Absolute Radio Now Available on Garmin Sat Nav

28Jun

At first look the Garmin 1490tv looks like any other in-car Satellite Navigation device, however the 1490tv has something extra, an in-built digital tuner giving access to over 50 Freeview TV channels and 24 radio stations across the U.K.

With Nokia, Google, the Dell Streak, the iPhone and many more smartphones now providing satellite navigation, the likes of Garmin and TomTom have been forced to provide more features in their devices. Adding digital tv and radio is a great example of this.

Owners of the Gamin 1490tv can now listen to in-car digital radio without the need for DAB radio, 3G or wifi connectivity. The Garmin will continue to play stations such as Absolute Radio while receiving usual driving instructions and map visuals. The Garmin 1490tv provides another way to listen to Absolute Radio in great quality while in the car.

With over 12 million homes in the UK now relying on Freeview to receive digital TV and Radio, Garmin’s choice of this proven technology will almost certainly prompt a similar response from rivals TomTom. Perhaps TomTom will include a DAB chip in a future model and extending this a little further with 3G connectivity means the use of technologies such as RadioDNS are then easily possible.

The Garmin 1490tv is available now at around £300 direct from the Garmin website.

Take a look at the Garmin 1490tv in action below.

Comments (5)

adam @ June 28, 2010 at 12:59 pm | Permalink

Let’s just hope none of our listeners crash trying to watch the World Cup or Wimbledon on their sat navs!
Ash @ June 28, 2010 at 2:19 pm | Permalink

Does this thing really work with television on the move? My experiance of ICE is that most devices with a DTT tuner block it when the vehicle is travelling more than 3-5mph.
adam @ June 28, 2010 at 2:43 pm | Permalink

In fact, I’m told that it does indeed cut the TV picture when the vehicle is moving.
Marty from new yawk @ June 29, 2010 at 11:10 am | Permalink

I’m holding out for that chip to be surgically implanted in my skull so I can listen without the need for any device.
Paul @ June 30, 2010 at 6:24 am | Permalink

Extract from the Garmin website:
“Garmin recognise that there are occasions where the TV may be used in the rear of the car for children to watch TV or listen to radio. In this instance, Garmin have added a safe mode option.

The safe mode will prevent the user to look at the TV until the user agrees to bypass the safe mode knowing it will be used out of sight to the driver. By disabling safe mode, the rear passenger will be able to watch TV until the unit is power cycled. Thereafter the safe mode will default to on.”

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Tweets that mention Absolute Radio Now Available on Garmin Sat Nav – One Golden Square -- Topsy.com
@ June 28, 2010 at 3:26 pm

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Nick Piggott, OGS Labs, Absolute Radio Tech, Paul Brown, Dan Thornton and others. Dan Thornton said: Absolute Radio Now Available on Garmin Sat Nav: At first look the Garmin 1490tv looks like any other in-car Satell… http://bit.ly/arMoYe [...]