Tablet offroad navigation - Android Honeycomb, Oziexplorer and more
UPDATED 24/06/2011, Ozi Android 1.08 released!
We’re now in a new era of offroad navigation devices.
Many years ago we just had paper maps. Then the age of GPS arrived, with big, clunky handheld devices that gave you the coordinates of your location. You could plot those on your paper map. Then the GPS receivers (GPSRs) became more sophiscated, adding basic map screens. At the same time people began running the likes of Oziexplorer on laptops or tiny personal digital assistants with 3-4” diagonal screens. Then came PNDs, or personal navigation devices which incorporated GPS with screens from 4-7”, best typified for offroaders by the Hema Navigator or VMS Touring range.
Now we’re in a new dimension of capability again with tablet computers, specifically Android Honeycomb tablets. These new tablets are light, come in a wide variety of high-resolution screens from 7” to 10” or more and they can run raster moving-map software like Oziexplorer. In other words, they have the screen readability of a small laptop without the weight and bulk penalty, and as the software is designed for a touchscreen it’s easy to use on the move.
Another reason why tablets are such a leap forwards is their breath of capability. PNDs were one-trick ponies, even if they could nominally play the odd MP3. An Android Honeycomb tablet really is a master of many trades – it can browse the web very well, play videos or MP3s, amuse the user with myriad games, work as a webcam with Skype…pretty much anything you’d want to do in-car or on a trip, saving the laptop for serious writing or intensive applications such as image or video editing.
That’s the theory, now where are we at in practice? Our test unit is the Acer Iconia 500, running Android Honeycomb 3.0. The Iconia’s specifications pertinent to offroad navigation start with a beautiful 10.1” diagonal screen with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. Most of the PNDs have a 4.3-7” screen with a resolution of 480x272. Mere screen size is not the only indication of readability, and it’s the extra pixels that create a sharp, clear picture.
The Iconcia also has a MicroSD slot for up to 16Gb of extra storage to supplement its built-in 16 or 32, and includes a GPSR which appears to work just as well as any modern receiver, which means it is extremely sensitive and doesn’t need an external antenna. The 500 doesn’t have a 12v adaptor which is going to be a problem for 4WD use, and the charge cable is criminally short. There’s no car mount either, but the masters of the art at RAM have produced a generic tablet mount, (local distributor RAM Mount.com.au) which I’ve not used myself but given RAM’s track record I feel comfortable recommending anyway. Other hardware features are a stereo headset, Bluetooth, a USB master slot, a micro USB slot, 5Mp camera/camcorder on the back and a mini-HDMI output so you can display the contents of the pad to a larger screen.
The 500 is easy enough to use but a bit ‘slippery’ to hold, and the large screen is vulnerable to damage. We’ll fit a screen protector and find a case, then update this review. Sunlight readability isn’t too bad, but again we’ll reserve judgement till the protectors are fitted. We can say that without a protector screen could be used by law enforcement agencies for collecting fingerprints as it really does get very dirty very quickly. The size is convenient enough for in-case use at less than a A4 paper’s width and length – 260 x 177 x 13.3mm. Weight is 730g. which again is fine for in-car use.
Now the hardware is of no use without software, and happily enough there’s a few options. First off if you have an Internet connection, either direct through the 500 if it is a 3G model or Wi-Fi hotspot via your smartphone, then you can run the excellent Google Earth. This is surprisingly useful for offroad navigation, as is Google Maps for which you also need a ‘Net connection.
But of course you’ll be going where there is no NextG, and that means serious offroad maps from the likes of Hema, Rooftops, Westprint and Meridian, for that there's two options. Oziexplorer is now available for Android, and as of 3rd June there’s Version 1.04 available. This now runs on tablets like the 500, and smartphones like my HTC Desire Z. It is not yet as fully-featured as OziCE, but it’s getting very close. It will load the important map formats of ozf2, ozfx3 and ECW, log tracks, work with the standard waypoints, router and tracks, check for more detailed map, zoom maps and there’s a useful set of data displayed on a slide-out box on the right. Unfortunately, it’s a trial version and displays “TRIAL” over the screen as you can see unless you pay $25USD, a time-limited early-adopter discount – which you should definitely take up, because this is an absolute bargain and the Ozi policy is once you pay all updates are free. Given the development of the other products you can expect quite an amazing offroad nav app as this matures, and apart from the rapidly growing Android market there’s another certain impetus to speed development.
Androzic is a free Android application that uses Ozi maps, including ozfx3. Yes, it costs nothing, and it is very good indeed, more fully featured than the previous Ozi Android beta and in some ways still ahead of the 1.04 release. Androzic will run as a moving map, shows basic nav data such as course, speed and elevation, works with Ozi tracks and waypoints, loads detailed maps, can zoom in and out and in short has all the basics needed to be a useful application in the bush. Androzic's user interface is also quite neat, with an unobstrusive panel on the left to zoom in and out, select more or less detailed maps, and turn the moving-map on or off. Ozi is more clunky in comparison, but on the other hand doesn't bury some of its options as deep as Androzic. Still, both are in the initial stages of development and both are usable even as they are now.
Conclusion
It’s early days for offroad tablet navigation, but I feel pretty safe in predicting that dedicated PNDs are on the way out and will be replaced by generic tablets that run the likes of Oziexplorer. Right now, I’m running both Ozi and Androzic as they are complementary. If you run Ozi and own an Android tablet then try them out, and if you’re looking for an offroad navigation solution then I think both are sufficiently mature to work as primary nav devices.
Check back here or on the Facebook page for more updates on this subject.
How to install
Oziexplorer
The easiest way to install Oziexplorer is simply to surf to
http://www.oziexplorer3.com/android/ozi ... droid.html using your tablet, download the .apk file and then install it. You’ll need to go into Settings, Applications, Unknown Sources and permit non-Market applications to be installed. There are now frequent upgrades to Ozi and these can be installed over the top of each other unless you are upgrading from an alpha release.
Androzic
Go to the Market from your Android device and search for ‘androzic’. Then install.
Maps.
Androzic loads maps only from /mnt/sdcard/Androzic/maps, but Ozi is configurable so you can set it to use Androzic's directory.
The easiest way to load maps is to connect the unit to a computer and you should see it auto-detected and pop up as Device Storage. The screenshot shows what it looks like on a Windows 7 PC.
From there all you need to do is run each app, and both auto-detect the 500’s built-in GPSR. Happy navigating!
To be notified of updates to this site and this page visit and Like:
http://www.facebook.com/4WDHandbook
Apple
What about iPad and iPhone owners? Memory Map have an app for both:
http://memory-map.com.au/products/iphone-app.html
and it is available from iTunes.
Oziexplorer will be available for Apples after the Android version is finished.
Market commentary
Tablets are here and only going to become more popular, with a variety of sizes from about 5 to 12" diagonal screens. I think a tablet is the best style of in-car computer as it is small, has a great screen and is highly functional. They aren't great for serious work or text entry, but you typically don't want to do that on the move anyway. I take a laptop with me on trips and that comes out in the evenings when it's time to do some serious scribing.
The tablet market looks like Google Android and Apple have the world to themselves for the moment, as Microsoft yet again is floundering, wondering what hit it. Windows 7 Mobile is too little, too late, and Microsoft has abjectly failed to convert its huge desktop userbase to its mobile offerings.
Niche players such as RIM (Blackberry) will cater to niche users, and Nokia looks about as clued in as Microsoft so don't expect anything from the north other than more bleeding of market share.
Personally, for offroad navigation I think Android is the better bet over Apple. The reason is that Google supplies only an operating system, Android, and manufacturers such as Acer, HTC and Samsung create the hardware. This gives a wide range of potential devices on which to run Android and its applications, and for in-car nav you want a certain device of a certain size just to suit you. On the other hand, if you choose Apple then you're stuck with whatever hardware Apple decides to release. If that suits, then all well and good, if not too bad.
OziCE vs Ozi for Android
A question was asked - will Ozi for Android be better than OziCE? I suspect that answer is that both will be functionally very much the same, but future development will focus more on Android and Apple than Microsoft. There is one major difference between OziCE and Android and that is in-car usability. OziCE was designed for use with a stylus, so it has tiny fonts, menus and selections. Android was designed for use with a finger, so no need for a stylus and it has larger, easier-to-read dialogue boxes. Therefore, Android is the easier system to use on the move and in a car. OziCE had a user-configuration interface via its Screen Designer which went a long way to fixing this problem Microsoft built in to its operating system, but modern tablets are starting from a much better base.
Glossary
Android – Google’s operating system for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.
Autoroute – turn by turn directions from A to B.
GPS – Global Positioning System.
GPSR – GPS receiver, unit that receives GPS signals and works out a position. Honeycomb – a version of Android for tablets.
Moving map – a computer displays a digital map and moves the map as you move.
Raster map – a map made up of a digital image as opposed to a series of vector lines (vector map). Rasters are prettier and easier to read than vector maps, but only vectors can autoroute. Most offroad maps are rasters.
Wi-Fi hotspot – connect your smartphone to the Internet, then use it to broadcast a WiFi signal so other devices can use their WiFi to connect to your smartphone and thus share the smartphone’s Internet connection.
Links
Oziexplorer
http://www.oziexplorer3.com/android/ozi ... droid.html
Oziexplorer Android change history
http://www.oziexplorer3.com/android/ozi ... story.html
Androzic
http://code.google.com/p/androzic/
Android apps optimised for Honeycomb, as not are all
http://www.droidforums.net/forum/xoom-a ... -list.html
Smartphones
Earlier version of Ozi running on a HTC Desire Z smartphone. Current versions of both Ozi and Androzic run on pretty much any Android device.
Share this
felicitaciones !
se puede navegar en ciudad o se pierden más que con uno específico (estos se que traen SIRF III o similar que mejoran la recepción notablemente por rebotes, etc). 