New toy, hardware mod ideas needed
I have purchased the following item. While I might like to use it as a GPS it sure sounds like I can also get it to do other things.
Any thoughts about an OS for a handheld?
from WOOT.com ($250)
We’ll level with you. This unit wasn’t actually made by a company called “HacVision”, and this model isn’t really called “Cease & Desist”. See, the original manufacturers were forced to change their name shortly after they birthed this eminently hackable GPS device. We can’t tell you who it was, but let’s just say a Major American Company objected to a vague resemblance between this manufacturer’s name and the name of one of the Major American Company’s flagship products, which we are not at liberty to divulge. Like Adam and Eve cast out of Eden after biting the forbidden apple, this insanely great GPS unit was set adrift in the unbranded commercial limbo of wind and ghosts.
But like any GPS worth its bits, it found its way back to do the jobs it was built to do. It just had too much to offer the world: pre-loaded 2006 Navteq maps, a 200mhz ARM920T Samsung processor with 64MB sdram, USB and USB-host ports, even a 20GB hard drive and MP3 player. And one more thing: check out the gigundoid 7”, 16:9, 800×480 LCD touchscreen. In fact, this mystery appliance is so burly with features and functions, it almost seems like a waste to dedicate them solely to navigation.
Good thing for you hacker types that it runs on Linux – that’s what we meant by “eminently hackable”. If you can look beyond the legal troubles in its past (we know hackers are sticklers for the law), you’ll find a wealth of potential applications for this trademark orphan. With a little bit of know-how and access to a lite OS like Windows CE, who knows what you could do with this thing? Call it a GPS unit, call it a media player, call it a potential mobile PC, call it a modder's ideal plaything. Just don’t call it by its birth name.
Warranty: 90 days
Features:
* Large 7” 16:9 touch-screen color display with 800×480 resolution
* Falcom JP7-t GPS chipset based on the SiRFstarIIe/LP
* OS: modified version of KLinux
* Samsung S3C2410 200Mhz ARM920T based processor
* Hitachi Travelstar 2.5” 4200RPM ATA Hard Drive
* 64MB Hynix SDRAM Built-in
* Sleek, blue LED backlit keypad
* Universal Mounting Bracket
* Turn by turn voice navigation
* Auto recalculate when miss a turn
* 2006 NAVTEQ US maps loaded on hard drive
* Updated firmware version 3.4 Build 1.7.3.24
* 2 Million points of interest including restaurants and gas stations
* Quick installation and removal from any windshield or smooth surface
* 20GB drive gives you lots of room for your MP3 collection
* Audio out cable allows you to connect to other devices with RCA inputs
* USB 2.0 and USB host ports
* Built-in speakers
* External antenna
* MP3 player
* Dimensions: 2.3 x 4.68 x 8.54 (LxHxW)
* Inputs: 1 x USB (PC), 1 x USB(Accessory), 1 x Barrel(Power)
* Outputs: 1 x RCA (Audio)
In the box:
* MN2607 GPS unit with updated firmware and maps
* External GPS antenna
* Winshield suction mount
* USB cable x 2
* Audio out cable
* Car lighter adaptor
* AC adaptor
Any thoughts about an OS for a handheld?
from WOOT.com ($250)
We’ll level with you. This unit wasn’t actually made by a company called “HacVision”, and this model isn’t really called “Cease & Desist”. See, the original manufacturers were forced to change their name shortly after they birthed this eminently hackable GPS device. We can’t tell you who it was, but let’s just say a Major American Company objected to a vague resemblance between this manufacturer’s name and the name of one of the Major American Company’s flagship products, which we are not at liberty to divulge. Like Adam and Eve cast out of Eden after biting the forbidden apple, this insanely great GPS unit was set adrift in the unbranded commercial limbo of wind and ghosts.
But like any GPS worth its bits, it found its way back to do the jobs it was built to do. It just had too much to offer the world: pre-loaded 2006 Navteq maps, a 200mhz ARM920T Samsung processor with 64MB sdram, USB and USB-host ports, even a 20GB hard drive and MP3 player. And one more thing: check out the gigundoid 7”, 16:9, 800×480 LCD touchscreen. In fact, this mystery appliance is so burly with features and functions, it almost seems like a waste to dedicate them solely to navigation.
Good thing for you hacker types that it runs on Linux – that’s what we meant by “eminently hackable”. If you can look beyond the legal troubles in its past (we know hackers are sticklers for the law), you’ll find a wealth of potential applications for this trademark orphan. With a little bit of know-how and access to a lite OS like Windows CE, who knows what you could do with this thing? Call it a GPS unit, call it a media player, call it a potential mobile PC, call it a modder's ideal plaything. Just don’t call it by its birth name.
Warranty: 90 days
Features:
* Large 7” 16:9 touch-screen color display with 800×480 resolution
* Falcom JP7-t GPS chipset based on the SiRFstarIIe/LP
* OS: modified version of KLinux
* Samsung S3C2410 200Mhz ARM920T based processor
* Hitachi Travelstar 2.5” 4200RPM ATA Hard Drive
* 64MB Hynix SDRAM Built-in
* Sleek, blue LED backlit keypad
* Universal Mounting Bracket
* Turn by turn voice navigation
* Auto recalculate when miss a turn
* 2006 NAVTEQ US maps loaded on hard drive
* Updated firmware version 3.4 Build 1.7.3.24
* 2 Million points of interest including restaurants and gas stations
* Quick installation and removal from any windshield or smooth surface
* 20GB drive gives you lots of room for your MP3 collection
* Audio out cable allows you to connect to other devices with RCA inputs
* USB 2.0 and USB host ports
* Built-in speakers
* External antenna
* MP3 player
* Dimensions: 2.3 x 4.68 x 8.54 (LxHxW)
* Inputs: 1 x USB (PC), 1 x USB(Accessory), 1 x Barrel(Power)
* Outputs: 1 x RCA (Audio)
In the box:
* MN2607 GPS unit with updated firmware and maps
* External GPS antenna
* Winshield suction mount
* USB cable x 2
* Audio out cable
* Car lighter adaptor
* AC adaptor
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Comments
-drasnor