Garmin G1000 will be used in certified Epic aircraft.” So, maybe it’s one of the directions the company should go in. Also, as mentioned above, they probably should concentrate more on the Global marketing.
Diane. (2010, March 9). The Future of Personal Navigation Devices. Retrieved March 29, 2012, from gps4us: http://www.gps4us.com/news/post/The-Future-of-Personal-Navigation-Devices.aspx
Garmin | about us. (n.d.). Retrieved March 29, 2012, from Garmin: http://www.garmin.com/us/
Pondent, B. C. (n.d.). What Technologies Are Required to Facilitate the Success of Personal Navigation Devices? Retrieved March 29, 2012, from Ehow: http://www.ehow.com/list_7615905_technologies-success-personal-navigation-devices.html
