Soon. As in, October-soon.

It looks like the first iPhone app to bring us real-time traffic alerts, and that comes with offline maps, will be the Navigon MobileNavigator (Earlier CNET review. iTunes Store link.)

The AT&T Navigator (CNET review) also has live traffic data, but takes more time to download maps as you go, and while initially free, has a $10 monthly fee. Navigon has a steep $90 price tag, and you’ll pay $20 or $25 for the live traffic upgrade, but if you use it for more than a year, it’s already cheaper than the AT&T version.

(I’d like to take a moment to congratulate both Navigon and AT&T for sensibly choosing just one business model – monthly fee, or upfront fee – instead of both. Too many companies these days get away with a charge upfront and also making you pay monthly. I’m sure they have their reasons, but as a consumer, it just seems wrong.)

I’ve already recently cut at least 5 minutes off my daily commute by utilizing traffic data of other drivers. This is a win/win, since bad traffic throws me in a rage faster than anything else, and I’m not the most defensive driver. If I can have a tool with me that warns me of upcoming traffic problems, and helps me navigate around them, so much the better.

On the other hand, it seems I’m always driving to the same ten or twelve places. I’m not what marketers like to call a “road warrior” (isn’t this just a euphemism for salesperson?), so I don’t think I can justify the cost just yet.

Have you used the Navigon or AT&T apps? What do you think?

Navigon GPS iPhone app to get live traffic, Dong Ngo, CNET, Sep. 16, 2009

Photo credit: borderlys

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Until now, I never paid much attention to the different companies and providers, but I’ve learned that not all GPS devices are equal. I’ve recently been tempted by the TomTom app for the iPhone, especially in connection with the car kit. Turn-by-turn directions, as well as charging my phone, and playing music through the car’s speakers? Yes, please.

But I don’t just go throwing around $100 at every iPhone app. I figured it was at least worth a little research, and I found that one of TomTom’s special attractors is something they call IQ Routes. In short: they gather anonymous user data to provide:

… the driving experience of millions of TomTom users into your maps, calculating your route based on actual speeds driven on roads compared to speed limits. With TomTom IQ Routes you always get the smartest, most efficient route. Saving you time, fuel and money by driving like a local.

Much the same as GMail’s method of eliminating spam e-mail, TomTom “crowdsources” traffic routes in order to save you time. The good news is that you can try out their route planner for free right now and see if it can shed any light on some of your normal routes.

When I started my new job last November, I spent weeks trying different scenarios to and from work, and thought I had it nailed, so I was shocked when I tried the route planner and found a new way home that saved me 5 minutes.

And as we all know, time is money, and in this case, fuel. Give it a try yourself and let us know in the comments how it works out for you.

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