A phone that takes you places

The new Nokia 6110 navigator is probably the first smart phone with not just a GPS (Global Positioning System), but with built-in satellite navigation. That is, besides every other function of a smart phone—camera, music player, internet browser, Bluetooth, organiser, et al—it can guide you to drive or walk from point A to point B in eight Indian cities (for a price, you can download maps for cities anywhere else, too). Using the GPS navigation system is a breeze as the 6110, a slider phone, has a single button operation for the system. The device engages with satellites to find your current position and, if you enter the address of your destination besides the mode of transportation (drive or walk), it can visually as well as aurally guide you to where you want to go.

The navigator function works well—this writer tested it in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore—and you can use an easy-mount holder to attach it to the windscreen of your car. The voice guidance comes not with an alien westernised accent but with what seems like Indian voices speaking in English or Hindi and is fairly easy to follow. The maps—supplied by Navteq, the Geographical Information Systems (GIS) company that recently merged with Nokia—are fairly accurate although in some of the NCR areas, like Gurgaon, the details are absent.

As well as navigation, the 6110 does everything else fairly well. Its audio quality is superb and it has a good music player (although the earphones that come with it are ordinary). The message reader facility, which enables you to listen to your text or e-mail messages read out, is a nifty new feature but the software’s encounters with some words and names can be quite hilarious!

All in all, for around Rs 14,500 (plus Rs 390 for a carcharger and Rs 2,070 for the easy mount holder), you get a neat little phone that’s also a guide map.

— SN