TECHMOTION

by COLIN BATCHELOR

On arrival I was greeted by Matt and Gideon Carr, who is the Senior Software Development Engineer responsible for the development of the various programs and applications.  Basically Techmotion offer you a home PC for the car, including email and Internet facilities, with the added benefits of Satnav and in-car entertainment.  All of the connections on the unit are the same as found on the rear of any home pc and the units come pre programmed with all of the necessary software.

One of the main advantages Techmotion has is that when new software developments are made, customers will be able to download them free, directly to their in-car units, unlike some other ‘well known’ companies who charge for such facilities.

 

Note; the connections on this unit are exactly as you would find on any home pc.

All of the units are supplied with a standard USB keyboard, but for a small additional charge a backlit keyboard can be supplied so that passengers can use the unit at night to send emails or compose documents even whilst the vehicle is in motion and it is also possible to download at Broadband speeds as well (please see Techmotion website for details).  Techmotion allows you to configure any machine to your requirements by selecting the facilities that you wish to use, in this way you are only paying for what you need and any of the facilities can be added at a later date.  Techmotion do not limit you to what software you can install, and you can load any software you may have at home directly into the unit.  Techmotion’ experienced in-car entertainment engineers provide a full consultation service and manufacture personalised systems to meet each customers individual requirements.

The multimedia side of the system is what will interest the younger members of the family who, as we all know get bored very easily.  Matt and Gideon suggested to me that we all go for a spin in Matt’s Discovery, which has been fitted with the top of the range system.

The first thing that struck me was the size of the screens (7 inch front, and 8 inch rear) when fitted into the vehicle.  These screens are more than adequate for viewing the latest DVDs, or surfing the net, and the quality of the image is fantastic.  Matt did point out to me that these screens could be affected by sunlight (the same as a normal household TV can be) but during our test run the image stayed sharp and crystal clear.  As a security feature, these screens are easily removable.

I asked Matt if the system could support TV, to which he replied ‘yes’, but it was not deemed worth the extra cost to the customers as the picture quality could not be guaranteed owing to the variation in signal strengths at different locations.  The sound for the system comes directly from the vehicles own speaker system, which is good news, as the driver can control the volume settings so that they do not become distracting, and the rear screen also has a headphone socket so that the passengers can listen to a film or music tracks, thus leaving the driver to continue the journey in peace and quiet.  Headphones are not supplied with the units as they are a very personal item and customers may wish to try various headsets to find those that are best suited to their individual requirements.  When it comes to music this system wins every time, not only can you load any tracks that you wish (Matt currently has approx 3000) the system can automatically categorize them into different genres such as Jazz, Rock, Favorites, etc.  Access to the various playback functions is via the touch sensitive screens in the vehicle, which are fully adjustable.

Picture shows the touch screen music Interface.

The feature that interested me the most was the Satellite Navigation.  Techmotion chose to use Co-Pilot Live Laptop 7 in their systems and I have to say that the system is very user friendly, so much so that you can even use two way voice interaction thus enabling you to maintain full control of the vehicle at all times.  Key-in a postcode, house number, street, point of interest, and Co-Pilot Live will take you straight there giving you turn by turn instructions including street names via both the screens, and through voice commands.  The speed at which the system re-routes the vehicle is very impressive.  My own Discovery has a different sat nav system in it which can take up to 90 seconds to calculate a new route if you deviate from the original.  Obviously this is not an ideal situation if you are in the middle of London trying to find an address in the middle of the rush hour.  With Co-Pilot Live there was only a delay of literally a few seconds until it had a new route calculated and showing on the screen.  One aspect of the system that I wasn’t too impressed with was the clarity of the verbal instructions given by the machine (there are two other voices to choose from an American male and an American female).  This may just be me but I found it very electronic and quite hard to understand.  No doubt if I spent more time with the system I would find it easier the more I used it.

Many systems on sale now, require the use of many CD’s (usually at extra cost) to give coverage whilst in different countries.  Not so with this system, you get complete Western Europe wide mapping that will take you from your home to anywhere in Western Europe without the need for maps and the inevitable arguments between the navigator and the driver (why not let the navigator watch a film instead?).

Whilst in use the screen shows the actual road you are driving along and plots your position to show exactly where you are at any given time.  Detailed information on your progress is also displayed such as, current speed, heading, and estimated time of arrival and if you wish you can also plot in places of interest en route.

 

Matt and Gideon are always open to suggestions on how to improve the system.  One point that I made was with the system I have in my vehicle I get an audible warning when I am approaching a static speed camera.  I suggested to them that this would be an option that would interest many drivers.  They have taken this idea and are now looking into the planning and application of this feature.  Remember that as new features are developed customers will be able to download them directly from the Techmotion website free of charge.

Techmotion have taken in car entertainment to a new level.  Not only do you have DVD, Music, E Mail, Internet Access, Sat Nav, you also have a complete home PC in your vehicle.  Anything you use your home PC for, this system will also be capable of including on the higher spec models DVD burning.

When you consider how much it would cost to purchase these systems individually from different sources, the value for money that you get from Techmotion becomes clear.

A decent home PC can easily cost as much as this system, add onto that the cost of an in car DVD system and then a Sat Nav system and the savings soon add up. 

For people who need to keep in contact with their place of work whilst on the move the office aspect of the system becomes apparent, especially the ability to receive and send emails and various documents (higher spec models only) including PowerPoint presentations (see Techmotion website for details of connection).

Add to this old fashioned service where the customer comes first, and a willingness to adapt to suit customer needs, I think Techmotion have a winning combination.

 

Far left; Gideon Carr (Senior Software Development Engineer) and Matt Lawson (Managing Director)

I would like to thank Matt and Gideon for their assistance whilst compiling this article and for their permission to use images that are the property of Techmotion, for more information and technical specifications of the various systems please visit their website at www.techmotion.co.uk or call 01442 257858

Back to NEW PRODUCTS index

If you want your products featured here, please send us details to info@difflock.com