Nexus One has new traveling buddy, Car Dock now available for $55
The official accessories catalog for the Nexus One has always been thin on selections, with only the Desktop Dock and extra batteries available, but now there's one more choice for all those road warriors out there. Initially hinted at in a series of videos back when the Nexus One was still unreleased, the Car Dock is officially available from Google.
While there is nothing terribly new and exciting about the design, which appears to not support the use of a third-party silicone or hard-shell case, the way it interfaces with the phone is slick. Using Bluetooth connectivity, the Nexus One automatically transmits audio to the Car Dock's built-in speaker upon insertion and opens the Car Home app that is standard on every Nexus One. The Car Home app allows for easy selection of the built-in Maps and Navigation, Voice Search, Contacts, and Music functions, all with a large finger-friendly interface.
With the low cost of the dock, and the even lower cost (free) of Google Maps, it must be hard for the CEOs of PND companies like Garmin and TomTom to sleep at night, especially with their overpriced map updates each year. Hopefully in the future we'll see a version of the Nexus One Car Dock that's compatible with cases and also provides Bluetooth-to-FM audio, like my awesome Motorola T505 that I use daily.
[Android and Me | Car Dock PDF]
