Mio GPS
Mio Technology is an internationally innovative GPS company with some interesting ideas about how to revolutionize the industry in their own way. Founded in Taiwan in 2002, Mio Technology began developing smartphones, personal digital assistants, and personal navigational devices aimed at professional people on the go. In 2003, when the company successfully launched the first GPS-integrated PDA in Taiwan and South Korea, the positive reception of this new technology was immediate. This break-through also established Mio Technology as one of the fastest growing GPS navigation companies in the world and allowed them to expand into the European, Australian, Japanese, and North American markets with the Mio Digiwalker brand. While still relatively young and with only a limited line of products available, this company still has a promising future in using new and existing technology to enhance the increasingly mobile lifestyle of the urban individual.
The potential for the future success of Mio GPS starts with their handheld model, the Mio Digiwalker H610. This system is advertised as a personal navigation and entertainment device that combines high fashion design with accurate GPS navigation. On the website, this “ultra sleek” navigational system is sported by young sightseers who wear the device as an accessory around their neck or on their wrist while they cavort around European-looking backdrops. While this kind of marketing seems a bit fluffy, this is the kind of image and design that Mio may be banking on to capture a good part of the younger gadget-hound market. With a device that is smaller than a stack of cards, the user can enjoy an integrated media player, digital videos, music and photos, a 20 channel SiRFstar III GPS receiver, Tele Atlas maps with thousands of points of interest, preloaded games, interchangeable faceplates, and an SD/MCC memory card slot for additional maps and multimedia content.
Of course, the most important innovations are still based on the flagship idea of a pocket PC with GPS navigation. The Mio Digiwalker P550 is a powerful PDA with 2GB of memory and all of the features a mobile executive needs to go from meeting to meeting. This type of technology becomes more important as executives with regional or statewide responsibilities have to travel daily to get to different outlying areas and offices. The Mio Digiwalker P550 comes preloaded with Microsoft Office mobile which includes Microsoft Outlook, PowerPoint, Word and Excel. This helps with mobile presentations, trading information between offices, and updating client databases while out in the field.
Tele Atlas maps make sure that meeting places can be found easily. Thousands of preprogrammed points of interest also make restaurant locations and phone numbers readily available when eating on the road is necessary. The 20-channel, highly sensitive SiRFstar III GPS receiver provides accurate navigation, even in challenging environments such as forests, mountains or large cities. The integrated WiFi lets the user browse the internet and check e-mails by connecting to wireless networks everywhere. Of course, with Skype-approved Bluetooth technology, wireless calling completes the package.
The Mio Digiwalker portable size navigational units are a little less interesting. The C310x comes with an MP3 player, but so do a lot of the other units in this price range. Other than that, these devices are basically the same as the Nuvi 200 by Garmin or other starter units. There are about seven models to choose from, including the C310x. These devices are less expensive than their competitors though, probably because they are aimed at a younger crowd who wants to retrofit their car with a less expensive navigational model that also plays music. However, like this company’s other products, it will be interesting to see how they further differentiate these units from the rest of the market and continue to use aggressive innovations in order to grow as a company.
Posted in General GPS Information
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