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"Magellan® Reinvents Handheld GPS with New Triton™ Handheld Series Featuring Industry-First National Geographic Alliance

August 07, 2007

Company: Magellan Navigation Inc.

Industry: GPS

Location: Santa Clara, CA, United States of America

 

New Design and Unparalleled, Simple User Interface Make Handheld GPS Accessible to Anyone Who Wants to Navigate

 

Magellan announced today the introduction of its new Triton series of portable handheld GPS receivers that provide outdoor enthusiasts with the most advanced design and navigation experience available. Ready to use out of the box with built-in base maps, the Triton 2000 features a newly redesigned user interface with color, 2.7-inch QVGA touch screen that enables the easy selection of routes, waypoints and other features. It also includes a built-in 2MP camera, SD card slot, electronic compass and barometer, speaker/microphone and flashlight.

 

Santa Clara,CA--Magellan, a leading global innovator of outdoor and vehicle navigation solutions, announced today the introduction of its new Triton series of portable handheld GPS receivers that provide outdoor enthusiasts with the most advanced design and navigation experience available.

 

The Triton series of six new units is the first line of rugged, handheld navigation devices designed with a new user interface flow and screen graphics making Triton easier to use and more accessible to a greater population of outdoor enthusiasts. The Triton series is significantly easier to use than previous versions of any outdoor GPS device, creating new opportunities to reach people who enjoy outdoor activities – an estimated market of 120 million people in the U.S. alone – but may not have used GPS in the past because of complexity, restricted features, and the limitations of available detailed outdoor maps. In 2008, more than 6 million outdoor GPS units are expected to be sold worldwide.

 

The full-featured Triton units offer full-color, touch-screen controls and the ability to record and attach audio to waypoint files. Other features unique to Triton include a built-in 2MB pixel camera, digital compass, barometer and built-in LED flashlight. All of these features are elegantly integrated and designed to create an overall experience not found in any handheld GPS today.

 

IPX-7 rated and water submersible, the Triton series delivers ruggedness required by even the most demanding outdoor enthusiast.

 

As a result of an alliance between Magellan and National Geographic, the Triton series is the first outdoor handheld to offer users access to downloadable National Geographic topographic maps. This alliance with Magellan marks the first time that National Geographic maps will be made available on a handheld GPS device.

 

Additionally, Triton is the first Magellan handheld GPS to feature the new, free map and content management application, VantagePoint™, which enables users to easily upgrade and share information to and from their Magellan units. VantagePoint will allow Triton users to download additional maps onto their devices, as well as upload stored treks, waypoints and other recorded media.

 

National Geographic Maps

 

Magellan Triton is the first device to offer full, onscreen compatibility, usage and display of National Geographic’s maps. National Geographic offers its 28 titles of TOPO! outdoor recreation mapping software titles (covering all 50 states), which include five layers of maps – from National Geographic Atlas maps to the most detailed U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) topographic maps.

 

In addition, Triton is the first handheld GPS that allows adventurers to download maps and waypoints from TOPO! and from National Geographic’s new Weekend Explorer 3D, which includes 21 titles for major urban centers and surrounding recreational areas.

 

Users can now have Magellan’s topographic maps and National Geographic maps layered on one device for a complete best-in-class mapping experience.

 

VantagePoint

 

VantagePoint from Magellan is the first desktop application that lets people manage and expand their GPS experience. This powerful, free tool lets users easily upgrade and share information to and from their Magellan units. VantagePoint will enable the Triton user to download additional maps onto their Tritons, as well as upload stored tracks, waypoints and other media information.

 

“The new Triton series of handheld receivers was designed to bring handheld GPS to a new and expanded audience with the kind of experience our team of outdoor enthusiasts have dreamed of – a rugged GPS navigation device with a full-color touch screen, friendly user interface, built-in camera and media recorder to capture visited locations, and for the first time ever, access to National Geographic maps on a handheld device,” said Stig Pedersen, senior director of marketing for Magellan. “The Triton is the ideal backpack or tackle box companion for hikers and backpackers, hunters and fishermen, boaters, and geocachers. With access to free, downloadable VantagePoint software to sync together additional maps and multimedia applications, the Triton devices are the easiest and most versatile outdoor navigation solutions available.”

 

The penetration of GPS devices in the core outdoor segments of backpacking, hiking and hunting remains at relatively low level of about 5 percent. With its improved ease-of-use, increased feature set and multi-media capabilities, Magellan Triton is aimed at increasing market penetration.

 

Magellan will be donating a portion of the proceeds from Triton sales through December 31, 2007, to the National Park Foundation to assist in its efforts to help sustain the conservation, preservation and enjoyment of America’s national treasures. Additionally, Magellan will be donating 500 new Triton units to the National Park Foundation to use as needed to support its programs.

 

Triton 2000

 

The Triton 2000, available in North America in September and in Europe in October, was designed by Magellan’s product development team of outdoor enthusiasts to be the ultimate handheld device for any adventurer, from hiker to outdoorsman. Ready to use out of the box with built-in base maps, the Triton 2000 features a newly redesigned user interface with color, 2.7-inch QVGA touch screen that enables the easy selection of routes, waypoints and other features. It also includes a built-in 2MP camera, SD card slot, electronic compass and barometer, speaker/microphone and flashlight.

 

Additionally, the Triton 2000 features uploadable maps using VantagePoint software, pointer and compass screen, and is waterproof to IPX-7 standards. The unit will retail for $499.

 

Triton 1500

 

Similar to the 2000, the Triton 1500 is features a 2.7-inch QVGA color touch screen featuring built-in base maps, uploadable maps using VantagePoint software, SD card slot, speaker and microphone, flashlight, and is waterproof to IPX-7 standards. Ideal for sportsmen, the unit will retail for $399.

 

Triton 500

 

The more compact-sized Triton 500 features a 2.2-inch QVGA color screen, SD card slot to enable users to install and save maps and data onto a flash card, uploadable maps using VantagePoint software, built-in base maps, an electronic compass and barometer, and is waterproof to IPX-7 standards. The backcountry backpacker will appreciate the Triton 500, which will retail for $249.

 

Triton 400

 

Similar to the 500, the Triton 400 includes 2.2-inch QVGA color screen, SD card slot, built-in base maps, pointer and compass screen, and is waterproof to IPX-7 standards. The Triton 400 also features uploadable maps using VantagePoint software. The unit will retail for $199.

 

Triton 300

 

In addition to a 2.2-inch QVGA color screen, built-in base maps, waterproof to IPX-7 design, pointer and compass screen, the Triton 300 features uploadable maps using VantagePoint software and 10 MB of memory for map storage. The unit will retail for $149.

 

Triton 200

 

The Triton 200 is the base model in the series, and includes a 2.2-inch QVGA color screen, built-in base maps, waterproof to IPX-7 design, pointer and compass screen, and runs on two AA batteries. An ideal companion for the weekend hiker, the unit will retail for $129.

 

The Triton series is expected to ship to all major U.S. retailers in September and in Europe in October. Available accessories for Triton products will include bicycle and swivel mounts, vehicle mounts, and carrying cases.

 

About Magellan

Magellan is a leader in the outdoor, vehicle navigation, survey, GIS and OEM GPS navigation and positioning markets. Recognized as an industry innovator, the company is the creator of the award-winning Magellan RoadMate® series portable car navigation systems, Maestro™, CrossoverGPS™, the Magellan Triton™ outdoor handheld navigation devices, the Hertz NeverLost car navigation system and ProMark™, the best-selling single frequency GPS survey product line on the market. Magellan is privately held and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., with European headquarters in Carquefou, France. For more information on Magellan, visit www.magellangps.com."

 

So......old Magellan is exiting the handheld GPSr market is they? LOL

 

Bulky no doubt. ;-)

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The full-featured Triton units offer full-color, touch-screen controls and the ability to record and attach audio to waypoint files. Other features unique to Triton include a built-in 2MB pixel camera, digital compass, barometer and built-in LED flashlight. All of these features are elegantly integrated and designed to create an overall experience not found in any handheld GPS today.

 

Don't like the sound of that! I have yet to come across a touch type screen that is durable enough to be used primarily in the great outdoors. Still, it sounds interesting and i'd like to take a look at it before making a call.

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I wouldn't buy one for 6 months to a year. New product lines always have bugs in them. It will take them a while to work them out and there will be alot of calls to their customer support. It might be a hard to get help on a new unit that they aren't familiar with. I must say though that it looks like a classy little gadget. I'm going to wait to get one and read all the threads here to see what comes of it.

 

VantagePoint sounds alot like Mapsend Manager.

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Maybe this will silence those that claimed Magellan was getting out of the hand held GPS market

 

But I am sure some will find faults in them before they have a chance to really look at them and handled them.

 

Now this is something I have seen cachers ask for

 

As a result of an alliance between Magellan and National Geographic, the Triton series is the first outdoor handheld to offer users access to downloadable National Geographic topographic maps. This alliance with Magellan marks the first time that National Geographic maps will be made available on a handheld GPS device.

 

A real topo map in a hand held GPS.

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Looks great and I will of course get one when available.

 

Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

 

Microphone and speaker: Sounds like it will play sound/music files. Good for verbal notes in the field.

 

Mapping flexibility: Great potential.

 

Some interesting possibilities for Mystery Caches: provide geocoded photo, sound files, custom treasure map......

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I have yet to come across a touch type screen that is durable enough to be used primarily in the great outdoors.

I would rate the iPhone touch screen as being very durable and scratch resistant.

Yeah, and you've had it all of one month...

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not to be negative, but this sounds like the iphone: marketing. They want people to say 'ohhhh it has a touch screen it must be good'. or 'wow it even has a flash light'. To me it sounds like a fragile unit and I'll just stick with my 60CSx.

 

Same here. And, instead of coming out with a new and improved product, Magellan should revamp their abysmal customer service policy, which seems to be one of the driving factors in more Garmin products being purchased. Why buy a product that the company won't stand behind?

Edited by Always & Forever 5
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Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

I'm not so sure. I've heard that HP holds a patent on cameras that automatically geocode with a built in GPS.

 

--Marky

There is a Nikon the will place Coordinates in a photo, but is one of the high end pro SLRs, not in my budget.

I do not see myself buying a GPS for a 2 mega pixel camera or a recorder. I will pick up one of the mid range models.

 

To bad Salt Lake city is so far away or I would ot to the Outdoor Retailer show to check them out.

 

Edit because I should not type BC (Before coffee) :(

Edited by JohnnyVegas
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Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

I'm not so sure. I've heard that HP holds a patent on cameras that automatically geocode with a built in GPS.

 

--Marky

I'm not so sure. Sony has an accessory out for it's cameras that records your global position whenever you shoot a photo. Others on working on similar technology. :(
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Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

I'm not so sure. I've heard that HP holds a patent on cameras that automatically geocode with a built in GPS.

 

--Marky

There is a Nikon the will place Coordinates in a photo, but is one of the high end pro SLRs, not in my budget.

Yeah, I talked to Jeremy about this at GW5. He had that Nikon and was snapping pictures like crazy. However, that camera does NOT have a built in GPS. It just has an interface to accept an NMEA datastream. Jeremy had a Garmin Geko mounted on the flash shoe with a little cable running to the camera's interface port. Jeremy's the one who told me that the reason you don't see any cameras with a BUILT IN gps is because of HP's patent.

 

--Marky

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Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

I'm not so sure. I've heard that HP holds a patent on cameras that automatically geocode with a built in GPS.

 

--Marky

There is a Nikon the will place Coordinates in a photo, but is one of the high end pro SLRs, not in my budget.

Yeah, I talked to Jeremy about this at GW5. He had that Nikon and was snapping pictures like crazy. However, that camera does NOT have a built in GPS. It just has an interface to accept an NMEA datastream. Jeremy had a Garmin Geko mounted on the flash shoe with a little cable running to the camera's interface port. Jeremy's the one who told me that the reason you don't see any cameras with a BUILT IN gps is because of HP's patent.

 

--Marky

Magellan may be paying a royalty to HP to use the technology, or they could have found another wauy to interface the GPS and the Camera.

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Camera: Water proof=great. Will it automatically geocode the photo? It should.

I'm not so sure. I've heard that HP holds a patent on cameras that automatically geocode with a built in GPS.

 

--Marky

There is a Nikon the will place Coordinates in a photo, but is one of the high end pro SLRs, not in my budget.

Yeah, I talked to Jeremy about this at GW5. He had that Nikon and was snapping pictures like crazy. However, that camera does NOT have a built in GPS. It just has an interface to accept an NMEA datastream. Jeremy had a Garmin Geko mounted on the flash shoe with a little cable running to the camera's interface port. Jeremy's the one who told me that the reason you don't see any cameras with a BUILT IN gps is because of HP's patent.

 

--Marky

Magellan may be paying a royalty to HP to use the technology, or they could have found another wauy to interface the GPS and the Camera.

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It'll be interesting to see, but in general I hate it when a company takes a product and "mashes" 3 other products into it. If I want a digital camera, I'll buy one (the ones in phones suck) and if I want a GPS, I'm not looking for a flashlight. Why don't they just build a phone and a PDA into the unit and be done with it? :(

 

DCC

 

Check out the different models.

 

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_200.pdf

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_300.pdf

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_400.pdf

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_500.pdf

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_1500.pdf

* http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/Triton_2000.pdf

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That is a pretty nice gps. I don't know that I want or need my gps to have a flashlight though. Like others, I have reservations about a touch screen outdoor gps. Touch screen is fine in the car, but out camping or hiking, putting it in your pocket or attaching it to your pack with a clip means the unit might recognize the screen being bumped as commands. Plus touch screen just isn't durable enough yet, but this is changing with the flexible displays being developed now.

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Its really nice to see that they all use AA batteries(and only 2 unlike the explorist XL), and looks like all but the 200 have a USB PC connect.

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Does anyone know if this unit can actually hold all the log data as well? If it will be able to provide paperless caching from within the GPS unit, I do not think I will be able to resist trading in my little Explorist 200.

 

If it can hold the logs, would filesize/memory become a problem?

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one thing to think about battery life and what kind of batteries

That was going to be my next question. With all those features, how long will 2-AA's last?

 

If you can view full cache info (description, type, hint, size, a few logs, etc.) mined from a GPX file and they're semi-reasonably priced, then one of these is going on my Christmas list!

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Looks interesting. I'm interested to see how Magellan handles the inevitable bugs that will show up in the first few months. As for me, I have separate gadgets that overall are more functional. I really like that this thing can use NG Topo! maps, and I hope this feature starts appearing in other GPSrs. For now, what I have does what I want and more, and by the time I'm ready to upgrade, I'm hoping that ALL of those features will be appearing in an individual device (not just some of them).

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Does anyone know if this unit can actually hold all the log data as well? If it will be able to provide paperless caching from within the GPS unit, I do not think I will be able to resist trading in my little Explorist 200.

 

If it can hold the logs, would filesize/memory become a problem?

 

I don't think size would be an issue, because my palm holds my closest 500 caches with descriptions and the latest 5 logs in under 1MB. If it holds cache data, I want one. If not, I really don't think it's worth it.

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Nice to see that they reference geocoding the pictures. That's pretty cool. I will probably go ahead and get the 2000. Now, if I could just get them to give Robert the interface details so that gpsbabel will already talk to it before I buy one. :blink:

 

--Marky

I think I am going to get the Triton 400,

I have a 4MP and a 6.1MP camera, I have no need for 2MP

I do not need an electronic compass, I carry a real one.

No need for a voice recorder.

So I will get off cheaper than Marky :blink: I will the money saved for some good sox. :P

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I think I am going to get the Triton 400,

I have a 4MP and a 6.1MP camera, I have no need for 2MP

I do not need an electronic compass, I carry a real one.

No need for a voice recorder.

So I will get off cheaper than Marky :laughing: I will the money saved for some good sox. :o

I think I am going to get the Triton 500. I agree with the features of the 400. don't need that other stuff, but I like getting 3 dimensional positioning, and a compas that actually works.

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I am curious why both the 500 and the 2000 have a barometer, but the 1500 doesn't. It strikes me as an odd feature packaging.

 

1500 and 2000 are larger units then the 3 digit series. I guess they kept it off the 1500 for those who want to save a few bucks but still get the larger unit. And some will want a smaller unit with the feature. More choices... always a good thing.

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1500 and 2000 are larger units then the 3 digit series. I guess they kept it off the 1500 for those who want to save a few bucks but still get the larger unit. And some will want a smaller unit with the feature. More choices... always a good thing.

No, wait, that's not quite right. There are features that make the 1500 attractive, but "decontenting" barometer is in no way justified by the form factor, particularly that the 500 has it. I certainly have a use for a larger screen, but I have none for a 2MP camera in a GPS unit (or my cell phone), and that is the cost of getting a barometer with the larger screen. Therefore it does not give me "more choices" because there is no equivalent unit with a barometer. So, no, it is not "a good thing".

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1500 and 2000 are larger units then the 3 digit series. I guess they kept it off the 1500 for those who want to save a few bucks but still get the larger unit. And some will want a smaller unit with the feature. More choices... always a good thing.

No, wait, that's not quite right. There are features that make the 1500 attractive, but "decontenting" barometer is in no way justified by the form factor, particularly that the 500 has it. I certainly have a use for a larger screen, but I have none for a 2MP camera in a GPS unit (or my cell phone), and that is the cost of getting a barometer with the larger screen. Therefore it does not give me "more choices" because there is no equivalent unit with a barometer. So, no, it is not "a good thing".

I equate the 200-500 as upgrades to the current eXplorist line, in a new form factor. So the T500=eX600

 

then, there is an even higher level that bring in the touch screen. Only 2 models to choose from, the T1500 for those who want to dip their toes is the river, and the T2000 (wonder if they have a thing for terminator :laughing: ) with all of the bells and whistles.

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Reliable information from NG Topo says that their deal with Magellan is not exclusive......so what does that tell you?
That NG is smart. :laughing:

NG has been trying to get one of the GPS companies it use their Topo maps for years.

Magellan is the first one of enable their products to use NG topo, other mayfallow or may not.

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Reliable information from NG Topo says that their deal with Magellan is not exclusive......so what does that tell you?
That NG is smart. :laughing:

NG has been trying to get one of the GPS companies it use their Topo maps for years.

Magellan is the first one of enable their products to use NG topo, other mayfallow or may not.

I bet that Garmin won't. It would look like a "me too" move if they did. Plus they make a ton of money on their own maps.
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