Hitachi offers widescreen GPS in Australia

Here is a name that you didn’t know was in GPS business: Hitachi. They offer a couple of widescreen GPS navigation systems in Australia; namely the 4? MMP401, and the 5? MMP501 pictured above.
MMP501 offers AV IN connectivity so you can make use of the 5? anti glare screen in other ways such as watching DVDs. In addition it has bluetooth to pair with your bluetooth enabled phone allowing you to make and receive calls hands free. The GPS receiver on-board is SiRF Star III and the software offers fixed camera alerts and speed zone warnings as well as a detour memory. The battery is 2500mAh but we’re not sure how long it would last with a such a big screen.
MMP401 (pictured below) has pretty much the same set of features except that it has a 4? screen and the battery only has 900mAh capacity and it lacks bluetooth.
MMP501 costs 949AUD (840USD) and MMP401 costs 609AUD (540USD). But keep in mind Hitachi is preparing a second generation of sat nav systems (MMP501B and MMP401B) which will have a lower MSRP once they come out in mid-August.

Hitachi intros GPS-packing W53H cellular phone

Hitachi’s no stranger to GPS-laden cellphones, and it now looks to be upping the ante even further, with it recently introducing a new phone that seemingly aims to replace your car’s GPS entirely. As with its previous W51H model, the new W54H phone (also called the “Wooo”) sports a reasonably-sized screen (2.8-inches in this case) that’s able to flip around and cover up the keypad, along with 2 megapixel camera, a microSD slot, and a 1seg TV receiver. That mobile TV should look especially good on the phone’s OLED screen, as it apparently boasts a 10,000:1 contrast ratio. As you can see, it also comes with a stand to prop it up for easier viewing in your car, and the GPS software boasts voice input so you can keep your hands on the wheel. No word on pricing or availability just yet, but you can no doubt guess where it won’t be available.
Hitachi just announced W53H, a really sleek phone also known as Wooo. It’ll come in three colors; namely Japan Black, Nordic White, and Euro Purple. The main attraction with W53H is of course the slim body measuring only 14.2mm’s, metallic accents around the edge and the hinges, and super smooth surface. And of course there’s the 2.8? OLED TV like screen that covers a big section of the inside without losing space near the edges. It has a 10000:1 contrast ratio for bringing the best image quality from any angle.
W53H can accept microSD cards, on which it can record videos almost up to 2 hours with a 2GB card. It also has a 2MP camera, an infra red port, and even a TV receiver which can you watch up to 4.5 hours after a full charge. And finally of course it has GPS, or why else would it be on Navigadget? The navigation software on Wooo can guide to destination both with sound and vibration and in addition you can search for a place via voice input.
It is for pre-order in Japan currently