Is HTC going to kill FREE turn by turn directions?

[cereal killer]

Here's some possibly troubling news for HTC fans if it spreads to the US Market. Netherlands-based navigation giant TomTom announced a new partnership with HTC. Good you say? Well lets take a look at the deal.

The new partnership/deal announced this morning places TomTom’s maps in HTC’s new integrated navigation solution, HTC Locations, which HTC calls a “zero-wait navigation experience”. The service will initially be available on the HTC Desire HD and HTC Desire Z, and only in Europe and Asia. HTC Locations will expand to new devices and regions, but there is no other release schedule available as of now. Here's the catch...........HTC Locations will be free to end users, along with some basic functionality. What catch you say? Well, turn-by-turn navigation will be a premium paid add-on. Yes you read that right. Users will have to pay for turn by turn directions.

Now unless HTC and/or the carrier block Google Maps I can't see this going very far. Then again why would they even bother if this wasn't the case.

Remember this is only in Europe and Asia initially and will expand to other regions later. There is no mention of a US market as of yet. We'll keep an eye on this one.

What say you?





Source: BGR

 

[RyanPm40]

Well, verizon has VZ Navigator but didn't disable google maps, so who knows! Maybe it will be a stupid little thing like that. I'm not too worried though, I'm cool with my Incredible for the next couple years.

 

[timlaw27]

They can can't really start doing this to us can they? Charging for Turn by Turn Navigation is just ridiculous.

Talking about blocking apps, but does anyone know with all the new phones that are and rumored to be using Bing as the standard search engine, if Google Apps/Widgets(Mail/Maps/Search/etc.) are blocked as well?

 

[barski]

I don't think it will happen. Google isn't that greedy.

 

[techguru]

Have any of you who are complaining ever compared google maps with TomTom our Garmin?

There is a reason that google is free and that they are not. I would pay to have this on my Incredible now if the user interface is good.

Sent from my Droid Incredible using DroidForums App

 

[BayouFlyFisher]

Have any of you who are complaining ever compared google maps with TomTom our Garmin?

There is a reason that google is free and that they are not. I would pay to have this on my Incredible now if the user interface is good.

Sent from my Droid Incredible using DroidForums App

I agree. If I didn't have a Garmin GPS, I'd pay to have it on my phone. They are better. IMHO and YMMV!!

 

[timlaw27]

Well Ok, my real issue isn't having to pay for TomTom or Garmin, since I have used them in the past and they are much better then GMaps, though not necessarily worth the price IMO. My real problem is with blocking GMaps and having to pay a fee to get turn by turn.

 

[BayouFlyFisher]

Well Ok, my real issue isn't having to pay for TomTom or Garmin, since I have used them in the past and they are much better then GMaps, though not necessarily worth the price IMO. My real problem is with blocking GMaps and having to pay a fee to get turn by turn.

Wow, I agree with that 100%.

 

[furbearingmammal]

I don't think it will happen. Google isn't that greedy.

1, Google is that greedy.

2, this is HTC, not Google. Google has no say, nor will they.

 

[Koveleski]

I would hope it doesn't include blocking Google Maps. The market is supposed to be completely open - if they can block that app, what else will they start to selectively hide from your phone? Will you start having to pay manufacturer's to make sure your app isn't omitted from phones? Yucky.

 

[timlaw27]

Not liking where HTC is going cause this will likely lead to other Handset manufacturers following suit. What happened to the openness of Android?

I guess at the end of the day manufacturers have the option to do whatever they want to each phone and $$$ will determine most decisions, but this is just giving more ammo to that guy who says android is not necessarily open, but just fragmented. Arggg.

 

[ocdtrekkie]

I thought turn-by-turn Google Maps directions were only available in certain regions? Could this be for the regions Google doesn't do turn-by-turn for?

Also, yeah, I assume it's like VZ Navigator. Some people swear by it and pay for it, and some people think they're morons for paying for what we already get for free.

I personally love Google's navigation over my old GPS device. Would never consider another navigation program.

 

[diverbelow]

One thing that I do not like about portable GPS devices, is that you have to pay to have the maps updated (on a few of them) or you have 12 months free updates, then after that you have to pay.

For me, I prefer Gmaps, since the rerouting is way quicker and I do not have to pay. With employment ending in couple months and the economy still down, FREE is good.

 

[sb1831]

Please tell me that someone did the required research for this topic. Did anyone go online and see if the countries that this is being implemented in were actually supported by Google Maps Navigation, or are we just bashing a company based on our ethnocentric belief that all countries have access to Google Nav? Just curious...

 

[tktouch12]

alright, if verizon takes away free turn by turn directions i will be so mad.
in fact, i might even get an iphone on vzw because free gps was one of the main reasons i like droids (jailbreaking will do a lot of the rest)

if its only htc doing this though we can buy different brands, or get a rom that has free gps