Despite of the fact that the connected PND's market is still in its infancy and, right now, most users prefer basic, proven and straightforward products rather than innovative (yet not very widespread) solutions, there are still several manufacturers out there that keep pushing such products onto the market. And one such manufacturer is TeleNav, who launched in early November 2008 the Shotgun model, a two-way, Internet-connected GPS personal navigation device.

In order to obtain that very important satellite data, the device makes very good use of an Atlas III GPS chipset. In order to allow users to view all the available navigation functions, the PND has been equipped with a 4.3-inch TFT LCD display, which provides a 480 x 272 pixels resolution and a 16:9 aspect ratio. Speaking of which, it's interesting to mention the fact that the PND allows users to choose between 3D or 2D moving map views or 2D static map views.

Aside from the navigation itself, one of the most important features provided by this PND is the TeleNav Connected ServiceSM, which allows the device to monitor the traffic conditions along the drivers’ routes and search for congestion or incidents, which are then reported to the driver, along with an automatic re-routing option. The device also sports a very useful Wi-Fi locator, which allows users to find hotspots along their route.

Furthermore, the TeleNav Shotgun even displays an updated estimated time of arrival (ETA) based on traffic, speeds and distance. It also keeps content (maps and local search data) up-to-date, which means that drivers won't have to constantly download new maps. Plus, the company's also providing up to 11-million POIs. Plus, users can very simply add a new POI to their PND, either directly on the device or when browsing the web on their computer, via a special TeleNav plug-in for Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google toolbars.

The Shotgun is by no means a cheap product, since the PND itself retails for around 300 US dollars, not to mention the GPRS subscription service, which will most likely set users back another couple of hundred dollars.