Harman Kardon is of course known for its quality and reliability, offering you only the best in what high-end technology has to offer. To answer the increasing demand for GPS Navigation devices, Harman Kardon has answered with the GPS-510, an incredibly thin navigation unit capable of audio and video playback.
Pros
The interface is incredibly easy to use and is really easy to see. It does not make driving and navigating a dangerous task but instead renders it quite enjoyable with the bright and high-contrast 4" LCD touchscreen. In addition, the processing capability of the unit is extremely fast-eliminating the irritating nuisance of sluggish navigation. It has quick refresh rate and contains over 12 million points of interests.
The GPS-510 is incredibly thin, with a small width of less than ¾" thick. Only a few others on the market have this same thickness, but not as stylish and feature-packed as this one.
The navigation component of the unit is built-in and is also capable of receiving up to 16 different GPS satellite signals. Along with that, it could also receive live traffic information transmission in the area that you are driving. It also gives you an estimated time of arrival as well as time remaining until reaching destination. The colors on the map look great and truly characterize the navigation aspect of the unit to be 'high-tech'. It has the look and the feel of a truly high-quality portable navigation device.
The Harman Kardon GPS-510 also has great media playback capabilities, capable of playing AAC, MP3, and WMA audio files as well as WMV and MPEG4 video files. The unit could display album artwork and has familiar playback controls that are commonly used in media players.
reliability, offering you only the best in what high-end technology has to offer. To answer the increasing demand for GPS Navigation devices, Harman Kardon has answered with the GPS-510, an incredibly thin navigation unit capable of audio and video playback.
Cons
The fact that it has no built-in hard drive could be troublesome to many. However, the SD Card input supports up to 4GB, it may be cumbersome to switch in and out the SD Card. Though the manufacturer provides a USB connection, there really is no purpose for that unless you use the SD Card.
With all these great features, it's rather odd that the unit does not have HD or Satellite radio capabilities. Though the video playback feature is great, it's highly doubtful that anyone would be using video playback on a navigation device.
Another negative aspect is the price. The unit is selling at around $420 - $460. Unless you could get a good deal on the unit, you may be able to find other similarly featured portable GPS navigation units for cheaper.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Harman Kardon GPS-510 Review
Harman Kardon GPS-810 Review
This is arguably the crown jewel of portable navigation. Of course, you can't really expect anything less from a top tier company like Harman Kardon. The Harman Kardon GPS-810 features an incredibly thin casing, with a width measuring no more than ¾" thick. With this kind of style, you'll definitely impress your friends with how good your dashboard will look after you mount one of these.
Display Features
It features a very bright and daylight-readable 4.3" LCD display, capable of down-scaling pictures as large as 4096 x 3072 pixels. The built-in GPS system is capable of displaying US, Puerto Rico, and Canada maps without additional mediums such as a disc or a flash card. In addition, it features a blazing fast 532 MHz i.MX31L processor. The combination of the two will give users quick response and calculations from starting point to destination. You can be sure that the unit will also have a fast refresh rate so that you won't see much lag at all when navigating through high speed freeways.
Navigation Features
Whereas typical GPS Navigation have 1 to 6 million points of interest, the GPS-810 features an internal memory that holds over 12 million points of interest. With the vast amount of locations stored internally, you are most likely to find the most current directional and address guides to your favorite landmarks, restaurants, and of course, gas stations. What is amazing is the unit's 16-channel GPS receiver (which is by the way capable of receiving traffic messages). The 16-channel receiver could lock on to 16 different orbital GPS satellites and makes sure that you won't lose reception where ever you are.
Compatibility
This portable unit is also capable of playing music files in AAC, MP3, WMA, WMV, and WMA with WM-DRM10 (Digital Rights Management) format. In addition, it will display album art and you could play music while you're navigating. I know what you may be thinking. You're thinking "why would I want to play music through the small built-in tin-can speakers?" But instead you could use its included FM modulator or its 3.5mm auxiliary output, and you would be able to hear digital quality music through your existing audio system. Moreover, if you insert an SD Card, the unit is capable of file transfers from your computer through the USB connection.
Bluetooth Features
The GPS-810 also features a built-in Bluetooth connection that displays caller ID and call status on the 4.3" LCD display. This will allow you to communicate through either its built-in audio or through your car's audio system with either the FM or auxiliary connection. It could even synchronize your cell phone's phonebook and will display any contact information on the screen for easy-to-navigation access.
Wireless Remote
To top it all off, the Harman Kardon GPS-810 includes a wireless remote. This is my favorite feature because it does not force me to lean over or reach forward to access the unit. Instead it's sensitive and easy-to-use remote is very familiar to use and could even be mounted anywhere it is convenient for you such as the center console or your door-side arm rest console.
With such great features, this Harman Kardon unit stands as one of the best GPS portable navigation unit as of first quarter 2008. It's going to be tough finding similarly featured as well as similarly performing competitors, especially with a price tag of less than $400, this premium quality navigation unit. It's worth every penny and you won't ever regret your purchase!
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