Navdy, I Want One. Now.
During a short afternoon break today, I nerded out with a couple of friends about [online back-up](http://www.marco.org/2014/11/04/synology-backups). The conversation turned into a Who’s the Biggest Nerd contest and for once, I lost. The winner came up with [Navdy](http://www.navdy.com). If you don’t know what it is, I’m sure you’ll want once after reading this post.
Navdy is a startup that focuses on connected car technology. Their first product is a heads-up display that not only projects information about your car or turn-by-turn navigation, but also smartphone notifications (e.g. text messages, calls). You can even control music streaming from your phone. The best part? It can be activated by voice and/or gesture and works with iOS and Android. But don’t take my word for it, just watch their video.
In a space where in-car technological innovations are bound to the life cycle of vehicles (i.e. five to seven years), Navdy is a breath of freash air. It also adds to the exciting stack of useful [apps](https://www.motoringfile.com/2014/09/24/wrr-interview-glympse/) and [devices](https://www.motoringfile.com/2014/09/16/mf-prereview-automatic/) we now have at our disposal. Is it actually better than the F56’s heads-up display? On paper, it sure seems like it, and a successful [$2.4 million kickstater campaign along with a $6.5 million seed funding](http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/02/navdy-raises-6-5m-for-its-in-car-heads-up-display-platform/) confirm consumers’ interest for the technology.
Interestingly enough, the guy in the video is the same person from [1Password’s](http://vimeo.com/88901304). If that’s any indication, Navdy might actually turn out to be as successufl as [AgileBits](https://agilebits.com).
Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comment section what you think about the product.
<p>The device looks pretty big. And you will need to have a wire running to your OBDII port to power the thing. I was excited when their ad first popped up on my FB feed. But the more I looked at it and thought about it the less enticing it became. For sure it’s a whole lot cheaper than MINI’s HUD though. And if you have multiple vehicles you can move it between them.</p>
<p>Don’t want and don’t care. Last thing any of us need is a stream of Facebook notifications popping up during driving. I do understand that the car is the ultimate convergence platform, but I like to keep my driving and my connectivity separate.</p>
<p>And as far as nerdy goes, I don’t think tech gizmos are the right metric. A nerd would do something like talk about the mathematical ewuivilance of packet switching network topologies and the freeway system with total conviction, actually thinking this will get him or her laid at happy hour!</p>
<p>Looks really interesting. Personally I try to keep all 3rd party tech out of my car for experience ad aesthetic purposes. And it looks huge. But… it’s a great idea.</p>
<p>I try to keep all 3rd party tech out of my car for the smash & grab risk that comes with it.</p>
<p>Ordered. Despite skipping the HUD for my F56 (which I’m picking up on Saturday), this seems the perfect device for my wife who spends about 90 days on the road travelling for work. As long as she can find the OBD II port on her rental cars, this will make for the perfect road-warrior product-in-a-purse.</p>
<p>On a side note, thanks a lot for leaving a review of White Roof Radio on iTunes. We really appreciate your kind words!</p>
<p>If it helps bring new listeners or pump your tires to the point you want to keep doing what you’re doing, then I consider it a selfish act on my part, as I want WRR to go on forever. Thank you for doing what you do. Now get on that full review for Automatic! ;)</p>
<p>Review coming up by the end of November :)</p>
<p>LIES! ;)</p>
<p>That guy in the video is Adam Lisagor, who runs Sandwich Video. All of their promo videos are fun to watch, and generally promoting really awesome products: <a href="http://sandwichvideo.com" rel="nofollow ugc">http://sandwichvideo.com</a></p>
<p>Thanks for pointing it out!</p>
<p>I’m not a fan of add-on driver distraction, regardless of how “exciting” it may be to txt and tweet with voice commands and hand gestures (taking hand off the wheel) while operating your car.</p>
<p>Just offering an alternative perspective.</p>
<p>It seems big, but if it comes in at the specified 130mm x 140mm that’s actually not too bad. You can Bluetooth to the OBDII and run separate 12v power to the display which would not be onerous. Having heads-up nav, vehicle, and call info would be superior to taking eyes off the road to glance down at instruments or the phone connect button. And for those living in fear and quick to condemn over pop-up Facebook, Twitter, and text notifications (which I agree are negatives), might I suggest all that is needed is a little self-control and the app-specific “off” feature.</p>
<p>There are other heads up units on the market, none with this set of features though. The size is driven by the projection optics, to shrink them isn’t hard, but it adds a lot of cost to the optical train. In factory installations, all this bulk is buried in the dash.</p>
<p>I wonder how much of the appeal is generational… I’m a tiny bit over 50, and I want less and less in my cars that I drive for driving pleasure, not more and more. (The convergance tech goes into the family hauler. I do like it for long trips and the like.)</p>